How to NOT DESTROY the GROOVE of your song! - FAQ Friday
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- Опубликовано: 9 фев 2025
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➡️➡️Today's FAQ Friday Questions:
➡️Could you talk about producer contracts with an artist? Do you recommend a lawyer to draw these various contract scenarios up, or are there online options that are sufficient? 1:05
➡️What is the best way to keep the overall feel and the play between musicians while working on a track? 15:09
Today’s featured question is: What is the best way to keep the overall feel and the play between musicians while working on a track?
This is a great question! It is so important that you make sure you are not taking all the character out of a track when you are editing it.
Many years ago, when I was still learning, I made the mistake of editing a live recording I was working on far too much and ended up with a small, tight sounding recording. I took the recording, and completely straightened out the drums, then did the same with the guitar, the bass, and so on! In the end, I ended up with a track that had absolutely no groove left in it!
So, how do you avoid doing this? The most simple way is this: Do less.
What I mean by this is instead of editing the entire track to be “perfect”, simply listen to a few bars at a time and see where there are small moments that are out of time or where there are errors, and just edit those small pieces. Maybe there is one note that is slightly ahead of out of time, so just take that one note and nudge it back! That will keep the groove and the intentions of the musicians, and you won’t end up removing the character of the music!
Over the years, I began to develop an ear for this, as you will too as you continue to learn and develop your skills!
One instance where I really put this into practice was when I was working on the Mixing Classic Rock Course for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
I was working with an incredible group of musicians including vocalists Trini Lopez and Mark Farner, Danny Seraphine (Chicago) on Drums, Leland Sklar (TOTO, Phil Collins) on Bass, Elliot Easton (The Cars) & Jennifer Batten (Michael Jackson) on E-guitar, Fred Mandel (Queen, Pink Floyd, Elton John) on Piano, and Ray Colcord (Aerosmith, Lou Reed) on strings.
We were in Sunset Sound, Studio 3, and we had just recorded the whole song, and Leland came up to me and asked to hear a certain bar, because he was pretty sure he was out of time. Sure enough, he was a fraction of a note ahead of the kick, and so we worked to adjust just that one piece of the song.
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Produce Like A Pro As I frequently ask , is there a cure for drummers ????? SERIOUSLY
One of my two biggest problems is mixing distorted guitars. Clean or crunched guitars are ok but distorted ones either get lost or are muddy.
Hi Warren. I often have trouble hearing the difference between the changes you make in your videos. For example you can make a subtle EQ change and comment on how much better it sounds, but I hear no difference. How would I go about improving my ear?
Hey PLAP Team! Hey Warren! I've seen harps being recorded in every possible way, technique and using every existing microphone. How would you do it?
How do you handling panning/stereo image with only a few parts, like 2 instruments and 2 vocals? How would your approaches change to the mic placement and that panning to get a more live or polished feel?
For anyone just starting out in the industry, from someone who used to be in the industry, find yourself someone like Warren and beg them to be your mentor. We are so fortunate in these times to have the internet to connect across oceans and continents so you are able to do what you do so well. Your advice and guidance is invaluable and should never be underestimated. Thank you for your constant willingness to share your experiences and help people.
Wow! You are so kind my friend! I am so glad to be able to help in any way I can!! Thanks for being such a truly amazing part of our community, you help so many people my friend!!
Just when I need a break from the madness Warren comes though again. Thank you!!!!
Hi Buddy Albert thanks ever so much my friend!!
I feel so lucky to have stumbled onto this channel 5 years ago! It's like hearing great advice from a friend who has already done what you are trying to do. That is the best advice and the best way to receive the information. Thank you so much Warren and staff for your efforts!
You are so right about groove. There is nothing that feels better than a great drummer and bass player right in the pocket. You just want to turn it louder an louder as it FEELS so good. Ive always said " If your band has a bad singer. people will say that the SINGER is bad, but if your bass and drums are off, you have a bad BAND ". Groove is everything!
19:35 Warren's World! Warren's World! It's Party Time! Excellent! :)
Haha thanks ever so much!! Haha
Hey, sorry to say, I absolutely agree with you :P I am a session guitarist, arranger, producer, mixer. I also have written hundred of recorded songs here in Quebec, many top 10 hits, won various prizes, have toured all over Europe and Canada with some of Quebec's most prestigious artists, bla bla bla.. But having done all kind of deals, from various functions in the industry,. and listening to this insightful and no b.s. video, I must say it hits the mark. I share the passionate approach in that , only work, if you can, on projects you believe in and get enthused by. at the end of the day, if you do too many by the numbers sessions and songs, you will eventually lose your precious creative spark and douse all the passion in your music. I'm very proud and happy to say it's not my case or Warren's case . Cheers to passionate artists and keep the flame.
Hi Serge Laporte wow!! Thank you ever so much for your wonderful insight and I really appreciate the huge compliment! That means a lot!
What really kills me about you is in any situation you have put in more thought than I think about anything .
Hi Gilbert Spader haha I love music! It’s all I know and all I do!!
I got kinda emotional watching this FAQ Friday. One of your teams best videos - ever. Your comments and information warm the heart. Anything is possible, when we enjoy and support the music that we work on! Thank you.
Thank you Warren! You are greatly loved and appreciated! You and your family stay safe and blessed!
Thanks for the great video!
For me it is simple: If someone does not want a contract I am out. Because if you want to play fair a contract is no problem. Often we creatives are so exited about a project, that we don't have the space in our mind for paperwork, but I tried to force myself to it and it worked better in the last years. Learning from pain.
I always enjoy hearing you say.
“I hope you’re doing marvelously well”
Thank you Warren and all who worked on that project for St. Jude. Thank you to those who are not at high risk who have taken care and mindfulness to protect those who are, at high risk even having survived so much for so long, only to be faced with this very difficult to dodge virus. Before social media I would never have gotten to know how many people would take this kind of care, ❤️💜 and now, how much more people are aware than before. 🎵🎶
Wow, such a positive vibe, exactly what I needed right now in the current mix situation - thank you so much for your good words Warren ! really good positive push, I go back to the mixing desk and have to make a serious call to some artists :D
I recorded many artists for free and learned to really evaluate and see, if we share the same passion - especially taking care that we have the same motivation and pull in the same direction
Many people have many many many biiiiiiig ideas - but when it comes to realise them, they prefer to binge watch Netflix ;)
I had bad experiences with artists who jumped quickly into the victim role and blame everyone else for their laziness, so I had to learn quick to say stop
The good thing is that it is the exception, most of the time my family grows and I'm really blessed with this lovely artists :)
A tip is to not jump too quick into deals: Become friends, share music, learn about the other person before you start doing something for free / pay for it with your expenses and grow together
i appreciate your time and knowledge and the fact that even as talented as you are your head is not swelled up as big as a blimp Hope you and your family stay safe and heaithy
Thanks ever so much William! That's very kind of you!
I think that every time you enter into a music agreement whether songwriting, producing, performing or whatever you need to first "get it writing". Music attorneys don't have to be expensive. The Music Connection publishes a free list of music business attorneys every year. They are worth it, I speak from experience.
If you love music, money doesn't matter, unless you can make a living from it. Loved it when you said that sometimes it is enough for you to be involved in a song if it is good, that shows how much music means to you as the artist and theProduction Ultimately, it's about making a great song and believing in it...great words from a great men🙏
Hi Warren, this is just to say thank you for sharing your huuuuge experience with all of us. It's been great learning from you so many things. And this time special thanks for The Thrills! I have never heard them before.
11.48...a good while ago I asked Warren how he would approach reviewing something he didn't truly feel, or believe in...and there you go. One of the things that sticks with me most about this channel and the content herein, is the integrity of those behind it. Respect.
Nice job on The Irish Keep Gate-Crashing. Even more entertaining after hearing how you put it together.
Thank you Warren and your team for the amazing knowledge and unconditional support you give this community!
Thank you for filling these quarantine days with your amazing and useful content. Love from Italy 🇮🇹
Yea I have done the thankless album thing also, where you write, record, perform and produce for someone and then the record company comes in and its by by to all my work. Then the artist and record company make up this cinderella story of a girl with a demo tape working in a record store spotted singing and a record producer heard her and made her a star. It hurts, and not just because of the money and being broke at the time, but to not even be mentioned. Ouch! I did at least have socan forms for writing credits so I recieved some money from record sales and plays.
I stil work with others who are extremely talented and dont get paid but its rewarding all the same. Some have worked out and some have not. Most have not.
I have so much admiration for how you have helped so many of us with our productions and advice on writing. Thank you so much! Really!
I always learn so much from you Warren thank you
Great FAQ, and a well done one with valuable information as always!
Warren....Thank you for giving your time to charity. Great video. You're a good dude!
Thanks for this mate. My first FAQ Friday. Necessary viewing!
Hi TheGuitarGeek aww shucks!! You absolutely 100% Rock!! Everyone who doesn’t know Andy’s channel please go and check it out! He’s a gem!
Produce Like A Pro you’re too kind
Work on what you believe in and preserve the groove. I'm pretty sure that's all there is to success in music 🤔 Great stuff Warren!! 👍😀✌
Groove and feeling is everything!
Warren, I think we'd all love if you would release a recording/producing agreement template/sample for us to look over. As you mention there are no "one size fits all" contracts, but ideally this sample would have a "core" section that should be in every contract, and then some "optional" sections depending on the type of deal you're making with your client. Obviously, it wouldn't be considered legal advice, as every place has different laws, but something to point us in the right direction would be appreciative. Thank you so much for all your help; your experience shows in the quality advice and insight that you give!
Thanks Warren, invaluable information.
Thanks ever so much my friend!!
I have a song being mixed down at a local studio at this time. The engineer sends me a message "have you heard this demo track you sent along with the stems?" Yup! I did, "Well there are drum parts with no groove, something is off." OK. So I have a listen. Being locked up inside, I decided to use my MPC Live (to not use it as a songwriters pad) and do a drum track for my song. So I know that was to grid and not off time. Well my two of me guitar tracks were not always meant to be played together. I recorded them with different feel but I also go carried away with it. SO... I punched in some new tracks as well as vocal. The MPC tracks by the way were dubbed to my Tascam SD32 which I used for tracking. As an artist/producer you need to take ownership and just get it done. The song is to be released in a week or two.
Fanatastic advice. Appreciate the timestamps in the description
16 takes, on tape, without a click track??? OMG that must have been a nightmare to even make sound fluent at all. Incredible! " Listen more and do less " Well said Warren.
Man. Your first question on contracts is such a big thing. Many people think of music as just music and forget it’s a business.
This is why I am grateful I have a business school education and got into making music while in school because I have this habit of wanting to know how things work.
What I do is draw up a contract (a relatively simple, non-legalese, 1-2 page doc) where I charge an amount up front. Normally 10% of the total. Then, in order for me to hand over the final copy of the record, they pay me the remainder on a per record completed basis. So that remaining 90% gets paid out as I do the work. If they don’t pay me then they don’t get the record. This has worked great for me.
I haven’t done any points deals mostly because I like to work with “lower tier” talent who don’t make the money to make it worthwhile. And because I make music because I like to, not because I need the money so I only really charge to cover costs
You're a good guy, Warren. Thanks for everything! Be well!
this is so amazing. thank you so much Warren
Thanks Warren! Always providing us useful tips!
Isaac Breno you’re very welcome my friend!!
Warren deep respect for your words and opening up. Very thankfull
Quadruple Like!!
Really beautiful discussion on this stuff.
Best production channel ever!!
Thanks for the amazing advice as always Warren !
You're very welcome Cameron!
You need not a box, nor a machine, nor a plug in, to make music in the mind...That Truth, also is...Art.
What are your thoughts on Classical Piano Solo recordings / mixings?
Always the best information
Hello Warren, I had a situation where a friend of mine and I were working on developing an artist. They both live about 7 hours away in another state. I got the over the phone demo from her (the artist) and I traveled there to track her piano performance and and vocals. Anyways, she gave me ideas of what she wanted during the entire process. After a few days of being up there and spending my money on everything, I returned home. Fully armed with a killer performance and feeling excited, I began to build the track up with strings percussion and sound design. I mixed everything down and made a masterpiece. I would send snippets of my work and live video to get feedback. Everything was great and she really loved it until I sent her my final mix. When she responded, she said, well that is absolutely beautiful and awesome!!!!
BUT......Here are some other versions from a few other people that are working on my song.....and I really like the direction this person is going with. Its little more lo fi and minimal.
Ughhh!!!!!
Needless to say, I was pissed and everyone else's version and ESPECIALLY that one was absolute crap. Lots of awful and bad notes, that arent musical. Terrible mixes. Just everything. She decided on the fly that she didn't want a big string section behind her song and was just afraid to tell me.
Long story short I wasn't upset with her changing her mind with what she wanted, I was more upset that my supposed business partner took my work and outsourced it to other people without me knowing it and ultimately everything I spent my time on writing and composing, everyone copied ideas and my version of the song is NOT going to be on the album.
I lost a lot of sleep over it because I really wrote a damn masterpiece of a song. Everyone that hears it loves it. I'm afraid to hear what's going to be on the album.
Warrens Humility is unsurpassed
You're very kind indeed Joe! Thanks ever so much for your amazing support my friend!
Produce Like A Pro Warren, you never fail to amaze me with your down to earth ethics and human approach to business!
Great stuff on the groove section.
Instead of warping the audio to fit the grid, warp the grid to fit the audio! I do this in Ableton, you can create a tempo map this way. I typically align things one bar at a time at most (ie, I prefer bigger 2/4/8 bar chunks if they're well played). So you preserve the feel and tempo shifting of the original take, but you still get the ability to add MIDI and musical time reference.
Great advice. Thankfully I've never been ripped-off (intentionally or unintentionally) myself.
Thx for another great video🤩
You're very welcome Slade! I'm so glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Produce Like A Pro thx for the reply! You have change my music life. My mixes and recording have gone leaps n bounds after finding your channel. Your my number one source! Have a great one🤘
I love that Thrills record
Like the old man used to tell me: Never give away what you're already selling.
Hi ZerroHouseProd Haha indeed!
Had that happen with the contract thing as well the first of this year. When there was drama from the drugged out singer / ring leader of a year and a half long project I said cash me out, no percentages etc, I am out. Than it got ugly! They tried to assassinate my character along with stealing the mp3 masters along with backing tracks from another producer I mixed! They are now blacklisted from radio stations, shows and promoters. Everyone looks at them like ass clowns.
The good news is I networked with a lot of great people! The songs where better than good. Maor Appelbaum could tell yeah cause he checked a few masters for me, said to tweek a few tiny things. So all that hard work became a great portfolio. Now lots of bands and artists want me to record them or add my 3D treatments to there masters. Even with the drama tried to stay professional looking at the bigger picture. So no loss, things are good!:)
Warren, would like to see a video of techniques and steps used to make an original song have the same characteristics of a reference track of the same genre.
Your hilarious man. Your hair really cool. But your quality is now better than TV or any other resource.
Thanks, no real questions at the moment great advice on editing, legal stuff not really an issue at my level but good to hear.
Maybe cause it's 3-20's (3-20-2020), but today has a great vibe... it's probably because it's been so quiet outside, and for southern California it's a rare occurrence... 3 20's is even rarer, but 20 thousand years from now, it'll be 420's!! *mind blows* Anyways, you said a line that I think would make a great "Merch Moto": "No Click" - Produce Like A Pro... Coffee Cups, T-Shirts, even guitar picks ;) "No Click"
You’re a good person Warren!
You're very kind Donald!!
Warren’s World! Excellenttt
I hope you have a marvellous day Warren. Stay healthy, you are a great inspiration to so many!
Hi Kyle Olin thanks ever so much my friend!
Thank you.
Hi Barret Nilsen you’re very welcome my friend!
Great Discussions!
Hello, Can you do a video on cables? maybe talk about best cables to buy from budget to highest end? and maybe throw in an example comparison of your cheapest cable vs your most expensive cable and a mid range cable? I'm struggling to find the best pair of Jacks for monitors from my soundcard.
A comment about the contracts and relationships with artists. I like to help artists in its way to success, but I always say them a thing. I can't loose money. If I don't charge them at least my costs, I am paying for work. If I had a lot of money maybe I can afford doing a free project if the artist is really nice, but now I can't. I do a project for a charity association that help women that have suffered gender violence. I talked with them and I tell that I want to help their association, and what I can do. I make a song contest for local independent artists and the price is the song recorded (with the rights for the association) and a discount for the studio. Now that's all I can afford. Artists have to know that we have bills to pay. Sorry about this loooong comment. Fantastic video Warren, as always.
Warren's Place has a nice ring to it. :-D
Hahaha it's ok! It's a community of amazing people not about me my friend!
my day has only 24h .... where is all this content grown ?
Theres a video I recomend anyone working in the creative industry to watch called "Fuck you pay me". Its targeted at graphic designers, but the advice is still good. Basically get a lawyer even if you think you cant afford one, because ultimately that lawyer *makes* you money. Get them to write you a contract, and be uncompromizing about being paid. Don't let companies bully you. If you are owed money go for their throay. If they want to change the contract mid way through, stop what your doing, get them to pay you for work done so far, THEN change the contract. If they don't like the end result, too bad, theres a contract, Fuck you pay me.
I recorded a album done at a pretty famous home studio the producer put at least 3 months into recording it the album came out ,and the producer who was to be paid by the label never got paid.. I feel awful to this day . I wish there was a way to protect the artist ,and the producer ..as we know production is an art
Hire a great drummer! It is worth every cent.
Hi Warren, thanks very much for your episodes, they are gold to me. I m a reggae artist and a producer in Madrid with my own studio at home, but i am having trouble with my neighbour below complaining for the loud music. Is It possible to mix with headphones? Do the iso amp boxes change the tone and the low end from the amp? How can i isolate an acoustic upright piano? Thanx a lot
It would be interesting to analyze, using standard rates for status and whatever applicable for Eddie Van Halen’s work on Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat it’. Being he did it for free, had he gotten revenue, an estimate of earnings would be interesting.
Hi Warren!
When you are recording an amp with a built in spring reverb such as a Fender Twin or a Princeton Reverb, would you generally record with reverb on through the amp to capture its tonal character, or do you prefer to add reverb afterward in-the-box for the spatial flexibility and control over the amount of reverb in the mix?
Appreciate the wealth of knowledge, expertise, and entertainment you provide us with every week!
Hi Nick, absolutely! I love being able to use the effects that the Guitarist uses, which would include the internal reverb if that's a part of their sound!
Produce Like A Pro would you try to back the verb a tad bit so it won’t get too intense in the mastering stages, adding compression and such?
7:04 Yep...
How do you mix a song you don’t like? I mean how to stay motivated during the mix
I like that question. Maybe he'll answer it.
In any field people want to work with you only because you are successful - your success has probably taken many hours/years of dedicated hard work, and a large slice of your life and energy. Do not disrespect what you have put into becoming 'you'. There is no such thing as working for 'free' - you either getting paid something (which may still be at a loss - that's business risk) but if you get paid nothing and/or have no legal contract stating an agreed return on any future profits from the project, the project is actually costing you hard cash. As Warren says you are having to cover all your regular overhead costs (probably much higher than you may casually think - do your sums properly) and while involved with that project you are unable to do your 'proper' work for the duration - that is what provides your bread and water. Moreover, as a successful individual you likely will have to refuse lucrative professional offers which arise in the meantime.
DaveBW
Hello, My question: I own an Engl Powerball 2 amp and cab. When recording it (shure 57) live, it seems like I'm always finding too many frequencies that are offensive. I recently watched the episode with Mr. Plotnikoff where he mentioned that he doesn't need to use EQ. My results made me look into a Kemper HAHA. How many variables am I missing with the mic'ing, I wonder? Placement etc etc. Thanks for your time and all you do here on your Chanel. Rob
Warren, I have a question. Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but I'll go anyway:
Normally when I want heavy guitars in a song I would go by double tracking the guitar part and pan the tracks left and right. But what is your preferred approach for double tracking and/or panning if you have two rhythm guitars which play slightly different parts? For example: one play low octave of a riff and the other - the high octave; or one play the main riff and the other - the harmonized riff, etc.
Hey Warren many thanks for sharing this video and your knowledge. If possible my question would be about "ear training" ... not having the chance to spend hours in a pro studio to exercise with real musicians and engineers.. what do you'd suggest as daily "ear training" good practice or aptitude? Thanks in advance and thanks again.
Is Master Match worth using or would you recommend scooping and EQing first?
People should realise that ALL sound in real life is anything but 'stable', every note is slightly different in tone, position and length, so the more subtle variation in your programming you put the more realistic your music will sound. LOCK INTO THE GROOVE of the track, as you said, LISTEN and FEEL the groove of the track and ride that wave. I remember back in the day people sampling the funky drummer or apache loop then put their own quantized beat to it and wondering why it didn't sound right!!! So they'd chop up the live drum loop and move the snare to match their clean programmed drums thus destroying that funky groove!!!! People used to love my remixes but dj's always said they were difficult to mix because to them it was 'too loose' and i'd throw an extra beat or bar every now and again if it felt good to me. Dj's and the mixing culture, to a certain degree, are killing true musical expression, especially in the dance scene.
This is a super late question and you probably won’t see it. But I have a Yamaha m1516, what’s a good AD/DA converter to use to connect it to my laptop to use it as giant interface?
Not as a producer, but twice I've recorded bass for artists and released without being paid, and before I knew how things would be dealt with, I didn't get any credit either. Of course, my royalties stand at 0%.
andesneko dumb people are too many
Question for Eric - what does he think has been your best studio session (that he's witnessed)?
Can you do a lesson on how to play the PLAP theme?
Haha funny Loren!
Hey Warren, I hope You and Family are doing "BODACIOUSLY WELL" in spite of the Pandemic and resulting California Lock down.
Speaking of which, how's that affecting your Professional Production/ Engineering side of the business?
Stay safe and healthy (your whole family.) Peace Brother!!
On the subject of mixing and charging for services rendered, do not forget that sometimes while an artist or band may not be GRAMMY AWARDS Material, their is also the option of sync licensing their music. May not work for touring bands but could be viable for drama TV Shows, Reality Shows etc. and in that case You'd definitely want to retain a portion of writer's and publshing. That way everyone will get residuals if it is placed in a syndicating Show.
On the issue of different instruments being to far ahead or behind... Studio One makes fixing that easy. You "Listen" as you said, and then when you find the part that isn't quite right, cut that section into an "Event" as it's called in Studio One Lingo... place Your mouse at the end of the Event... press alt and now you have time stretch. pull or push it into place as it is needed to smooth out.
That trick only affects that one event in that one track so you don't loose the groove or the feeling... you are just smoothing out that one bad part.
Sorry Warren couldn't listen to the song as it's on Spotify. I will not support Spotify untill they change their policies on paying out proper royalties to the artists, writers and producers of the material they are selling.
Which is why I am such an avid fan of Sync Licensing.
I only quantize drums, everything else just keep making takes. its not like there is rewind time anymore. I will set a loop recording and just stack and stack until you play 2 takes you know were great. go back and find them, and dont quantize them, at worse i will warp a single note mistake into time, but if it has more than one small mistake I just keep re recording.
Gotyor quantizing drums is the worst you can do
Is there some kind of top end separator on your voice? I hear a weird modulation happening.
I wanted to ask you this for some time and is related to this video topic.
I hear almost every producer recording on a click track all kinds of music from blues up to metal. And its always the asme pattern like a rough take with drums guitar and bass, then the drummer records his part, then bass, guitar, etc. I feel like that hurts the song, like almost every song before that had slightly unintetional tempo changes that makes the song more alive and natural (for example AC/DC Back in Black). Whats your opinion on that and what would you advise to some bands who are facing a producer who wants them to do that? I know that a lot of the times that method can be benifical, for some prog stuff for example, and I follow that kind of thinking for some styles of music, but I hear it being used everywhere and in places that would just kill the magic or the groove of the song. And Im not even gonna talk about quantising... I would really like to hear your opinion on that. Thanks!
P.S. Thanks for all the amazing videos, this is such an amazing contnet that helps not only the producers but also the artists and shows the producers that the are an artist too.
100% of $0 will always be $0 (I was an accountant, so I would know). Get yourself paid...and I'm saying this as a musician who wants to record an album. I already decided everyone working for this record is getting paid. My project shouldn't hurt them financially. I've made a lot of decisions about my upcoming album based on this channel, and also Creative Sauce. (Check him out if you haven't. Smaller channel, but really good.) Thanks for all the wonderful advice!!
The woman designing my logo has already been paid (and she's a friend...probably even more important to pay friends, because we often take the work of friends for granted), and we pay for everything ourselves. We don't even use GoFundMe, because we figure other people need it more than we do. Probably for medical bills.
Hey warren, had a question. How do you deal with people that completely ghost you after giving a demo reel that they were impressed with or similarly, a spec mix that impressed them with a similar result. Love to hear your thoughts
Hi PLAP, if I only have ONE live recording in my whole composition, hand drums in this case, how should I approach mixing it with its rather rigidly timed counterparts? Do I keep my other elements straight and have the percussion as a nice counterpoint or should I be trying to really pocket those perc hits within the on grid sounds? many thanks. One Love
Warren, if you were to take a song mixed and mastered by one of the top 10 mixers in the country, then have reviewed and critiqued by the other 9 top mixers, would the other 9 find things they would change, or would they all be in agreement with original mixer? How do you decide what should get changed and what should be left alone?
How about mixing 1 minute of music..Chorus-Verse without ever listening,just using visual tools and making decisions based on experience. VU meters,Frequency analyzers, etc.and listen only when complete. Up to challenge? I think we can all learn a lot,and it's very fun-interesting.
What is dante audio ? I'm seeing a lot of pro new interfaces coming with this feature. Is it beneficial for home studios planning to upgrade?
Dante is a software networking protocol for using multiple connections via cat 5e or 6e to use gear and host its port connections..Computers and cpu and memory or other computers tied to things tied through to other computers in a network...
So you can share not only hard drives, files, and such streaming through cat cables, but now you can also use Audio interfaces through the protocol, and DAWs syncing through MTC or other, sending to such DAWs using multiple devices in tied network will be recognized streaming info of audio into Dante's mapping infomation pane...
Not sure about video..or 3d rendering though.
So you can now join multiple computers together and use the resources of all joined on that network...
The sync should be setup I believe automatically once the gear gets input, haven't got my head around it yet , But, I have it installed on two machines, to try it out, ( get good network cards 10gbps compatible with os or osx and Dante)...And that should open up any bottle neck throughput...
Add thunderbolt to gear and or computer machines can also help with speeding up things of streaming, ..So in this musical muse perhaps to bring in more midi type plugin use, on one machine, so as not to bog down the others...in helping reduce cpu loads..and use of memory across that network chain.
So in essence, you could use old computers just for midi...And one newer one for Audio...sync em up, and tie in the DAWs to gain more track support counts, more input output devices..more doing the work together of many means more stable?..Haven't tested yet so..Some say it works well with large libraries and midi plugins ...Kind of like the old Amega's tied together to make Babylon 5 rendering of 3D animation...each computer was given a specific function to produce a certain rendering part.
So put that sort on todays cpu and memory monsters..if it does video also...That is what you do with Dante in a production house of computer power usage...problem is , now= stability of the systems used....My two cents..osx, or other liken linux is more buggless with interupts of updates and such, can be turned off...Where as Windows 10 is kind of hidden acts..and unstoppable updates break things and resets somethings to defaults, Just to spy and send intel....Just my two cents...Hope it helps you ponder the possibilities...Also you can setup a remote viewer I believe if not already put in some form to see other desktop through....So you can make one computer the boss of them all...and put these things in the house, different rooms for x. y. z. kind of tied in, yet different rooms...isolation ..such and so on.
I love this stuff If you were going to record Dream Theater drums what would you do different than they are doing now because as great as he plays and as great as they sound to me something is missing
would have loved to hear what was edited at 13:02 ;P
Groove @ 15:07
Good advice! :)
I'd suggest to those out there who are recording their own music, ask:
1. How important is it that you limit the number of "takes"?
2. How much are you willing to edit a given take, without redoing the whole thing?
3. What feel are you trying to lock into? What is the song asking you to do?
OK, so, question about the hypothetical situation of the rushed, "urgent" guitar that's getting a tiny bit ahead of the rhythm section....
What might happen if you were to put a delay on the track that landed the delayed signal right where the guitar is supposed to be, then pull the "dry" guitar back in the mix a little? Sort of the reverse of the classic technique of putting an echo on the snare drum where the echo lands on the next beat.
ZerroHouseProd marvellous idea! Yes, those kind of classic techniques are very reminiscent of Shelly Yakus, Jack Douglas, Roy Cicala and Jay Messina, three of the greatest of all time! Jack talked about using delays in exactly that way many time with me!
Warren, I struggle with getting the vocal level to sit correctly. Most frequently, my vocals are too loud. How do you determine the right level for the vocal?
(Disclaimer)I’m no Warren Huart... But I thought I’d share what I’ve gleaned from my experience(yes I’ve done it professionally):
1) Use references. I personally love using the Metric a/b plugin so I don’t have to leave my DAW. Also, choose GREAT references that sound amazing even over bands you enjoy. Look to artists outside of your genre... Grizzly Bear famously looks for the deep low end found on hip hop albums for example. I think anything Mark Endert or Serban Ghenea mixes is worth listening for vocal tones personally. The tone being correct makes a HUGE difference of whether the vocal sits right in a mix. A washed out/scooped vocal with no bass will sound too low at the right volume then jump to painful when you turn it up to be heard... then you have a problem achieving a proper vocal level. I shoot for a very natural and well balanced sound then adjust it in the context of the song, personally.
By and large, turning the highs down, bringing a bit of the low mids back and turning the volume up might be a good place to start.
2)Mix at low volumes. When listening to those references, turn the volume down until there is barely anything coming out of the speakers. Listen to the mixes you like... hard rock bands usually “tuck” the vocal into the music, whereas pop acts have the vocal sit just on top of the mix.
Typically when I do this on a mix I like I hear the attack of the kick, the snare is a little louder, faint cymbals/guitars, often no bass and the vocal is just audible and seems just a hair louder than the snare.
3)Try a ducking compressor on your vocal effect sends and piano/guitar tracks. I use “trackspacer”... set it to take @3db or so of the vocal frequencies out of those tracks when the vocal is playing. That way, you don’t have to turn your vocal up so much to compete with those tracks, giving you a loudness issue
It might help you to know that it’s a very subjective thing... Michael Brauer mixes into stems specifically so artists can adjust vocal levels after the fact without having to recall his entire board/hardware set up. So Mike has to make adjustments and he’s about as seasoned and expert as you’re likely to find. When it could come down to a matter of taste his solution is really humble and smart.
4)Having a very short/invisible “ambience” reverb or delay send blended in just right to where you can “feel” it but not hear it can help your vocal sit in the mix correctly
Anyway, I hope this is of some help. Hopefully Warren or someone else can chime in, too
Stay healthy and good luck with everything 👍🏻
@@hauntedbytheliving1175 Thanks for the commentary. I appreciate the feedback.