PHOS: Major try from Writing, Tracking, Mixing & Mastering

All week, treating the acoustics in the room. These 2 homemade things really stopped the bounce on this wall.Absolutely impressed by absorbing & deflection. Just about have the room equal. 1 corner to fix the bass in yet. But am blown away the X marked on the floor for the nearfield monitor position is translating all over the room wherever i stand & pretty darn good all throughout the house.

I heard an engineer said he listens in the other rooms & you can hear what is missing. No kidding, the mix is starting to sound good everywhere.

Next step, hooked up a good power amp in the gear rack & since have that 4 channel monitor box, easily can listen to any speakers i want now that are passive. Going to hear in my Polk & KLH speakers i use on my TV.
 

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Major victory ! Hooked the stereo speakers up. The KLH translated very good. The mixcubes are paying off huge. Also the importance of this speaker being pushed at volume on the KLH, heard the bass super clear and low & could clean up some 50-90 ish HZ range, nothing ever sounds good on them but the mix is alive !

Got some serious separation on all these guitars together. Really have come to enjoy this aspect of music making. Always been a creator - writer & never finished mixing or mastering anything.

Car test & ear buds tomorrow. We getting close

Oh yeah, got my punch and loudness at the mix & mastering will have the 3-6 db range for headroom. I purposefully mixed with just a meter & EQ graph.
 
Amazing what i have learned these last few weeks diving into this aspect of learning mixing.

It has paid off so much in dialing the band in. We sound so well balanced now

Also, maybe the #1 thing is, for listening. Treating the room acoustics. Once the monitors were set correctly with where my listening position is. I was able to start to treat the room. It is my living room so i went about it with using decor that would work. Just about have this room neutralized.
The dif that makes for when you just listen to music is incredible. The bouncing of high freq & bass trapping. Calming that changes the response to your ears so much.

Thoroughly have enjoyed this process. Bouncing the "mix" down to be mastered all next week. Sorta like it now, got the energy captured, the balance the best i can at this time with new set of skills. Now lets see if it can shine a lil bit !
 
Well, all the hard work and learning led to this. The bounce to be mastered. Notice, built this song up a ramp to entice you in gradually in intensity and drama. have 1 spike there but it does come down but retain when you go to master, couldn't take that down without killing the mood , needed the transient in the final master. This has been fun. Dynamics is where it is at, what a humbling lesson this has been

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Day 1 of mastering was very informative. Actually like the balance that am starting with & starting to work a few areas out. Spend time at the bass & the kick range EQ & some specific freq comp. Have the levels exactly where they are to be for final render so that is nice.

Using references of my own studio work & a few songs in the general genre. Did tame some of the Marshalls in the mix coming in before mastering and it paid off.

Added major benefit. Tracked some more on the next song up #2 for the challenge to go up against AI to see what a mere human can do from the heart not mouse click, actually been tracking for 3 weeks vs 3 hours total for a whole song lol

The EQ & leveling that has been learned has very much opened up my ears to the front end going in. Being even way more critical and i was always super critical on capture anyways since having to pay studio time was not cheap.

The next song is much more technical in a way & the lyrics are building off of song 1. Very interested in this like never before. Like something inside tells me it is time. No holds barred , what do ya got, Boy ! Can you push yourself in areas like levels and capture and EQ lane choices with pickups & mic position and can you write on the subject theme but yet be sorta cryptic to what you mean that makes people think & ask what is the play on words all about?
 
What a journey. Stepped back and 'listened' to the room for a few days while still working on songs.

By getting the room fairly decent sounding by taming deflection & calming the bass trap areas. Even though my home stereo is in the same room, facing 90 degrees opposite way. The room has improved so much. The quality of even the home stereo, watching TV. The voices, the background are placed so much better . Best way i can describe it is. The sound image of the TV shows & music, they seem to have much more realistic depth & spacing & especially vocal content coming directly from the person speaking,. like you are 'there" vs distant sounding.

Soon as cables get here to run Reaper into home stereo inputs & burn CD for the car, for final check should be able to post first song of 10 inspired by the AI challenge project.
 
My 20" 1/4 trs out of monitor switcher to RCA jack to my home stereo arrived today. Blown away, The mix has translated onto the KEF 3 ways & Polk 2 ways. very clear, guitars placed, bass good. Vocals defined & out when want them to & blended when want them to.

This is not my thing, am physical person from 5 am till i drop at night. To learn patience, re sing every thing, re do anything that was needed to make a song right has taught me so much.

My next song in the reaper is 75% captured & took a month so far. Usually spend 5 hours total on a song & then record a new one all these years.

Have 52 songs lined up on a chart with what stage they are in. Totally psyched to have 1 tracking new song project at all times, on going quite a few in the mix stage & a few in master stage,

Going to release 5 song EP Feb that is themed, First & second songs this month that will be part of 10 song of my Anti AI challenge that am challenging AI challenge..:celebrate2:
 
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USHER in the PAIN, finally got it released. Have learned so much about translating. Before final approval, listened to it 9 dif ways.
Sony earbuds, cheap Behringer headphones, AKG headphones, Adam headphones, JBL monitors, mixcube monitors, computer, KLH stereo speakers & Polk stereo speakers.

The studying of producers and engineers has really taught me . From the first mic on a cab, every move matters & the more organized you are on the capture, with the tone you want & the dynamics actually. Completely think differently than ever before. Have done quite a few Pro studio songs over the years & now i get it.

It even has payed off in setting the band up. Transients yep , get the band delivering the sound at same time, it will fix 90% of issues along with pre thought out gear choices for EQ lanes. Overall, very happy & found a whole new aspect of this music thing. Have so many songs that will be mixed and mastered to give them the due. So fortunate have always tracked very precisely, tad hot but with the tone & EQ for the song established ~ quite a few new songs in Reaper. now i do them in stages vs all in a 5 hour session. It is paying off in the songs getting to breathe. Just get the rhythm and bass placed same time on drums then work on them in stages as ideas get to bloom better.

 
BFT Gibson said:
USHER in the PAIN, finally got it released. Have learned so much about translating. Before final approval, listened to it 9 dif ways.
Sony earbuds, cheap Behringer headphones, AKG headphones, Adam headphones, JBL monitors, mixcube monitors, computer, KLH stereo speakers & Polk stereo speakers.

The studying of producers and engineers has really taught me . From the first mic on a cab, every move matters & the more organized you are on the capture, with the tone you want & the dynamics actually. Completely think differently than ever before. Have done quite a few Pro studio songs over the years & now i get it.

It even has payed off in setting the band up. Transients yep , get the band delivering the sound at same time, it will fix 90% of issues along with pre thought out gear choices for EQ lanes. Overall, very happy & found a whole new aspect of this music thing. Have so many songs that will be mixed and mastered to give them the due. So fortunate have always tracked very precisely, tad hot but with the tone & EQ for the song established ~ quite a few new songs in Reaper. now i do them in stages vs all in a 5 hour session. It is paying off in the songs getting to breathe. Just get the rhythm and bass placed same time on drums then work on them in stages as ideas get to bloom better.

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BFT Gibson said:
I wonder if YouTube compresses a tad more than Spotify ?
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Ummmmmmm…….WOW!!!!!! That’s some fantastic work right there sir! Excellent definition and clarity! Super heavy kick and bass! Diggin it!!! Immensely!
You have come a long way! I think that this recording is something that you can take pride in.
Great job Den!!!
 
Thatbastarddon said:
Ummmmmmm…….WOW!!!!!! That’s some fantastic work right there sir! Excellent definition and clarity! Super heavy kick and bass! Diggin it!!! Immensely!
You have come a long way! I think that this recording is something that you can take pride in.
Great job Den!!!
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Thank you my brother ! Just think you are the kick starter of me learning to record of home. Very much thank you for the help you gave in those early stages when i got the pre amps & set up Reaper. That advice has it all captured right & is paying off immensely now !
 
Yes. Mix-wise I agree this is a major leap forward from your previous work. I would like to hear a little more variation in the range and melodic phrasing of your vocals but the instrumentation sounds superb, the playing is great, and the lyrics cut pretty sharp too!
 
TVvoodoo said:
Yes. Mix-wise I agree this is a major leap forward from your previous work. I would like to hear a little more variation in the range and melodic phrasing of your vocals but the instrumentation sounds superb, the playing is great, and the lyrics cut pretty sharp too!
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Thanks, and here is the moral of the story. Not a singer, not a guitar player, am a bass player. <My guitar player quit and i had studio time payed for on my dime & 10 songs for an Album called. For the Lost

Studio, graciously gave me 3 months & i picked up a guitar & did it ! To this day, it is is our set in the band.

Then life removed the band for a spell & then my ex who can sing her heart out, we got creamed by a DUI driver & never again to sing..

Do i quit making music and learn to make excuses.. or a pre programmed algorithm tell me WHAT music should be ?? and do my job of making music...no way no how.

Interestingly, some vocal dynamics are coming in a few of next songs, this song, i WANTED it flat line cause the mood of the song is that, the up and down of the mood in the music is the star of the song !

My goal is to always leave listener with, ahh,,,cool lil breakdown,,or wow--what a crescendo at the end..wait,, nice tricky lil lead for a few secs, oh a bass line in a harmony outside the root with the guitar carrying the root note, oh he droned his vocal in key in a constant note hold for effect...those lil thing we as humans, get to inflect are what makes music so personnel & so enjoyable on those that go out on a limb. Put their heart & soul on display to be totally ripped on by the public or enjoyed. I like that spot a lot ! It drives me, pushes my artistic drive to places never been, the fuel for the fire to become better every day, work harder, practice more, learn..learn..learn & apply it !

Got to thank you actually, without the AI thread, never would of found mixing & mastering !!
 
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As i proceed, have a formula now for each week & have basically the year planned out for releases, allowing 2 brand new songs each month to be originated from scratch( usually have 2 songs ideas in looper into the SL 100 & then play along to it on JCM 800 as the concept develops & words form)

Each week a song is in a phase now then moves to next stage on Monday so each week 4 songs are being worked on
1) Song that is fully tracked & ready to mix
2) Song fully mixed and ready to master
3) Song tracked but needs details finished before mixing is declared
4) Making drums for next new song & begin tracking

This allows maximum effort on each stage without fatigue, also, the continuity of the songs is now so close as they are going through same process. But 1 step behind. EQ, dynamics, placement, levels are pretty tamed & sitting right from tracking now & each stage basically just enhances what was already done.

Major take away..the ROOM matters, first deflections & bass traps. Also, being familiar with your monitors, know the JBL 305 LSR so well, once room was semi treated, know what will translate best now. Actually use 9 weapons i call em in mastering, 9 sources to pick it apart for detail, some are for midrange, top end, low end, space & grouped together they provide the master that will translate
 
Productive start to the week. Into the final phase of mastering for Fridays single release. Next song up after that is in mix phase now, all mono today staring at the MixCube & letting it do the mojo, :listening:

For next fresh tracking beginning of new song, Looper on with main theme, then Translated drums from my kit where i come up with tempo & dynamics. Spent good hour plus setting the drums up in reaper. All channels marked & ready to record guitars when the mood hits

This is a first for me , allowing multiple stages of the song to develop over time. with major concentrated effort on each phase. Except lyrics,,seem to go away for a bit & in about 15 minute the song is done. not messing with that freaky process. It just works,

Also, side benefit of the room being very good acoustically now for mxing & mastering. Listened to the whole White album by the Beatles. Don't think have ever heard music this detailed before due to room deflection & traps. Way worth it if you take the time to hang a few choice things in your room. Didn't use foam or anything. Just used plants & decorations at key spots & made the side walls pretty much mirror each other with placement.
 
Another glorious day , tracking for future song for AI battle challenge self imposed upon myself :LOL:. SL100 on Super Bass mode. V30 & t75 mic'd. How about the size of dem cones on a t75. Laying a foundation rythym today with the Gibson Dirty Fingers. Need darker fundamental tone to build upon for this song. Had a lot of fun with all the amps & guitars out to choose for this specific song. pretty much going to be SL100 & 2204 together. It is too good, too clear & no mud right from the door, especially paired with speakers they run into. Oh Underdog is boss but Cactus Blosson is final boss of the house !Cactus box.jpgDesp sl100.jpgdesp v30 t75.jpg
 
Song #2 done, JUMP into the FLAMES , this was fun mix, starting to really know my monitors & headphones. The trust you build with them when referencing so it will translate well.

 
Might have to master slightly dif for YouTube, hearing some compression or dynamic squashing Spotify doesn't seem to do. Will send it in to the tube a lil hotter next time vs spot

 
Fascinated by the whole next step after tracking like never before. been looking at all the old Beatles studio sessions & the producers & engineers. It has been an incredible journey learning to mix & master. Quite a few from before am finalizing but the 'new" song since this journey began. They are approached during tracking and writing completely different now.

End game cohesive song that is enjoyable to listen to on any device is rewarding. The challenge is so fun. From your mind to released song brings out the "human" in you & that is good, that is how we are created..to be workers & enjoy this life we are given..we are not robots & the AI will never be better..it has NO HEART !!
 
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