AlbertoM-Hated love Mix

[AlbertoM]

Hi all!!, here is my mix for the june SDC, at first I thought I was going to try some kind of "less is more", but as I was hands on...

Comments welcome!!

[redworks]

interesting start the drums are big and unique and you have other elements coming in that are well placed. the guitars are almost getting taking over in the chorus. just a bump in volume on those would give it the presence i think it deserves. actually i think that is the case for all of the vocals after the first verse. you have accomplished a fairly heavy version of the song while holding to the dynamics and keeping it interesting. the delays in the bridge are sweeeet. take out the tremolo (or whatever that was) on the vocals and that is one awesome bridge. enjoyed your take on this song.

[fHumble fHingaz]

Killer mix, Alberto! I love the big "gang vocal" sound you got - it's totally different from the one I'm envisioning, but for me, it just works, especially in the context of the mix you created. The bass textures at the beginning give the mix a slightly futuristic edge - cool.

I agree with red on the vocals getting swallowed by the guitars a bit in the chorus, but I actually really dig the tremolo/leslie effect on the vocals in the bridge. A simple volume tweak would solve the competing guitars issue, although you could get tricky & duck the guitars under the vocal phrases via side chain compression.

I'm also thinking that the long term dynamics could improve just a bit via some volume/limiter automation to get the choruses & the song's peaks to really hit harder in comparison to the verses.

Still, these are fairly minor issues, which could be taken care of in one mix revision. If I was the artist & you presented me with that mix, I'd be very happy.

Top job - 5 Stars!

[Magnolius]

Hey, another brand new member This is a great mix! It sounds just right to me. This mix is one of my absolute favorites so far, everything in it's right place and great balance. Spacious verses and massive choruses. My only comment would be that the bridge is a little weaker than the rest of the song. I like your creative delay fx but the bridge still lacks some drive IMO. To me some of the delays seems to be a little behind in timing... I also think you could have been even bolder with the delays in the bridge for a more far out sound. But this is subjective details. Wonderful mix, great job!

[wireman957]

Really nice job, Alberto! All of your tones are sweet, your use of time-based effects is very tasteful and just about everything seems to fit just right. The only thing I'd like to hear a bit better is, like fHumble said, the chorus vox. The bridge vox seem to get a little overwhelmed, too. Those things aren't necessarily "wrong", just my taste and personal opinion. Overall a great mix and you should feel really good about it!

[BlackArt]

like what you did with the drums. what is that effect?? tried a few things myself but couldn't get it to work really. guess we both thought the mix needed something interesting happening. i think too much reverb on the vocals though and in the chorus they just get lost under the heavier guitar. like the delays in the bridge part. very cool. kudos for that. and rocks out nicely. interesting choice to keep that guitar in the middle but i guess it works. dude, i would just say less reverb and get the vocals more in your face and its an awesome mix. well done.

[kakeux]

Hi,

That's a really nice mix dude! My main crit, during the chorus, the guitars carry a bit too much energy. That could be taste.

I'm not sure I like the effect on the vox during the bridge...

Cool one and nicely done!

[maschneid]

Nice mix!!! Really well done!!! The only downfall I can sense is that the vocals seem to be buried during the busier parts of the song. Great drums, guitar and bass tones!

[willj]

I dig it man. i originally started out doing something really similar to the drums , but decided they werent doin a whole lot for me as the intro.

Great mix man. The main things not working for me are the heavy fx on the vox and the snare drum. Mostly the snare is too dry for the rest of the song, but it has kind of a cardboard and up front sound to it that makes it sound like its part of another song. Its most noticeable when all instrumentation is full on. When the mix is not quite as dense, it sounds good. It also sounds a little behind the beat. Like its time shifted due to latency or a gate is on it and opening just a bit late.

Other than that i think youre pretty solid. In the overall picture it might be too compressed, which is evening out the verses and choruses a little too much, but i like a good squash, and it doesnt bother me a whole lot. Im, just speaking from what the general consensus seems to be.

Youve really done a lot well and i dont mean to point all of my critcizms in the negative direction. Its a very nice mix.

[bobbybovine]

Hey AlbertoM. I love the effect on the drums at the beginning, very cool. I find the Vox are a bit on the low side especially in the chorus, as are the drums in the chorus. I would like them a little louder. You have some great guitar tones, and the mix has a nice density to it. Now as I am listening it seems that the vox issues and the drums being a touch on the low side could be resolved by just lowering the guitars a touch. They seem to be taking over a little bit. Also as the bridge moves along it sounds like the limiter is really clamping down on that section pretty hard, what I notice is the bass gets a bit louder and the guitar melody there makes that section sound smaller than when the chorus comes back in. But solid mix, sounds great overall.

[willj]

Hey AlbertoM. I love the effect on the drums at the beginning, very cool. I find the Vox are a bit on the low side especially in the chorus, as are the drums in the chorus. I would like them a little louder. You have some great guitar tones, and the mix has a nice density to it. Now as I am listening it seems that the vox issues and the drums being a touch on the low side could be resolved by just lowering the guitars a touch. They seem to be taking over a little bit. Also as the bridge moves along it sounds like the limiter is really clamping down on that section pretty hard, what I notice is the bass gets a bit louder and the guitar melody there makes that section sound smaller than when the chorus comes back in. But solid mix, sounds great overall.

Ya know man, when i listen to this mix at a lower volume i felt like the vocals were too wet, but cranking it up a little bit they seem fine. Some parts sound a little wet , but they def seem better.

Now at a louder volume i feel like this mix has an excess in the 100 to 200hz range. Not enough to make it sound bad at all, but maybe just enough to keep it from being over the top. It actually sounds kinda cool with the excess that im hearing because it brings on a bit of a softer feeling characteristic to the instruments, but its not exactly what id want from a mix. Thats all.

This is raising a Question in my head - does a world class master have more sonic stability at different volumes than an amature master. Something ive never really thought of before but am going to start keeping an eye on.

[bobbybovine]

Ya know man, when i listen to this mix at a lower volume i felt like the vocals were too wet, but cranking it up a little bit they seem fine. Some parts sound a little wet , but they def seem better.

Now that's funny you say that because on my first listen I never noticed the vox sounding too low, but on my second listen I am pretty sure I turned my headphones down just a touch and they seemed buried.

Now at a louder volume i feel like this mix has an excess in the 100 to 200hz range. Not enough to make it sound bad at all, but maybe just enough to keep it from being over the top. It actually sounds kinda cool with the excess that im hearing because it brings on a bit of a softer feeling characteristic to the instruments, but its not exactly what id want from a mix. Thats all.

This is raising a Question in my head - does a world class master have more sonic stability at different volumes than an amature master. Something ive never really thought of before but am going to start keeping an eye on.

Absolutely every interview, video, book I have read on this says that as quality mix should hold up at barely audible volumes as well as cranked volumes. I know for instance CLA checks his mixes at extremely low levels, able to have a conversation low. I have also read that when mixing vocals you should do it at low volumes to makes sure you can hear them clearly at those levels. That is what I started to do about 3 months ago, right after Clockwork. I find my vox are usually on the touch too loud side of the fence, still gotta get used to it.

[dudermn]

Oh man that snare is right on. Though not on the chorus.
I thought the heavy reverb from the verse would be bad, but it fits in just fine.
I like how, because the chorus gets loud and the singer is melancholy you put him in his place.
Than, you drowned him...
Great bass, really pushy.
Great drums, really dry.

[AlbertoM]

Hi all, thanks for your all your comments, I'm keeping them and they're helping growing my mixing skills a lot!!

[danmanisa]

What an awesome mix. Where have you been hiding. So original!
The start is great. I have nothing but praise for the intro and first verse. I found the chorus very harsh and the vocals seem to set back a little too far due to the new and quite probably overlapping frequencies of the guitars. One thing I have been doing lately is dipping parts, or even the whole mix down oh so gradually over a a section by 1.5-2 db and then bringing it back up when the next section starts. You could bring those guitars down a bit, and by automating the overall volume to come down during the verse, the chorus will still have impact without losing sonic space or headroom. Not sure if that made sense or is even desirable in your mix, but hey, keep it in the bank for another time.
The bridge was very different. Heard it a couple of times, can't say I like or dislike it. To me, that part NEEDS something, so kudos for trying to shake it up and not just leave it as is! Great mix, welcome aboard and good luck!

[JoshERTW]

Nice work man - I've got mixed feelings on some of the outer-space kind of sounding stuff, but its implemented well from a technical standpoint. Guitars and drums sound great. Vocals feel a little buried in the choruses, maybe peel back the guitars like 2 dB in the choruses to let it poke through and it would be perfect. Top notch dude, a definite contender. Dig the guitar solo stuff you did.

[Jeronimo Mora]

Nice mix !

During the first verse, everything sounds so big and full, though there does seem to be a noticeable amount of lower midrange. Not so much that it's muddy, but enough to warrant attention. Killing some 200hz or so on those guitars would have definitely helped clean up. HOLY LOUD GUITARS BATMAN. It makes the mix exciting for sure, but the vocals become hard to hear and fight for space as a result. Bringing the guitars down 2db or 3 db would have helped give the vocals the importance and clarity they needed. This would have helped reduce the need to cut 3khz on the guitars to help the vocals sit. It's better to move a fader than to touch EQ. I felt the snare could have gone up 2 db or so during the choruses. A very good mix, though a bit guitar centric.

Good mix !

[jhkillam]

Not feeling the verb as much on the drums on the intro. The synth sounds at the beginning are cool though. Everything else up til the bridge sounds great to me as well. I'd roll back a bit of the flange or whatever effect that may be on the vox in the bridge. Really only noticed it on the first line. Digging the snare sound quite a bit I've decided. Nice work.*

[AlbertoM]

Hi all, thanks again for all your comments. As my native languaje isn't english, and many of you use the verb dig, like in "Digging the snare sound quite a bit", can anybody explain the meaning of dig in that context? thanks

[jhkillam]

Hi all, thanks again for all your comments. As my native languaje isn't english, and many of you use the verb dig, like in "Digging the snare sound quite a bit", can anybody explain the meaning of dig in that context? thanks

Sorry, did not realize the language difference. It means I like the snare sound. Thinking about it, saying "dig" really doesn't make sense does it? Digging a hole is not fun. Another strange use in English for this meaning is "sick" which is usually a negative connotation.

[Jeronimo Mora]

I dig it -> I like it.
That sounds sick -> That sounds awesome.