MIX CHALLENGE - MC101 December 2024 - Mix Round 2 until 09-JAN-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

[scottfitz]

On the loudness war, note that if any of you are fans then Dan Worrall massively agrees with what Mister Fox just wrote. I grew up on classical music with my mother a professional cellist and so for me I find even the regular use of compressors a little bit unnatural. Every time I do before and after comparisons I prefer the uncompressed, but then in the mix you realise that you can't have everything uncompressed because then certain elements jump out more than others and it can be detrimental to the listening experience.

Unfortunately in the loudness war it seems like loud has won for the time being. I have enjoyed recently learning how to make a mix loud, but if I loudness match the loud mix with the mix without the loudness enhancing processes, then I always prefer the quieter mix. So it seems we are just all losing in the loudness war. So I appreciate that the Mix Challenge seem to be conducted with this in mind.

Cheers all

[Mellow Browne]

Hello all,

thank you so much for participating, it was a pleasure to listen to all your mixes and to discover similiarities and differences in your process but also in your environment. Like I mentioned in another post I will give feedback to ALL mixes because I think I owe you this. But I will also share a lot of thoughts and invite you to discussions if you agree or disagree.

I hope you can find some useful information in my comments, aha-moments or at least get a better feeling about your/my setup in general. I will be very honest and I hope nobody will get angry because of my feedback. I know, I don’t have the top notch, most professional equipment to judge your mix 100% correct from an engineering point of view nor do I have the knowledge and wisdom of a seasoned producer to create a flawless sound stage. I still think my setup is not bad for a producer studio and actually pretty good for a hobby/enthusiast home studio.

I can assure you that problematic mixes will not pass the main system test in my home studio. They are accurate enough to show problematic translation issues. They are certainly not precise enough for professional mastering purposes (especially in the sub, low mid and midrange area), but you will find lots of professional producers using this setup because of their warm and engaging sound, and also some smaller mixing studios as well.

I believe I have enough experience of two decades creating thousands of beats, rapping and recording hundreds of own songs, producing, writing, editing and vocal tuning, recording and mixing for other several artists (also a few respected German artists) to give you a more or less valid feedback and to say where you are right now in your path. I’ve been there too and now I understand much better what I need to do in the future, also thanks to this forum, this is an amazing experience with this mix challenge as song provider. Learning never ends!


If you are not a fan of „nerdy“ stuff you can skip straight to the feedback or the top 15 vote, I will separate things into spoiler categories. But be aware, you might miss some useful information for your path as a mixing engineer/hobbyist and maybe the biggest revenue of this mix challenge. If you are not happy with YOUR own result or you are insecure about how it sounds, this is a chance to get some help and to dive deeper into certain topics. And don’t expect somebody else to like your mix when you cannot say to yourself. Trust me, people can hear your confidence or insecurety in a mix!

I joined this community in 2018 and the vibe on this plattform has changed quite a few times tbh. But it was worth to stay loyal, the host Mister Fox is a treasure for the home studio community and he has so much to offer, I think we are not really aware of the value he brings. He is a real „nerd“ and a cool guy, you can ask him for advice at any time and be sure he will answer with compassion.

Please, treat him and the community with respect and don’t try to fool him or others on the community with some strange behaviour, „cheaters“ will be recognized! I highly recommend you to check his KVR marks (look for member Compyfox) with interesting articles about loudness, LUFS, peaks etc. I learned so much from these articles in the last two years! Check it out!

Lack of detail:

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I was disappointed with the lack of attention to details by some and the high rate of disqualifications. Also, some did not really elaborate their mix process and just shared a link or soundcloud page. If you plan to become a professional mixing engineer or just a regular member of this community this is THE most important part of it imo. The filename for example can be crucial when you want to check comments in the forum to the song but the username is totally different. Some of you said you did not understand the lyrics, well, the lyrics are always provided including a translation!

This shows that you didn’t read EVERYTHING. Imagine you get some professional work to do with contracts, papers, documents etc. from a label/artist/company etc. You don’t want to miss a bit of information, this could be a big mistake and lead you into trouble, like no payment! Tripple check everything. The more you participate in these challenges the more things will become habits and become part of your workflow.

But this takes time, it’s like a little seed that needs a moment to absorb and digest the information and to make the next step in the development. Check the filename, the sample rate just like the loudness specs and really do not forget to listen to your bounced file again befor uploading to avoid any surprises like muted elements, falsy routing or phase cancellations etc.

Also, check your provided link and change the rights if necessary (Google Drive Link) so that the song provider can download your mix. Maybe he/she will only check your link once because we don’t have endless time. I don’t know how much hours it took me to write all this and I don’t even know if people will read it. Anyway, I don’t expect you to do so and I’m not angry when you don’t have any interest. For me, personally it was more than worth it. It was the best ear training in my entire life and now it is a lot easier to verbalize the flaws and highlights I can discover in a mix, even though I’m apparently not a native speaker. So, forgive me for some mistakes here and there.

Speakers I've worked on so far:

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In the past I was able to work on different systems, mainly in the budget area (I personally see this below 2000€ for a pair of speaker) like M-Audio, Alesis, Fostex PM05, Yamaha HS8 with and without sub, KRK Rokit 5 & 8 Gen2, Focal Shape 50 & Shape 65, Adam A7X, Yamaha NS10.
But I also had a few times the opportunity to work on real good Amphion two15 with bass extension setup, Genelecs (can’t remember the model but they were soffit mounted, maybe 1237 A?) and I also had the chance to hear the Focal Trio11 for a listening session in another studio.

Of course, I can’t remember the exact sound but I remember the impression I had while listening to these systems. It would be a cool experience to hear all those different speakers again with so much more listening experience after all these years. In my experience, the acoustics and the speaker setup is the most important aspect of creating music, everything else comes after. So in this order: room acoustics (FR and RT60), speakers (full range and type of speaker), and then finally listening experience (only engineering or also producing, playing instruments etc.). I believe a person with a slight form of (noise-induced) hearing impairment but with lots of hearing experience and precise speakers can compensate really good when it comes to mixing audio.

My current setup and room:

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I bought some used Focal Solo 6 Be 5 years ago and added the Focal Sub 6 in August 2024. I have a good amount of diy acoustic panels + some from a commercial brand on the walls/ceiling and self made floor-to-ceiling bass traps in all 4 corners + in the middle of the 2 side walls to control the room mode at 73 Hz. I have 3 additional DIY bass traps on the front wall stacked so I can use this as a stand for my screen. Total cost of the room acoustic around 500€. I have Sonarworks for room correction as system wide app. I’m also using the trial version of Rogue Ameoba Airspoil for PC to phone streaming so I can hear the sound of my DAW on other devices without the need to bounce the project. It disconnects every 10 minutes or so but I only use it for one full song cycle or so and this is therefore not a problem.

I’m sitting in an equilateral triangle to the monitors with a distance of 1,30 meters and both speakers have the same distance to the side walls for a good center image. The speakers are about 80 centimeter away from the front wall to manage SBIR. I had to position the sub more into the room and further away from the front wall in order to get a better frequency and phase response to get the „best“ result in Room EQ Wizard and from a listening experience. I have a 2 x 1,30 metres carpet at my mixing position which helped to tame some comb filtering and flutter echoes. I still have a room mode dip @ 47 Hz and I really want to control this area a bit better.

I know, there are limitations, especially in my rather small room with less than ideal dimensions 4,50 x 3,95 x 2,80 metres. The overall acoustic is „very dry“ but not perfect at all, I still have some slight comb filtering here and there depending on where you are positioned which makes it a bit hard with transients and to really tell „where“ they are. It’s ok at the sweet spot but it’s not super big. This is also visible measuring the room response with Room EQ Wizard, some dips in the low mids and midrange (200-1200 Hz), but nothing too crazy.
Still, people often are very surprised about the „non-existing“ reverberation in my room and they enjoy the dry sound and the solid and warm low end. Unfortunately, this room is not exclusive for music production.

I would love to try a coaxial speaker design with integrated phase and time correction which can help to improve the transient response and sound stage. I simply don’t have the budget but I hope I can fulfill this dream one day. Overall, I’m happy with my system and my mixes translate good to other systems.
I think overall, they are balanced and not too far away from a professional mix. The flaws I personally can hear is the lack of dynamic control, low end precision and detail work like tone of delay/reverb. Unfortunately, I don’t have the possibility to check my mixes on even bigger woofer than mine (11 inch).
Now that I’ve made some experience with this specific setup I would love to make the next step and upgrade to a 3-way system to have that extra clarity and resolution in the midrange but the price point at this level is simply out of my league. And I’m not sure if this would be just insane for a hobby from a financial point of view.

Hey, do me a favour and just listen again to your mix and write down for yourself the flaws you can hear and maybe compare to my feedback, I think this could be a good experience for the both of us. Comment if you agree or disagree or if you hear something completely different than me. This way we can double check the work a bit together.

My opinion about room acoustics and speakers:

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I find the sub very important to identify each element in a mix, this is something I would totally miss if I would not use a subwoofer. It helps to identify the 3 dimensional aspect of a mix, from top to bottom but also from front to back. It also opens up the main speakers quite a bit, they sound more precise and it’s easier to detect delays, reverbs, echoes, flanger, phaser and all other kind of things with the sub engaged.

With „good“ room acoustics it is easier to hear masking/overlapping between elements, also flex time and flex pitch detail work is more comfortable and easier to detect. The sound stage gets deeper and volume changes (micro and macrodynamic) are more audible. Small EQ boosts and cuts or slight compression way before the needle is moving are much more noticeable. It’s much easier to hear the coloration of „analog“ EQs/ and compressors even when „bypassed“. You realise that the pan knob becomes an eq itself which is so powerful. And you can mix faster with less ear fatigue.

The 2nd mix(09/24) I provided was made a month or so after I got the sub and improved the room acoustics and I didn’t spend too much time on it. Now that I had the time to learn the new environment, the integration and the physics a bit better I would change a few things to create more impact, especially on the low end.

My opinion about the "Trap House" 808:

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Regarding the original 808 sound I’m not sure if it really needs more saturation. The question is how much of it and in which context, and of course how will this translate to other systems. But in general, I wanted a more softer and subbier tone which is present through the transient punch and not the sheer amount of sustained fuzz it has on top and in the body/tail, sometimes the bouncy feeling gets completely lost because you push the energy away from the starting point towards the end of the waveform. I hope you understand what I want to explain. The overtones just ring longer compared to before and therefore influence the feeling of the bounce which becomes aggressive, the notes become more sustained. Or they appear after the „bounce“ and only ring in the tail and make the 808 sluggish.

One mix in particular had a slower feeling because of this compared to the original. In some mixes the 808 also had some harmonics that were not in tune and the 808 sounds like a detuned fart. The amount of added saturation plays therefore not the main role, it’s rather the exact moment when this saturation happens and the stereo information of this fuzz it adds. The 808 in the song has some stereo information. Things get smeared and it is hard to pinpoint the sources compared to the flat initial static mix you imported into your DAW. I would rather sustain the kick to create more impact.

About the evaluation process:

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I listened the first 3-4 times on my main system making notes and looking for some hints I could find about your process/setup, what I like and don’t like in your mix, „mistakes“, loudness specs, frequency balance, gain staging etc.
If I wasn’t sure I checked a few things on the phone, tablet speaker, but rarely headphones (Beyerdynamic DT770) to get another perspective. There were a few songs which didn’t pass the main system test.
I then read your comment about your process and setup and adjusted the notes I made before to be more precise if I had some ideas, suggestions and thoughts.

One thing I noticed in some mixes was the use of distortion on the vocals which I did not think about in this context (but which is pretty „typical“ in this genre), and I really like it, especially in the hook to emphasise the word „trap house“. So, thank you very much for this idea!

I was able to detect most problems on multiple devices, others are bit harder to hear on a specific system.
I have some sort of a „loudness-calibrated“ speaker system, so I can hear immediately if a mix is low in volume or too loud, so I adjust to my usual listening level at around 70-75 dBA, which I personally enjoy the most. I’m aware of Fletcher-Munson, psychoacoustics, NIHL, ear training etc. because I have to deal with such topics from a professional point of view. The experience as a song provider is really a great possibility to obtain new insights and I’m really thankful for your participation. I also have to say that I don’t work with headphones for mixing. I only use headphones for drumming to hear the miced up kit.

The second listening session and new community experience?

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The second round of listening (at around 60 dBA) I looped the 2nd verse and the last hook and tried to fix some problems with free plugin TDR Nova as Dynamic Eq, compressor or Deesser so that you can replicate what I did and see for yourself if that makes sense or not. The reason why I chose TDR Nova is because it’s for free. I did compensate for perceived loudness and most of the time you will need maybe 0.3-0.4 dB of added gain in TDR Nova. Sometimes I had to use a DeCliper (Acon Digital DeCliper2) to get rid some of the distortion. In some cases I also had to use a Transient Shaper to smooth out the hard knock of the kick/808 reltationship. I used Neutron 3 Elements for this task. It was for free but I don’t know if this is still available. This was very interesting and now I have a better feeling of what mastering is.

Now go and downlaod some of the mixes you like and try out some of the settings with TDR Nova to see if you can hear what I can hear. It shapes the mix more into a sound which translates a bit better on my system. It’s not the „all-in-one“ solution for your specific mixes, this setting addresses more the frequency regions I find overwhelming in my listening environment. There are still other flaws in all mixes imo and the setting don’t fix these issues. I would love to see such recommendations in the following games during 2025 from each song provider for his TOP 15. Also, that the community including song provider shares from now on information about their listening environment. Let’s make these things the new experience and standard for this community in 2025. What do you think about this ideas?

+participants and song provider can/should share information about listening environment

+song provider gives hints using TDR Nova as EQ, Dynamic EQ, Compressor and Deesser as what he/she can hear in a mix for the TOP 15, if time allows and he wants to do this work. This is not mandatory, of course but would be nice to see from now on.

Car check:

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Some people also made the car check but they did not mention if a subwoofer was used (this is what I personally understand under the term „car check“). I mean, what’s the typical car speaker driver size? 5 inch, 6,5 inch?. Ok, I don’t have a car, so this point is not interesting for me personally. Anyway, I get the point of listening to your result in a noisy environment and tiny space. I hope your setup is more precise than your car’s hifi system. I personally do not own a car btw. I personally want to know how my mix sounds in a club or through a big PA system.

About altering the arrangement and the use of a Wild Card:

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Another thing was the alteration of the arrangement. Please guys, don’t make this a producer thing, it was clearly stated in the rules what you had to do and when. Of course, there is always the chance that you can influence the producer’s vision, which actually happened in this Mix Challenge. BUT in 99% of the cases this will not be the case (and I don’t recommend other participants in Round 2 to copy this mute). Don’t get too involved in the song and don’t confuse mixing with producing. In general, this is a „no-no“ and chances are your „reputation“ or chance in a lifetime is gone.

How I monitor true peak, loudness etc:

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I have the TC Electronic Clarity as a loudness analyser/RTA/Vectorscope. I included the loudness in LUFS and true peak in my comments for each mix but those numbers can be others than from Statistic Sheet (rely on the statistic sheet, it’s more accurate). This thing is „almost“ accurate, hopefully I wrote the correct numbers. I also use other tools like VUMT, OScope, Youlean Loudness Meter, Oszillos Mege Scope or VISION 4X, MMultiAnalyzer, SPAN, Correlometer, TDR Prism depending on what I want to monitor.

You will also find some information about the monitoring/speaker setup of each member in case you want to cross-check your work with others. It can be helpful if you want to compare a few things and dive deeper into specific areas. Feel free to send PMs to each other or share your thoughts here.

The feedback process itself:

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Most of the feedback was made BEFORE I read what you did in your mix, this was part of my personal training session and to check if I can hear what you did without knowing it before or if I could hear your listening environment / setup. I read your comment about your mix afterwards to check any things I missed at first listening with fresh ears and added some comments and thoughts later. This was super helpful and is a nice ear training, I highly recommend you to become a Song Provider.

After listening to all mixes I already had a Top 10, which stood out to me from the very beginning of the song and which had something appealing. I had to listen to all mixes again and check the notes I made and if I missed something or if my ears were hearing something different the other day. In the 2nd listening session I had to add the missing 5 mixes for the Top 15 and it wasn’t too hard to make a decision.

PS: Unfortunately, not everybody provided information about the monitoring! I find this piece of information to be as important as the mix process itself. I think this would be a nice addition for future challenges so the community can check their work / setup a bit better. I also forgot to ask if anybody has some kind of hearing impairment or is suffering from tinnitus (I mean on a permanent level 24/7 for at least 3 months) but I thought this would be too personal and intimate. But, if anybody wants to share something about this topic you are welcome to send me a PM. In case you might wonder, I have to deal with such things from a professional point of view and I’d love to learn more about it. I’m thankful for every information you want to share!

PPS: please, don’t try to fool the host Mister Fox or the Song Provider! Just be real to yourself and your work, don’t use several accounts in hope to grab a plugin for free. And don’t re-upload your entry, people WILL notice. You already „lost“ with this mindset imo, this is just you trying to hide your insecurities with some strange behaviour and really, you’re not getting anything out of this whole community and your craft as a mixing engineer. Grow as a personality and become mature, never take the feedback personal, you should take it with honour instead because somebody (maybe more experienced than you) took the time to listen to your work and communicated his thoughts. How could a free plugin be more valuable than this? He gave you his FULL attention, what an engagement.

Really, nobody wants to discourage you in your path! We all have this passion for music. And honestly, if you feel offended by the feedback about your work from a stranger, I don’t think you are ready for bigger projects, yet.

Give yourself some time to grow, especially mentally, but also technically. There is no short cut. Sure, a wonderful acoustic and high end monitors can help you to get faster results with more precision for sophisticated detail work but you still have to make the experience in the first place to learn the many many tools. But you also need to learn how to verbalize such things in a precise way, maybe even in a foreign language. And in times of AI and mix and mastering tools, let’s really celebrate this whole process and learn as much as possible about this wonderful craft.
Be fair to others, be fair to yourself and most important, respect your work!

So, here is the feedback for every mix! I hope I didn’t forget anybody. Have fun reading, maybe you can learn something from my comments, if you agree or not etc. I highly encourage you to cross check some work with my notes and listen to other entries as well, download your favourite mixes and import them into your DAW, listen carefully, compare your setup / mix approach and make notes. Try out the settings with TDR Nova (it’s a free plugin) I mentioned and take notes. See for yourself what works and what doesn’t. I hope you this helps you in the learning process. Have fun!

All the best,
Patrick

So, drumroll please…

My TOP 15 (in no particular order):

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Shubhashish
Drannob
Mork
dstra
Rchm.Music
Martial.Levesque
Michael_K
Alexvanmixland
Green-Dog
Mitchellpmusic
scottfitz
WhitePunkOD
Christoph_K
MFTWC
kombainera

Let’s go!

Feedback for every mix:

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Paramnesia: Sample Rate in 44,1 kHz! > -17,2 LUFS / -0.8 TP
Beyerdynamic dt 990 pro + check small speaker + sub test

Reverb on the key flute is interesting but a bit „washed out“. Chorus? effect on add lips are strange, they are very wide overall and „too loud“ imho which is a bit distracting to me. Distorted add lip was unexpected, but added something I liked. However, not so on the „Autotune“ part.
Low end works on small devices and on my sub, I’m just missing the definition and precision a bit, could be a more focused imo. Nice little tape transition before 2nd hook and creative work throughout the song. I find the instruments just a bit „too far away / washed out / smeared“ compared to the drums, low end and vocals.
The autotune part has a very low octace involved, this makes things a bit strange, I don’t know how to explain but I find the effect not so well performing, the register is very low compared to the low sub of the 808.
The gain staging is not ideal, hihats are very loud compared to all other elements, there is lot of energy in the HF area, a lot of elements are simply just masked by the sheer amount of HF energy from the hi hat so that they fall very far in the sound stage. We are loosing a lot of room information because of the long front to back distance.
This makes the hihat the closest to the listener and the instruments are the furthest away (I hear this on several systems). I think your mix could work better when you would shorten the decay of the reverb or decrease the pre delay, this could bring the elements a bit closer to the listener, and also raise their volume in the mix to make them appear bigger from a top to bottom 3d perspective on your mix. It would also help the darken the sound and character of the reverb so that the reflections don’t have so much HF power. Unfortunately, no information about the mix process was given, so I can only guess what you did.

INFO: check the sample rate and true peak for the next challenge!

By using TDR Nova as dynamic EQ in bell shape I was able to tame some harshness in your mix with these settings:
Freq: 8 kHz
Q: 3
R 2:1
At 0.1 ms
Rel 21 ms
Threshold -15,2 dB
This made your mix a bit rounder overall and the hihat not so spikey imo. Hope this helps!

Check your mix in mono, some elements are almost vanishing (gangsta choir)

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MartialFromentin: +16,6 / -1,9 TP <<< changed arrangement , muted elements before hook
Small room Presonus Eris e4.5 + Presonus Sub 8

+ hook doubles saturation „trap house“ sounds sick, I really like this tone.
+ saturation/filter intro sounds interesting
+ pan automation is good
+autotune is well integrated
+ reverb/room on main vocal is a nice choice

Flute and keys are a bit „washed out“, I have the impression your mix has too much side information, I’m missing the strength and impact of the center image, switching to mono and your mix lost a significant amount of power. Clap is very loud compared to all other elements.
Subs/lows are „squashed/compressed“ too much compared to the rest of the instruments imho, I have the impression the gap between front and back of the sound stage is too big/long (if that makes sense to you). Less reverb/shorter decay/ shorter pre delay could help here. You also muted some elements right before the first hook, I don’t know if that was an accident, but you basically „altered“ the arrangement.
I have the impression your room acoustic / listening environment is not ideal or/and your speakers are „too much“ in the „budget area“ for bass heavy music. I just checked their specs, I understand why you added a sub but I think your setup is not precise enough, imho your speakers are the weakest link in the chain. You did a nice creative work though! I highly encourage you to think about upgrading your system. Would love to hear some work from you on a more precise system!

Here is what I did with TDR Nova on your track:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 1.33
Freq: 1876 Hz
Threshold -12,1 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.22 ms
Rel: 25 ms

Band 2: bell type
Q: 4.22
Freq: 7.4 kHz
Thres: -12,5 dB
R: 3.2:1
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 48 ms

The mix becoomes less aggressive in the highs. There is some nasty distortion in the left channel. Also check your mix in mono, you may want to adjust a few things. Hope this helps!
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J.Golden12345: no access to first link. Filename > wrong user name „Paramnesia“ > re-upload with correct user name > positive null test between the two files, so just changed the name of the file. DQ!

Something went wrong with the file name obviously because there is another member name. What happened? Anyways, you are disqualified for re-uploading your entry.

-18,5 LUFS , 0.0 db TP!!!

+Cool filter intro
+Nice little automations „ du wirst zum Opfer für Deine Gewinne“ in 2nd hook
+Delay on the flute key is nice but not in sync really
+vocal has an interesting saturation colouring, although bit too close to almost breaking up
+Low end works on my sub and other devices but is a bit shy, and kick could have a little more impact and punch and control

-Main Vocal is too distorted imo
-Hook vocals are very wide and too low in volume compared to the instruments and main vocal imo
-vocals sound like a walky talky or a telephone, more like a 2nd pair of speaker
-hook is very thin in sound (too much high pass?)
-Autotune part lacks impact, it doesn’t „stand out“
-Some add lips were muted or are not audible, maybe this was an accident, but you basically „altered“ the arrangement
-Overall I would like to hear more filter automation or effects on the beat right before the 2nd hook

INFO: check the loudness and the file name for the next challenge, and please don’t re-upload your entry, it’s really hard to cheat here. I don’t want to be rude but try to be more professional in what your are doing and read the guidelines (if you want to take this more „serious“). Your mix isn’t bad, really. This platform is helpful to grow as an engineer/artist, don’t try to hide your insecurities with „ruthless“ behaviour and ignoring the guidelines. And your are making things a bit more complicated for Mister Fox and the Song Provider. This is not trustworthy, honestly. Regarding your comment about the guidelines etc. You will ALWAYS find documents as txt file in the multitrack zip file, including the lyrics. You’re not given yourself the possibility to work on your skills and to allow sincere feedback, this mindset can and will hold you back in all aspects of life! All the best to you!

Here is what I did with Nova:

Band bell type:
Q: 4.22
Freq: 7.4 kHz
Thres: -11,7 dB
R: 2.1:1
At 0.1 ms
Rel: 42: ms
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kombainera: -16,3 LUFS / 1,0 TP
Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro

+main vocal sounds interesting
+beat sounds nice, I like the dry sound of the elements but I’d like to hear much more impact and power, not only loudness, try to beef up the beat
+bass works good on my system and on other devices
+overall good balance, sounds interesting

-vocals sound good, but I’m missing the connection and transition between verse and hook, I have the impression it’s because hook add 1+2 (trap house) are way too loud in context imo, because they are so prominent in loudness they have too much impact so that the hook suffers from
-the deessing in the hook has a different character compared to the verses
-hook could be louder to catch up that raw in your face character of the verses, but the verse also needs to take a down a bit to get closer to the beat
-delay on main vocal is not precise enough, not sure if it’s time synced, it smears the sound stage in an odd way. It is audible but not clear, more like all over the place. I can’t pinpoint the source
-your mix is a little light on the bass, it needs way more sub information. It’s tilted towards the highs
-the 2nd snare is too loud imo compared to the other drum elements e.g. @ 00:37, and the reverb on your snare and clap is „inconsistent“ in sound and feeling. Especially @ 00:37 I find it very obvious (not so on small speakers, but on my main system it’s very audible). It sounds like a gated reverb at this specific moment of the hook throughout the whole song
-high frequency cutoff of “autotune“ part is too high, the sound is kinda dull and muddy, not sure if like the wide flanger effect, reminds me of transformers voice
-soft synth is a bit too much in the front imo, could be more „backed“ into the sound wall
-would love to hear some creative fx on the beat right before the 2nd hook

Your mix has the right energy, I find the 2nd clap a bit loud and you should also consider to tame the hat elements a bit, they are sizzling and sharp. This will bring out some of the musical background elements like bells etc. The low end needs more volume and detail work imo to shine more. Gangsta choir could be a bit louder in the mix imo. Another thing are the slightly sibilant vocals. Also, take a closer look at the delay on the main rap vocal, sometimes it’s a bit overlapping, although really hard to hear in the background. The hook needs some attention, it doesn’t have the energy like the main verse and sounds duller. You still have the chance to add your own flavor with some creative work @ 02:09-02:12.

TDR Nova:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.18
Freq: 1907 Hz
Thres: -4,4 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.54 ms
Rel: 31 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 4.22
Freq: 7100 Hz
Thres: -12,5 dB
R: 2.1:1
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 45 ms

——————————

i-dont-like-mixing: -21.6 LUFS/ -3,3 TP
no info

Your mix sounds really distorted and it’s pumping very hard. I don’t know if this was just a joke because of your user name. If you really don’t like mixing you should ask yourself why. Think about what is annoying for you and try to get a more neutral mindset. I don’t know how long you’ve been doing this but it takes time (and in my experience a good listening environment) to get good and fast results. Don’t get discouraged if you are a beginner, you will develop some skills if you practice it more often. Anyways, thanks for participating.


——————————

Nysa: -18,4 LUFS/ -2,7 TP
no info

+ filter automation at the end is dope
+key and arp instruments work good together, perhaps the piano is a bit too loud
+the delay effect on „trap house“ is dope, it’s just too low in volume imo

-fade at the very beginning, don’t know if this was on purpose but I don’t like it
-low end is tubby, distorted, fuzzy, uncontrolled and it feels like a lot of low mid (200-500 Hz) is „screaming“, maybe because of Saturn on your mix bus?
-autotune part is very wide in the sound stage, like a chorus effect or something
-add lips too much in the front and too dry compared to verse
-overall low end doesn’t work so good on bigger speakers, very uncontrolled and rumbling
-gain staging is not ideal > sound stage is a bit off
-your mix sounds stiff and hard overall

I have the impression your listening environment is not ideal, unfortunately no information was given.

Using TDR Nova didn’t help, the use of Acon Digital DeClip however helped to get rid of some the nasty distortion, this made the mix a bit more enjoyable.
—————————

Martial.Levesque: -16,6 LUFS/ -1,0 TP
Yamaha Hs 8 + Yamaha Sub Hs8

+hook sounds good, maybe a tiny bit to sibilant
+verse has this „in your face“ attitude
+your mix has certain energy

-verse has a strange chorus effect, there is a specific room around the vocals which I don’t like so much
-clap is really far in the background, hihat + open hat and added 2nd snare are much closer to the listener
-add lips are far away and really wet
-808 glide is not what I was looking for, sounds rather like a glitch/accident. If you added that sustained bass note you altered the arrangement.
-the hihat is really loud in the left channel
-I’m missing some punch and controlled ambience between front sound stage (kick, 808, vocal, bells) and the back sound stage (rest of the elements), it’s like some midrange (300 Hz - 1,5 kHz) is not present enough to help articulate each instrument or is masked by the 808 distortion

Your mix has an interesting energy, although it lacks control of dynamcis imo. Elements are really far away from each other and the hihat is sizzling in the left channel, it’s too loud in the mix. The bell could have less reverb to bring a bit closer to the listener, it’s also very soft in mono. The vocal is very in your face and dry, the musical elements of the beat however have a good amount of reverb, this creates this long „throw“ into the sound stage. I hope you understand what I try to explain. Listen again and take care of things in the background and take the vocal and hihat as „reference“ where you are in the room. Another thing is this weird 808 glitch, would love to hear something more pleasant. But still, propz for your creativity! Maybe you find another solution.
TDR Nova tip to tame the sibilance:

Bell type:
Q: 2.84 Hz
Freq: 9.2 kHz
Thres: -12.1 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 36 ms

Hope this helps!
——————————

MFTWC: -16,5 LUFS/ -1,1. TP good
Headphones + studio speakers with sub (what speakers and sub do you have?)

+ hook vocals sound nice and crisp
+ delay effect on clap in the hook is a cool choice, it adds something I really like, it gives it a little „drill“ flair, nice!
+mix is well balanced, low end works good here, maybe a little more definition/snap would even improve the low end
+creative work in Verse 2 really nice, filter automations add a super dope flavour, nice work

-I hear a certain grittiness, some kind of bitcrusher effect on the bells, I understand why you did that (and it fits the style), but it’s a little bit too audible to my ears
-piano could be more aggressive to add tension and gangsta flair (think of Dr. Dre , it’s a bit like an added „bass“ layer)
-Verse could be a little more in your face, it’s almost there, just a little bit more compression and bite imo
-I don’t like the chorus effect on the „autotune“ part at all, I don’t know why but it sounds cheap maybe because it adds a certain „room“ around this effect which I find very wide, I’m missing the pinpoint focus on that specific phrase. There are some phase issues, it’s much lower in volume when listening in mono
-choir has a „feedback“ signal at the very beginning, it’s some kind of ringing in the background, I understand the intention but I find it just a bit too much/ too audible
-would love to hear another automation right before the transition to the 2nd hook
-I think that delayed clap would also really add something to the 2nd verse like you did in the hook, or maybe just one half of the verse. You can try it out if you want and let me know if you agree here
-hihat is a bit loud, this brighten things up + the feedback of the choir + plucky elements.

Your mix has definitely the right attitude and vibe, imo it just needs some small adjustments, but overall I like what I’m hearing. The feedback is really just a bit too much, but in general I find the idea very cool. What I really like is the delay on the clap, nice feature. The vocal needs attention (verse and hook), a bit more spit, bite and „air“ on top to open them up, more aggression, they are a bit shy. Try to tame the hat elements, they are a sizzling. Give the piano a bit more low end, there is this nice effect which adds tension and drama. Give the 808 a bit more controlled contour, not loudness, I like the relation between kick and 808. You still have the chance to add your own flavor with some creative work @ 02:09-02:12.

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 4.22
Freq: 1868 Hz
Thres: -3.6 dB
R: 2.1:1
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 47 ms

Band 2:
Q: 2.84
Freq: 7600 Hz
Thres: -9.5 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.1
Rel: 40 ms

This setting makes the mix a bit duller but the delay and reverb effects are more audible in context imo. The clap gets pulled down by a good amount, so the vocals have a bit more focus.
—————————-

jules666: -16,5 LUFS / -3,4 TP
Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro + soundid and CanOpener

+vocals are aggressive and have that in your face attitude, especially the verse
+bells have some kind of delay, sounds interesting
+panned hi hats is a cool move
+nice little beat tape stop glitch right before the 2nd hook, unfortunately it is barely audible, this should be much louder imo to really add that nice effect

-piano is very dark compared to the other key, bells etc. elements, but it has a cool effect around it which is drama and tension
-low end is pumping and sounds overcompressed
-kick transient is smeared and squashed, sounds nothing like the original
-add lips are barely audible and have a „weird“ reverb effect
-delay throw in the hook is sometimes „off“ (timing related)

I think your limitation is that you „only“ work with headphones. I know, new equipment means investing money, not everybody can do this. But you should really think about getting some speakers in the future if you like mixing, I’m sure your mixes will sound more cohesive and translate better to other systems. I can hear your vision, you’ve surely done some mixes before, unfortunately, it doesn’t translate well out of your headphones into the „real world“. Your mix is really washed in delay from the bells and harsh overall

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3.58
Freq: 2.9 kHz
Thres: -7.1 dB
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 35 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.72
Freq: 7.9 kHz
Thres: -9.6 dB
At: 0.1 ms
Rel: 25 ms

With this settings I find your mix less spikey and a bit rounder overall, the delay throw is more audible.
—————————

Ronsons79: -16,1 LUFS / -1,0 TP
Head Type 20 + DT 1990

Hey, ich weiß noch, Du hast auch am SWC066 teilgenommen. Grüße!

+bells have some cool panning effect
+interesting effect on the add lips, you used that „long tunnel effect“ heard on countless records (how did you create this effect?)
+creative delay throws, nice work (how did you create this effect?) > see more feedback below

-low end is too much compared to midrange and highs, sounds really disconnected, there are basically 2 sound stages, so the front end doesn’t connect with the background imo
-autotune on the hook, I don’t like the effect, sounds like a robot, but I think I understand your intention to do so
-kick sounds a bit too soft and too „hollow“, maybe less eq on the midrange?
-your creative delay and reverb work is not so audible and more of a „background thing“, imo they need to shine much more, they are way too shy imo because they sound great

Special: I read your comment about your monitors and about room correction in general and I don’t agree with your opinion. Most high end monitors have some sort of room correction as DSP or as a kit (Neumann / Genelec) included. Room correction software alone won’t make it of course, it’s rather the last 5-10% for a nice acoustic in your home or studio environment. You will need to treat the room acoustics first before Sonarworks & co can help to improve your listening position. And you can bet the room of Andrew Sheps sounds good and precise. If you never measured the room response you don’t know its flaws and problems which is crucial for a nice translation between different systems. Tbh, the Hedd Type 20 were on my list for a possible upgrade, now I’m not sure if this would be an upgrade compared to my system. I don’t want to be rude, but I expected more precision. Because I’ve heard some mixes made on the Type 20s which sounded super precise in the midrange with a beautiful sound stage. So, I’m not sure if this actually your room fooling you a bit. Because you definitely got talent / style, I like your flavour. Would you like to share some more information about your listening environment? I want to understand your specific mix/result better. Thanks! (Gerne per PM)

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3.40
Freq: 34 Hz
Thres: -9.8 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.16 ms
Rel: 45 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 990 Hz
Thres: -7.0 dB
R: 2.2:1
At: 0.98 ms
Rel: 63 ms

This settings keeps the low end a bit better under control and the 2nd band takes a bit care of the clap.
—————————

Dodgingrain: -16,0 LUFS / -1,0 TP
No info

INFO: for non-english songs you will normally also find a translation in the lyrics!

+nice delay throw on „trap house“
+vocal (verse) has a certain bite and attitude that I like

-flute, bells and keys/piano are too dark in sound imo, I think this specific songs benefits from more open sound even though I know it has a lot of plucky and spikey sounds to begin with
-gain staging is not ideal, 808 is too loud, also the verse is much more aggressive and present than the hook, the verse has the right attitude, the hook is too soft compared
-filter automation at the end is very aggressive, I would soften the cut and make it a tiny bit slower in time so that is not so spikey and sounds smoother overall
-I hear the deessing on the hook vocals at times
-I hear the compression too much on the vocals, also the deessing is not ideal, it’s „almost“ lisping, they still sound dark and muffled
-low end is too muddy/chubby compared to the midrange (300 Hz-1,5 kHz), I think it’s the region were you get the punch and attack out of this specific song, your mix really tilts toward the midrange/low end. Imo this is why your mix sounds dark and „muddy“ to my ears. Try to add a little more of the snappiness and bite (300-800 Hz region) in the plucky elements and your mix will breathe a little bit more and listen to the low end while adjusting the midrange. Normally, the sounds should come a bit closer to the listener. You might need to adjust the low end a bit afterwards. Hope this helps!

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type
Q: 2.27
Freq: 45 Hz
Thres: -12.6 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.13 ms
Rel: 98 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.12:1
Freq: 8.5 kHz
Thres: -9.6 dB
R: 2:1
At. 0.1 ms
Rel: 62 ms

Imo these settings help to keep things a bit better under control.
——————————

RobADAMO: -16,9 LUFS / -1,0 TP
Treated room + Tannoy Gold 8

INFO: please leave minimum 1 bar of silence in front your export so the mastering engineer can do further adjustments!

+delay on the flute is interesting
+piano has a nice flavour, it adds a lot of „tension“ to the mix, but (as a„-„ point) it also sounds very detuned
+vocals have that in your face attitude
+ super dope filter automation before 2nd hook
+your mix works good on small speakers

-808 is very „clicky“ in sound at times, but not very consistent so it’s hard to tell what causes this, it sounds like some midrange distortion {200 - 1 kHz region), maybe some aggressive clipping / limiting somewhere in your mix buss / drum buss?
-autotune part sounds a bit weird as if the autotune effect was not 100% wet, it was more like a blend between dry and wet (if I hear correctly) which I don’t like
-low end is not controlled and is pumping, it changes in „attitude“ throughout the song
-the low end is uncontrolled on bigger speakers / subs, or at least on my system

I believe the weakest link in your chain is the room/speakers because your style/taste is good and I really appreciate your talent in mixing! Your work would absolutely benefit from at least a supplementary sub, or even better upgrade your monitors. I bet after a short learning period your mixes would sound great on many devices.

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.47
Freq: 221 Hz
Thres: -13.3 dB
R: 2:1
At 8.3 ms
Rel: 86 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 8.4 kHz
Thres: -7.2 dB
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 88 ms

This settings keeps the low end energy and the sizzle of the hihat under control.
———————————

Christoph_K: -16,1 LUFS / -1,4 TP

Barefoot Footprint 1 / PMC twotwo6 / room acoustics + ARC4 + car check and other systems

+nice modulation on the bells
+ nice „classic“ dry in your face rap vocals
+well balanced mix
+interesting sound stage, I can pinpoint all sources from front to back
+the autotune part has a nice impact
+nice delay and reverb throws in the hook
+works great on small speakers

-I can hear a certain bass (100-500 Hz area) boost/saturation/distortion of the 808, I know there is some kind of buzz backed into the original sound, but I find it to be slight prominent in your mix, I prefer a cleaner tone tbh
-because of the aggressive 808 I have the impression there is a disconnection between the „cross over“ points from subs to lows to mids you created on your drum bus or/and the 808 splitting. The low end feels a bit too loose overall. Did you check the signal routing and crossovers? On my main system one area is slightly pumping, but I can’t tell exactly where in the frequency range. Something gets pushed a bit harder which makes the low end not as controlled as the rest (some kind of Multiband compression with various settings on each band, but not in a cohesive way so that they work against each other and not in sync). But hey, could also be my system / room mode / sub / group delay, the bass in this song goes really low (lowest bass note C# 0 is @ 34 Hz or so), and it’s slightly rumbling. Just wanted to inform you because you have good monitors but you did not mention the use of a sub. Man, this is really hard to judge! I realised this event a few times in your mixes. Often times you really nail it completely, but there a few times where something is a bit „off“ and aggressive in the midrange to my ears, or on my system. I was just wondering I checked the specs of both speakers and I read somewhere the Footprints (-3 dB @ 36 Hz) having some low/mid imbalance. I never had a chance to hear them so I can’t tell anything about it. I’m not familiar with the PMC sound either. But I know they are solid tools and many engineers use them. Feel free to share more information about your work space or your mix process with this Jaycen Joshua thing, I’m really curious about it. I highly appreciate your participation in this forum!
-I’m not a fan of the reverb effect on the clap
-the autotune part is really nice, imo it’s just a bit too loud in volume compared to the „regular“ rap part
-not a fan of that aggressive and stiff „KNOCK“ sound on the kick, imo the kick is too „tight“ compared to the original, I would like to hear a slight softer character, but I understand your intention to make it punchy

Your mix has the right energy and drive, there are just some things I think that you could improve in the midrange imo. Try to tame the long reverb on the clap in the hook, the decay is very long imo, the reflections are too much in relation. Also, I would love to hear the bells a bit louder in the mix, they add really that gangsta flair to the track in my opinion. Take the piano as loudness reference because this is the loudest musical element in your mix. In general, I would love to hear a bit more of the musical elements. Kick/808 relationship is good imo, there is just a bit too much uncontrolled low end/midrange rumble here in my rooom. Also, check your mix in mono.

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3.39
Freq: 33 Hz
Thres: -9.0 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 36 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 2.32
Freq: 222 Hz
Thres: -9.0 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 126 ms

This setting keeps the low end controlled and eliminates some of the low mid harshness.
——————————

eggshell: -16,2 LUFS / -2,6 TP

INFO: Please use your forum user name in the file you upload, it’s easier to check everything for Mister Fox and the Song Provider!

Macbook HP + ER4XR (earbuds) + audiolens (Match EQ type?) + Metric AB

+transition before 2nd hook with filter/distortion automation on vocal and reverb on pistol is dope
+your mix / 808 sounds a bit like American underground trap to my ears
+interesting delay throws at the end
+nice room / space / reverb for the flute
+your mix has a darker atmosphere, exactly like you wanted

-the verse sounds a bit too distorted (or not enough depending on how you wanted to create this effect imo). But I can’t tell if this was on purpose (I think you wanted this effect) , it sounds a bit like a megaphone / screaming effect, maybe you blended the mix/dry knob. If this was the case you should add a little more distortion to the vocal to add more bite and punch or go fully clean to have this contrast right before the 2nd hook transition with the „fully“ distorted vocal. It could also be something from the delay fx (if I hear correctly) you used. Maybe there is something like a „drive“ knob in your delay plugin that causes this fuzzy sound. I also have problems in locating the delay source, it’s not precise enough in the sound stage
-clap stands out the most in your mix, it is much louder than the rest
-the low end is chubby/muddy and reacts a bit sluggish. Because of this I have the impression the song is a tiny bit slower than the original
-back and front sound stage are too far away from each other > think of gain staging, the lower the volume of your signal the further it gets pushed into the background
-I have the impression your initial gain staging is not ideal, maybe due to the acoustic in your room / headphones
-This is just my opinion, please don’t take it personal: if you need 5 plugins on your mix bus and you are passionate about music creating/ mixing etc. I highly recommend you to invest in a more precise listening environment. I can tell this is not the first time you mixed something! Would really love to hear some work from you made on a „better“ system.

INFO 2: please leave minimum 1 bar of silence in front of your mix so that the mastering engineer can do further adjustments!

Using TDR Nova didn’t help to lower the clap in volume, I had to use a transient desinger in front and it was still too loud. This is sign of not ideal gain staging.
—————————-

Drannob: -16, LUFS / -1,1 TP
Ollo S4X headphones + Event Opal + Hs 50 > „bad“ acoustics

+interesting sound stage with the delay and reverb
+nice filter automation at the end, was not expecting this, I don’t know why
+I like the coloration/attitude of the vocals (hook + verse)
+the autotune part is sick, blends nice with the natural part
+nice filter automation at the end of the song
+the balance is not bad in general

-deessing is audible at times, this makes everything a bit too dark in my opinion
-mix is slightly tilted toward the lows
-decay of the verse reverb is a bit too long, I would prefer a shorter decay time
-I’m missing some punch and definition from the bells and piano, I know it’s a bit like a sound wall to begin with, but imo your mix lacks some midrange energy which helps to separate each element and to pinpoint the sources. Maybe the tip with a shorter reverb can help here. Though, I do hear the depth and front to back sound stage in your mix which is nice
-I hear some clicks or something at times on the kick and/or 808, it becomes more obvious when the kick is not playing, I can’t tell what it is (Ok, it’s a bug)
-the transient on the 808 is weak and sluggish compared to the kick. I think you should to try to separate these elements a bit more precise (via EQ and compression). The low end is a bit uncontrolled in my room

It’s good to keep an eye on the time you’ve spent for a project. I like your mindset! PS: also look for a solution with the click problem for future projects, you don’t want such things in your bounced file. I don’t know what to do if this is a DAW specific thing. Maybe you can dive deeper into this topic and avoid this kind of problem for your professional path as mixing engineer. Keep up the good work!
Try to lower the delay amount in the hook and the room reverb, shorten the decay of the main vocals for a shorter room. Check the bell instruments, they almost vanish in mono. Try to bring out the piano more in volume and give it a little more low mids (200 Hz area), it’s really shy in your mix although it does add a lot of tension and gangsta flair to the song imo. Take a closer look a the deessing in the hook, it doesn’t sound so smooth in my opinionn. Try to find a solution for the clicky sound in your 808 and create a bit more contour and separation between kick and 808. You still have the chance to add your own flavor at 02:09-02:12.

INFO: please leave minimum 1 bar of silence in front of your mix so that the mastering engineer can do further adjustments!

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.34
Freq: 47 Hz
Thres: -12.2 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.12
Rel: 98 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.07
Freq: 271 Hz
R: 2:1
At: 1.5 ms
Rel: 188 ms

Band 3 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 8.5 kHz
Thres: -8.6 dB
R: 1.5:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 48 ms

This settings helps to tame the low end, some midrange drive and the last bands takes care of the harsh s-sound in the hook.
—————————

scottfitz: -16,3 LUFS / -1,6 TP
AKG 371 + Topping DX7

+balance and gain staging is good
+nice in your face sound from the vocals ( hook and verse )
+all key, bells, piano etc. elements are audible and easy to detect as sound source in the sound stage
+nice reverb effect right before the 2nd hook on the verse
+nice dry mix approach

-vocals, especially the hook, is a bit harsh (in the 3-6 kHz area), it’s not sibilant or distorted but very hard and stiff, I don’t know how to describe it better. After reading your comment it could be the release of the compressor a bit too long on the vocals, this emphasises the endings of words sometimes. Maybe you can take a closer look here
-low end is not bad, it just needs a bit more control and precision, I can’t really pinpoint the transient on the 808, it needs a little more separation from the kick imo
-I would love to hear some more „creative“ work on the beat at the transition right before the 2nd hook, the vocal effect is nice, I’m just missing some magic from the instrumental in this situation.
-the mix has a nice sound stage although it’s very dry - in a very pleasant way - , there is a certain „room“ around the verse which stands out a bit too much to my ears. I think some instruments would benefit from a slight reverb/delay to compliment this added room, or you can try to make the verse more dry and keep the room around the vocal smaller (I think I understand your intention here which totally makes sense to me)

Your mix has the right amount of drive and energy. The sound stage is good, maybe could be a tiny bit deeper (add a short reverb and/or delay to the flute or bells for example to push the sound stage a bit further to the back). Try to keep the low end a bit better under control, the hihat needs also some attention, it’s very sizzling. There is some grit in your mix that I find too much, and the hihat is one of the reasons. But also the hook sounds a bit to gritty imo. You still have the chance to add your own flavor with some creative work @ 02:09-02:12.

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3.86
Freq: 382 Hz
Thres: -0.7 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.46 ms
Rel: 68 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 7.8 kHz
Thres: -9.2 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 30 ms

I also had to use a transient designer to control things a bit better, the s-sound in the hook is still harsh
—————————

Alexvanmixland: -16,8 LUFS / -2,5 TP
No info

+vocals got that in your face attitude
+doubler effect is interesting on the bells, just a bit too much imo, it is very wide and smeared overall in the sound stage, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact position on the sides
+interesting delay throw at the end of the song on the word „trap house“

-low end is uncontrolled, it’s rumbling in my room
-not a fan of the reverb on clap
-add lips are barely audible, in Hip Hop you want to give them a certain presence because they add a certain vibe to rap verse and sometimes contain „important“ information regarding the lyrics
-piano needs way more impact to add tension and gansta flair
-I’m missing some transient information on some key elements like kick, 808, clap and piano to be able to pinpoint the different elements

Maybe if you decrease the width of the bells doubler this can help to bring more focus to the other instruments, this effect is really super wide in your mix and eats up a lot of space. Also, try to control the low end a bit more, there is some rumbling in my room. I think the piano needs to be much louder to add that gangsta flair. I have the impression the bell could be turned down in volume, they are almost louder than the vocals and cover a lot of other musical elements in the beat. You still have the chance to add your own flavor at 02:09-02:12, would love to hear some creative work from you.

INFO: please leave 1 bar of silence in front of your mix so that the mastering engineer can do further adjustments!

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.29
Freq: 35 Hz
Thres: -14.5 dB
R: 2.1:1
At: 5.3 ms
Rel: 83

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.87
Freq: 6.4 kHz
Thres: -7.0 dB
At: 0.12 ms
Rel: 36 ms

Imo this opens up a bit the vocals and they become a bit more focused, this settings pushes the beat just a bit back and tames some harshness
———————-

malene: -18,5 LUFS / -2,4 TP
Genelec 8030 + treated room

+hook has an interesting reverb/ room effect
+vocal has a certain in your face attitude, I like the coloration it adds

-piano is missing completely (due to phase issues?)
-mix collapses in mono, elements are missing/ sound hollow
-your low end is weak an has serious phase problems, the kick vanishes from time to time completely

I don’t know but you should check your room / speakers / listening position and measure the results using something like Room EQ Wizard + a measurement microphone. Your mix has serious phase cancellations, especially in the low end / sub area. And always listen to your mix with fresh ears before uploading. Hope this helps!

There was nothing I could do to your mix, the most obvious thing to me is the not ideal gain staging. The elements of the beat are far in the background and the vocals + 808 are the closest to the listener. Again, I find the room around the vocals interesting.
—————————

Mitchellpmusic: -17,8 LUFS / -7,5 TP > altered the arrangement, added beat mutes
Focal Shape 65 + SoundId + room semi-treated

+verse has a nice in your face attitude
+some nice automation and effects on the add lips
+gain staging is not bad
+each element is audible
+nice little delay work in the add lips
+really, the add lips absolutely shine in your mix

-808 has a certain „knock“ and sounds a bit spikey, the transient is hard and stiff, or sounds like Multiband compression (I personally don’t like that sound and I rarelly use MB compression). I cannot really pinpoint the transient, I hear a lot of attack instead. Maybe you could reduce the clipping / limiting on your 808 or mix buss a bit to bringt that back
-low bell could be more audible to add a little more grittiness, same like the other elements in the hook. Imo they are a bit too far in the background, they really add that „gangsta vibe“ if more audible in the mix
-if I listen really carefully I can hear the reverb on the main vocal to be very wide, I think it eats up a lot of stereo space, maybe not so much stereo spread would bring some energy a little bit more to the center image
-hook can be louder imo to maintain the impact of the verse, especially after the 2nd verse the energy drops significantly in the 3rd hook on my main system
-during the second beat mute in verse 2 the room on „Richard Mille“ is too wide imo, I would like to hear a more narrow reverb with more focus on the mono information
-deessing is audible at times in the verse
-maybe you can add some little extra sauce on the trap house add lip right before the songs ends, because you did some nice stuff with some add lips during the song

You added some beat mutes and therefore altered the arrangement. But I have to admit, they are really tasty and add something in the verse I didn’t expect was missing. I wonder why I missed that „drop“ there, it changed a bit the way I hear the arrangement now, but this is so „obvious“ . Thanks so much for this idea! I would like to know if you can fix that thing I mentioned for the 2nd beat mute with the stereo spread of the reverb (I think there is also some automation for the reverb if I hear correctly). I really like your taste and flavour. Would love to give you the chance for Round 2 via Wild Card.
Your mix goes into the right direction, I think it just needs some more detail work for a good translation and controlled low end (system with subs). And another thing, your True Peak is at -7,5 dBFS, not sure if you need to keep your peaks that low (your Peak-to-Loudness Ratio is 10 dB, this is like fully mastered music, which means „technically“ your mix is at -10 LUFS). Give it a little more dynamic so it can breathe a bit more, but be careful with the low end, try to maintain this balance, it feels good overall. Let the mastering engineer take care of the dynamics instead. Maybe your 808 seems to be stiff and hard (because of the saturation it adds) and at the same time a bit sluggish (because of the peak clipping which is your initial transient). Your 808 has a more „wooooooosh“ sound if that makes sense, I would love to hear it like a fat „boom“. I know, the 808 designed for this song has a little bouncy feeling to it, maybe you can adjust the compression to give it more initial smack.
You could also add some of the verse reverb to the hook but not as much as in the verse itself, I think a little dose of it would come really nice to make a bit brighter and bigger overall
PS: funny, I can hear the „typical“ focal sound on my system.
Would love to have some insight about your mixing process!

With a transient designer and a DeCliper I was able to make your mix to hit a bit more comfortable imo. It is not as stiff as before, there is still a good amount of girth. If I had to „master“ this mix I would change the settings of the DeCliper from section to section to get rid of some of the midrange fuzz.
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VasDim: -19,4 LUFS / -3,0 TP
No info

+vocals are very present with an in your face attitude and a more „aggressive“ style just like you want in Hip Hop
+hook sounds interesting with only one main vocal really audible in the middle and the two side tracks being much lower in volume
+low end is not rumbling, sounds controlled

-your low end is a bit weak, I’m missing some punch from the kick, the sub area is too soft imo
-bell is very low in volume being the „main“ element of the beat
-I think the room / reverb on the vocals is too long and too bright, although I think I understand why you did that (could be the sound of the „trap house“?). The reflections are too audible imo, maybe you could shorten the decay time a bit and cut some high frequencies to make the „trap house“ a bit darker. It could also help to reduce the early reflections in „True Verb“.
-autotune part is very dark compared to the „normal“ rap part and hook
-unfortunately no creative moves on the beat
-gain staging is not ideal, vocals and 808 are very present while the other instruments are too much in the background

Your mix sounds more like a quick demo mix. I’m missing some punch and smack in your mix overall. I think your mix would benefit from a more ideal gain staging to bring the instruments more towards the listener. Unfortunately, you did not give any information about your listening environment.

Using TDR Nova didn’t help to control things in your mix, the reverb is more audible and way louder than the beat itself.
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ValterZape: -17,5 LUFS / -1,9 TP
No info

+ your mix „works“ on small speakers, BUT

-your mix totally collapses on my main system / big speakers, the low end is drown in the background and only the plucky elements are really audible
-your mix is heavily overcompressed and is low in volume although your LUFS seem to be in the right region. Elements that are audible in one section of the song vanish into the background in other sections. There is a huge volume change throughout the whole mix.
-I see you used 10! plugins on your mix buss which is WAY TOO MUCH stereo bus processing for mix imo
-you used a LA-2A for every! track in your mix. I’m not sure if you are aware of the characteristic and behaviour of this specific compressor. I would highly recommend you to use a cleaner compressor as your go-to (e.g. ReaComp or Kotelnikov Mastering Compressor / TDR Kotelnikov). The LA2A is slow compressor type and not ideal to catch any „rogue“ peaks in a mix, it’s better suited to „massage“ things and to even out volume inconsistencies. Or put the LA2a after a „regular“ more snappy compressor (the ones I mentioned for example) for sustained instruments.
-You did not say anything about your work space / listening environment but I guess you have some issues there because your mix doesn’t translate to bigger speakers at all.

Using TDR Nova didn’t help with your mix, you have serious gain staging problems and everything is pumping like crazy.
————————

Vanilla Puff: -17,0 LUFS / -2,0 TP

+some interesting delay throws on the add lips
+nice filter automation before the drums come back in the 3rd and last hook
+autotune part distortion, the effect makes sense and is a good choice here, the distortion is just cracking up too much for me

-low end is pumping on my main system
-flute has too much reverb/delay and is the loudest element at the beginning, but as soon as the drums / 808 play the flute gets pushed far in the background
-instrumental is inconsistent in volume, some elements are barely audible (piano) in the hook and get pushed back like the flute
-energy changes from intro-hook to rap verse and then back into the hook, rap part is much more present and aggressive than the hook
-unfortunately, your mix doesn’t work so good on bigger speakers / subs
-not sure if I like that „repeat/stutter“ effect on the beat right before the last hook, but I understand your intention behind I think

Thanks for the feedback on my 2 mixes. But, if you really say the kick and 808 of mix#1 translate well you should check your listening environment and check it with a sub, because in reality they don’t. It’s not only a bit overpowering, it is way too boomy on big speakers imo. Unfortunately, I have no information about your mixing process so I’m not sure what you could improve. But I can hear some sort of master buss clipping / limiting in your mix, maybe you should take a closer look there and adjust some things. It could be the reason why the elements like keys, flute, arp, bells etc. get pushed back in louder section because you are squashing it too much, I don’t know. And also, I think your listening environment is not ideal, I guess you started with some headphones / speakers and then switched to your phone to check the translation. I would maybe do the initial gain staging through the phone and then switch to speakers for detail work. Anyways, I would always work on the most precise system I have. Hope this helps!

INFO: for non-english songs you will find a translation in the lyrics

Using TDR Nova didn’t help with your mix, you obviously have some gain staging issues. Some elements are far in the background, no compressor can help here.
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makoto: -20,0 LUFS / -1,6 TP
Westone headphones

Thank you for the words, it is nice to read that you find pleasure in this style of music.
It is also nice to see that you put a lot of effort into your work, and I can tell by the way you wrote that you are passionate about it. Now, here is honest feedback about your mix:

+nice ping pong delay effect on the add lips „trap house“ in the hook
+interesting room effect on the autotune part

-low end is significantly louder than everything else, like 10x louder
-808 is heavily distorted and sounds very crunchy throughout the whole song
-vocals have some distortion, not as massive as the low end, but it’s still audible enough on my main system, not sure if I find this to be pleasant, unfortunately it gets masked by the 808 distortion and I cannot hear through that sound wall
-all other elements are far in the background
-gain staging is not ideal
-the add lip (trap house) in the first hook is the loudest vocal throughout the whole song, in the second hook it becomes much quieter and at the end it becomes loud again, so you have huge volume changes in your mix
-unfortunately, no creative work on the beat at the end of verse 2 (2:09-2:12)
-your mix is also low in volume (-20,0 LUFS), although your max peak is -1,6 TP. This really shows that your mix is unbalanced and too dynamic overall
-I had to inform you to change the rights of your upload, please be more aware of such things in the future and check your link before sharing it with the community. Thanks in advance!

I think a version of your mix without the low end( muted 808 and kick) actually sounds decent enough, there is some distortion on the vocals but this can sometimes be a nice coloration, especially in such dark genres like Trap. But I can’t really hear enough of the other elements to give more feedback, they are really far in the background compared to the low end. I would recommend you to check your listening environment, there seems to be something really off with your low end / midrange balance. Your headphones are fooling you very much. If you can save some money I would recommend you to invest in room acoustics and decent monitors in the future. I think these headphones are really holding you back in your progress. While I’m reading your comment, maybe there is also too much clipping from the BBE Maximiser on the master bus. Could be too much LO contour + processing. Hope this helps! I don’t want to discourage you with my feedback, you should see this as motivation instead and dive deeper into the topics of acoustics, speakers and gain staging. Listen to mixes from others were I said something good about their low end and compare it to your work on many different devices (you will need a sub woofer for bass check). Controlling the low end (with good to superb translation on big speakers) is really the hardest part in a mix, especially with bass heavy music like this. With headphones this is impossible to do (imo).

PS: I’m not sure if your loudness specs are correct. I measured it using TC Electronic Clarity and this thing is „pretty“ accurate btw. So, you can check this also once more.

Your mix has not an ideal gain staging, the 808 is very prominent and loud, so using TDR Nova can’t help here.
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MixyMcMixFace: -18,6 LUFS / -6,1 TP (altered arrangement > beat mute)
Beyerdynamic DT 770

+interesting delay on the flute
+your mix has an aggressive vibe, but (as „-„ point) sounds very lo fi which I don’t like so much
+choice of reverb
+I hear an automated clap reverb in the hook, unfortunately it doesn’t translate really well, it is very far in the sound stage and barely audible, would love to hear more of it
+piano has an interesting character and vibe

-you altered the arrangement by including a beat mute at the beginning of the song right after the riser
-although aggressive, your mix sounds lifeless and dull on my main system (I think due to some clipping on the master buss)
-lead sounds nothing like the original, it’s like an electric guitar in your mix, only in the last hook it sounds „normal“. Ok, after listening until the end I understand your intention behind it, I would simply do it like you did in the last hook where only the section with the drums playing is distorted throughout the whole song to raise the energy in the hook when the 808/kick is playing. The idea is actually not bad!
-I’m not a fan that formant pitch for the autotune part
-I understand your intention to bring down the energy in the first half of the last hook with the muted 808 and kick, I think it’s just too low in energy, especially with that little tape stop glitch in the beat. If I hear correctly there is only one vocal in the section with no 808/kick, this could be louder in volume imo to maintain this certain aggression you created in your mix
-your true peak is -6,1 dbFS although you are allowed to go to -1.0 dbFS. I would recommend you to keep a bigger overall dynamic, your mix is squashed (I guess on the master buss per clipper / saturator / limiter) to mastered values („technically“ your mix is almost -12 LUFS). The low end is not bad, it just tends slightly towards an overhyped / saturated tone which I don’t enjoy so much, while the rest of the elements are a bit static, except for that one energy drop I mentioned before
-I had to inform you to change the rights of your upload, please be more aware of such things in the future and check your link before sharing it with the community. Thanks in advance!

Your mix has some real issues imo and I couldn’t do anything with TDR Nova or other tools.
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yinangle: -16,3 LUFS / -1,0 TP
Beyerdynamic DT 770 > Realphones > Samson SR850s, earbuds, phone

Altered the arrangement by muting Gangsta Choir after the first verse

+nice little reverb on the flute
+funny little tape glitch on the autotune part
+riser has an interesting delay
+low end works on my main sytem
+vocals have a certain aggression

-I hear a certain roughness in the vocals, it’s not harsh, it’s more like they have some rough edges, maybe because of a too long release on the compressor
-I don’t like that long reverb on the clap, it has a slight pre-delay, I would prefer a short dark sounding reverb
-overall your mix sounds a bit dark to me, slightly tilted to the low mids / lows, especially the vocals
-I’m missing some presence, brilliance and shine in your mix, some of those plucky elements could benefit from more detail and air in the upper frequency range, the only element that really catches my attention is the flute
-hihat is very loud
-I hear slight volume changes from the instruments, not sure if that was automated. But I have the feeling the energy is changing throughout the song
-the low end works on my sub, but it’s rather shy like in my 2nd mix. Would love to hear a little more controlled low end

Even though this is not quite your style of music the mix is not bad at all.

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3.70
Freq: 1060 Hz
R: 2:1
At: 10.0 ms
Rel: 175 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 2.92
Freq: 8.4 kHz
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 104 ms

I have the impression this setting brings more focus to the vocals and tames some of the harshness of the hihat.
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JeroenZuiderwijk: -16,0 LUFS / -1,3 TP
Genelec 1030A, Beyerdynamic 990 + car check / acoustic panels

Thanks Jeroen for the kind words!

+gain staging is good, all instruments are audible
+fx on the pistol was nice
+that transition from 2:09-2:12 is dope man! A real WOW effect! Nice job
+vocals have nice energy and drive

-808 is very distorted (some added midrange energy @200-800 Hz or so), unfortunately, the feeling of the original sound is totally gone, sounds like a different 808. Not sure if that was your intention, I’ll have to read your comments about this. Ok, the 808 fuzz is, unfortunately, not subtle like you intended to, but it is very extreme. I understand why you did that, but something „must“ be „wrong“ with your monitoring. The fuzz is, I would say, almost nasty and changes the vibe of the song significantly. The original 808 has already some good amount of (midrange) distortion backed in (very subtle in small range of frequencies), I’m not sure if more saturation is really needed for this track. I tested it myself, with good gain staging no additional distortion is needed for the 808 in order to be audible on phones etc.
-beat is a bit muddy and dark compared to the vocals
-piano is very dark in sound
-overall mix is crunchy, there is a certain bite, maybe because of that distorted 808, but also in general, I find it lacks some dynamics. The mix is rather „small“ from top to bottom and front to back. Your mix would benefit if things could breathe a bit more imo and if you would push a few elements more in the background, it’s a bit like a wall of sound, every element wants to be in front and is „begging“ for attention.

It’s good to read that you’ve done some acoustic treatment, but I have the impression it is not „ideal“ in the low and midrange because what you described as subtle is very crunchy and screaming on my main system. I also just checked the specs of your speakers, they don’t go very low (-6db @ 47 Hz). Maybe you can add a sub for the lows? Or how would you compare your mix to my 2nd? What are the main differences, or do you find the vibe to be very similar? I’m very curious about your thoughts!

Acon DeClip2 after TDR Nova helped to tame some of the aggressive buzz and made the mix a bit more bouncy again. The hihat is also cutting very much through the mix it was hard to tame this to a more comfortable level without making things too dull.

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.75
Freq: 10.1 kHz
R: 2.2
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 43 ms
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Nbwltn2: -17,6 LUFS / -5,3 TP
No info

-I had to ask you to change the rights for the link
-you provided an mp3-file
-chopped and screwed version? Something went wrong when you exported your mix, I suspect a problem with the samplerate, the song is pitched down and slower.

You should check your bounced file before you upload your entry to avoid any surprise. I’m honest, the balance and everything seems right, the sound stage and the overall impression is promising. So, I’m not sure what to do with your entry. I’ll check for other entries before offering you a Wild Card. But really, this shouldn’t happen. There are few things which I consider as a „no-go“ (see list above). I can hear a slight pumping effect on the low end but I’m not sure in the real context (tempo). Your peaks are a bit low (imo), could be some clipping/limiting/compression on the stereo bus. After reading your comment it could be the tape emulation that is working a bit too hard. Would love to hear more dynamics. But like I said, in context things sound promising.

Ok, going through all mixes a 2nd time I decided to not offer you a Wild Card. You simply just really f*cked up your rendering, I’m sorry. I think it is not „fair“ to reward this mistake were others just paid more attention than you. Imagine this would be the deadline of a big production of an upcoming artist and you deliver this file. Sheesh! Don’t be discouraged and try it again next month, I really can hear something in your chopped and screwed version. The hihat is a bit loud, though. And the clap is panned to the right and the snare + hihat to the left. You can still me send me your mix via PM and I will give feedback if you want, would love to hear it in real context.
———————-

elements: -16,0 LUFS / -1,0 TP
Sennheiser HD300 Pro > car check

+nice little transition @ 02:09-2:12
+key, bells, piano, arp etc. have a nice vibe, especially at the beginning they sound very promising

-vocals are very dark and a bit distorted. Sounds like I would cover my mouth with my hands or something, they are not clear imo
-low end is boomy and too lose/soft overall, it’s rumbling
-kick is very soft, it has no punch and no real smack
-gain staging is not ideal, plucky instruments are very pronounced, everything else seems a bit off to my ears, it’s wether too low in level (gain staging) or it is very dark and muddy in sound (frequencies)

After reading your comment about your mixing process I recommend you to decrease the clipping of the 808 (it is really soft and boomy listening on my sub). Also, the Saturn saturation is really audible, especially in the midrange area (300-800 Hz area), this doesn’t sound really nice tbh. Imo the 808 doesn’t need any further distortion to be audible on smaller speakers, I tested it myself on several devices and I created this 808 from scratch in Sublab XL with exactly that in mind. Another thing, you could try is to get rid of the limiter on your master to bring back some dynamics in the lows. Hope this helps!

Your mix sounds very boxy and the gain staging is not ideal. There is nothing I can do with TDR Nova or other tools.
———————

APLO: not able to download the file > Soundcloud link

I’m honest, I stopped listening after 20 seconds, the low end is heavily distorted and is pumping. I don’t know if this has to do with the upload. Sorry.

———————

LowlandsWave: -16,5 LUFS / -1,6 TP
No info

+Intro is very promising with the bells and flute

-as soon as the 808 kicks in your mix gets significantly lower in volume and it’s pumping
-your low end sounds like (excuse the word) a fart, really. It sounds like you added some sonic ehhancer or something, I’ll have to read your comment about the mix process
-the low end sounds totally different than the original, sounds like there are some added (odd?) harmonics, but they sound absolutely off, like if the bass was playing the wrong key. I don’t know which plugin is creating this sound, but I don’t like it all. I hope you have the chance to listen to this with a subwoofer somewhere so you can hear the effect for yourself. And this is not subtle, this is obvious like in your face!. Excuse, I don’t want to sound harsh on your mix, I just want to make you aware that something is a bit too off with your listening environment
-I heard the name Michael Brauer but I don’t know the Michael Brauer technique. I’m not sure if this makes things to the better or to the worst tbh, for now I would recommend you to stay on the safer side with just a regular drum buss and no extra routing/splitting which makes more complex as they really need to be
-I hear inconsistencies in volume throughout the whole song
-kick is really soft and not so audible at times
-hook is lower in volume compared to the verse

There wasn’t much I could do with TDR Nova because the 808 really sounds like a fart, the pitch is totally off for some reason. All 808 hits have, so to say, the same pitch because of some added low end harmonics which are not musical in context. They really sabotage the tone and pitch of each sub low note. I hope you can discover this phenomena on some other speakers.
——————

UHLS: -16, LUFS / -1,4 TP
No info

+Delay effect on the bells is interesting as a creative fx add, imo it changes the vibe at bit too much, sounds „almost“ like another beat, or rather like a remix. But still, it adds an interesting vibe overall
+your mix has an interesting atmosphere, however, I can’t really tell what it is

-gain staging is not ideal, but could be improved in my opinion to enlarge the sound stage and make certain elements a bit bigger, too much low end rumble
-some elements really shine (piano, bells) others are not so clear and precise in the sound stage
-vocals are very shy compared to the beat in volume and aggression/vibe
-the 808 is pumping and really too strong compared to all other elements

Even taking away more than 12 dB @ 39 Hz and 9 dB @ 161 Hz with TDR Nova as Dynamic EQ couldn’t fix the imbalance in your mix
———————

crispy: download not available > 16/12/24

———————

WhitePunkOD: -16,4 LUFS / -2,3 TP
Austrian Audio X-65 (headphones)

+interesting delay effect on the bell instruments
+gain staging is not bad
+main vocal has a certain vibe
+piano has an interesting placement, hard panned to the right
+nice filter transition before the 3rd hook
+nice 808 filter automation at the end

-autotune part sounds like transformer and monoton, I prefer the sound of the original. But props to you, to tried something different! Also, the autotune is completely dry compared to the „reverbed“ vocal which I find a bit „strange“ in context
-bell is a bit too diffuse with reverb, would like to hear a more controlled ambience. There is this disconnection with the piano which is very dry
-add lips in the verse sounds like in a bathroom
-addd lip in the hook sound like in a cave (it has more delay in the reverberation)
-delay effect on the bell instruments sounds a bit smeared, I wish I could hear more focus on them pinpoint the sound source, they are too far away from the rest. Your front to back sound image is really long if that makes sense to you
-trap house adds in the hook are much louder than everything else, they stick out way too much
-vocals sound like in a small box, I can hear the reverb/room „around“ it too much, the blending between dry and wet is not „ideal“ imo. I would try to raise the dry signal while pushing the reverb more in the background by lowering its volume on the send fader, and I would also add more reverb to the hook + decrease the pre-delay of the reverb to bring the effect closer to the listener in the sound stage
-low end works on my system but is soft and shy, I’m missing the knock and smack of the transients from kick and 808
-hihat is very prominent

Overall, your mix and gain staging is not bad. I mean, it works but for Hip Hop and Trap I find it too soft. I’m missing some precision (sound stage) and punch/bite for that excitement on bigger speakers / subs. The bells could be a bit louder imo to add some excitment. The autotune part is not what I was looking for. The bell element needs to be way louder and focused overall. It’s the „main“ element of the beat, and the add lips are too loud imo. Check your mix in mono again! You still have the chance to add your own flavor with some creative work @ 02:09-02:12. You could maybe just mute the complete beat halfway through the riser („Meine Triebe voll auf Angriff)


PS: I didn’t know about this Evouyn tool, not sure how it works. I understand the use of such tools, anyway, I came to a point where I can’t go back to „no sub“. Just having those extra 10 Hz down to almost 30 Hz is ear opening. I also came to the conclusion that I need/want 3-way monitors for extra precision in the midrange area. Danke und VG!

PS: Thanks for the spoiler. Like I said before, I understand the use of such tools, but in reality - or I should say from my point of view - it’s way more than just the right balance or amount of frequencies in a specific mix (this is what I experienced since I included a subwoofer and even more now being Song Provider). If my mix sounds „good“ on my system it will translate roughly the same to other systems. The only difference between the mixes on my system and let’s say my phone is the front to back image, how deep the sound goes and how far away background sounds are audible. I observed some members using clipping/limiting/waveshapping/distortion etc. mainly on kick and bass and what happens a lot of time is that these two sounds become very soft/weak and they loose all their punch and drive because they are cutting the „peak“ and creating new ones which are not precise enough for the big picture (full spectrum 20 Hz- 20 kHz). It’s more like guessing than really knowing what’s going on. Often the result is a very small mix from top to bottom, but also from front to back on bigger speakers (or too long).

TDR Nova setting:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 7.9 kHz
Thres: -12.9 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 10

This helps to tame the hihat a bit, puts the vocal a bit more into focus and helps to bring to some background ambience more into the front imo.
——————————

GersonArdilaVerjel: -16,1 LUFS / -2,3 TP
Kali Audio speakers (no model mentioned), Sony MDR-7506 headphones, car check

+rap verse is nice with a cool in your face attitude
+vocals are nice and loud in your mix, I like that
+I like those raw and dry vocals
+low end works on my subs, it’s not rumbling/boomy
+your mix has a certain aggression that I like

-flute has a strange short reverb/ room, I would prefer a longer one so that the flute goes further in the background, the bells are much more in the background and could be louder in the mix
-I’m not a fan of that slap/delay/reverb fx on the add lips, they are very wet compared to the main vocals and hook, this creates a huge distance between the vocals. I think a shorter pre-delay could help here to bring the add lips a bit closer to the listener
-808 has a different vibe compared to the original, I guess you added a good amount of saturation or coloration in the midrange or something, I’ll have to check your comment. Ok, here is my opinion: the 808 doesn’t need any further coloration, I already added a bunch of crunch and distortion into the original file when I created this beat and even enhanced the saturation for the 2nd mix to make sure the 808 is audible on small speakers, but this band is rather small so it doesn’ eat up so much energy. You need to be really careful when introducing midrange boost without loosing the vibe and character of the original. The 808 in your mix sounds a bit too squashed and heavy on the chest but with a soft transient overall, there is a „significant“ amount of saturation (peak taming) that I don’t really enjoy so much. I wanted a punchy and bouncy low end with a nice snappy transient, your mix has a more beefed up and sustained low end with lots of midrange buzz.
-low end is not loud or so, but the character has changed a lot, it’s too beefed up and takes too much space in the mix imo
-gain staging is not ideal, piano and clap are very loud, some musical beat elements like bells are far in the background
-autotune part sounds too robotic and monoton to my ears, I prefer the original sound where you can hear that I’m actually „singing“ this melodic part in different notes, your version is monoton with no key change. What you describe as subtle is actually very audible on my system
-I understand what you tried at the end with that scratch/reverse delay fx on the beat, but it sounds like a glitch, there is a loud click right before the transition, I can hear the automation too much

TDR Nova settings:
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 4.83
Freq: 133 Hz
Thres: -9.7 dB
R: 2:3
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 68 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 6
Freq: 989 Hz
Thres: -13.3 dB
R: 2.3:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 68 ms

This setting helps to control the contour a bit better, I have the impression things get closer together.
——————————

jw: -16,5 LUFS / -1,1 TP
No info

+gain staging is not bad
+nice filter automation for the „first half“ off the beat
-vocals are nice and clear, imo the verse could be a bit louder to catch up with the hook

-trap house add lips in the hook has a strange delay, it’s not in sync with the beat rhythmically
-piano is too loud compared to other elements
-decay of reverb on the hook is very long
-hihat sounds soft like some heavy saturation/clipping but it’s still sizzling really harsh. I’ll have to check your comment.
-I can hear some sort of strange delay fx at the end of the song but I’m not sure what it is, sounds like some automation on the beat. I find this very distracting because it sounds like a glitch/accident
-hihat is „stumbling“, I don’t know how to explain it better, there is something wrong. There is some timing issue (latency in your DAW?)
-beat could have more punch, definition and impact overall. After reading your comment it could be the transient taming on the keys and flute that make things a bit too soft, I’m missing the hype of the plucky elements in your mix

Overall, you maintained the vibe and feeling of the 808 but unfortunately, I find the plucky elements a bit too soft. I’m missing the juice and bite from the beat. Still, your work is not bad.

After the 2nd listening session I think the hihat are too harsh in the mix, maybe the hook also needs some attention in the 6-8 kHz area. There is too much reverb on the hook and the hihat does something strange.
——————————

Hoek: -16,8 LUFS / -1,4 TP
Dynaudio Core 7 + 9s sub / treated room / soundID room correction / Sennheiser HD 650

+vocals have that spit and bite
+nice little element mute @ 02:09-02:12
+interesting filter automation at the end, although a bit too loud overall

-808 is rumbling and muddy, the accent is more on the sustain and not on the transient
-lead sounds like an electric guitar
-gain staging is not ideal, some elements like hihats and lead are very loud, others like vocals are a bit too low in volume
-piano could be louder in mix to add tension and gansta flair
-hihat, gangsta choir and lead are very loud in the mix, louder than the vocals
-low end is very soft and the drums lack impact and smack like you would want in Hip Hop

I’m a bit surprised about the specs of your sub, it goes +/-3 dB @ 22 Hz with 9,5-inch while mine goes +/-3 @ 30 Hz with 11-inch woofer size. I read your comment and you mentioned some things about acoustic treatment. Have you ever actually measured your room with REW? I have the impression that something is off in your listening environment but I can’t tell. And how about your settings in soundid? I’m not saying my room is perfect but it seems that your midrange balance (200-1,5 kHz) is fooling you. I would like to know how do you interpret your mix compared with my 2nd mix? What are the main differences what you like more in your mix? Also, what are the dimensions of your room? Have you installed panels on the ceiling and bass traps? Would like to know why the differences are so huge between our mixes.

I couldn’t do much with TDR Nova to fix some issues. The gain staging is not ideal, as mentioned before the hihats are sizzling very much.
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RayK25: -16,0 LUFS /-2,0 TP
IK Multimedia iloud micro, Sony MDR-7506, Beyerdynamic DT 770

+your mix has a certain aggression, just a bit too much
+interesting delay/reverb effect on the riser
+funny delay on the pistol sound
+interesting delay throw at the end

-something happened to the flute at the very beginning, some notes are muted
-your mix is pumping a bit, I can hear slight volume changes, especially when the piano is playing and at the beginning of verse 1 when the kick and 808 are muted
-your mix is a bit on the dull side, even though the plucky instruments have a certain bite. I’ll have to check your comment to see what you did. I’m missing a more open sound, everything seems to get ducked at times like compressors settings are not ideal
-hihat is really loud
-I find the reverb on the rap main vocals a bit too long / too lush, in the hook it’s good
-unfortunately no creative transition @ 02:09-02:12

Your mix is not bad, it just has some rough edges on the corner and it’s bit too aggressive overall imo. Some elements get ducked at times, I’m not sure if that comes from the mb-compressor. I can hear some volume fluctuations from section to section and elements have different „positions“ in the sound stage. I find your mix also to be more like a „wall of sound“, every element is pretty aggressive and in your face. Try to give some plucky elements more room and turn them down a bit so that your master bus can breathe a bit more

TDR Nova setting, but the hihat is still sizzling:
Q: 3.92
Freq: 7.8 kHz
Thres: -10.3 dB
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 30 ms

Imo the hihat is a bit smoother with this setting. There is a bit of distortion, especially from the 808.
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Strange: -16,3 LUFS / -1,5 TP altered the arrangement / transitions
KS Digital C8, treated room, avatones, Audeze LCD XC

+creative transition at 02:09-02:12 and throughout the song
+interesting sound stage, there is a sense of depth
+add lip has a certain vibe
+lead has an interesting reverb/delay effect
+interesting, long delay effect on the trap house add lip
+nice overdrive effect on the add lips

-you altered the arrangement by muting some drums
-the rap main part has a certain midrange fuzz and it sounds distorted imo
-the deessing on the main vocal is very audible
-gain staging is not ideal, bells are very low in volume, piano and riser are much louder than everything else
-your mix is very low in perceived loudness
-gain staging is not ideal, the beat elements like bells gangsta choir are very far in the background and too low in volume
-not sure what happened @ 00:47 right before the hook ends, the 808 is chopped in a weird way, sounds like a glitch. Also the kick is not playing @ 02:26
-what happened to the drums @ 02:18? Sounds like replacement
-the sound stage from front to back is very long and not really structured, the vocals are somewhere in the middle, the bells are very far in the background, the piano is really the loudest element in your mix which is closest to the listener
-I find the reverb on the clap is very long and sticks out too much
-kick is very soft and has almost no impact, it gets buried by the 808
-I don’t know what happened, but in the last hook when the kick comes in it sounds choked, it sounds like it gets unmuted halfway through the sample or something

I’m unsure how to evaluate your entry tbh. You mentioned Ufo361 „Balenciaga“ with that super heavy 808 and fat punchy kick drum as reference (on my system this track hits really hard), while your mix has a real soft and weak kick drum. And like I mentioned before, your sound stage is not clear for me, some elements are really far in the background and barely audible while the piano is very loud, louder than everything else. Have you ever measured your room response with Room EQ Wizard? I heard good things about KS Digital and it’s a brand that is on my list for a future upgrade (I’m interested in the A200 mkii). I read your comment about this low end trick, what is it good for? I also read that you applied some saturation on the 808. The thing is, the original file has already a good amount of low/mid frequency buzz backed into the sound and imho doesn’t need any further saturation in order to be audible on small devices and speakers (I tested it myself on multiple devices). This is achieved with an „ideal“ gain staging. Of course, a fatter and bigger 808 may be a personal choice but you always want to keep it punchy/clean and not sluggish.

Using a Transient Shaper and TDR Nova didn’t really help to fix the things I’m hearing. The piano is too loud in the mix and it sounds a bit boxy overall
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Mark929: -14,8 LUFS / -2,9 TP
Yamaha HS8

+I like the dry approach on the plucky bell, arp and piano sounds
+vocals have a certain vibe

-add lip is very wet compared to the main vocals and the other instruments, I find the difference too big if you know what I mean. Add lips sound like in a big cave while the rap part has a very dry in your face sound, the reverb is a bit strange, it’s splitted in two halfs but the left signal is stronger this makes the reflection very artificial
-volume fluctuations (piano is very loud at the very beginning, gets lower in volume in the rap and gets loud again in the hook), maybe due to compression on the stereo bus?
-gain staging is not ideal, especially the hook bells stick out very much while the rest is much more in the background
-gain staging is not ideal, hook is very close to the listener, then with a certain distance comes the main rap. And finally, really far in the background the add lips. The distance between the three is huge. I think the add lips should be more dry than they are in your mix
-low end is not muddy, but it sounds like under a blanket or something, it’s audible on both the kick and 808. They sound like they were not really part of the mix
-your LUFS are higher than allowed (target is -16,0 LUFS) but your mix doesn’t sound really louder than other mixes with a lower LUFS which represents in a way the not so ideal gain staging. I’m missing some punch and impact in the midrange area and consistent volume of certain key elements, the fluctuations are too big imo

I had the HS8 years ago and I liked them because they can go „deep“. They do have an ok overall sound, but detail work was almost impossible for me and took me so much time. Maybe you can improve your room acoustics for more precision and shorter reverberation

I couldn’t really improve something in your mix. It’s mainly the hook which is pretty loud and the add lips very far in the background. Piano and hook bells could be lower in level, too. The add lips is very wet compared to the bone dry main vocal and hook, this creates a certain disconnection.
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sthauge: -16,1 LUFS / -1,6 TP
No info

+reverb of flute and bells sounds interesting

-hihat sounds really thin and with a lot of reverb and a lofi sound
-overall I’m not a big fan of that extreme wet sound of many elements in your mix
-the reverb is really audible, the room around it is not really pleasant to my ears, the reflections of the room, or I should say cave, sticks out very much, the decay is also very long imo
-add lip is really loud
-that extra snare is dragging, I don’t know what happened, seems like latency problems
-your drums lack impact and punch like you want in Hip Hop, they are very shy just like the 808. Both could be turned up in volume
-your mix is a bit dull around certain elements and I’m missing the definition, it’s heavily washed with reverb overall which gives the impression that the reflections from the reverb interact with the initial transients. These leads to an undefined sound.

With this TDR Nova I was able to manage the hihat and open hat a bit to a more comfortable overall sound. I had to use TDR Nova in dual-mono mode however in order to get the right and left channel more balance.

The settings:

left channel
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 2.73
Freq: 6 kHz
Thres: -17.7 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 89 ms

right channel
Band 1 bell type:
Q: 1.76
Freq: 8.8 kHz
Thres: -11.1 dB
R: 2:1
At:
Rel: 25 ms

This setting makes the hihat more comfortable on my system, also the reverb is a bit more integrated and doesn’t stick out so much. Again, check the 2nd snare, it’s dragging.
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DIVESPANNER: -22,0 LUFS / -7,3 TP
Audio Technica ATX-M40x > Desonic Realphones

+interesting little automation as transition @ 02:09-02:12 and at the end of the song

-808 has a different vibe, it has a very long sustained sound while the original is rather short and bouncy
-gain staging is not ideal
-mix is very dull and pumps at times, especially when the 808 kicks in
-the rap part is panned to the right?
-your mix is very low in volume

It seems like something is really off in your listening environment, this doesn’t has to do with the fact that you are not familiar with this genre. Your mix has „problems“ and translates really bad to my system. This could work on smaller speakers but be aware that your mixes will collapse on bigger systems. I’m not sure why you panned the main rap part to the right but this sounds really strange imo. I recommend you to check your listening environment. Hope this helps!

A DeCliper helped to get rid of some of the distortion, but your mix is rather boxy and the main rap panned to the right is a bit strange. I get it, you panned the autotune part to the left, still feels weird. And your 808 is very sustained and sounds totally different, the pitch has change on some notes, it’s audible when the bass goes up in key e.g: 01:46.
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LCM!: -16.0 LUFS / -1.1 TP

+mix has a certain drive and energy
+mix has a sense of depth
+one of the few mixes where I enjoy some reverb on the clap
+main verse has an interesting room, not sure if my ears are fooling me, but I hear something like an added lower octave or something, this feels a bit strange, I hear it in the first verse
+the reversed reverb transition is really nice @ 02:09-02:12

-hook vocals are loud and sound a bit robotic
-808 distortion is a bit too much imo, this makes your mix very stiff and hard
-hihat is also very loud
-gain staging is not ideal. Hihat and vocals are loud, musical beat elements are far in the background
-something is a bit „off“ with a delay setting I have the impression. I can’t really tell which vocal it is or pinpoint the source, but there is some audible delay which is „misplaced“ or something. It’s also audible in the autotune part. I can hear some pitch modulation in your mix on the vocals but I can’t really tell what it is

Using a DeCliper made the vocals very harsh and the not ideal gain staging became more apparent. It’s especially the vocals, the hihat and the riser which are very loud compared to all other elements. Overall I find the beat not loud enough in context. Some elements stick out more than others and the vocals are slightly distorted in the low/midrange
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Rockincher: -16,5 LUFS / -4,1 TP
No info

+gain staging seems ok
+your mix has a certain aggression
+everything sounds clear and crisp
+nice delay throws on the add lips

-Reverb on flute is very long and sounds very washed out, the effect is very wide and sounds a bit phasey
-low end is a bit shy
-reverb on rap part is very audible and doesn’t feel connected to the rest of the mix, it’s like a layer that sits on top of the beat
-low end needs more control and a bit more volume, it’s a bit shy
-hook has a very prominent delay which interferes with the dry signal, this makes things a bit washy, I would like to pinpoint the different sources. I find it very audible listening in context with the other plucky instruments in the hook. Unfortunately, you did not say anything about your setup / listening environment.

Your mix is very wide and has some phase issues, I suspect the very wide reverb/delay causing this problem. It’s almost wider than my speakers and the center stage is rather hollow.
——————————

javipablos: -17,1 LUFS / -0,6 TP
Eve SC207 + Adam TS10 Sub, foam panels, soundid + vsx headphones

-flute sounds very wobbly and distorted, like a wow/flutter effect type, I don’t like that sound because the original file already has slight lo-fi vibe already. In your mix it’s simply too much imo, and also the bell element is very narrow in the sound field, I think it could benefit if it were wider
-open hat is the loudest element in your mix
-autotune part sounds like transformers voice, it is like in a small box or room, sounds very exxagerated
-overall your reverb and delay is very lush and prominent on my system. You described as a „hair of delay“
-I can hear a certain grit in the hook, as if the vocals are on the edge of distortion, I find it it too much
-that lead in the hook is really lush, the reverb tail is really long and not defined overall. Also, I think you could thin out the reverb tail via eq and cut out some midrange content (200 Hz area)


After the 2nd listening session I feel that some elements have too much reverb, the low lead sounds washed in background like a long siren. The sound stage is not what I would like to hear from this song. The 808 is shy and not pronounced. The hihats are very loud. The gain staging is not ideal and the beat lacks power and punch like you want in Hip Hop.
—————————

artisan.au:

+vocal has an interesting coloration

-bells are muted at the very beginning, not sure if this was an accident, but you changed the arrangement
-something went wrong your export, some intsruments are missing
-I’m honest, I didn’t listen until the end because the missing instruments are huge „no-no“. Sorry.

Double check your mix before uploading to avoid such mistakes! Check the filename!

Nothing I can do to this mix because elements are missing. Really, listen to your file before uploading your entry!
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CadenceSoundlab: -18,9 / -1,0 TP

+interesting filter automation at the end

-your mix is very soft, I’m missing some punch, especially from the drums
-add lips are louder than the rap part
-808 is rumbling on my system
-the kick is extremly soft, it doesn’t sound like the original, maybe due to some heavy clipping or something, I’ll have to check your comment
-your mix is also low in perceived loudness

I understand the limiting of the bandwith (I do that too sometimes) but to me personally, the most important thing is how my mixes translate to bigger speakers than mine. The sub and low end energy is what causes the „biggest“ problems imo

Gain staging is not ideal, the drums are very weak, and still the most prominent element are hihats and claps. Everything else is quieter in volume. The 808 is low in volume but because it is uncontrolled it rumbles quite a bit in my room.
Something happened to the piano @ 02:03.
Check your filename!
—————————-

phildoc83: no access to file

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siniq: -22,7 LUFS / -5,7 TP

+interesting effect on the add lips

-beat is much louder than the vocals
-808 is very low in volume
-gain staging is not ideal
-your mix is very low in volume
-your low end is very much in the background
-vocals are very much in the background
-clap is slightly panned to the right and the reverb tail is too long imo
-the mix lacks punch and definition overall

Nothing I could to the mix, the gain staging is not ideal, the 808 is „almost“ missing, it’s really low in volume
——————————

VividPhase: -16,0 LFUS / -1,0 TP
No info about monitors but Dirac corrected, heaphones + airpods, home theatre with sub + butt-kicker device in to chair


+nice in your face main rap part
+I understand what you did there with sss sound in the hook, sounds like a snake. It’s creative, I just don’t think it fits into context

-piano is very loud compared to the other instruments
-gain staging is not ideal, 808, hihat and piano are very prominent in the mix, the main bell element is really far in the background. They don’t have their intented function in your mix and are more like background elements, although they should be one of the loudest beat elements imo
-hook sounds a bit robotic, I can hear one main vocal from the center and the other two are panned left and right and they are much lower in volume, this makes the hook very narrow overall. Also, it sounds muffled compared to the rap part, which is clear and in your face
-I’m not a fan of that add lip effect in the hook, there is a long whistle sound because of the delay which emphasises the ss
-low end is uncontrolled and it’s rumbling a bit in my room
-your front to back sound stage is not ideal imo, the distance between some elements is a bit too long, or not clear enough. It’s especially the hook which is missing some energy and therefore sounds a bit like out of the background

With this setting using TDR Nova I was able to tame the 808 but there are still some gain staging issues imo. The piano is loud and the plucky bell elements of the beat are more like background elements. The hook sounds boxy.

Here are the settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 1.15
Freq: 32 Hz
Thres: -14.4 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.19 ms
Rel: 16 ms

———————————

floodo: -22,1 LUFS / -9,6 TP

+main rap part has a certain aggression and vibe
+mix has a certain aggression

-mix is very low in volume
-808 is extremly distorted and the character changed a lot. The notes are very sustained and rather long compared to the original, there is also a heavy midrange buzz (500-800 Hz area)
-add lips sounds like in a strange cave, sounds really disconnected to the main vocals which are very dry
-autotune part is really low in volume and has no impact
-overall rap main part could be louder in volume
-I’m missing definition, clarity and punch in the lows and low mids, the sound is a bit „washy“, maybe you used distortion/limiting/saturation etc. just too much. One specific element that sticks out is the hihat

Using a DeCliper helped to get rid of some distortion, there is still a good amount left.
——————————-

shoma: -16,0 LUFS / -1,0 TP
NS10, Monkey Banana Turbo 6, Superlux HD660

+gain staging is not bad, I can hear the NS10 „sound“ a bit. I had the opportunity to work on them for a while 10 years ago. They don’t sound really nice but I find them super helpful for the midrange organisation and gain staging of a mix
+I like the dry clap, but the wet snare is just a bit too much imo, I can hear the decay is „pretty“ long and the reflexions are too audible imo
+nice trap house delay throw on the add lip

-your mix sounds a bit static and lifeless, I’m missing some drive and movement. Maybe you could use another EQ than the Datamix (I like PSP btw), or maybe at least make a pan automation for the hihat
-main vocal is almost breaking up, very distorted imo
-main vocal sounds slightly boxy
-every element in your mix wants to shine, I would like to hear a deeper sound stage overall. The only element that is creating a certain depth and front to back impression is the wet snare. Piano could be more in the background imo
-the low end and midrange is too crunchy (maybe Spectre?)
-the elements are bit soft, maybe you overused a bit the limiter on some tracks, this makes everything loud but not punchy

Using a DeCliper made your mix much more comfortable and the 808 less distorting, the piano was a bit loud though and it showed some „flaws“ in the gain staging imo
——————————

Pistolpete: -16,1 LUFS / -3,60TP
Fostex PM 5

Thank you very much for the kind words about this song!


+I like the rewind reverb effect on thet trap house add lips, this is really nice
+interesting autotune effect on the add lips, just a little bit too much delay at times

-your mix sounds really thin and flat, there is mainly midrange energy
-volume fluctuations throughout the whole song, I can hear the compressor/limiter working on your stereo bus and ducking the whole mix at times, especially in louder sections
-not sure what happened to your 808, it is very far in the background and I have the impression that the phase is rotated/manipulated in a certain way. Not sure if my ears are fooling me here. I’ll have to check your comments about the mix process
-piano is the loudest element in your mix
-not sure if like the delay on the add lips, it smears the front to back sound stage as it interferes with the elements which are more in the background
-add lips has a delay which is not synced in time, it smears some elements
-your low end is almost not audible on my system (I suspect phase issues)
-clap has a weird short slap delay effect
-vocals are really thin (too much high pass?)
-your mix is a bit soft and lacks punch, maybe due to too much saturation and trying to tame some peaks
-as mentioned in the info to this song, the 808 doesn’t need any further saturation imo in order to be audible on small speakers. With an ideal gain staging no distortion or midrange buzz is needed. I tested this on several speakers with different levels of the 808. I hope you get the chance to listen to your mix with a sub

Btw, bx boom is a real old PA plugin, it’s been around for at least 15 years, it recently just got a UI overhaul and some new features. It’s not really a subharmonic exciter, it rather works like a pultec eq. I just checked the info, and indeed, you can do rotate the phase. Maybe you did this in your mix?

Your mix has apparently serious issues, the 808 is almost not existing. Everythings sounds like through a broken speaker.

————————————

Michael_K: -16,4 LUFS / -2,0 TP
Barefoot MicroMains, Genelec 8030

+hook has a certain vibe
+main rap has a certain aggression, I just don’t like the rather big room around it, the reflection is very audible and the decay is a bit too long. Maybe there is also some short delay, I’ll have to check your comment
+your low end works on my sytem without rumbling
+every element is clear in the sound stage, I can pinpoint every element
+interesting delay effect on the pistol

-your kick is weak and soft, I’m missing some punch, I don’t like that thud it has in the 100-200 Hz area
-your low end is saturated a bit I think, it is a big fatter in the midrange area which makes the kick thin compared to the 808
-I find the bells a bit to lo fi sounding, a bit more treble would open up the mix a bit imo
-add lips are very dry compared to the wet rap part
-reverb / delay of main rap part is a bit too bright and too long in decay, the reflections are really audible and it sounds a bit phasey
-I’m not sure if I like the sound stage, the rap main part is far in the back with a reverb around it, the add lip however is right in my face and it is placed before the beat. It is the closest element to the listener
-vocals (hook and rap part) have some „nasty“ edges on the corner, they sound a bit harsh/stiff
-I think the piano is too loud, it is the loudest element in your mix. By lowering the volume / turning down the fader of the piano your balance between kick and 808 will also change, you will have to see which of the two will benefit. Maybe your kick gets a bit stronger and crispier by doing this.

It’s interesting, there is another mix that was made on Barefoots and you both have a very similar midrange buzz on the 808, which I find just a tiny bit exxagerated. There is also this very similar thud on the kick @ 100-200 Hz. Also, while checking your mix process, I don’t see any saturation plugin so I’m wondering where this is coming from (yes, of course, compression adds saturation, but I find the sound to be a bit more coloured than the original file). What do you hear in your mix? Do you find the 808 clean or saturated? And compared to my 2nd mix? I want to learn where the differences are.

I was able to make the mix more enjoyable using a DeCliper and TDR Nova with these settings:

Band 1 bell type
Q: 3.61
Freq: 602 Hz
Thres: -9.6 dB
R: 2:0
At: 0.46 ms
Rel: 10 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.50
Freq: 44 Hz
Thres: -9.4 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.11 ms
Rel: 55 ms

The piano is still a bit loud compared to the rest imo.
———————————

pabloAT: -19,7 LUFS / -2,6 TP
no info

+hook has a nice character and vibe
+interesting reverb effect on the pistol fx
+interesting slap delay on the main vocal
+your low end works on my system, it’s not rumbling and it’s not too loud

-piano is very loud, by far the loudest element (and the 808) in your mix, everything else is rather in the background
-your mix is pumping a bit in louder sections like something is hitting too hard the ceiling
-vocals are distorted and sound muffled, not sure if that delay effect fits here in context imo
-hook is very dry compared to the wet
-panning and stereo information of bell and key flute is so isolated from each other, there is no connection and I don’t have a sense for the room
-gain staging is not ideal
-autotune part sounds like a monster/transformer
-the low end in your mix has a different vibe, the 808 is very sustained and the kick is soft and has no punch, I can hear a certain low end boost on the kick or saturation which makes the transient really soft.

Nothing I could do to your track due to not ideal gain staging.
—————————————

wkanegis: -16,4 LUFS /-1,1 Tp
no info

+interesting reverb on the flute
+cool transition, very interesting what you did with the bells
+vocals have a certain vibe

-your mix sounds really squashed and is very aggressive. It has a lot of energy and the kick is really soft
-the kick has a different sound than the original, it is very spikey like some high frequency boost or something
-overall mix sounds dull and phasey, it’s hard to explain. I’ll have to check your comments. Ok, maybe it has to do with this Thrillseeker plugin, does it introduce wow/flutter?
-kick sounds totally different than the original and is too quiet in volume
-808 has strange tonal character, I call this the „zapped“ sound. Sounds a bit like phase distortion or heavy multiband compression imo
-your sound stage is hard to explain, it is like in a long tunnel and every element has its own layer „where“ it stands in the mix, I would like to hear the vocals embedded into the beat and not so separated
-in the first hook at the word „trap house“, right before the drums kick in, I hear a strange noise like someone would sneeze or something, hard to tell what it is, but there is also a slight reverb tail around this noise, this might help you to identify the problem

In a 2nd listening session there is nothing I can do to improve your mix. It sounds boxy/hollow overall and very soft.
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PhilBeis: -16,0 LUFS / -1,0 TP
no info

+interesting modulation on the bells
+cool transition

-hihats have too much reverb, and in genereal I’m not a fan of those wet drums
-vocals sound distorted, btw helios 69 is a more dirty preamp. I would suggest a cleaner tone
-the beat is pumping and some elements are far in the background
-gain staging is not ideal
-I hear the deessing at times
-add lips have strange pre-delay, the signal gets pushed back and has some kind of reversed reverb effect. Reminds me a bit of Soundtoys Crystallizer. I can hear the pistol sound is also going to this bus, if my ears are not fooling me

I would recommend you to stay closer to the original mix, you introduced reverbs that changed the whole vibe of the song. Still, it sounds interesting.

In the 2nd listening session I could appreciate the modulation on the bells a bit better. The gain staging is not ideal and the hihat has a weird long reverb. Other plucky beat elements are not really audible, they are overmasked by reverb tails. There is like a long pre-delay which creates a certain disconnection.
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Rchm.Music: -23,1 LUFS / -7,0 TP
Dynaudio BM 5, Bower & Wilkins 805 Matrix, Audeeze EL-8 > acoustsic treatment

+clean mix, no audible distortion (even though you used some saturtators)
+good gain staging
+I like the attitude of the hook and verse
+interesting bitcrusher automation throughout the mix
+your mix translates good on my system
+very aggressive filter automation at the end, interesting effect, makes the piano sound really sick in context. Nice job
+nice idea with the automation of „trap house“, the reverb is just really dark in tone but still has some heavy reflections

-not a fon of the add lips, thin and wet sound with a rather long decay on the reverb, slightly panned to the right
-there is a certain filter sweep or something which creates a specific feedback in the hook. That bitcrusher is too much imo. It’s interesting and creative, no doubt, but I find it to be a bit aggressive overall
-808 is rather low in volume and shy. Would love to hear a bit more of the sub
-your mix is low in volume, you can turn up the gain on the master to -1,0 TP
-not a fan of that wet clap, I can hear the reflections too much, the decay is a bit too long in context imo

Each element has its own position in the sound field, there are just some personal preferences I would like you to change a bit. The vocals are maybe a bit loud and some plucky elements are masked by the loud hihat. Try to give the musical elements a little bit more focus.

TDR Nova settings:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 1.72
Freq: 1066 Hz
Thres: -9.8 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.34 ms
Rel: 10 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 7.7 kHz
Thres: -15.3 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 12 ms

With this setting I was able to tame the clap and the hihat which brought a bit more focus to all other elements and the vocals.
——————————————

dstra: -16,0 LUFS / -1,0 TP
Yamaha HS80M + HS10W Subwoofer, AKG K702 headphones > room treatment

+clean sound
+good gain staging
+every element has its own place in the sound field
+nice in your face vocals
+almost identical gated transition @ 02:09-02:12 and filter automation at the end like in the original

-I find the reverb on the rap part a bit too reflective and bright overal, like the decay is a bit too long and the early reflections too prominent in the mix. It works in the hook though, I think it’s the same reverb?
-open hat is very sizzling overall and things get very bright. All cymbal elements stick out a bit too much and making the reveb less efficient
-not a fan of that wet clap and snare, this creates a certain room around the drums which sounds a bit artificial to my ears
-808 is a bit shy but at the same time it is a bit uncontrolled, it’s slightly rumbling in my room

Your mix sounds good on my system and has a good resolution. You payed attention to details like the gated stutter beat automation + filter automation from the 2nd mix I made. I was a bit surprised as I read about your monitors, but you delivered overall a good work imo. Try the bring a bit more focus the musical elements and decrease some of the reverb reflection, but not too much or you might loose this interesting flair. Try to thin out the piano a bit more (200 Hz area) but not too much, you might loose the tension it creates. You could also brighten it up a touch.

With these TDR Nova settings I was able to tame the uncontrolled 808 and the sizzling hihat a bit:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 1.78
Freq: 34 Hz
Thres: -12.4 dB
R: 2.3:1
At: 0.85 ms
Rel: 43 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 2.80
Freq: 8.4 kHz
Thres: -10.3 dB
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 34 ms
——————————————

bennettwalker: -11,6 LUFS / 0,0 TP
Audeze LCD-X

+interesting chorus effect on the bells, I think the delay just make things a bit too uncontrolled and it changes the vibe a bit
+vocals are clean, hook could be a bit louder to catch up the volume of the verse imo
+main vocal has a nice in your face attitude
+drums have a certain vibe, I think they are just a bit too loud

-not a fan of that chorus effect on the bells
-not a fan of that fade in at the beginning
-sub of 808 is uncontrolled and rumbling
-not sure if I like that single hook, I can only hear one voice
-not a fan of that delay on the hook bells at the very beginning, this adds notes which do not exist in the original
-autotune is way louder than everything else, like really loud.


INFO: take a look at the guidelines regarding integrated LUFS and Max true peak!

In a 2nd listening session I find that your mix has a good amount of uncontrolled low end energy which makes it hard to improve things using TDR Nova without sacrifcing other things. The gain staging is not ideal, the low end is rumbling and the beat is soft because the plucky elements and drums don’t hit hard enough.
—————————————

Mork: -16,2 LUFS /. -1,1 TP
Slate VSX headphones, Neumann Kh 150, Genelec 6010, Audeze LCD-X

+interesting filter automation at the beginning, but imo this could be even more audible, the low cut could be much deeper and also on the flute
+good gain staging
+every element has its own place
+your mix translates on my system, except that hard distorted midrange
+low end works on my system, but I can hear slight midrange fuzz on the 808
+interesting delay/reverb on the piano
+autotune part works, feels just a little bit too thin imo, but I understand why you did that
+cool transition @ 02:09-02:12
+you did some interesing automations in the background, but I find these automations a bit too audible, I can literallly hear when they kick in, I would love to hear a softer transition. Need to check your comment what you did there

-your mix has something stiff and hard, not sure if this comes from the hyped 808 fuzz
-your mix is good, I just find the automations a bit too audible, the sound changes a bit, sometimes it gets brighter (the vocals, hihats), in other sections it’s a bit dull. Would love to hear a consistent character from the vocals, which I know is hard to maintain
-I find the reverb on the rap part vocals a bit too long, it is a very subtle reverb and you did a good job on the blending, but the reflections in the background are a bit too bright and the decay could be shorter also imo, but maybe just taking care of the reflections already will do the job. I hope you can hear what I mean, I have the impression the vocal reverb blends too much into the beat, would love to hear a separated room on the vocals
-would love to hear a clean transition at the end from 02:09-02:12, I have the impression the fx ends a bit too late (maybe just a few ms) on the beat or the transition is too „audible“.

Your mix translates good on my system and it goes into the right direction, the low end works and all elements have their own place. It sounds balanced overall, I find the sound just a tiny bit too stiff, not sure if this comes only from the slitghtly hyped 808 midrange fuzz. There is a good amount of distortion which I think is a bit too aggressive, there is a certain grit and bite, would love to hear a little softer midrange. Maybe this is the Hafti Megaloh sound you were looking for And also the reverb on the main rap part, the room sounds good and the blending between wet and dry is really nice, it’s just the reflections in the background which are a little too „present“ imo. I just want to know if you can hear what I hear, your setup seems to be precise. I heard good things about Neumann and your mix just proves this to me, the Kh310 mkII are on my list for a potential upgrade in the future. But, we should not forget your talent and precise hearing also! Try to control the sub region a bit better. Also, check your mono compability!

Using a DeCliper didn’t help to get rid of the distortion. Please, take a closer look into your project and mix process to tackle this issue.
——————————

Protton: -19,0 LUFS / -5,0 TP
CLA10, Dynaudio BM5A

+all elements are audible and have their own space
+rap part has a nice vibe
+your mix has a certain drive and aggression, I like the energy
+autotune is well integrated
+your low end works on my system

-your mix is low in volume
-rap part is quieter in volume than the hook and the add lips
-I hear the deessing at times, but not very hard, this makes especially the main part a bit dull
-the vibe and character has changed a bit because of the slight aggressive fuzz on the 808, but this tbh is not a bad character/tone imo.
-rap part is dark and not clear
-the hook gets ducked by the 808 but in a strange way, I have to check your comment. I can even hear it through the phone speakers, the very first word gets ducked when the 808 kicks in
-add lips have some very wide chorus effect, would love to hear a more concentrated sound source coming from the middle with just a slight touch from the side information. And like I mentioned before, they are louder than the main rap part and the hook
-pistol sound is barely audible
-your mix is a bit low in volume and at -5dbFS even though you can go to -16,0 LUFS and -1,0 TP

Overall, your mix has the right energy and balance, but there is still some detail work that you should take care of imo, especially the pumping phenomena on different elements. Interesting, I can hear a little of the NS10 vibe in your mix, it’s that midrange information that gives a sense of separation.

Using a DeCliper helped to eleminate some of the distortion, there is still a good amount. It comes from the synth elements in the hook, they are very loud in the mix.
—————————

Reaby: -17,0 LUFS / -1,1 TP
Sennheiser hd-599 headphones, Behringer Truth, no acoustic treatment, bluetooth speaker

+low end works on my system but the kick is very shy, could be much louder in volume for more presence and drive imo
+your mix has a certain energy
+reverb and delay on the bell elements is interesting,this gives a sense of depth
+gain staging is not bad

-something went wrong with the arrangement, the flute is playing too early
-vocal has a robotic chorus effect and is pretty wide in stereo field but phasey, it is hard to detect a clear source. I think there is also a short reverb but I have to check your comment
-because of the misplaced flute it is hard to concentrate what is happening, feels a bit like another song
-clap has a very wide chorus? effect but it sounds like hard left panned because of the phasey stereo image
-your mix is very wide, a mix of too much chorus, reverb and delay on several elements
-I have the impression your mix has some phase issues, something feels strange with the kick (very soft with no real impact) and the 808 relation. A closer look at my TC Clarity also shows some phase inconsistencies.

You mentioned phase issues with the 808/kick? I personally think this comes from some extensive stereo widening or delay/reverb/chorus effect in your mix, at least this is my impression here. Your mix sounds super wide, the bell is really washey in mono compared to all other instruments. You did not write what you did in your mix so I can only guess and there are few things that I see as problems. Overall, the energy is there and you have a certain flavor which I like. But the misplaced flute is a „no-no“, this is something I expect to hear from an engineer, I know it’s just a hobby. Ok, in case you didn’t know? You obviously have some skills even though this is not your „genre“, your mix is not bad overall, really. Another thing is your low end, your kick changes in character throughout the whole song but I don’t know what happened. The contour of the kick and other element changes, your clap is really present in the left channel. I highly encourage you to tackle the topic of acoustic treatment, you will certainly benefit from, one can hear your taste and flavor, I believe you just need more precision in what you can hear. Get some information about acoustics and keep participating for 1 full year (also in SWC) and you will make good results, trust me. And really pay attention to every single detail, I know it seems a lot at first but you will get used to it. I didn’t think about to become song provider when I joined this community back in 2018. What I hear is that this is more than just a hobby for you. Hope this helps!

After a 2nd listening session I have to say the gain staging is not ideal. The drums and the 808 are weak and don’t have a lot of impact. The bell elements are a bit washed out in reverb, I’m missing a clear room structure. Everything blends together in rather long reverb tails and the flute playing too early.
——————————

Pitta: -16,1 LUFS / -3,6 TP altered arrangement

+interesting delay effect on the flute, I think it just needs some ducking effect so that is not audible at all times and only comes in when the dry signal is not playing
?what happened to the bell element in the hook? I was a bit surprised.
+I understand your creative touch in altering the arrangement, which is cool btw, but this was not part of the game
+interesting delay automation of the delay, but at times it is not really audible and rather far in the background, I like the effect at the end of the song, it adds something
+the reverb around the main rap part is interesting
+you altered the arrangement quite a bit, but you did in a tasteful way I can say, it fits the very lofi character of your mix

-your mix sounds very grainy, like through a broken speaker or something
-some elements are pumping, mostly the 808
-vocals are very unclear, especially in the hook, they sound muffled or like I would cover my mouth with my hands
-I need to check your comments about your setup/mix process, I don’t know why your mix sounds so grainy and very lofi

Hmm, your mix sounds grainy, it’s not like heavy distortion or saturation, it’s more like an amp or a broken/cheaper speaker or something. I don’t know what to say else. I hope this helps and you can figure out for yourself or check your listening environment, there seems to be something off. You obviously have a good mixing taste though

Nothing I could do to the mix in a 2nd listening session because of the boxy sound, your mix has some phase issues in the low end, the kick changes in character throughout the whole song, it is inconsistent in tone and sound.
——————————

asiohead: -20,2 LUFS / -2,0 TP
no info

+vocals have a certain attitude
+vocals have an interesting room around them
+very interesting transition effect on the riser @ 02:12

-your mix is very low in volume
-your mix is very soft overall, drums need more punch and elements need more clarity, precision and resolution in the sound field
-gain staging is not ideal
-beat is too low in volume compared to the beat
-autotune part is very dry and boring compared to the vibey rap part
-overall your mix lacks depth and power (your mix has too much dynamics), some elements are not really distinguishable when listening in mono

The vocals have a certain attitude but the beat is really missing the punch and grit you want to hear in Hop Hop. The beat is really soft, the drums lack punch and your mix is low in volume. I feel a certain vibe from your mix, but it’s not there yet.

Nothing I could do in a 2nd listening session, the gain staging is not ideal. The vocals are just too loud and the beat is very uncontrolled in dynamics. The musical elements of the beat are very far in the background.
———————————

ThomC: -17,7 LUFS / -2,4 TP altered the arrangement
works on headphones (did not mention the model) using Realphones

+flute is very washey because of the delay, but the character is interesting
+interesting delay effect on the add lips

-not a fan of the fade in at the beginnig
-808 is very sustained and long, the impact is very much on the tail, the initial transient is almost gone
-reverb on the gansta choir is very long
-what happened at the autotune part? Everything is saturated which sounds horrible, it happens again at the end. Your whole mix gets much louder, really, this was not pleasant and I had to turn down the volume a bit because I was surprised so much.
-you altered the arrangement in several sections, this was not the task
-your mix is pumping, there are huge volume fluctuations, or you automated things very extreme. The flute is very audible in the verse but in the hook it’s pushed very far in the background
-not a fan of the long reverb on the clap
-your mix sounds unbalanced and coloured on my system, it is very midrange heavy. I suspect most effects like delay and reverb are eating up a lot of information and are also much louder in volume compared to the dry signal, this can lead to some phase issues. I would push the effects more in the background by lowering the send fader and check for masking in the stereo field while listening in mono

Try to keep the original arrangement and don’t make this a producer thing, really. I appreciate your effort and talent and I’m always open for new ideas, but this was not your task. Don’t let your „ego“ become bigger than the project. Only do things you’ve been asked for. I did the same „mistake“ a few times in the past and I missed some very interesting opportunities with upcoming artists because I thought there was something missing production wise. I think you were just hyped about the whole project and your mix, which is really nice to hear because the way I interpret your comment is you recently just did the next step and reached a new level in sound clarity. Good man! But, try control your emotions a bit better, I still struggle with this at times, so your entry is a good reminder to myself ;D
In all honesty, I take the altered arrangement as a huge compliment, it shows you were very engaged and „in the zone“. Keep pushing!

In a 2nd listening session I find the gangsta choir to sound like a pad and the volume automation is really extreme, choir becomes very loud at the autotune part, maybe you distorted the whole mix for this effect which is too much in context. It becomes very loud at the end of the song again. So there was nothing I could to your mix.
——————————

Davias: -17,9 LUFS / -1,0 TP

+vocal has that specific Hip Hop tone and character, interesting

-piano is not in sync, it plays a bit too early
-kick is very spikey in the high mids (maybe 2,5 kHz)
-gain staging is not ideal
-your mix sounds a bit low in perceived volume, although the loudness specs are not that bad
-your mix sounds small from top to bottom
-because of the misplaced piano it is very hard to judge your mix, but I can hear a certain colouration which sounds interesting in a way

Something went wrong with your mix, the piano is not in sync. I’m sorry, this is a real „no-no“ and highly recommend you to check your bounced file or examine the original better to avoid such mistakes. In general, your mix has several flaws. The gain staging is not ideal, the riser fx are the loudest element and the open hihat very sizzling.

——————————

Shubhashish: -16,9 LUFS / -0,4 TP
Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro, Krk Rokit 5 > treated room

INFO: check your meters!

+interesting delay/reverb effect on the flute
+nice attitude on the vocals, I find the reverb just a bit too wide in the stereo field, could be slightly pushed to the centre image
+interesting positioning of each element in the sound stage

-pistol effect is low in volume and doesn’t add the impact it could/should have
-kick is a bit soft, it needs more punch imo
-808 is not bad, just needs more control in the sub low oomph part

Your mix is not bad. Thanks for participating, now I understand my mixes I’ve done on Rokit 5 much better. I hear the focus and hype very much on the midrange. This sections is very pronounced and articulated and very close to the listener. Every element in the forefront is very audible. The things that lack expression and detail are the background elements and sounds that need to sound big, like kick, 808, piano, pistol sound and vocals. Or detail work like blending of reverb tails and delays etc. Also, watch your meters, your True Peak is @ -0,4 db. If you only rely on your DAWS dbFS peaks I recommend you to use something like youlean loudness meter to check the peaks. And, you still have the possibility to add something to beat @ 02:09-02:12, would love to hear some creative work for Round 2, if possible.

Using TDR Nova I was able to tame some low end rumble and hihat sizzle. This made things a bit tighter imo.

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 0.89
Freq: 43 Hz
Thres: -7.5 dB
R: 2.3:1
At: 0.13 ms
Rel: 89 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3
Freq: 8.4 kHz
Thres: -7.5 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.10 ms
Rel: 10 ms
———————————

GGibson1988: -16,4 LFUS / -1,7 TP
no info

+interesting pitch/formant shift effect on the add lip at the end

-although loudness specs ar good your mix is a bit low in perceived loudness
-not a fan of that soft fade at the beginning
-sound stage is very strange, the tone is really weird and sounds nothing like the original
-gain staging is not ideal, main clap is much quieter and further in the background than the added extra snare, autotune is much louder in volume than the main part
-I have the impression there is some deessing on the vocals which is creating like a sort of pocket in the mix, which is then hyped by another compressor
-your mix is pumping and sounds very saturated in the midrange
-the hook sounds very robotic

Ok, I was wrong about the deesser thing, but I believe the SSL X-Saturator is doing more harm than you can actually hear on your system. Unfortunately, you gave no information about it. Really, your mix sounds shredded here on my system and it has a very hard alien like attitude. Sounds really artificial, the saturation, the reverb, delay, the vocals, almost everything. I don’t want to discourage, I want to make you aware of „serious“ problems in your listening environment. I can hear you have a certain flavor and that there is talent, this obviously not your fist mix. Your mix has certain features which are appealing, but these features are masked by heavy saturation throughout the whole frequeny spectrum. I wouldn’t recommend you to use this X-Saturator until you fixed your listening environment. Check your setup again and dive into this topic if you want to make improvements in your mixes. You definitely have the style and the ears! Your just missing a lot of saturation information.

In a 2nd listening session I hear some bigger flaws in your mix. Things are distorting and sound boxy. The 808 has a certain bump in the high frequencies which makes it stand out a bit. The 2nd snare is also very loud in context. Your mix sounds a bit like through a broken speaker.
———————————-

Green-Dog: -17,0 LUFS / -1,1 TP
no info

INFO: please leave minimum 1 bar of silence in front of your mix so that the mastering engineer can do further adjustments

+your mix has certain drive, especially the beat has some impact
+your sound stage is interesting (heard some good things about Seventh Heaven)
+your mix has certain amount of depth, I just think the order/structure is not precise enough to complete the full picture

-main vocals sound a bit harsh and distorted in the upper midrange (maybe 2 kHz?)
-I hear some kind of anti-deessing on the vocals, I have the impression I would clench my teeth very hard while rapping
-hihat is very prominent in the mix
-your low end is a bit weak although its the loudest region in your mix
-your mix is rather small from top to bottom, some elements are a bit thin on the chest
-hook is lower in volume and doesn’t have the same impact like the main part
-added extra snare has a long reverb/ room around which is way to audible in the mix, and also very wide in the stereo field. I believe your resolution in your environment is not precise enough, I can hear you tried to blend it with the regular main clap, but the balance is really off here on my sytem. The added extra snare is much more pronounced with that reverb than the main cap, I have the impression it falls into a hole or something. It’s weird to describe. It took me a full listening to describe this strange effect it has on me
-your mix is missing some midrange information to expand your sound stage in more detail

In a 2nd listening session I find the hihat, open hat and clap very loud in context. The hook is shy compared to the more in your face rap part. The reverb on the 2nd snare is very audible and brings the other drum element a bit out of context. The beat overall is just too soft, the gain staging is not ideal and mainly the bell elements lack punch and power. The synth elements are very loud.
———————————

M.P.3.: -19,7 LUFS / -2,6 TP
Audio Technica ATH-M50x headphones

+interesting add lip automation
+you have some tastefull automations in your mix, I can hear you put some effort into this mix

-your mix is low in volume and too dynamic
-sound stage is a bit strange, elements have a lot of space between them, there is no connection
-your mix is very small from top to bottom and front to back, although the saturated effect on the add lip are interesting
-gain staging is not ideal. Piano is very far in the background, flute is closest element to the listener
-your mix sounds very crunchy and saturated/distorted
-I think you have some issues with your listening environment

I really appreciate your comment, it was quite entertaining to read, so thanks for that! And thanks so much for your dedication and your will to learn more about mixing. I really like your attitude, this will be helpful for your path!
Here is my honest feedback and I don’t want to discourage you but your mix doesn’t perform really well on my system. It has serious problems because of the amount of saturation and distortion it has. I can hear the poor resolution of your headphones, the elements are not clear in the sound field, the front to back image is not really there, everything is really flat and the flute is poking out too much.
But I have to give you props overall, because you showcased your talent and taste in your choice of effects, delays etc. I highly recommend you to invest in acoustic treatment + good monitors because I can hear your skills.

Tip for this specific multitrack mix: all elements already have a decent loudness when you import them into your DAW, you will only need to play with the faders and your static mix should come together relatively easy. With other multitracks this can be different. My suggestion is do not go higher than -12 to -6dBFS for percussive and short elements like drums and -18 to -12 dbFS on sustained material or bass heavy sounds when the fader is at unity. I highly recommend you to check the articles from Mister Fox on KVRaudio about loudness, LUFS, RMS etc. Or, check this for example: viewtopic.php?t=127
Hope this helps!

Using a DeCliper in a 2nd listening session helped to hear more details in your mix, especially the very cool delay effect on the add lips and the nice character of the reverb. There is still a good amount of distortion left. Gain staging is not ideal. The flute is by far the loudest element in your mix, the riser sounds are also very loud. The piano is very low in volume just like some other elements of the beat.
—————————

rbwolk1: -18,5 LUFS / -3,1 TP
not sure (Yamaha NS10?)

+your mix has a certain aggression and vibe
+autotune part is well integrated
+the vocals in the hook are nice and clean
+I like your dry approach for this mix on the beat
+I can hear you was really hyped while doing your mix, there is a certain energy

-your mix seems not lower in volume but it has strange unbalanced tilt, or like a smiley eq mix buss setting. I need to check your comment
-plucky elemens are like under a blanket and not „there“
-soft synth element is very wobbly, I’m not a fan of that effect, in the hook it vanishes because of phase issues
-gain staging is not ideal, your mix has a lot of midrange drive and fuzz
-plucky elements, kick and soft are very soft, I’m missing the punch, like really. Especially the kick is pretty much on the weaker side
-I’m missing the front to back depth in your mix, it is very 2 dimensional with no hints of what is in the background. Everything is right in my face and there is no air to breathe and no opportunity to acknowledge the room in which things happen
-some elements heavy a grainy texture around them which makes them smaller from top to the bottom. They have shrinked in size
-there is some sort of grainy feedback noise on the bell in the background, I can hear it very clear (on my phone speaker it’s even more audible) in the first few seconds when only the bell and flute are playing togehter. I’m not a pro in this topic but maybe this some aliasing effect from the tape emulation you used?
-the main rap vocal has too much drive and saturation imo, especially compared to the hook
-your mix is almost only midrange energy, I only hear a very shy but rumbling 808 with uncontrolled sub information and an almost non-existing kick on my system

Funny to read! I like the fact that you had a specific connection to the „Trap Trap Trap“ reference. I could feel some energy from your mix and is nice to read this comment
Ok, here is my honest feedback: although I can feel a certain amount of energy, hype and effort your mix doesn’t perform really well on my system. It is very midrange driven, the balance and sound stage is off by a good amount. Are you mixing on NS10s? Have you done some acoustic treatment? I have the impression something is not correct in your environment. I recommend you to take a closer look here. I can hear you mixed before and I can hear you are into Hip Hop. Hope this helps!

The following TDR Nova settings helped to tame a the low end rumble and the hihat sizzling:

Band 1 bell type:
Q: 0.43
Freq: 38 Hz
Thres: -11.6 dB
R: 2:1
At: 0.19 ms
Rel: 25 ms

Band 2 bell type:
Q: 3.39
Freq: 8.4 kHz
Thres: -14.5 dB
R: 2.2:1
At: 0.12 ms
Rel: 32 ms

The mix is still unbalanced and lacks some punch of the kick.
——————————————

Again, thank you all for participating. The point of view as a song provider was by far the most important experience in my path as a mixing engineer and I learned a lot of things!

General notes to mixes:

► Show Spoiler

In many mixes the hihat elements were pretty prominent and sizzling. I think it has to do with a not ideal acoustic environment. Because of the reflections in your room you try to compensate to hear things better. Comb filtering and room dips and nulls make things worse. Also, the amount of distortion in many mixes was just too much imo.

Further adjustments in my room:

► Show Spoiler

I was able to even improve my room by adjusting a few things the last few days and I have a pretty flat frequency response now in my room. I spent an entire day with adjusting the speaker + sub position by a few centimetres and measuring the results in Room EQ Wizard, the decay time and RT 60 has improved even more and I can hear things now I wasn’t aware before. So, I highly recommend you to check your listening environment because this is what will really improve your mixing skills.

The infamous SSL and loudness discussion:

► Show Spoiler

There was also a discussion about SSL emulations and other plugins like Plugin Doctor. If I could go back in time (maybe 2006-2007) I would not spend a single penny on plugins and save all my money to invest instead in acoustic treatment + really good and precise monitors. I’m convinced I would have made much bigger improvements in a short period of time instead on concentrating on buss compressors, tape emalutions, clippers, limiters etc.

It seems like many of us home studio enthusiasts can’t really hear how much saturation certain plugins introduce. I understand this „mindset“, I was there too, with lots of GAS and in hope that this one plugin would change or improve my mixes. In my opinion there is no such thing.

Plugin companies are masters in marketing and promote their stuff sometimes with well known artists/engineers (with probably flawless rooms, so they actually really „hear“ what the plugin is doing). It all starts with what you can hear and what is not audible on your system due to poor resolution of the speakers and problematic room acoustic. Just my 2 cents.

Forget about plugins, a lot of things are marketing and hype. My tip, just use your stock compressor + eq from your DAW for 2-3 years and save your money for more precise speakers + maybe a sub. From my experience you WILL NEED a sub in order to really hear the whole picture or at least speakers with -3db @ 30 Hz. And yes, implementing a sub can be a bit tricky, but it was easier than I thought. The only thing I’m not so happy about is the group delay I have from my system, but I think it has to do with the way the speakers are built and the Focal Sub 6 not being a sealed cabinet and of course the lack of controlled energy and physical limitations in the very low end in my rather small room. I’m open for discussions about this topic so feel free to share your opinion.

And investing in acoustic treatment is actually not so expensive. For 1000€ you can treat your complete room including Sonarworks (if bought 2nd hand). The good thing is you don't need to invest all at once, you can do it step by step which can in a way help your listening experience a bit.

Congratulations to you guys, you did a good job with my mix and I like what I’m hearing. There are still a few things I would like to you take care of. And please, don’t consider my TDR Nova settings as the all-in-one solution, there are still other things in your mixes which need more detail work. But I hope this gives you an idea of what I’m hearing in my room. I can’t wait to hear your revisions for Round 2. Have fun mixing!

All the best for 2025 to you guys,
Patrick

Edit: typo correction, adjusted things for better readability and I highlighted your forum name to make it easier for you to find the specific feedback!

[Mister Fox]

Thank you for handling the evaluation, @Mellow Browne .
I think this is the most extensive feedback we've had so far -- and it is highly recommended to read by everyone.


Ladies and gentlemen, let us kick off Mix Round 2, which will end on Thursday, 09-JAN-2025 23:59 UTC+1/CET

As of this moment, that is 5 days (plus the hours since @Mellow Browne's update). All Mix Round 2 participants will be sent a reminder via mail shortly.


There is a GLOBAL COUNTDOWN available to check for deadlines.
Just follow this link: Global Countdown (on homepage)



The following 15 participants go into Round 2 (alphabetical order), with "Wild Cards" being pointed out (if present this month).
(all Mix Round 2 participants should have been pinged, all participants will also get a reminder via the new newsletter engine)

@Alex Van mixland
@Christoph_K
@Drannob (Wild Card usage offered)
@dstra
@Green-Dog
@kombainera
@Martial.Levesque
@MFTWC
@Michael_K
@Mitchellpmusic
@Mork
@rchm.music
@scottfitz
@Shubhashish (Wild Card usage offered)
@White Punk OD



.

!	Bonus Info
	Please read more about the "Wild Card" game mechanic here Mix Challenge - Addendum: Statistic Sheet and Wild Card Mechanic All Wild Card users are not only asked to apply the requested changes, but also to fix what they had at fault with Mix Round 1. Please use the following filename template: MC101__MellowBrowne__TrapHouse__ForumUsername_R2.wav

The feedback to the productions can be found here:
Please see post #142 for individual feedback.



If you are unsure what to do exactly with your mix, reach out to the song provider and engage in a conversation here on the forum.
And please keep the Rules and Guidelines (post #6) in mind regarding submitting your entry. Please do pay attention to detail. (yes, please also check the song length of your entry!)

[elements]

Thanks @Mellow Browne for your detailed feedback. I really appreciate it. Your whole commentary was a good read. Thanks for all of your efforts in this comp.

All the best to the Round 2 participants.

[jw_]

Tbh, I have a little trouble processing the feedback. This is NOT supposed to be a dig at you, @Mellow Browne, your work is admirable and I cannot imagine having to listen to a million mixes over the course of this mix challenge. And I, of course, can only congratulate the top15, well done.

But you mentioned timing multiple times, the hat doing something strange, you praised my (non-existant) filter automation at the start of the song and admonished, "accidental" delay-ish automation on the end of the song (again, no delays there). There are supposedly out of time delays on the adlibs, but I assure you, it's just straight 8th notes (well, that's not the whole truth, but the main delay sound is 8th notes). For the life of me, I cannot hear any of these things. My hats are SIGNIFICANTLY lower in level AND highend compared to any of the top15 mixes I listened to (tbf, I did not listen to the whole lot, maybe 5-6). Maybe I'm listening for the wrong stuff, who knows. Could anyone else please have a quick listen to my mix with regards to these things, for the sake of my sanity?
Link to Mix

I'm not trying to convince anybody of the qualities of my mix - I was too much on the psychedelic side, that's alright, I usually am. Just a little nonplussed.

[scottfitz]

Tbh, I have a little trouble processing the feedback. This is NOT supposed to be a dig at you, @Mellow Browne, your work is admirable and I cannot imagine having to listen to a million mixes over the course of this mix challenge. And I, of course, can only congratulate the top15, well done.

But you mentioned timing multiple times, the hat doing something strange, you praised my (non-existant) filter automation at the start of the song and admonished, "accidental" delay-ish automation on the end of the song (again, no delays there). There are supposedly out of time delays on the adlibs, but I assure you, it's just straight 8th notes (well, that's not the whole truth, but the main delay sound is 8th notes). For the life of me, I cannot hear any of these things. My hats are SIGNIFICANTLY lower in level AND highend compared to any of the top15 mixes I listened to (tbf, I did not listen to the whole lot, maybe 5-6). Maybe I'm listening for the wrong stuff, who knows. Could anyone else please have a quick listen to my mix with regards to these things, for the sake of my sanity?
Link to Mix

I'm not trying to convince anybody of the qualities of my mix - I was too much on the psychedelic side, that's alright, I usually am. Just a little nonplussed.

First of all can I say that I'm blown away by your round up @Mellow Browne. This is by far the most comprehensive of any Mix Challenge I've done in best part of 3 years. I am still trying to process the vast amount of information you have given.

Anyway @jw_, I've just listened to your mix and I do find it hard to pick out the specific things that @Mellow Browne was hearing. I like your mix, I would say well done for most of what you did. The one thing that I noticed immediately which I thought was a potential problem was the characteristics of the vocal FX. I was wondering what the decay time of the main reverb was and thinking it sounds like about 3 seconds. The problem with this on a rap track is that if you imagine each word of the rap with it's own separate 3 second tail, what we will hear for most of the time is a blanket of reverb, which is there all the way through the flow of words until at the end of a phrase and we finally get a break from it. It's cool also, like that ambience definitely gives us something too, I can see how you have got to it. However I think when you have a performer who has recorded something so accurate in it's nature that it is too big of a loss to process it in such a way where we will end up blurring it effectively. In terms of dynamics if you put a layer of reverb at 20% of the volume of the main track and it's nearly always there, for me you have lost 20% of the dynamics because each new word cannot impact fully as it's trying to emerge from this layer of reverb.

I know this wasn't quite what you wanted when you asked for help, but I thought that this might be of use to you in thinking about how this track could be. I wonder for example what your track would sound like if you could reduce that vocal reverb decay time to 0.8 seconds or less ? The timing is actually critical to whether or not the groove feels nice, so I would recommend that you spend a long time deciding where it should be.

Anyway Cheers and good luck to all who are still playing, I am reworking my mix to a reasonable extent having been alerted to many problems.

[Rockincher]

Thank you very much for the time taken to provide the feedback.

[jules666]

Thanks @Mellow Browne for the feedback some interesting notes, especially on your Nova settings at around 7.9k as I already must of noticed this range as had a dynamic EQ there already on my master but it was a very narrow Q

► Show Spoiler

Piano - Will bear that in mind for this type of music
Low End - Think I over did it on the multimand compressor removed that and sounded better overall on the mix (even in headphones)
Kick - saturation plugin set to 6 gain, normally only have it at 1 or less dropped that back and it sorted the issue.
Add libs - Yeah tried to use a plugin I do not use much (Howard Benson - removed it and cleaned those up.
Delay Throw - Mono delay on both the panned L/R tracks and main centre. Removed off the LR panned vox and seemed to reign that in.

Thanks for the feedback most appreciated.
Good luck to all in Round 2.

[JeroenZuiderwijk]

Hi Mellow Browne,

My compliments for the extreme usefull and detailed feedback! From this feedback we can all really learn. I can imagine it must have taken hours to listen to all the mixes and give such precise feedback. I am not only reading your comments on my mix but also your feedback on the other mixes....it helps me to get a feeling for improvement in my mixing decisions. And all you other information is also good fun to read :-)

So thanks for all your hard work and to make it extra fun to participate for everybody.

I agree with your notes on my mix btw. I was struggeling to get the low end audible.....adding more saturation wasn't the answer.

Cheers,

Jeroen

[jw_]

Anyway @jw_, I've just listened to your mix and I do find it hard to pick out the specific things that @Mellow Browne was hearing. I like your mix, I would say well done for most of what you did. The one thing that I noticed immediately which I thought was a potential problem was the characteristics of the vocal FX. [..]

Thank you for taking the time!