Rate my first paid job! [Hardcore, kinda]

[Noisense]

Hello there!

Just finished my first paid job with a local hardcore band called Writing the Future. This is the final version that will go out for release, but I would still love to have some criticism on this for future work and stuff like that!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5241621/Let's Go Objective FÄRDIG2.mp3

Learned everything I know from this forum, lovin' it, thanks all!

 

[Noisense]

And of course I forget a link to the song...
Well, here it is:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5241621/Let's Go Objective FÄRDIG2.mp3

 

[AEL89]

Hey dude, start by cutting a lot of the 600 - 1k region from the guitars. That's an area that can make things sound a bit muffled, almost like its coming through a telephone. Compare your mix to something you're aiming for. I'd also cut some 200 from your snare. Add some 3k to your vox. Cut 3k from cymbals and add some 7-10k. I'm just on mac speakers so I can't comment too much but that should definitely help a bit

Are you fairly new to engineering? You're on the right path - your mix just needs some work. There's definitely some potential.

 

[Noisense]

Hey dude, start by cutting a lot of the 600 - 1k region from the guitars. That's an area that can make things sound a bit muffled, almost like its coming through a telephone. Compare your mix to something you're aiming for. I'd also cut some 200 from your snare. Add some 3k to your vox. Cut 3k from cymbals and add some 7-10k. I'm just on mac speakers so I can't comment too much but that should definitely help a bit

Are you fairly new to engineering? You're on the right path - your mix just needs some work. There's definitely some potential.

Thanks a lot for the criticism, it's well needed! Especially the muffled guitar thingy, which I haven't figured out how to get rid of myself. Would you like to explain why to cut and boost at those frequencies on the OH?

I am indeed quite new, this is my first paid job, only done a couple of songs before. Thanks for taking the time!

 

[AEL89]

Thanks a lot for the criticism, it's well needed! Especially the muffled guitar thingy, which I haven't figured out how to get rid of myself. Would you like to explain why to cut and boost at those frequencies on the OH?

I am indeed quite new, this is my first paid job, only done a couple of songs before. Thanks for taking the time!

Anything with too much 3k is going to battle for room in the mix with vocals. I pretty much always cut at least a bit from my guitars and overheads. 7-10k will just add a nice sheen to the top end. I usually cut some 800 too... just don't any of that stuff really.

You shouldn't need to boost or cut by much more than 3 or 4 dB. That's just a guideline though, feel free to break the rules if it makes stuff sound better.

 

[Noisense]

Anything with too much 3k is going to battle for room in the mix with vocals. I pretty much always cut at least a bit from my guitars and overheads. 7-10k will just add a nice sheen to the top end. I usually cut some 800 too... just don't any of that stuff really.

You shouldn't need to boost or cut by much more than 3 or 4 dB. That's just a guideline though, feel free to break the rules if it makes stuff sound better.

Aha, thanks for bringing clarity to this (and my mix, hehe...). What I don't get, though, is that in Reaper the guitars don't sound muffled at all, but rendered they do, got any explanation for that?

Here's a newer versions, guided by the changes you suggested:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5241621/Let's Go Objective FÄRDIG3.mp3

 

[AEL89]

What did you use for guitars? I'd go back to the source and work on the tone some more - it sounds muffled and undergained still. Also - this song should definitely start at the 48 second mark! The stuff before that sucks! But I like the grind vibe after the stick count in!

No clue as to why it sounds different after bouncing it - sorry! I'm not a Reaper user anyway.

 

[fuimjb]

What bitrate MP3 are you bouncing it down to? That will have a lot to do with the sound difference, bounce it to the highest quality that Reaper allows (320 kbps)

 

[Noisense]

Guitars are TSE X50 into Catharsis' impulses, this song has already been released, but I'll think about these things for future work, so thanks for sharing your opinion! I do also think that the intro breakdown is quite unnecessary, it's quite cool live, but maybe not for a release, wellwell, who am I to judge?

I render it to .wav and then convert it into .mp3 using Lame Encoder at highest VBR available.