Rhythm guitar octaves

floobie

New Metal Member
Dec 16, 2012
2
0
1
So, I got a 7 string a few months ago, and I've been experimenting with octaves for my rhythm work, as I'm sure everyone who buys a 7 string does. You know, have one side playing a chord on the 5th string, the other side playing the same chord on the 7th string. That sort of thing.

Anyway, I've incorporated it into one of my songs, but I'm having difficulties balancing things out. The high part is consistently louder than the low part. I have my rhythm guitars quad tracked. Right now, the lower octave is on the left. One track panned hard left, the other about 80% left. The high octave is on the right, same panning. If I leave the levels the same, the right channel sounds noticeably louder. Same guitar (RG927qm), same amps, all that, of course (Guitar Rig 5 with the 5150 model, a "vintage" cabinet, tube screamer in front as a bit of a boost and low-end tightener).

So, what's the best way to handle this? Simply increasing the levels on the left tracks seems a bit... brutish. Should I be handling this in the eq? Could the multi-band compressor I have on my rhythm tracks be messing this up? Do I have the right idea in terms of panning?
Edit: In case it's relevant, I do also have a decent amount of synth tracks in the mix, but I think I've done a good job of keeping them out of the low end.


Thanks in advance.

And, obligatory newbie disclaimer: I totally searched for this, but didn't find anything.
 
Volume automation is your friend in this case. The issue is just with preceived loudness... the same reason a chainsaw will sound louder than a contrabass even if they are technically the same volume. I'd stay away from eqing to try and keep something like that from poking out and I'm sure your multiband isn't really contributing to the problem
 
So, you're telling me that the fix I tried with no external information at all was actually correct?! This is a glorious day for the house of floobie! Blood wine for all!
 
Actually, since you are using a software sim, I find that they don't really saturate like they should. If you were using a real amp, it is possible that the difference would not be enough to be objectionable, since the dynamics are more leveled out.
 
If you have four guitars in the mix, why not have outer guitars (100% left and right) play lower power chord, and the inner guitars (80% R/L) play octave above? That will sound extremely fat and balanced and I use this technique a lot.