The Songwriter Forum - songwriting reviews, tips and chat
Songwriter Forum => Recording => Topic started by: Yodasdad on February 25, 2017, 08:10:08 PM
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I'm not sure if something like this has been posted before (probably) but I thought it would be good to hear people's no 1, best of the best recording/producing/mixing tip. The kind that you would save for your only child and whisper with your dying breath.
So that people really think about this, only one per poster!
Apart from Boydie of course, he probably can't break wind without a great recording nugget dropping out he's got so many, so he can post more than one. ;D
I would give myself the same privilege but I think I only know one.
To start us off, mine is thus...
Everything sounds better with a touch of reverb.
(Don't overdo it though, you weren't recorded in the Grand Canyon now were you?)
Yodasdad
Ps feel free to break the rules if you want but let's have your best first.
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Discovering Waves plugins and actually learning how to use some of them has taken my mixes and production up a notch for sure. I have Sonar Platinum which has a load of stuff included but many of the Waves plugins are at the next level, it has really made a difference to my music.
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If I could only impart one piece of advice (although thank you for the free pass to add more ;D) it would be...
When adding EQ or FX - increase the effect until you can hear it and then back it off a touch
eg
When adding a High Pass Filter crank it up until is starts affecting the sound in a bad way (eg starts to make a vocal sound "thin") and then back it off a bit
When adding reverb - add it until you can hear it, then back it off a touch
I honestly think this single nugget is the main difference between an obviously "amateur" mix and a mix most people agree sounds good
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Use the solo button only to audition or edit takes. For mixing listen with all the tracks...
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mine is:
Get the lead vocal level right. Not too loud, and not too soft.
Lead vocal rules the mix.
Same goes for any instrument that has the lead.
Paul
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Record your vocals at low levels and make sure you "deaden" your recording room as much as possible. I use an old duvet to surround the vocals mic
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Use a reference track, preferably import it into your DAW which makes comparison between the two easier.
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The sheer fact what two things panned equally in opposite directions doesn't just cancel each-other out, but can be used to add dimension.
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mine is:
Get the lead vocal level right. Not too loud, and not too soft.
Lead vocal rules the mix.
Same goes for any instrument that has the lead.
Paul
So true. And we spend oodles of time getting every aspect of instrumentation right, but the harsh fact is - most casual listeners focus almost entirely on the vocals. (Well, according to my wife anyway. I mean I agonise over getting that bass guitar riff or drum fill just perfect and she doesn't even notice! It's all about the vocals).
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Gain staging!!!!!
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mine is:
Get the lead vocal level right. Not too loud, and not too soft.
Lead vocal rules the mix.
Same goes for any instrument that has the lead.
Paul
So true. And we spend oodles of time getting every aspect of instrumentation right, but the harsh fact is - most casual listeners focus almost entirely on the vocals. (Well, according to my wife anyway. I mean I agonise over getting that bass guitar riff or drum fill just perfect and she doesn't even notice! It's all about the vocals).
you make a good point...the average listener (which we are not) just hears the song, they don't care about our pain and suffering during the recording process...
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Record your vocals at low levels and make sure you "deaden" your recording room as much as possible. I use an old duvet to surround the vocals mic
you need to be careful with this John, your reducing the hi frequencies but not the low frequencies (which are much harder to get rid of)..so you could end up with a boomy vocal..ie hi frequencies removed, low frequencies not removed, better to reduce reflections from certain parts of the walls, particularly corners..low frequencies love corners...
best, Kevin :) :) :)
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love corners...
Now those are kinky spots to record in ;D ;D
Must be a bedroom studio...
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And that's why Paulski's good with his lyrics, coz he spots connections like that.
I feel a song coming on...
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Not sure if it's a golden nugget, but perhaps my most significant 'lightbulb moment' was realising that arrangement and EQ are two sides of the same coin. If you deliberately avoid clashing registers when writing parts, especially with instruments of similar timbre, you will end up with a clear, open, big sounding mix before you start tweaking and notching EQs.
In fact, a great arrangement might not need EQing - balance the levels and you're good to go.
This is what classical composers have to do - if the parts aren't balanced, your orchestra is going to sound like poo, regardless of how good they are. You can't rely on EQ in an acoustic concert setting.
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Tones golden nugget is a good one :D.
For mine (its hard to choose just one!) - Avoid EQ and effects!
The temptation, especially for newbies, is to throw up a mic, record as quick as possible and then spend hours at the computer adjusting EQ, compression, reverb etc etc. In my experience this never ever leads to a good mix.
Spend a few hours (thats right hours) or more finding the sweet spot in your house/studio/apartment/whatever. Try out all your mic and preamp combinations. Try different spots in the same room, try different mic positions and distances. Aim to find a spot where your guitar and/or voice sounds pretty perfect with *zero* post-processing. Challenge yourself to record a song with no editing or effects at all (save volume adjustments). Stuff like mic position and the type/newness of your guitar strings has a *huge* effect. This will lead to a much better (and easier) mix. It will also have a knock on effect of making you spend more time on improving performance and arrangement.
If it sounds like a lot of work, its because it is - but you only need to do it once! (take pictures/draw diagrams of the sweet spots and setups so you can easily recreate it).
I'm gonna be sneaky and sneak a second tip in - avoid boosting volume when mixing, cut instead.
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Thanks for this Ramshackles! It wasn't until you spelled it out there that I realised how flippin lazy I am when it comes to recording! And when you consider how much work I put into writing the songs, don't you think they deserve a bit of graft when it comes to capturing them. I always told myself performance was everything.
Two questions: does the mic placement advice still hold if you're using a dynamic mic? The reason I tend to avoid my condenser is because it's a bit thin, and my rooms never sound good. Maybe I'm not anywhere near this sweet spot you speak of?
And why cut volume instead of boost? What about fader riding? I NEED TO KNOW MORE PLS ;)
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Thanks for this Ramshackles! It wasn't until you spelled it out there that I realised how flippin lazy I am when it comes to recording! And when you consider how much work I put into writing the songs, don't you think they deserve a bit of graft when it comes to capturing them. I always told myself performance was everything.
Two questions: does the mic placement advice still hold if you're using a dynamic mic? The reason I tend to avoid my condenser is because it's a bit thin, and my rooms never sound good. Maybe I'm not anywhere near this sweet spot you speak of?
And why cut volume instead of boost? What about fader riding? I NEED TO KNOW MORE PLS ;)
Lol...I'll try to answer
Dynamic mic placement - essentially, yes, placement makes a difference. Although dynamic mics are heavily directional, the reflections going into the front of the mic can still change depending on where you position it. Having said that, you'll probably find it way less noticeable than on a condenser. Placement on an instrument still matters as well, since the tone of the instrument is different in different places (e.g. listen to a guitar at the neck, the sound hole and the bridge).
All rooms have a sweet spot, but it is 'sweet' relative the rest of the room... a bad room is a bad room ;D
Volume cuts instead of boosts. Basically this is about maximising your signal to noise ratio.
So, lets say you have recorded with an optimal gain structure - that is the gain on all the elements in your signal chain is the maximum it can be without clipping. So what we have recorded has the best S/N it can.
If you boost, you are going to be boosting noise as well. Lets say you have 5 tracks and 2 or 3 you want louder. You have just boosted noise on those tracks! If you were to cut the other 2/3 tracks instead, your overall noise would be lower for the same relative volumes. Another problem with boosting is that you run the risk of clipping or at least severely reducing your headroom. You'll need that headroom in the mastering stage!
Final reason (and arguably the most important) is that there are so many gain/volume controls in a signal path that it is easy to end up in a situation where you a boosting somewhere, only to cut it later. Once you have done that, the net result is null, but a few dB of precious headroom have been irretrievably nuked :(
If you aim to only ever cut, you are unlikely to encounter the problem.
The same rules apply to EQ, although there are loads of articles detailing other reasons why cutting is better than boosting.
Of course, some laws are made to be broken....
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Interesting stuff, thanks Ram!
I hear what you're saying about signal to noise, but one thing I've found on instrumental pieces made up purely of sampled instruments is the complete lack of noise almost makes them sound unreal. I've ended up adding room noise to some of my tracks to try to capture the suggestion that a real performance is taking place. Whether it works or not I don't know, but it makes me feel better :D
The trouble with moving a mic around the room until you find a sweet spot is that by yourself it takes twice as long, and I don't have any friends to help me :( Y'all can have a whip-round if you like ;)
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The trouble with moving a mic around the room until you find a sweet spot is that by yourself it takes twice as long,
I would just hit record and move the mic around, describing each location
Then play back the recording and choose which location sounds the best
This would still technically be twice as long but less faffing around
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That's a really good suggestion! Thanks Boydie! :)
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Interesting stuff, thanks Ram!
I hear what you're saying about signal to noise, but one thing I've found on instrumental pieces made up purely of sampled instruments is the complete lack of noise almost makes them sound unreal. I've ended up adding room noise to some of my tracks to try to capture the suggestion that a real performance is taking place. Whether it works or not I don't know, but it makes me feel better :D
The trouble with moving a mic around the room until you find a sweet spot is that by yourself it takes twice as long, and I don't have any friends to help me :( Y'all can have a whip-round if you like ;)
Yeah it takes a long time...but you only have to do it once :). Jot down your setup & positioning for your next recordings..
Its mostly electrical noise and other unwanted stuff I was talking about...room noise could be thought of as part of the performance you want to capture ::)
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Hi!
Such a good intention for a thread Yodasdad! ;)
I'm still learning to record after ten years
of home studio projects so I'm not sure if I have
any good advice.
The most valuable lesson I've learned is,
since timing is a hard part for me, to
get a good scratch track.
I've spent a lot of time searching for timing
errors only to find that the problem lies in
the first track of a section. Reverb, eq curves
and mixing levels might be tough decisions but
timing issues are a far more likely cause of
migraine.
Why not use a click track? Well I'm only starting to
get familiar with using it (and a daw that has it)
and I think it's kind of hard to use.
- Martin
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Mine is a follow on from Martin's post. Cluck tracks can be a nuisance to play to. Programme basic drums for 1-2 bars that represent the the rhythm of your song. Loop what you have programned for the duration of the song then play your first instrumental to the loop. It's much easier to play to the repeated drum pattern than to a click track. You can record multiple instruments to the loop pattern before finally programming a full drum track. . If you've ever fingerpicked guitar to a click track, you'll quickly realise how difficult it can be to maintain a steady rhythm. Played to a loop that is programmed, can be a walk in the park in comparison.
Paul
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Mine is a follow on from Martin's post. Cluck tracks can be a nuisance to play to. Programme basic drums for 1-2 bars that represent the the rhythm of your song. Loop what you have programned for the duration of the song then play your first instrumental to the loop. It's much easier to play to the repeated drum pattern than to a click track. You can record multiple instruments to the loop pattern before finally programming a full drum track. . If you've ever fingerpicked guitar to a click track, you'll quickly realise how difficult it can be to maintain a steady rhythm. Played to a loop that is programmed, can be a walk in the park in comparison.
Paul
Ooo yeah - I'm going to try that - good one Paul ;D ;D
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Thanks for the advice Paul!
This gives me another reason to start programing drums.
Coz who can live without finger picked guitar.
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Mine is a follow on from Martin's post. Cluck tracks can be a nuisance to play to. Programme basic drums for 1-2 bars that represent the the rhythm of your song. Loop what you have programned for the duration of the song then play your first instrumental to the loop. It's much easier to play to the repeated drum pattern than to a click track. You can record multiple instruments to the loop pattern before finally programming a full drum track. . If you've ever fingerpicked guitar to a click track, you'll quickly realise how difficult it can be to maintain a steady rhythm. Played to a loop that is programmed, can be a walk in the park in comparison.
Paul
That's my mode of operation too, much more enjoyable playing with a drum pattern than the non musical click.
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Some great advice being generated on here, thanks everyone.
Time I broke the rules.
Assuming we're all working digitally...
When you think you've finished your mix, save it, pull down all the faders and start again. Chances are you'll get a better mix second time.
I find this works well for me as I tend to mix as I'm tracking. Sometimes I'm happy with the results but focussing purely on the mix lets you be more objective about all the different elements, rather than maybe the part you just recorded.
Yodasdad
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Brilliant pieces of advice. Yes - I totally ditched the click track idea ages ago as it's extremely irritating and find I use exactly the same technique as some of you other guys with a basic drum track. I find it really interesting to program the drum track later and often experiment with a few different patterns which sometimes gives a song a totally different dynamic. With regard to Yoda's tip on pulling down all of the faders, that's a brilliant idea as well which I use all the time. I guess I must be doing a couple of things right along with lots of things wrong :)
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Hmm this thread led me to doing a little research and i came across this very useless web page...maybe of use to some of us :)
http://edmprod.com/fader-only-mix/
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Cool thread! I was going to say gain staging as well, but I'll avoid repetition!
My top tip: Do rough comps as you track, and be brutal with which takes you keep.
Ok, it's quite specific, but if you use a DAW that allows you to comp (Logic in my case), you'll know the issue I'm talking about. Comping is amazing, but it's all too easy just to record loads of takes and deal with it later. Problem is, sifting through even 10 takes of the same part at a later date is arduous work, especially if you're a perfectionist when it comes to getting the best performance.
So, be 'brutal' when you're tracking. What I mean is, instead of keeping a take because there's just one good part in it, delete it and play it again. You can play it better! It's hard when you're recording yourself because you're basically playing the role of a producer by doing this, but it's worth it in the end. Ultimately, you'll end up with a much better performace and save yourself the time and hassle of having to sift through hundreds of takes later on! Plus, you're likely to end up with more complete takes.
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Use your ears........Nuff said
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Loved Golden Nuggets when I was a kid.
Klondike Pete ;D