Need help for a better mixing..

Shampak Chakravorty said

Dheeraj Bhai…. very difficult discussion that you have started…. Though i am writting my bit of knowledge but i actually should not…. Reverb plugin matters very much which i have found recently in one of threads of Sunny Bhai…. Internal plugins do take away clarity n gives that clumsy feel….which I got kicked for in Kaise Mujhe Tum…. n reverbs should not used directly on the file instead as Sends to a different BUS n how much signal sould flow depends on you…. 0 to negetavie…. 0 being full singal that is flowing…. In the actual file only distortion, noise revoval, volume adjustments should be done…. In the original vocal channel…. there should be ‘inserts’ as the main effects goes…. like multiband compressors, de-essers, limiters, envelops, etc….

Finally when the mix sounds quite good…. its time for the final mixdown n then the most important final touches…. using mastering professional plugins…. Such as Dx Digital, Crysonic Spectralyte, Kjaerhus Audio Golden Series, etc……

Good professionals plugins you can look for is :

Waves Mercury Bundle
Ozone 4
Altreverb 6
Crysonic Everything Bundle
IK Multimedia CSR
IK Multimedia T-Racks Delux
RX Advanced
Bx Digital
Flux Spring Pack
Kjaerhus Audio Golden Series
Kjaerhus Audio Classic Collection
Sonnox Oxford Bundle
Antares Autotune

M sure these will get you going pretty good…. Even I got them three days back….so rest depends on ears & experimentation…… Getting the proximity right in terms of sounding similar on headphones & speakers…. both cannot be same…. But to get a desired output got to listen in both headphones & speakers while mixing…. Hope thishelps…. :D
N last but not the least….there are some good video tutorials on these subjects….do look for them….will help….

Regards,
Shampak.

Also Listen To My Latest Upload
Aaja Milke
My Previous Uploads
Kaise Mujhe Tum – Cover
Ei Ki Go Shesh Daan
O Meri Jaan (Cover)

S.C.

Shampak Chakravorty said

They are VST plugins mainly……few have options for RTAS but thats optional in a few…. Check whether Cool Edit Pro…… supports external VST plugins or not…. Cool Edit Pro is an older version of the software Sound Forge…. Also check for the new Sound Forge 10…. Its sure to support those…… I am wondering where are the main gurus of Mixing doin…. ??? Respond guys…… We are here to help each other….

Regards,
Shampak.

Also Listen To My Latest Upload
Aaja Milke
My Previous Uploads
Kaise Mujhe Tum – Cover
Ei Ki Go Shesh Daan
O Meri Jaan (Cover)

S.C.

Nitin Dubey said

Dheeraj

I can tell you what I normally do. But I do think you should google your query and learn about the basics of the following:

Reverb
Delay
EQ
Compression
Limiting
Sometimes de-esser

These are the most common (and sometimes the only) plugins used for mixing. But you do need to understand the principles behind each, something none of us can explain in detail on this thread. And there is no need, a bit of internet research will answer all your queries.

Here’s what I use:

1. Softwares: Adobe Audition 3 and Sound Forge 9

2. Plugins: I access Sound Forge’s Wave Hammer plugin through Audition. I use Audition’s plugins for most of the other needs.

I will explain a typical karaoke mix, for I assume that’s what you are asking.

The order of the following steps varies from person to person.

Step 1: I check the vocal track for any sudden peaks, one can zoom into the wave and decrease the amplitude of these peaks. I know compression can handle it later, but nothing like a little human intervention.

Step 2: I align the tracks and listen dry to begin with. Sometimes I automate the amplitude so that the vocals track is muted when the singer is not singing. This takes care of the all the coughs, background noises etc recorded while waiting for the antara etc.

Step 3: Reverb – Making the vocals too wet is the most common mistake (IMHO) I find on Muziboo. I like it when the voice is ‘intimate’ and doesn’t sound like the singer is sitting in an empty well. There are various ways, but a simpler alternative to the ‘send’ Shampak mentioned is to make a copy of the vocal track and make it 100% wet with reverb. Let the dry track be as it is, and bring up the volume of the wet track till the overall vocal sounds good. This retains the intimacy while adding the sweetness of reverb. There are other ways too; playing around with the Studio Reverb plugin of Audition will help.

I will not get into delay here, except mentioning that if you want a tempo sync delay, divide 60000 by your tempo (bpm) and you’ll get the milliseconds which you can set for the delay. Try it and you’ll know what I mean.

Step 4: EQ – Again, no end to an EQ discussion, but a basic thumb rule I use is: do not mess with the voice too much. If your mix is not sounding good and you want to make spectral (frequency) space for vocals, try meddling with the track. We all subconsciously know the frequencies of the human voice, so changing it too much can kill the feel.

Step 5: Compression/Limiting – I usually compress the vocal track considerably but not to the extent that the dynamics are lost. Thumb rule: when the singer goes low or soft, it should still be heard clearly and the loud portions should be controlled so that one doesn’t need to turn down the volume there. Attack usually fast, and release synced to the BPM (like I mentioned for delay. Both release and delay can also be in multiples of the value you get by calculating 60000/BPM)

I prefer pushing the threshold more and keeping the ratio conservative (2:1 or 3:1, thereabouts). Again, you can try what works for you and for the mix in hand.

I use Limiting on the mixdown basically to ensure that the signal is not going beyond 0.1dB or 0dB, although if it is, you need to take a step back and check if a particular track is causing it.

Like I said, there is no end to this discussion and each person’s way differs and each project requires a different solution, but I have laid out the basics the way I know them. Hope this helps.

PS: Try Sound on Sound for some great articles

Cheers
Nitin

Subbu said

Wow,superb thread…….My 2 cents…….have a reference speaker/earphone/listen to very good track of your favourite numbers of the same genre…….listen to how the various instruments/vocals sound there……and mentally create a reference point of all sounds…….now when you mix ,after applying the effects above as appropriate,compare your mix to the reference track,till such time it is like back of the hand for you………

Training the ears is often the most important and the most ignored part of mixing and mastering……all that said,I am dyslexic as far as mixing is concerned!

Regards,
Subbu.
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