First Cubase 5 mix - Nick Crow 8505/Gearbox

[Splat88]

Greetings. I just remixed a song from the ground up with Cubase 5 and I have augmented my usual 4 guitar Gearbox guitar setup with 2 tracks of Nick Crow's 8505 Lead plugin > Awesometime impulses, and two tracks of Gearbox a little lower in the mix. For the first time in a long time, I'm not using any Curve EQ on the guitars which is really liberating. One 8505 is driven with a TSS TS9 VST and the other is driven with the Solo C amp sim.

This is not a new song, but how does it sound with this slightly new setup?

http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/868701/Clouds%20at%204%20Vox%20Stems%20master.mp3

Here's a 2nd mix with an L2 limiter which really tames the drums out.

http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/868701/Clouds%20at%204%20Vox%20Stems%20master%20L2.mp3


Here's the mix with all additional instrumentation completed.
http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/868701/Clouds%20at%204.mp3

 

[-Loco-]

reminds me of tool a little bit! sounds awesome man, i've not tried Solo C would you recommend it?

 

[onqel]

It sounds huge! I think this is a very, very nice mix
The guitars are sweet and inyourface, but I would give them 2% more distance
I want more!

 

[PostMortem1666]

Guitars sound great!!

 

[giubis]

Very good work

 

[abyssofdreams]

Dude that rocks!

 

[Ermz]

Sounds sick as usual on my cans man. You definitely made it work for you.

If I had to pick really hard and criticise I would say that the mids are a little bit on the flat/rough side for me. Seems to be a quality inherent to the amp sim (had the same qualities when I toyed with it). The mix together could use just a little more glue for me. Maybe to be hit a bit harder with the mix bus compressor to glue the drums to the body of the track. Hard to say, but there is a bit of separation there.

 

[abyssofdreams]

Guitars are bit too loud and "dull" at times. They drown the drums/bass too much

 

[Chris_P_Critter]

NICE! I love the vocal harmony in the beginning. Sounds really good dude!

 

[Splat88]

Thanks everyone!

reminds me of tool a little bit! sounds awesome man, i've not tried Solo C would you recommend it?

Yeah, Solo C is awesome. I'm just using it here as a driver for the 8505 though, but the Solo C can definitely stand up to the 8505.

Sounds sick as usual on my cans man. You definitely made it work for you.

If I had to pick really hard and criticise I would say that the mids are a little bit on the flat/rough side for me. Seems to be a quality inherent to the amp sim (had the same qualities when I toyed with it). The mix together could use just a little more glue for me. Maybe to be hit a bit harder with the mix bus compressor to glue the drums to the body of the track. Hard to say, but there is a bit of separation there.

Thanks Ermz. I love your feedback. I hear you on the mids, and I'll have to address that. Its funny you mention the glue on the drums. I think they are poking out a bit in this track because I removed the drum bus GClip that I usually have on to keep all the transients in check. With it on, the drums are definitely much more contained in the pocket, but I'm trying to avoid using any clipping. I'll have to mess with the master buss comp, I used very little on this mastering job. What do you recommend as far as attack and release goes?

Guitars are bit too loud and "dull" at times. They drown the drums/bass too much

Yep, they are a bit loud. By dull, do you mean lacking some sparkle?

 

[Soundlurker]

Wow, sounds awesome here, music and production. The only slightly negative thing I would mention is the kick and snare sticking out a bit. Great work!

 

[iamandy]

dude, i'm fucking love this! you need to get your full length out already!! haha

 

[abyssofdreams]

Yep, they are a bit loud. By dull, do you mean lacking some sparkle?

Hmm, old strings?

Dunno, not really sparkle if you mean the very highend. I would say some more bite and the usual suspects when it comes down to definition.
Also I find they are a bit muddy on the lowmids.

 

[Soundlurker]

^ I would agree if it were a modern metal song, but it's not and I feel the tone really suits the music.

 

[Sickan]

Sounds really fucking sick!
Is that a slate kick? If it is, which one and how did you process it?

 

[Pablo333]

Matt, this is super awesome man!! well done.

You could try the waves ssl comp if you have it - go easy on it though as it can pump beyond 3db gain reduction.

So what made you use solo C and 8505 ? they sound fantastic in this mix - i've never had much luck with em.

Are you using solo c as a clean boost? or do you have it on the OD channel??

 

[Splat88]

Sounds really fucking sick!
Is that a slate kick? If it is, which one and how did you process it?

I did not use the Slate kick on this mix. I used the DFHS 2.0 kick straight up with no EQ and compression, then added a Drumagog trigger and used a kick sample that I ripped from the Deftones' Around the Fur (track 4 intro).

So what made you use solo C and 8505 ? they sound fantastic in this mix - i've never had much luck with em.

Are you using solo c as a clean boost? or do you have it on the OD channel??

Using the Solo C as a stomp really adds a cool midrange grind that's a lot thinner and meaner than using a TS9. I used the clean channel, but the crunch switch is engaged. The input volume was really low, so its a very clean boost.

 

[Splat88]

Here's another master with the dreaded L2 for the limiter. This really tames the drums down.

http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/868701/Clouds%20at%204%20Vox%20Stems%20master%20L2.mp3

 

[Black neon bob]

haha, fuckin hell this sounds stunning, every time i hear i just love this tune, compliment your singer as well man, what a voice.

The whole mix just works out and there is nothing i dont like about it, im not sure if i like the crow guitar tones better then the POD tones, but this is just great sounding Matt.

 

[lolzgreg]

I really like the second mix. The guitars sound wonderful. Your singer isas quite talented and sounds a little like Maynard mixed with Vinny Kavanaugh from Anathema with a twist.

Criticisms:

I would automate the whole mix more. The clean guitars in the beginning/the whole intro section has more energy than when the distorted guitars come in. You could even just automate the master bus fader up and down a db in these sections.