MIX CHALLENGE

#1

Hello and welcome to the Mix Challenge 102 - February 2025

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Bonus Info

For the first mixing game of the year, you have the chance to work on a(n) "(Indie) Rock" production by the band "The Last Hours", represented by @Edling, who kindly provided these multi-tracks. The song is called "The Person That You See".

A fair warning upfront: the song lyrics are touching on mental health issues and self-injury.

One of the bigger challenges this month, will be finding a suitable balance for the provided "wall of sounds". Small changes can have a huge impact to the perceived emotion / felling of the song. It is highly recommended to listen to the original release, read the lyrics, get a an impression of the story being told. Then please find your own groove.

Interested in this new challenge?

Then please take special note of the attached TXT files in the Mix Pack. And please read about the details and special requirements for handling this mix further down below.

BEFORE WE GET STARTED:

Please consult the official "Rules and Guidelines" (TL;DR version) for the Mix Challenge regarding principles of the game, upload/submission guidelines, the concept of documenting your edits, and maximum allowed loudness. The Multi-Track Mix Pack also features a "TL;DR Rules.txt" file with the game specific filename template and distribution specs.
The focus of this game is "mixing". Try to create a mix in your own style that complements this production and can stand on it's own, no matter the playback medium. Edit/Mix in such a way, that barely any after-touches other than proper fade in/out and finalizing for distribution (incl. loudness adjustments e.g. for release on Streaming, Vinyl, Tape, CD) is needed for a possible follow-up mastering step.
The "Mix Pack" and additional information for this months production can be found in in post #002

Read more about this month's competition further down below. And if you got any question, please also reach out on Discord.

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MIX(ING) CHALLENGE THREAD INDEX

Post #001 -- Introduction post and index for the various stages of the Songwriting Competition. Will be updated as we progress
Post #002 -- Submission Period: General Information, Source Material, License Sponsors
Post #003 -- One Time Reminder -- general task, filename template, distribution format, off-site license distribution agreement
Post #000 -- Mix Round 1 Statistics/Data Sheet: Overview of Submissions - is your entry within given parameters?
Post #000 -- Mix Round 2: Global Feedback and Round 2 Participant Announcement
Post #000 -- Mix Round 3: <optional>/<not happening this game>
Post #000 -- Results: Winner announcement

#2

CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION

Time Frame: Saturday, 01st February 2025 to Friday, 21th February 2025 (21 days)

Challenge submission will end on 21-FEB-2025, 23:59 UTC+1/CET (Germany) - until further notice.

Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please either consult the Global Countdown (dedicated page), or the countdown on the landing site. There will also be short reminders on Social Media and on Discord.

Song Provider: The Last Hours (represented forum user @Edling)
Song Name and Length: The Person That You See, 03:36 min
Song Information: 119 BPM / Signature: 4/4
File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit (source)

GENRE: (Indie) Rock

Preview of the Song (Demo Mix):

phpBB [media]

INFORMATION: This version might sound different from the provided multi-tracks.

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SOURCE FILES:

Main Mix Package - full package (473,81 MB, regular ZIP)

IMPORTANT NOTE: download window might show a smaller file size, file unavailable after 21-FEB-2025
File size extracted: 1277,23 MB, packed 473,81 MB (regular ZIP)

The provided files were packed using normal ZIP compression (Deflate, Ultra). This format should work on all operating systems and does not require any special tools to extract. If you have problems extracting the files, please make sure that your OS apps are up-to-date!

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A word from the song provider:

Edling wrote: "The Last Hours" was a Swedish indie pop/rock band active from 2005 to 2009 during which we released an EP and a full length album. "The Person That You See" was the opening song from our first demo, later released as an EP, and the only song we played on every show we did. Even though it's a straight forward pop/rock song with an easy to remember hook, it has a darker core touching on mental health issues and self-injury.

The most important thing when it comes to mixing is probably to preserve good dynamics between the different sections of the song and to also get a good blend between all of the different tracks. It was recorded in 2005, before we had even found a drummer for the band, which means that the drums were programmed. When we did a remix of the song a while back, the drums were replaced with newer samples, these are the samples provided here. All of the guitars were recorded using the Line 6 POD, as that was the newest and coolest hardware thing you could use in 2005.

The song ends with a fade out starting at bar 103 (3:25) which should be included in the mix in some shape or form. No changes to the arrangement in terms of muting or moving audio should be done.

I am interested in what you set to achieve with your mix. What was the mood you tried to create, and how did you get there (e.g. focus on certain instrument sections)

Rule Summary:

► Show Spoiler

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LICENSE SPONSORS (Bonus Prizes):

A huge thank you goes to our very generous License Sponsors for this month's game. Those being (in alphabetical order):
Acon Digital, Audified, Hornet Plugins, IK Multimedia, Kilohearts, Metric Halo, NUGEN Audio and Tone2

A detailed list of offerings can be found in the following information block.

► Show Spoiler

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Good luck to all participants.
And most importantly, have fun!

#3

The following is the absolute base-line you need to cover prior to joining the Mix(ing) Challenge.

Failing to adhere to the rules will result in disqualification. There will be no additional reminders given.

⚠	Moderation Message from Mister Fox
	Prior to joining this Mix(ing) Challenge You must consult and adhere to the official Rules and Guidelines (long version). Bar minimum, please consult the TL;DR Rules version (also available as "TL;DR Rules.txt" with each Mix Pack, which lists the game specific filename template and distribution specs as well) Add-on Rules / allowed mix techniques for this particular project are mentioned in the bundled "TL;DR Rules.txt" Please pay attention to details such as sampling rate, bit depth, maximum signal strength, file name template and documentation. Check this before you upload your entry. Your entry must be accessible and easy to download by the time the deadline has been reached (21th of the month, 23:59 UTC+1/CET). Cross check with a different device and/or browser. No re-uploads - your submission is final. Important Stats to check prior to uploading Filename Template: MC102__TheLastHours__ThePersonThatYouSee__ForumUsername.wav Song Length: 03:36min (edit no shorter than 03:36.000min!) File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit (export) Loudness (min/max): anything between -24,0 LUFS to -16,0 LUFS ILk, -1,00 dBTP max Off-site redistribution agreement ► Show Spoiler Our Song Provider for this month, @Edling, does not allow the usage of this song as part of a personal mix portfolio without prior communication. Request by the Song Provider ► Show Spoiler Our Song Provider is interested in what you set to achieve with your mix. What was the mood you tried to create, and how did you get there. Please spend at least 1-2 paragraphs on this. Maybe even focus on certain instrument sections how you "shaped" that particular feeling. We (the Song Provider and I, the host) would also like to know on what on what devices you mixed his song. Please note down your used headphones and / or speakers, if they have been frequency corrected (e.g. traditional methods with 31-band EQs, or custom correction software), if you use room treatment, etc. Please keep it simple - you do not need to mention the full signal chain in this case. Answers like "mixed on Genelec 1031A, frequency corrected with Sonarworks SoundID, cross checked with Noname PC speakers, the room has been treated" or "mixed on AKG K240 Studio, no correction" will suffice. Thank you.

INFO: This post is still a test-run to see how many people adhere to given rules. You can find everything you need to know in post #002 and the Mix Pack bundled TXT files. This third post might become redundant some time 2025.

EDIT: Initial Post on 31-JAN-2024 23:52

Dudeism · #4

Hello everyone, it's so cool, It’s so cool to be part of this mixing challenge again. Big thanks to everyone making this possible for free just for the passion

. That song was really catchy and the various instruments fit great together! You can really here the 2005 in it haha

My Entry
About my entry: I only listend to the demo very shortly In order not to get the full mixing picture since its very hard to unhear once it sticks to you.
This time I took a different approach to mixing based on setting levels mostly and focusing a bit more on automation (especially vocal volume for verse/chorus). I feel like I learned a lot about mixing and conveying information by sound since my last participation.

The effects: This is basically a picture of all effects. Only the Drums, Bass, Vocals, Intro Noise, Acoustic Guitar & Tremolo Guitar (flanger for stereo field) are processed, the rest is just gain staged. I renamed Pro Q 3 to EQ and Maximus to compressor in the picture for a better overview. The master chain does not have a final limiter and the song does not fade out (like the rules state).

Also i tried to mix it in a way, that it just needs a final limiter: This would be an example as to how loud I'd like to push the song, it's just the mix with a Pro-L2 Limiter in Aggressive mode slapped on it hitting -3.5 LUFS during the chorus.

Philosophical and Technical Thoughts:
I started viewing mixing from a more technical point of view. Like the artist has this big vision of a song, that might already sound good in their head and while mixing, but the problem is, that a listener can only process so much information at once. So mixing is about cutting unnecessary information, boosting important ones, and gluing everything together to have a more coherent and easy listening experience that however at some point may lack some of the artist's vision. So it’s about finding compromises. Therefore I tried to stay as close to the original sounds as possible and only organize the information:
- Saturation for adding information to a sound (especially tape on a bass etc)à it just expands the information stream
- Compressor for making the stream of information more coherent volume-wise
- EQ for shaping the sound character. Though dynamic EQ’s like Neutrons Sculptor and Ozone Stabilizer are absolute godsends for dynamic sounds after everything is already mixed properly
- Gullfoss for reorganizing the information of a whole sound or song (my absolute go-to plugin though it might appear like a simple “make audio sound good"-plugin at first)
- Finally I’m using Tonal Balance control and Metric Ab for referencing to hear things I’m to dumb to hear, which was by far my biggest problem. Therefore once again a little bit of a dynamic EQ (Ozone Stabilizer) works wonders for me subtly pushing everything in the right direction for polish that might not be possible to hear without expensive speakers.
- Also a straight up FL Transient Processor on the whole master gives a bit of universal dynamic back I feel

#5

The first entry breaking the ice. Thank you for your participation.
A copy is already on my HDD.

Dudeism wrote: ↑
Sat Feb 01, 2025 14:14 CET
The master chain does not have a final limiter and the song does not fade out (like the rules state).

Just for understanding purposes... your entry does fade out.
I assume this is a typo on your part of the documentation, mentioning "does not fade out (like the rules state)"?

One of the tasks/allowed (taken from the TL;DR Rules.txt) is:

TL;DR Rules.txt wrote:- create a suitable fade-out in some shape or form (from beat 103.1.1.0 / position 03:25.714 until the end of the song)

Just so that we're on the same page here, and participants are not confused.

#6

Hi all,

Wow, what a track we have the privilege of mixing this month! Thank you @Edling for giving us this opportunity. This is such an emotional track, it really resonates with me and regardless of the competition it's going to sit in my playlist for the foreseeable future.

Here's a broad overview of my thinking and some of the main mix decisions I made:

• The original mixes are fantastic so these were my reference
• The emotional content of the material made me want to preserve its truthfulness, so I refrained from using any pitch correction or making any timing edits as I might ordinarily have done. All the tracks are played exactly as provided
• I paid particular attention to the section changes between verse and chorus to ensure there's a big increase in energy. There are lots of little volume automations drawn in where the sections change, particularly on the drums tracks, which help emphasise first hits and give an emotive boost
• The mix was sub-grouped into Drums, Vocals, Guitars and Key with compressors on the guitar and keys masters side-chained to the kick drum, so they duck slightly to give the kick more space and apparent weight
• Tracks have been largely panned symmetrically, but I used an auto-pan plugin on the tremolo guitar track with an unusual "double-sine" pan shape so it seems to flow between left and right in a slightly unexpected pattern without being random
• I rolled off the low end on the vocals at 160Hz and the keys at 260Hz allowing the other instruments groups to fill the lower-end spectral area
• I usually always add reverb to drum tracks, however it just wasn't needed here as the provided drums sounded fantastic as is and really life-like with a great room sound already
• Reverb and Delay were added to the vocals in conservative amounts with automation used to increase levels for certain phrases such as "dig your own grave"
• I placed a "radio" effect on the breakdown vocals so it feels like the person singing is a shell of their former self, asking for a second chance. The effect then fades out as the final word "see" fades up back in its regular sound
• There's a little bit of saturation and compression on the master bus, which helps the impact of the drums in particular
• As usual, there's lots of compression and EQ used across the majority of the tracks with various different brands doing the work, but who wants to just read a list of plugins?!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fWW3q4 ... qBcaz/view

Edit: Some further notes regarding my setup for anyone interested - Mixed in Pro Tools using Genelec 8341 monitors and a JBL LSR310s sub (no GLM or correction) in a partially treated, non-square room. I also used Avantone Mixcubes and Beyer DT150 headphones for referencing.

Best regards,

Benji

Strange · #7

Wow, I like you Mix, BenjiRage. Maybe my next reference :-)

ozbay A · #8

/Users/a/Desktop/The person that you see mix 4.wav

Strange · #9

Hi Mister Fox,

the provider told me it's your decision to allow a litlle edit at the beginning of the song: I'd like to close this millisecond-gap in the "Keys-Noise"- track by cutting and crossfading. For me it sounds like a fault and I couldn't hear it in the released version.

Greetings
Peter

Denge · #10

Great song and great original mix.

Here's my (as per usual) feeble attempt at a mix.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K8v22f ... sp=sharing
- Please let me know if it can't be downloaded. I have had issues with the shareing before.

A quick summary of what I did.
Drums - Work from the OH's and Ambience tracks, balancing the individual tracks to complement the whole drumkit and finally just adding a few sparkles of saturation and EQ where needed.
Bass - I just summarized all three, added a little compression and some grit with CamelCrusher. I used the clean track for definition and the other two for the "body" of the bass.
Guitars - Mainly just subtle EQ and some compression on the acoustic. I tried a vocal chain on the lead for fun

Keys - Just some EQ and volume matching.
Vocals - I worked with the Joe Chicharelli Vocal Strip on all tracks.

**Update** I mixed this on headphones ATH-M50x using Waves NX software to emulate a studio and EQ match. I use Studio One 7. I did not do a car test on this one as I completed it late last night but I usually listen in my car and on my Iphone as well. (and whilst finding this out I realized I uploaded the wrong version with unprocessed toms and keys. but what the heck

)

**Update 2**
Since the original mix was so good I tried just to make it sound more the way I heard it. The layering was a bit complicated but manageable as everything was recorded so well. I defintely heard Kent references in the material and if I had the skills I would have gone for that type of production. I also wanted the vocals to be clear as the lyrics were very well written.

There's quite a lot of room to push everything more. But I liked the balance I got on this one.

Thanks
/D

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MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

Re: MIX CHALLENGE - MC102 February 2025 - Submissions until 21-FEB-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET