Adding weight to rhythm guitars.

[Jordon]

Hey all,

I started roughing out mixes for my band's EP, and I wanted to show you guys a technique I use to add weight to rhythm guitars.

So, in the following clips, we have 4 rhythm tracks. A Bogner Uberschall and Overloud TH2 on the left, and a Diezel VH4 CH3 and another setting in Overloud on the right. Guitars were (left-to-right) a Les Paul baritone, an EBMM Silo baritone, the Silo again, and a PRS Mushok baritone.

Then there are 2 "sludge" tracks, one on each side. Basically, you want low end. Fuzz and balls, and that's it. Try to get some definition, but we're not aiming for a tight tone on these tracks. Go crazy with it. I like chaining several fuzz and dirt boxes into a high gain amp. The performance must be tight, and then pocketed to get the effect.

FULL MIX

MIX WITH SLUDGE TRACKS MUTED

SOLO'D RHYTHM TRACKS

SOLO'D SLUDGE TRACKS

In terms of editing, I usually like to lock things in as tight as possible. Cutting out any noise between notes/passages so that the sludge tracks don't sustain past the rhythms. Chugging parts/rakes are edited to sound almost like a stutter. This helps to add impact and definition to the chugging parts in the rhythm tracks. You have to go by feel, though. Each part/song will require a different approach. It can take a long time, but it's worth it in the end.

What we are looking for is something that you don't notice until it's pulled out of the mix. These sludge tracks should never stand out, unless it's a specific effect. Doing it this way allows you to dial in the body of the rhythm guitars, and allows you to accent certain passages just by adding or subtracting weight with the sludge tracks.

And that's about it.

Thanks guys.

-Jordon

 

[JeffTD]

I definitely think the mix sounds better with the sludge tracks in there and I 100% back adding an extra (5th+6th) pair of rhythm guitars into heavy parts, but I think the tones could be sorted out better on the rhythm and sludge end to be honest. Compared to the bass and drums in this mix the guitars end up sounding kind of small and ratty, like stock 90s Civic speakers with a huge sub in the back or something. Are these the final tones you'll be using or could you reamp again? I think you could get a better starting point and filling it in after that would be even cooler.

 

[Jordon]

These are the finals. I know what you mean about them sounding thin, but the goal from the begging of tracking was to make sure everything had its own spot in the mix. There's a shitload of accompanying instrumentation that isn't in what you're hearing, as I wanted to focus on just the rhythm guitars in this example. Throughout preproduction, we tried a lot of combinations of amps and guitars, dialing in something that wouldn't get lost , while still allowing the rest of the instrumentation to come through in the final mix.

I can reamp in the end, if I need to, though.

 

[Gar23]

Would it be possible to get a look (or a description) of the EQ you used on the sludge tracks? Or is it just a LPF and a HPF bracketing the lower mids?

 

[~BURNY~]

I've been wanting to try something similar with my Boss HM-2 on the grind tracks for a while. I need to try that shit.

 

[Manicompression]

Cool post man. You have mentioned this in the past so its really cool to hear it with examples.

 

[ArthurD]

Just add this to your strap and you will be fine.

=D

I liked the sludge tracks more on these...
Try to add a ressonant hipass, see if it helps!
Maybe using a multband compressor to increase the lows when triggering the treshhold?

 

[amarshism]

Yeh I do this all the time. Usually use a different guitar and rig with heaps of low end. Used it on all the breakdowns on hollow planet.

 

[Jordon]

Would it be possible to get a look (or a description) of the EQ you used on the sludge tracks? Or is it just a LPF and a HPF bracketing the lower mids?

Just LP and HP so that they sit properly (I sometimes have to automate the filters for different sections), then get rid of any weird resonances. Then tailor the low-mids to fit the rhythms. Very, very minimal EQ'ing on these. For me, it's all about just creating a wall of noisy shit, and getting the performance and editing right, haha.

 

[AEL89]

what some of the dudes mixing film soundtracks do is use a subharmonic generator on electric guitars... between 70 and 100hz. DBX 120 is usually the weapon of choice but you can get a similar effect with RBass or MaxxBass. Try quadtracks mic'd with a D112 too. It's all about that chunk down low.

 

[botus99]

Add a D112, D6, Beta52, etc in the mic configuration and automate it in when needed. I'm a big fan of recording guitars with a subkick mic and blending it in when you need more weight.

 

[Jordon]

what some of the dudes mixing film soundtracks do is use a subharmonic generator on electric guitars... between 70 and 100hz. DBX 120 is usually the weapon of choice but you can get a similar effect with RBass or MaxxBass. Try quadtracks mic'd with a D112 too. It's all about that chunk down low.

I've never thought of throwing the DBX120 on guitar...Hmmmm....

Botus99: I was considering adding the e902 or beta 52 to the setup. I may try that tonight for the hell of it.

 

[cfh11]

I like to blend in a really chunky low gain guitar track in the center sometimes to bring out the attack a bit more