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Thread EQ best practices for particularly dense mixes?

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stevey_z

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1 Posted on 03/10/2015 at 07:37:13

I know there's never a one-size-fits-all approach, but are there certain best practices for volume automation and EQing when dealing with particularly dense mixes?

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Mike Levine

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2 Posted on 03/11/2015 at 10:49:05

I haven't heard of anything specific to volume automation in dense mixes (I assume you mean high-track count mixes), but as far as EQ, with so many elements going at once, carving out space sonically is important so all the tracks can be heard and don't mask each other. The mixing series that we're running now on the site has a lot of insights into EQing. For your question, I would take a look at this installment, https://en.audiofanzine.com/getting-started/editorial/articles/lifting-the-mask.html, if you haven't read it already.

stevey_z

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3 Posted on 03/16/2015 at 02:32:47

When I say dense mix, I mean when there are lots of instruments in the same range. At the moment, in particular, I'm working on a mix with lots of verse and chorus guitars that take up a lot of the mids, so I'm trying to see if there are certain things to do to help each guitar carve out its own space without fucking up the overall mix

Mike Levine

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4 Posted on 03/16/2015 at 06:29:51

Panning is one way to create space. EQing is another. Volume will tend to move stuff forward and back in the soundscape, and ambience will do the same to some extent. It's a little hard to say without hearing it, but one thing to also try is to use a low cut (high-pass) filter and cut out as much bottom as you can on the guitars. Cut right up to the point where they sound too thin and then back off a little. You might want to do that with the other instruments as well. Check out this article for more advice on that subject. https://en.audiofanzine.com/recording-mixing/editorial/articles/cut-the-mud-from-your-mix.html Good luck!

[ Post last edited on 03/16/2015 at 06:30:33 ]

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