Never-ending project sees light of day (mix content)

Finally got something resembling a mix on this weirdie. I was trying to find a nexus between deep-roots African spiritual and hillbilly gospel to put in a more contemporary context.

It was a chaotic project in that I changed interfaces in the middle of it, so there are tracks from both the old noisy setup and the current Saffire. I tried to kill out the noise from the early tracks, but I know ScatMan will bust me if any got in!

And, it was the first real mix I've done using the Focusrite VRM Box. It really gave me new mixing perspectives, because it was an exercise in how many ways you can split a hair — which the best mixers can do by instinct on the fly. So I feel like I've graduated from Duh 101 to Duh 201.:razz:

This one was strictly a one-man show ... my bass bud Tom has been gigging with multiple acts and ain't had time to breathe, and my songbird wife wasn't much interested in this one. But it was just as well, because I had specific parts I wanted that would take a long time to teach. ... Not sayin' they couldn't eventually end up on the track, but I wanted to at least get a complete version down, even though my bass-playing is pretty bad.

The bass is my main concern in the mix, and I'm not sure the organ's setting right. I'm attempting to get a "mountain church" ambience, but y'all let me know if I'm overdoing it. It's supposed to be rustic, but if you hear slop, sing out!

A Restless Soul (In a Fearsome Land) (http://soundcloud.com/the-woodshed/a-restless-soul-in-a-fearsome)

Not bad, Woodman, not bad!

The bass needs to come up, especially in the fundamental (40-80hz) it did sound kinda thin through my rig... liked the organ, maybe a db or 2 here and there, but it seems ok...

You might also want to check your vocal, I thought I heard some distortion on the louder passages... loved the twang guitar!!

Franc Robert

Some very nice textures in this, sounding good.

I'm also hearing distortion on the louder vocals at points. Doesn't sound like digital clippling so I'm assuming the mic preamp might of been a little too hot.

Overall the source sounds are good. I think the vocals could do with coming down slightly and I'd like to hear a little more organ, but that's just me! If you aren't using it already, a little parallel compression on both the vocals/organ will help to get them sitting a little better. If you are using it, I'd say be a bit more aggressive with it!

Rob

Another great song! You must be getting close to a CD's worth by now although with the new interface you probably don't like the older stuff anymore?

The bass did seem a little "boomy" on my set up (couldn't tell you which frequencies) but I felt maybe a conflict with the vocal as you have a very deep voice. Playing was fine by the way. Maybe a sweep with a narrow Q while the vocals are playing might identify the culprit but then again that could just be my speakers.

The balance of everthing else seemed good although I did notice the distortion on the vocal the others mentioned, especially toward the end. The organ sounded ok but if you aren't sure maybe more verb and drop it a db or two.

Overall a good song with some nice effects to add to the feel. I guess that means a good production!

Good to hear you're finding the VRM useful. A local store here has them for $105AUD so I think I'm gonna jump. Just have to find time to do some recording now.

The bass needs to come up, especially in the fundamental (40-80hz) it did sound kinda thin through my rig...



The bass did seem a little "boomy" on my set up (couldn't tell you which frequencies) but I felt maybe a conflict with the vocal as you have a very deep voice.

That's the exact anomaly I was rasslin' with ... on some rigs it sounded wimpy; on others it was booming in the lows. Maybe I'll save as a new song file, ditch all EQ and start over. I might have been "overthinking" it ... my new sonic environment was a little disorienting after several years of being well-accustomed to the old setup. May take a while to home in on the secure "ground zero" comfort zone.

Some very nice textures in this, sounding good.

I'm also hearing distortion on the louder vocals at points. Doesn't sound like digital clippling so I'm assuming the mic preamp might of been a little too hot.

Overall the source sounds are good. I think the vocals could do with coming down slightly and I'd like to hear a little more organ, but that's just me! If you aren't using it already, a little parallel compression on both the vocals/organ will help to get them sitting a little better. If you are using it, I'd say be a bit more aggressive with it!


Guess it's unanimous on the vocal distortion! Yeah, I was hitting the Brick preamp a little too hard — tube overdrive is fine for guitar, but not so much on vocals. I knew the track was flawed but hoped to salvage it because I liked the feel. ... Hadn't thought of parallel compression, but will definitely try it, having had some luck with it in the past. Retracking the vocal isn't out of the question, though.

I'm gonna keep pecking away at it and will eventually repost ... appreciate the input, guys.

Nice song Woodman! Glad you like the VRM box, that is certainly a very useful tool! I have too much ear damage to make any comments... it all sounds GREAT to me. Nice tune and a good melody.

Another good'un Woody!

I too hear a few crispy vocals.

I'm hearing a pop after "dawn" about 3:10 in and another during "soul" in the next line.

As for the bass. It's a pretty round kinda tone. Which works for the track, but makes it hard to sit. Systems that don't have a lot of bass will find it bass shy; those with ample bass may find it boomy. A couple possible avenues of exploration. Compress the bass track (maybe try a couple or even three comps on it - none of them individually doing more than a few dbs of gain reduction. To get the bass to cut through a little more, and to be heard better on bass-shy systems, try adding some mids - I tend to like @ 750 or 800 as a starting point. And/or add a little growl (bass amp sim/ fuzz - whatever works). Possibly in the main bass track, but maybe better as a parallel track.

Also, if you have a comp on things like the stereo buss, you could try high passing the feed to the comp so the low bass (and kick drum) frequencies are allowed to pass through without setting the compressor in motion. (Kinda a two band compressor where one band - the lows - are off).

Cheers,
Geoff

Great sounding mix and a great track no less. I think anything I could point out is just nit-picking. Modern commercial recordings are too perfect if you ask me. Yours sounds more real. Dig it.

Some great specifics, Geoff — I'm working on the bass now, so I'll try them out. Already put a little bump at ~800, which gives it a bit more muscle on my small cheap monitors. The idea of combining comps never occurred to me but is certainly worth experimenting with. ... I'm having trouble wrapping my head around this, though:

Also, if you have a comp on things like the stereo buss, you could try high passing the feed to the comp so the low bass (and kick drum) frequencies are allowed to pass through without setting the compressor in motion. (Kinda a two band compressor where one band - the lows - are off).


How exactly would one go about this?

I'll chime in....

I think it's a pretty good mix.

Some of the lyrics....although not specific and not knowing your exact intent, I can easily equate them to my time 'in a fearsome land' far away and long ago.

Well done...carry on....

I thought the bass in the mix was perfect. Of course, I listened to it before I read anything... which undoubtedly affects how I hear things (when I'm listening to the bass instead of the song).

Just to clarify on my rig, I'm using an old pair of Tannoy PBM 6.5's driven by my old Yamaha receiver (1978)... it certainly can be bass-shy, but I'm used to that aspect... it was even more bass-shy than usual...

Looking forward to hearing v.2!!! It's a cool tune!!!

Franc Robert

Just to clarify on my rig, I'm using an old pair of Tannoy PBM 6.5's driven by my old Yamaha receiver (1978)... it certainly can be bass-shy, but I'm used to that aspect... it was even more bass-shy than usual...


Worked on it a long time ... boosted a tad at 120 where the meat of the bass is, started a sharp roll-off at 80 to reduce boom, scooped out mud to made room for the vox at 300 per Petey's suggestion, boosted a notch at 800 for translation on smaller speakers. Geoff's twin compressor trick tightened it up considerably.

Also tried Rob's idea of parallel comp on vox and organ with good results ... it brought the organ up into the mix without being intrusive and enabled me to tuck the lead vocal back into the mix a little. ... Cleaned up the pops, tweaked here and there. I'll probably listen in the morning with fresh ears before posting, but it's coming along.

Chulai, Magicguitar and lboorse, thanx for the kind words! (Spaulding, I suspect your system must have a low-end sweet spot right where mine does.) ... Appreciate all the input, guys.

I'm diggin the vibe Woodman. It has sort of a somber Johnny Cash feel to it. Very cool.

I don't know if singing the song in a different key would work but you might want to try that. The key is not particularly good for your voice. It sounds like you're right on a transitional cusp in some of the passages. I can tell you have the power to really deliver this one but it sounds like it's just not in your ideal key.

Love the song though!

Here's the result of yesterday's work plus a little touching up this morning. Let me know if y'all think I'm on the right track. It was tricky getting the parallel tracks blended and balanced, but it's improved as far as I can hear. Who knows, maybe it could become the geezer national anthem! :mrgreen:

A Restless Soul (In a Fearsome Land) (http://soundcloud.com/the-woodshed/a-restless-soul-in-a-fearsome)


I don't know if singing the song in a different key would work but you might want to try that. The key is not particularly good for your voice. It sounds like you're right on a transitional cusp in some of the passages. I can tell you have the power to really deliver this one but it sounds like it's just not in your ideal key.


Appreciate the thumbs-up on the tune, 'Nator ... that's really the main thing for me. Vocally, I see it not an issue of range, but the fact that (let's face it) I'm not that great a singer. For over 40 years, I was a "shouter," and it's only been in the last couple of years I've worked at developing the baritone range as a real singer — nailing the note without sliding into it, sustaining it with controlled vibrato, and ending it without tailing sharp or flat. As you can hear, I've got a ways to go!

Understood. I can hear in your voice that you would really open up nicely in a higher key but that might kill the sullen vibe of the song. You'll notice I don't post clips of my singing, LOL.

If I sang by the window, you'd probably help me out!

Love the tune.

I got no opinion on the mix (well maybe one - later though).
But I'll tell ya something, that line - "a young man's dreams, through an old mans eyes" - friggin' outstanding! Once I heard that lyric I stopped caring about the bass or whatever - now it's about the song.
There's a war movie out there or some coming of age flick that is screaming for this song. Talk to those folks that licensed your other tune.

*Mix point - IMO the vox are a little hot and not sitting w/in the song.
As I've mentioned before, mix a version with just BIG TWANGY guitar doing the melody - just to have.

Sounding really good Woodman! The organ's sitting very nicely now!

For this style of music, the parallel comp on the vocals is slightly too compressed for me. It sits fairly well in the choruses, but the verses have a lost a little of the dynamic. A longer release time on the heavy compression channel (anywhere from 700ms-1500ms as a starting point), will give a less punchy and more natural sound, whilst still keeping the nice depth you have going on there. Shorter release times are a lot more punchy but can sound a little unnatural, plus have the side-effect of bringing out the "room" sound usually more than is desired.

I also noticed on a few of the crash hits, you can hear a compressor "sucking" them away (3.31 as an example). Not sure if this would be compression you've added to the overhead/ambient drum mics or overall mix compression/limiting, but maybe try a lower ratio and softer knee.

Keep at it, mixing's tough, but very rewarding when it comes together!

Rob

Sounding really good Woodman! The organ's sitting very nicely now!

For this style of music, the parallel comp on the vocals is slightly too compressed for me. It sits fairly well in the choruses, but the verses have a lost a little of the dynamic. A longer release time on the heavy compression channel (anywhere from 700ms-1500ms as a starting point), will give a less punchy and more natural sound, whilst still keeping the nice depth you have going on there. Shorter release times are a lot more punchy but can sound a little unnatural, plus have the side-effect of bringing out the "room" sound usually more than is desired.

I also noticed on a few of the crash hits, you can hear a compressor "sucking" them away (3.31 as an example). Not sure if this would be compression you've added to the overhead/ambient drum mics or overall mix compression/limiting, but maybe try a lower ratio and softer knee.

Keep at it, mixing's tough, but very rewarding when it comes together!


"Tough" might be too kind a word ... I know exactly what I want to hear in my head, but my engineering skills are primitive, plus being half-deaf from a real war and decades of bar wars. So when you point out the parallel comp conundrum on the vocal, I cue it up and immediately hear exactly what you're talking about. Excess parallel in the verses mushes out the lyrics and generally muddies the mix. In the chorus, it has the background vocals to push against, so it's not as overbearing. But the current level of parallel overall pushes the vox to far out in front of the mix. Lesson learned!

Speaking of the BGV, they're mixed sort of like another harmony instrument or section. I had to tie myself to the mast to keep from bringing them up to an Appalachian harmony level. ... As for the lead vocal, automation would solve lots of problems — or, I could take the verses and choruses each onto its own track, and tweak the reverb sends accordingly. Hmmm ....

The drums though — these are fake (EZD), but you already knew that. The cymbals are their weakest link. ... There's some comp on the fake room mike, but not on the overheads, and also comp across the output. I'll tinker with that because, lord knows, you don't wanna make EZD cymbals sound worse! :lol:

I got no opinion on the mix (well maybe one - later though).
But I'll tell ya something, that line - "a young man's dreams, through an old mans eyes" - friggin' outstanding! Once I heard that lyric I stopped caring about the bass or whatever - now it's about the song.
There's a war movie out there or some coming of age flick that is screaming for this song. Talk to those folks that licensed your other tune.

*Mix point - IMO the vox are a little hot and not sitting w/in the song.
As I've mentioned before, mix a version with just BIG TWANGY guitar doing the melody - just to have.

Ken, that means a lot to me. If you can grab 'em with the song, the rest is mop-up. Your encouragement and guidance on the film song was invaluable, as it is on this one. I'd love to hear it in a movie about a Vietnam vet, knowing now that life is finite, looking back at the war and the rock 'n' roll glory days, putting it all in perspective ... hell, maybe I should write the screenplay! :razz:

Mixwise: Presuming you heard the second posted version (8:55 PST), I'd parallel compressed the vocal to an excessive degree ... I think I can rein in the lead vox by adjusting that (see post above).

Many thanks!

I got no opinion on the mix (well maybe one - later though).
But I'll tell ya something, that line - "a young man's dreams, through an old mans eyes" - friggin' outstanding! Once I heard that lyric I stopped caring about the bass or whatever - now it's about the song.
There's a war movie out there or some coming of age flick that is screaming for this song. Talk to those folks that licensed your other tune.

*Mix point - IMO the vox are a little hot and not sitting w/in the song.
As I've mentioned before, mix a version with just BIG TWANGY guitar doing the melody - just to have.

Just an observer around here, but I gotta chime in and say +1 to all this and I'm really impressed with your song.

Sounding good here. The bass seems to be sitting better and doesn't conflict with the bottom in the vocal. The whole mix sounds like it has more separation now. Good work on the remix. I am always amazed by how much effort you put into your drum tracks, I must be really lazy or something!

Still in two minds whether to jump on the VRM as I haven't been doing much in the studio of late. Did you find it really useful or is it just a nice to have gimmick?

Sounding good here. The bass seems to be sitting better and doesn't conflict with the bottom in the vocal. The whole mix sounds like it has more separation now. Good work on the remix. I am always amazed by how much effort you put into your drum tracks, I must be really lazy or something!

Still in two minds whether to jump on the VRM as I haven't been doing much in the studio of late. Did you find it really useful or is it just a nice to have gimmick?

I took your advice and found the competing freq between the deep voice and the bass — around 300 Hz ... gave that band a wide -3 dB dip on the bass, and all it lost was mud. Rolled it off sharply at 80 Hz (where the kick lives), goosed it a little at 120 and 800. It seems to translate better on smaller speakers, but not boom out on the lows.

As for the Box: It really helped me root out some atrocities in the early stages of the mix. The Box can tell you when you're within range. But at the final stages, the least common denominator really has to be about analog devices moving sound waves through air. Hey, I'm old-school! Bring back the Wurlitzer jukeboxes!

Go Woodman GO!

Let'er Rawk!

I think this is your best songwriting work so far! Very poignant and powerful lyrics!

I'm torn about the distortion and near-distortion on the lead vocal track though. I've listened many times.

On some listens, I get past the distortion and hear the lyrics; other times, the distortion distracts me from the lyrics.

btw: Cool surf guitar!

Wood,

I just caught up with this and am listening to the re-mix now. This is a great song with the perfect vibe. It does have that Cash-esque vocal quality and delivery. Love the guitar work and surf guitar sounds, the best part is that the guitars are not overplayed and are just what the song needs. No small feat!

My only beef is the intro seems too abrupt and like it has been clipped-in, in mid dynamic if you will. Is there another way you could alter the beginning to introduce the tune?

I think this is your best songwriting work so far! Very poignant and powerful lyrics!

I'm torn about the distortion and near-distortion on the lead vocal track though. I've listened many times.

On some listens, I get past the distortion and hear the lyrics; other times, the distortion distracts me from the lyrics.

btw: Cool surf guitar!

Yeah, I've been torn about that vocal track myself ... even leaving out the distortion issue, there are some wavery and slightly out-of-tune places I could do without. But there are some passages I love that I wonder if I could replicate. So if it weren't for the distortion, I'd probably leave it alone ... but with so many of you guys commenting on it, it looks like that's the turd in the punchbowl of a project that's shaping up well.

So I'll probably give it another shot after the weekend gig flurry's over with ... pick the right time, get in the right mood and Just Do It. It would be worth a day's work to get it right.

The surf/twang guitar bit, all of four-and-a-half beats long, took about four hours to get just right. Once I had it nailed on the intro, I just pasted it into the other two spots.

Wood,

I just caught up with this and am listening to the re-mix now. This is a great song with the perfect vibe. It does have that Cash-esque vocal quality and delivery. Love the guitar work and surf guitar sounds, the best part is that the guitars are not overplayed and are just what the song needs. No small feat!

My only beef is the intro seems too abrupt and like it has been clipped-in, in mid dynamic if you will. Is there another way you could alter the beginning to introduce the tune?

Good to hear from ya, 64!

Pretty late in the game to retool the intro. The intent was to set the instrumental hook and get on with it. I felt like those four bars were plenty to set up the song. What advantage do you see in lengthening it?

Your comment — the best part is that the guitars are not overplayed and are just what the song needs. No small feat! — made me laugh! Yes, I resisted my usual guitar symphony impulse to keep that stripped-down feel, and as you rightly say, it serves the song. In fact, I'm consciously trying to alter my thinking into less complex/dense arrangements with fewer instruments and see what happens with that approach.

Good to hear from ya, 64!

Pretty late in the game to retool the intro. The intent was to set the instrumental hook and get on with it. I felt like those four bars were plenty to set up the song. What advantage do you see in lengthening it?

Your comment — the best part is that the guitars are not overplayed and are just what the song needs. No small feat! — made me laugh! Yes, I resisted my usual guitar symphony impulse to keep that stripped-down feel, and as you rightly say, it serves the song. In fact, I'm consciously trying to alter my thinking into less complex/dense arrangements with fewer instruments and see what happens with that approach.

No, not the whole intro, just the first note(s). It doesn't seem to have a rise on the the very first note, just like it was snipped/clipped and all of a sudden it's at full volume. Geeez... I hope this makes sense. I play the track and all of a sudden... WHAM! no rise to the peak of the first note.... it's just suddenly... there.

I have a clip tool in SONAR that allows me several modification to the waveform. Slow rise, fast rise, linear rise. If you have that, try it to tame the suddenness. Hope I don't come across "looney" (that's a Canadian term Geoff will understand). :lol:

Ah! OK, I get it. That's certainly doable!

Had a good listen to the new version this morning, sounds nearly perfect!!! I agree with 64 Strat, it's a little sudden right off the git-go... you might also put a drum pickup in front to bring the song in, but otherwise, much fuller-sounding this time, bass is more prominent without cluttering up, balance is real nice overall... great track!!!

Franc Robert

Here's the ol' Restless Soul, dragged up from the swamp again incorporating a lot of good advice I got here, a few automation subleties, and some brand-new singin', which I hope is an improvement!

Got up one morning after a rare good night's sleep, feeling fine, and the Lady Woodman tells me she's gotta be somewhere for the whole afternoon. The stars were aligned for my vocal track! So I fired up the Shed and hacked at it til I had a solid belt-it-out track, 4 inches to a foot from the mike. But the dynamics on the quieter soulful lines just weren't there.

So I went back into the track yesterday and today to retake some of those bits, taking advantage of the proximity effect on the SM7b. Knitting them together is a work in progress ... hasn't been micro-automated yet, and I suspect some of those soft low notes sung with my mustache touching the pop filter could boom on some systems.

That of course being why I'm posting it again — I never put anything out in public until I've run it by the board! You guys are my teachers, and I promise not to throw spitballs in class. Hahaha! I wear my mix-thread scars proudly!

This might be the best tune I've ever written. No hoodoo lyrics, no guitar blather, just a song. So I wanna get it right ... the only global mix adjustments were bringing up the rhythm guitar (L) a dB or two and bringing the kick up 1 dB.

So have at it! Look forward to hearing about what you're hearing!

Restless Soul v2 (http://soundcloud.com/the-woodshed/a-restless-soul-in-a-fearsome)

No boom here, woodman, no boom at all!

Very nice balance, and I heard a couple things that I hadn't heard before-little rhythm licks (and did I hear a flute at the end?). Still sounds like the vocal needs some knob tweaking, as you mentioned, but I REALLY LIKE the vocal performance!!!! Once you've got the vocals dialed in (maybe a bit more compression? Slider gymnastics?) methinks this puppy is done!!!

Franc Robert

Sounds good there woodman!

Jut a few niggles, but as always, JMHO..

The beginning snare roll and note are considerably lower in volume than the snare level throughout the rest of the song. Maybe bring it up to the same level.

The hi-hat sounds a bit hot to me. The open hi-hat in bar two beat one (I'm counting when all instruments start as bar one) really jumps out. Maybe match hat volume to the ride cymbal.

Bar 16; when you sing the second syllable of "surprise", it sounds like it got away from you a bit..but on the other hand, given the song's lyrics, that "imperfection" might be just fine.

As I said before, this is a really fine piece of songwriting!

FWIW, more listens into it, I'm hearing all cymbals hot (hi-hat, ride and crash).

No boom here, woodman, no boom at all!

Very nice balance, and I heard a couple things that I hadn't heard before-little rhythm licks (and did I hear a flute at the end?). Still sounds like the vocal needs some knob tweaking, as you mentioned, but I REALLY LIKE the vocal performance!!!! Once you've got the vocals dialed in (maybe a bit more compression? Slider gymnastics?) methinks this puppy is done!!!


Yeah, massaging the vocal is definitely priority one, it being relatively raw in comparison to the tracks that were all but finished before it went down. It's only lightly compressed (2-3 dB tops), so I might get a little more aggressive with it, or try parallel comp if that mushes out the lyrics too much. I'm still not totally sold on the EQ, but might hafta automate it since the quieter bits involved radically different mike technique on two separate sections ... unifying them is a challenge but not mission impossible.


The beginning snare roll and note are considerably lower in volume than the snare level throughout the rest of the song. Maybe bring it up to the same level.

Hmm ... I originally had them that way, but they jumped out too hard. However, upon further review, it does sound pretty wimpy as is. I'll work on that.

The hi-hat sounds a bit hot to me. The open hi-hat in bar two beat one (I'm counting when all instruments start as bar one) really jumps out. Maybe match hat volume to the ride cymbal.
....
FWIW, more listens into it, I'm hearing all cymbals hot (hi-hat, ride and crash).

Thanks for your keen high-end acuity ... as you know, that's my worst auditory weakness! After Rob's comment on the squashed cymbals, I ditched the compressor on the overhead rather that adjusting the settings per his suggestion (they just sounded better that way). But I neglected to compensate on the volume. I can pull that down, see how it affects the hat, then adjust it accordingly.

Bar 16; when you sing the second syllable of "surprise", it sounds like it got away from you a bit..but on the other hand, given the song's lyrics, that "imperfection" might be just fine.

Right — that spot and the following "eyes" are two places that need work in the next phase of "knitting" the vocal track into overall consistency. The low end is so dramatically different from the distance-miked passages that it'll take a little more tweaking to even things out.

Appreciate your observations, guys!

Yeah, massaging the vocal is definitely priority one, it being relatively raw in comparison to the tracks that were all but finished before it went down. It's only lightly compressed (2-3 dB tops), so I might get a little more aggressive with it, or try parallel comp if that mushes out the lyrics too much.

If parallel compression isn't working, you can always try stacking 2 compressors on your vocal buss. Overall they will be doing the same amount of gain reduction, but only having to do half the work each. It'll prevent sudden loud burts/plosives from sounding over compressed. You could always run this along side a parallel comp... I do!

Thanks for your keen high-end acuity ... as you know, that's my worst auditory weakness! After Rob's comment on the squashed cymbals, I ditched the compressor on the overhead rather that adjusting the settings per his suggestion (they just sounded better that way). But I neglected to compensate on the volume. I can pull that down, see how it affects the hat, then adjust it accordingly.


It's very difficult to compress overheads without it sounding awful. I only use a small ratio (1.5-2) with barely any gain reduction. More of a "glue" compressor than controlling dynamics. For that style of music, I'd just automate it to be honest.

Liking the new vocal performance by the way!

Rob

If parallel compression isn't working, you can always try stacking 2 compressors on your vocal buss. Overall they will be doing the same amount of gain reduction, but only having to do half the work each. It'll prevent sudden loud burts/plosives from sounding over compressed. You could always run this along side a parallel comp... I do!

At this stage, there's only peak compression on the vocal, shaving 2-3 dB at peaks. (This is a bounced track that went through a Type R compressor with no [zero] gain reduction just to fatten it up.) So there's plenty of wiggle-room for further compression ... once I get the automation fine-tuned, I might try a stacking vs parallel shoot-out to see which works best.

It's very difficult to compress overheads without it sounding awful. I only use a small ratio (1.5-2) with barely any gain reduction. More of a "glue" compressor than controlling dynamics. For that style of music, I'd just automate it to be honest.

I arrived at the same conclusion. After futzing around in vain with the compressor settings on the fake room mike for a while, I hit Bypass — bang, there were the cymbals (and a hotter hat, though I didn't catch it til Scatman pointed it out). Now two simple fader pulls should get the overheads and the hat sitting well.

Bar 16; when you sing the second syllable of "surprise", it sounds like it got away from you a bit..but on the other hand, given the song's lyrics, that "imperfection" might be just fine.!

Oh man, I had my brain on backwards this morning! I was immersed in levels/compression/EQ and didn't immediately "get" that you meant the crack in the voice. ... I listened to that one quite a few times to make sure I liked it as an emotional quirk, and left it in. Not as slick as Merle can do those "sob" notes, but he can do it on purpose! :lol:

Sounding real good here Woody. The reverb on the vocal lets it sit into the track real nice. As far as levels on the vocal goes I felt the quiter passages needed to come up a bit. You have done a great job capturing an "atmosphere" with this one.

Thanks, Petey! ... Got started on getting the vocal track leveled out, but then reality intervened. Hope to have it wrapped up by tomorrow morning.

OK, here's what I hope will be the last major tweaks, although fine-tuning a coupla spots may be in order ... parallel compression won the day on the vocal track. It seems to beef up the quieter passages without muddling the stronger parts. Tamed the hat -2 dB, took the overhead down a dB, fiddled with the automation (including bringing up the pre-intro snare pickup notes). See what you think.

Restless Soul v3 (http://soundcloud.com/the-woodshed/a-restless-soul-in-a-fearsome)

OK, here's what I hope will be the last major tweaks, although fine-tuning a coupla spots may be in order ... parallel compression won the day on the vocal track. It seems to beef up the quieter passages without muddling the stronger parts. Tamed the hat -2 dB, took the overhead down a dB, fiddled with the automation (including bringing up the pre-intro snare pickup notes). See what you think.

Restless Soul v3 (http://soundcloud.com/the-woodshed/a-restless-soul-in-a-fearsome)

I'd say you're done!

Wide, spacious, vocals sitting nicely. It's all there Wood!

Cheers,
Geoff

Appreciate it, Geoff! Now I can go mow the lawn. :mrgreen:

The vocals sit well and seem sharper. Time to move on to the next one! Good luck with your next endeavour.

The vocals sit well and seem sharper. Time to move on to the next one! Good luck with your next endeavour.

Ya mean mowing the grass? Hahaha! ... Not sure what's next, but something always bubbles up. I'm hooked, dammit! :razz:

Step away from the computer, this tune is DONE!!!! :mrgreen:

Very nice job, Woody!! Now ya gotta find someone to sell it to (Dierks Bentley?) It's a really catchy song, and needs to be out in a far wider audience than just us telecaster aficionados!!!

Franc Robert

That sounds great! That song had me hooked and looking forward to what was coming.