MIX CHALLENGE - MC044 June 2018 - Winners announced

[Henrik Hjortnaes]

I agree, the difference is huge - to the point where I'm thinking that this cannot be down to taste only. It has to be down to monitoring environment.

[Baddo]

I agree, the difference is huge - to the point where I'm thinking that this cannot be down to taste only. It has to be down to monitoring environment.

Ah but then I wouldn't be able to act like a whiny divo client and request that the guitars be louder, and the bass too, bit without the drums being softer.
So many assumptions about technical inadequacies make you lose the fact that the real meat of a stellar mix is to make the song sound invincible.

So far most mixes nail the thrashy middle section. Macro-dynamics are important in this track and I hear some mixes tailor each section very tastefully, like snapshot automation with balance shifts in-between. The result is each section flows into the next one, sometimes dramatically and sometimes imperceptably, but naturally in each case. I've also heard parallel distortion on the snare. Nice!

I get your point Henrik, and I agree. I am approaching this contest from the point of view of an artist who can mix his own shit nicely, but would like to sometimes offload the work for timing schedules, to a trustful collaborator. Taste and technicalities are the judging criteria.

[kevin gobin]

I think that maybe Henrik meant that when we mix, we do not only apply taste differences, but decisions based on our listening equipment and room interactions. So the huge differences appear also based on that.

This is what I think, whatever Henrik meant.

[Henrik Hjortnaes]

I think that maybe Henrik meant that when we mix, we do not only apply taste differences, but decisions based on our listening equipment and room interactions. So the huge differences appear also based on that.

This is what I think, whatever Henrik meant.

Yes, Kevin. That's what I meant. I think room interaction / room modes are the primary factors responsible for the mix differences.

[Taurean Mixing]

EDIT: I guess we were too late

Bob, were you asked to pull your mix?

Hi Henrik, no I was told I was too late so I figured I take that version down and do some tweaks. I can post at some point if you'd like to hear it. Nice mix btw my friend, as always

[Baddo]

I think that maybe Henrik meant that when we mix, we do not only apply taste differences, but decisions based on our listening equipment and room interactions. So the huge differences appear also based on that.

This is what I think, whatever Henrik meant.

Yes. But you can't leave taste out. Wouldn't you say your listening equipment and room mode interactions and reflections will affect what you hear, and based on what you hear you will use your taste to make mix decisions. You can't have one without the other, whether it be mixer or listener. I have no doubt every mixer does his best with what he/she has in whichever room the mix is taking place, this is why room treatment and speaker placement are such a big deal, otherwise you will be second-guessing all of your choices, not unlike painting with the lights out.

Speaking specifically about this mix, mixing heavily distorted guitars is a double edged sword, if you mess too much with the spectrum you lose your north and the mix ends up sounding skewed. But listening within the boundaries of this skewedness you can hear a certain goal the mixer was aiming for, in accordance with his taste. Mixing distorted guitars is the closest thing to mixing pink noise.

I like this, discussion is healthy.

[kevin gobin]

I do not leave taste out at all, this is the most important factor. It is also the main problem because taste is subjective and subjectivity is often the excuse for... bad taste! Lol

[ajm]

Speaking specifically about this mix, mixing heavily distorted guitars is a double edged sword, if you mess too much with the spectrum you lose your north and the mix ends up sounding skewed. But listening within the boundaries of this skewedness you can hear a certain goal the mixer was aiming for, in accordance with his taste. Mixing distorted guitars is the closest thing to mixing pink noise.

This is absolutely true, don’t know how often I ran into problems like this in the past when mixing distorted guitars – especially when the recording was subpar and it wasn’t clear what kinda sound the client actually was aiming for in the first place. Working on the guitars was (and is, although it has gotten a bit easier over the months) mostly hit and miss and it felt more like a coincidence when I finally stumbled into the right sound for the respective project. Maybe I should actually practice with pink noise…

[Taurean Mixing]

For anybody who wants to hear it..Baddo, here you go as promised. My original post is updated too.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/d8vveeif8qfh5 ... g.wav?dl=0

[Olli H]

For anybody who wants to hear it..Baddo, here you go as promised. My original post is updated too.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/d8vveeif8qfh5 ... g.wav?dl=0

As this mix comes outside competition I guess it’s ok to comment it as it’s not affecting judge’s decisions.

Excellent, sounds great to me. I like the overall tone and attitude in your mix. The groove feels right.

Main (small?) problem to me is the mono listening. Side guitars disapper almost completely. On the other hand in stereo listening it feels as if the side guitars are louder than center. Well, this is quite typical problem always if one prefers to make extremly wide sound. I’m not sure if it’s problem to other people but I belong to those old farts who listen guite much music through kitchen radio with single mono speaker.

Some minor comments:

Bass gets buried a bit. I’m not sure if it’s problem for a groove feels fine to me.

Transition at 0:50 and 3:14, lead guitar could come in stronger, now it feels a bit suffocated. And one can hear how faders are moved.

In those parts were there’s no clear lead guitar in the center, one might try to narrow the side guitars a bit. And when the middle gets busy, side guitars could go fully to the sides.

I might try a bit longer or stronger tail with snare, (but it might be a bad choice). As the guitars are very wide, it feels now that the front wall is too near.