Hello.. I'm not good at this mixing thing... Please help me :(

[Bandersnatch]

Hello all.

I came here hoping I could get some help with mixing some recordings that I'm doing and you know...actually make my terrible songs sound not so terrible.

I'll try to keep this short and to the point but please excuse me as I'm trying to include as much information as possible..

To first outline what I'm running with here, I'm using a Pod HD Pro into a Focusrite 8i6 via XLR. So far, so good. I've also got a Blue Spark mic that I use to mic up my 4x12 when I want to use that thing. My computer is one that I built myself that has a Core 2 Duo @ 3.16GHz, 6GB of RAM and I use Cubase Artist 7.

Now on to my problems.

On a recent recording, while tracking the guitars through the pod into the 8i6, I began to notice a rice krispies type of snap crackle and pop in the recording. I'm not sure what's the cause, though my suspicion in that I'm running too hot a signal into the 8i6. Since the Line 6 Advanced user manual says the best signal to noise ration is when the master on the Pod is at max, I have the master cranked, but the channel volume set at %50. So my first question is what could be the cause of the snap crackle and pop? I monitor my computron's RAM usage and I never go past %40 usage... so there's lots there for Cubase to use...

The second issue is that during the solo, the volume on the solo drops, the spikes, then drops, and so on... any idea what could have caused that?

You can listen to the recording here... though I still need to figure out how to boost the volume of audio mixdowns..

Thanks in advance for your help and if you need even MORE information, I'll be happy to provide it.

 

[bryan_kilco]

The "Rice Krispies" thing sounds like a latency or buffer setting issue to me. What is the buffer size set to?

 

[Bandersnatch]

I believe this is the info you're looking for...

 

[bryan_kilco]

So it appears you have it set to highest latency then? With your computer specs, I don't think that would be your issue then.

Have you tried disabling your wifi card before you record? I had an older Dell that would give me pops and crackles if the wifi was on.

 

[Bandersnatch]

I'm not sure if that would be the problem... I have other recordings that don't have any problems, it just seems to be this one.

I have 20 or so guitar tracks in the project, but I don't think that's the issue either as I just tried saving a copy of the project, then removed all the tracks recorded with the Pod, but still got the same problem. Although, removing those tracks did cause the solo guitar track to playback at a constant volume.

 

[jackbraglia]

actually make my terrible songs sound not so terrible.

why not start with writing better songs?

 

[Bandersnatch]

Well, there's good news and bad news.

Good News: After emailing Steinberg support and receiving some troubleshooting steps, I narrowed now the problem to either my speakers or interface. I reinstalled the driver for the 8i6 and using playback on a track recorded directly from the pod in a test project, the sound was clear as a bell.

Bad News: After discovering the problem was with the interface, I went back into the project I was working on and still heard the crackling noise only to figure that it was now part of the recording and all the parts that were recorded through the XLR connection will have to be re-recorded...

 

[Gar23]

I'll just drop a quick comment.

It's great that you are getting your gear figured out but as far as that mix that you posted goes it's really really static. Good mixes flow in ways that change as you listen to draw your attention to different things. Most of it is very subtle but it really makes the recording come alive. Think of it more like using your DAW as another instrument instead of just something to process audio.

Think of how you can process your audio in different ways. Making the listener more interested in the background, then the foreground. Left or Right. Narrow or Wide.

Hope that helps!

 

[Bandersnatch]

Thanks Gar! The reason why it's so static was because of the problem I was having with the interface. I've had the Scarlett since February and I'm pretty familiar with it at this point which is why I took so many troubleshooting steps. I'm also a computer programmer and have worked in a call center doing technical support for Apple products so I have a very technical background. As I said, I'm not very good at mixing audio and do need to read up on ways to make my mixes sound better and overall, more professional. I guess what I'm after is a way to get my mixes more balanced. I'm really new to EQ'ing instruments and using things like compressors, in fact, I know little to nothing about any of that which is what I'm trying to learn to become more proficient at. I've looked at videos on YouTube about how to EQ guitars for a good Metal sound, as I've read in Ermz's compendium, one person's preset is not necessarily a preset that will work for my own mixes. I'm using one EQ that I found how to do on YouTube and, through my PC speakers, it actually does seem to be working out well enough. I don't want to keep having to rely on someone else showing me how they EQ for a particular sound and would like to really figure out what each band in the EQ does and learn how to adjust them myself for my own particular usage.

If there's any material that you suggest reading through, I'll happily take the suggestions!

 

[Gar23]

- Mixing Metal at Home Series. This one is very good but the EQ settings he gives won't work with everything. Lately, i've found that shelves with some pretty severe cuts work best with rhythm guitars when cramming strings and synths in as well.

http://www.youtube.com/user/recordingrevolution -Recording Revolution Fantastic series (despite the music you'll have to listen to) that will get you thinking about using your DAW in different ways. Be sure to go through all of his 5 minutes to a better mix videos.

[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Engineers-Handbook-Second-Edition/dp/1598632515/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1377902063&sr=8-2&keywords=mixing+engineers+handbook[/ame] -Mixing Engineer's Handbook. Covers the basics to let you know what you can do and when you can do it.

I also have Ermz's systematic guide to mixing. Some great stuff in there.

 

[abaga129]

The videos from the Recording Revolution are incredible. Most of his tips apply to any style and are spot on. That's to him, I pay a lot more attention to the arrangement of the songs I'm working on. And I love most of his music haha. Its a nice change from metal.