New BACKMASK Test Mix

[Kazrog]

So we're in the mix phase for our upcoming CD Dark Fiber right now, and we just ran off a test mix today of a song most of you guys have heard before called "Transmission"

Give us your feedback! We'd like to see if our list of corrections jives with you guys, making sure we avoid tunnel-vision.

http://www.backmask.com/sneapforum/Transmission_Sneap_Forum_Mix.mp3

Thanks!

UPDATE (November 7) - We've posted a second mix, incorporating most of you guys' feedback:
http://www.backmask.com/sneapforum/Transmission_Sneap_Forum_Mix_2.mp3

 

[JeffTD]

Overall digging it, just a few things that strike me...

Guitars could come up a little.

Kick could be more ballsy/less clicky.

Clean vocals need some verb or something - they sound reaaaally dry right now.

The snare is a bit too distant still, and I'm not really liking the sample. It doesn't match the rest of the kit IMO.

I'd also pan the china to the left - as is, most of the cymbals, if not all, are on the right side, which I think is making the mix sound a bit more narrow than it would otherwise be.


Other than that, Really digging it! Guitar tone is awesome, songwriting is tits as always, and the growls/screams are insane, especially that 2nd to last one - I could hear a huuuge verbed delay on that carrying on for a while.

 

[bjp]

I like the clean dryness, sooo raw, and consequentally heavyy...
Bit more snare & some panning of cymbals & it should be awesome. Growls/Screams are brutal ...

 

[Jackal_Strain]

Are the screams doubletracked? It sounds like two takes that's not completely in sync. Esp. at the beginning.
Good stuff!

 

[Black neon bob]

Nice!

I agree with almost everything Jeff said there... allthough i like the kick, not too clicky or lacking balls in my opinion. i would turn the rhytm guitars up.

Vocals are top notch, only thing i would like to hear different is the snare... the entire kit sounds pretty forward and in your face... that snare seems to be pushed a bit in the background... it has that roomy vibe to it, that's all i would change, the rest sounds brutal, especially the growls!

 

[Jackal_Strain]

Yeah turn up the guitars. Am I the only one who thinks there's something funny about the vox at the beginning. It sounds killer in the rest of the song.

 

[unsilpauly]

sounds good man. the only thing i would suggest is definetly turning up the snare for sure and the clean vox could use alittle something(reverb, delay?). also the loop synth thing might be alittle loud. i really like the tune though. cant wait to hear the finished version

 

[006]

Oh yeah, sounds great. The snare just has a very unprocessed sound to it, like it's all room mic or something...dunno a better way to describe it. The guitars could come up a bit, but I'm just repeating what everyone else is saying. I would also have to say the intro takes away the power from when the instruments come in. Oh, and the overheads could be spread out some more, like Jeff said.

Great vocals man.

~e.a

 

[sparkyness]

It reminds me of Stabbing Westward with dirtier vocals

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

I think the verb on the snare could be better from the beginning to 0:26. Not sure what you need to do there because the snare verb is good for the rest of the song.

 

[A Toolish Circle]

^ 2nd that , the transition from the intro to the band doen's sound right

awesome tone ! care to share what they were and the settings ?

 

[Soundlurker]

Great as always! I'd love to have test mixes like yours

 

[Kazrog]

Thanks, guys. We're all pretty much on the same page, which is cool...

A few notes:

• We're going to experiment with a different snare, this one is as good as it will sound I think. We like it, but a lot of people don't seem to, so something must be wrong with us LOL.
• I'm going to re-track my vocals on the first verse, because they don't sound as good as the rest. I was sick when I tracked that, and got a bit too much of the Dani Filth high-pitched thing going on thanks to congestion.
• Interesting that you guys think the rhythm guitar could be louder... or is it that the vocals are too loud - or both? We're going to experiment with that
• There is no reverb on the snare anywhere in the song, it should sound consistent throughout
• Most of the vocals are double-tracked, some could be tighter and I am going to fix that.
• We're going to be adding more processing to the vocals in general
• The guitars are my ESP F-2005 with EMG 85 in the bridge, into keeley-modded TS808 into 6505+ head with Mesa Standard 4x12 (v30s.) I miked the cab up with an Audix i5, which then went into a Neve preamp/EQ. Quad-tracked, two tracks lead channel, two tracks crunch channel. Andy's C4 settings were used as a starting point, as well as the recent EQ settings that Colin Richardson posted here. We tweaked those a bit to fit the tone and the song.

 

[kaomao]

The biggest problem (if you can call it a problem though) is that dry clean vocals.
Guitars sound good but I can say a little bit more mids on the guitars could help, I think this is down to personal taste.
I may say lower that intro, the song after that intro has to cut you head off, that intro is too loud, when guitars come in they must kill you.
That snare seems really has a reverb on it, change sample or make some room for that snare, it's a little bit buried in the mix.
Anyway Good job Shane, it's very industrial music!

 

[Nebulous]

Is it just me, or do the vocals sound a bit too thin? It might help if they were lowered in the mix, i guess.

 

[t-willy]

love the intro
vocals a little loud in the first verse
vocals a little loud in the first chorus
distorted vocals perfect volume before second verse
same comments for vocals throughout tune
overall sound does need a little more balls (maybe more bass guitar?), except during double bass parts
great ending

overall great fucking tune. the song had a great energy throughout. guitar sound was rockin'. favorite part is right after 3 minutes when the guitar comes back in and the ending choruses are beginning.

i listened through a couple different stereos and a decent pair of headphones and pretty much came up with the same conclusion.

 

[joeymusicguy]

i feel the kick thump in the ears
but i dont feel the snare pop in the ears

for better perspective on what i mean, the snare sounds like L2 was put on it with threshold super lowered to completely remove the punch / crack.

could be a matter of opinion, but i always like to feel the kick and feel the snare smack my ear drums. and in this mix the snare isnt doing it

 

[Sweetnothing]

Good work Shane!
The only things I think you should look is the synth, too loud and when the band comes in, the band sounds a lot weaker in comparision ( in both cases, intro and breakdown).
The only thing maybe is just a personal taste, but in my opinion, lacks a little "pressure" on it, I mean, everything sounds so clean, but I can't feel it smacking the riffs right on my face, maybe it's just a mastering thing.

EDIT: Listening on different monitors, the "pressure" thing maybe is cause the vocals are a little bit loud, and about what ppl said about bringing up the guitars a little...I think they have their space there, lowering the vocals would bring a different perception about them I'm almost sure.

 

[Kazrog]

Thanks again for all the feedback, guys! We've made a much better mix last night, I will upload soon.

 

[DIOBOLIC5150]

First off, this song kicks serious ass. Awesome songwriting. Totally my cup of tea.

As for the mix. I pretty much agree with all that has been covered here.

The snare needs more beef, less verb
The synth is too loud (especially 3/4 through the song)
The mix sounds a little thin (needs more low-mid, somewhere around 500)

But seriously.. some of the stuff I hear on this board floors me. Great job.