mixng analysis improvement

8/18/2019 Mixng Analysis Improvement

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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

The improvements that I have made are in purple (go to the first diagram)!

Mixing Analysis:

As part of my portfolio I mixed two tracks. One was my own track, which is called: ‘Timpani & Bass’and the other was given to us. This track is called: ’Africa’.

On every day that I was at collage I would always work on both mixes the same day. (In themornings I would work on ‘Timpani & Bass’ and in the afternoons I would work on ‘Africa’).

Timpani & Bass:This track’s name came from the instruments that I used to create the track. I used the timpani forthe rhythm and the bass for the melody. When making this track I was out of my normal zonebecause I normally make my music out of time. However in this case I had to make this track intime so someone could play to it. Despite this change I knew how make something in time. Ilistened to the metronome and placed each note on the same beat of the bar, like all of the othernotes that I have composed. This didn’t take me long to do. The metronome is used to keep themusicians in time when they are practising or being recorded. To set the metronome right we have

to consider the volume and the tonality and weather or not it suits the musician. I had to recordmidi instruments before recording live instruments. Also somethings were recorded after the liverecordings just so there is something a little bit extra in this mix. (The recording equipment is talkedabout in my pervious analysis; Recording Analysis). For the mixes I had multitrack and single track!I also did the following mixing tasks for both of my mixes:

Eq, distortion, lyric editing, buses and effects, tuning, delays, compression, reverb, echo,automation and mastering the sound (volume).

I did change the eq of Timpani & Bass with the instruments being of different frequencies. HoweverI do not have any screen shots for this. I used the different eq s to create tension and affect. Someof the frequencies are high and some are low. This makes the track more interesting and complex.

Sometimes finding the right eq can be hard because sometimes the instruments that you usemight not go to a frequency that is out of their frequency response spectrum. However if you putthe analyser on you can find some of the unfound frequencies. Plus if you change the frequenciesso they are out of the frequency response spectrum you might find that the hidden frequencieshave changed to suit the mix better.

It was the same for Africa. In Africa there are a lot of different frequency spectrums, for examplesome are narrow and some are wide. (I did this to make my mix sound different in volume andfrequency).

You can also create eq s thatare not even narrow or wide.

Like these two above:

Narrow: Wide:


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

I found the eq s by listening to each instrument/audio region and picking out the right frequenciesand tones. Each instrument has their own frequency, so when mixing we have to make sure thatno interference happens. To prevent this don’t make the different regions have the samefrequencies; vary them! This can be very difficult. Despite this I have learnt a lot about eq and Ihave used this knowledge in my work.

Here is some useful information about eq:

There are three variables in a fully parametric eq, which are: frequency, bandwidth (this is weatheror not it is narrow or wide), Q Factor and DB Boost/cut.

Parametric eq are multi-band variable equalisers that allow us to control the three primaryparameters above.

Q Factor is a parameter that is dimensionless. This parameter describeshow under-damped the oscillator/resonator is. The characterises of aresonator’s bandwidth is relative to it’s centre frequency.

DB Boost/cut:

If the shelf is high then it boosts or cuts the frequencies at the cutoff and all of the other higherfrequencies are set at that cutoff point. The only two parameters that is has are: the cutoff and thegain. This is usually used at the mid-high and high parts of the spectrum. It uses a positive gain of3 or 4 dB. Also a cutoff frequency of 10 kHz and higher. This is used to reduce the noise/sound ofthe mix by reducing the 3 or 4 dB frequencies that are around 15 kHz and higher.

If the shelf is low then it boosts or cuts the frequencies at the cutoff and all of the other lowerfrequencies are set at that cutoff point. The only two parameters that is has are: the cutoff and the

gain. This is usually used at the low-mid and low range of the spectrum. However this spectrum isaudible! This is also used to reduce some of the rumble noise/sound. The rumble noise/sound iscaused by the microphone stand that is used. Also the other low end sources that you use.

If the shelf is high pass then all of the frequencies that are below the cutoff point are cut off. Theonly one parameter it has is: frequency. This is known as a very drastic filter! This filter is used tocut the very low rumble noises/sounds that are below 60 Hz.

If the shelf is low pass then all of the frequencies that are above the cutoff point are cut off. Theonly one parameter it has is: frequency. This is known as a very drastic filter! This filter is used tocut very high hiss noises/sounds that are above 18 kHz. When using thiswe should be careful because sometimes you can cut too much high end of

the mix.

More frequency information:

Frequencies: Applications:

20-60 Hz Cut these frequencies to reduce the rumble nosies/ sounds that are related to the electric interfaces.

60-80 Hz Boost these frequencies to add more life to the

instruments that play low frequencies, for example,bass drums and bass.

Frequencies:

I considered thiswhen I waschanging the eq.

I also edited thefrequencies, sothey sound rightfor the mixes.


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

This table shows us that instruments have different frequencies. By knowing these frequencies wecan cut and reduce the inactive frequencies. If you do this you will reduce the volume of the overallmix.

100-200 Hz Boost these frequencies to add more life to theinstruments, like snares, piano, trombones, Frenchhorns and guitars.If you cut these frequencies you can reduce theboomy effects on the instruments that play the mid-

range frequencies, like drums and string bass.

200-300 Hz Cut these frequencies to reduce and unwantedresonances on certain instruments, such ascymbals.Boost these frequencies to add life to the vocaltracks of the mix.

400-600 Hz Cut these frequencies to reduce the not normalboxy nosies/sounds on instruments, such as,drums.Boost these frequencies to add clarity and presenceto the bass.

1.4-1.5 kHz Boost these frequencies for a clear bass and pianosounds.

2.8-3 kHz Boost these frequencies to add clarity to the bass.Also boost these frequencies to add punch andattack to instruments, such as, guitars.

5-6 kHz Boost these frequencies to boost the vocal’spresence and also adds attack on drums, guitarsand piano.

7.5-9 kHz Cut these frequencies to avoid the sibilance on thevoices/vocals.Boost these frequencies to add attack onpercussion instruments and you should also addsharpness, breath and clarity to the followinginstruments: guitars, piano and synthesisers.

10-11 kHz Boost these frequencies to increase the sharpnesson instruments, such as, cymbals.These frequencies also add sharpness to guitarsand piano.Cut these frequencies to darken the followinginstruments: percussions, drums, guitars and piano.

14-15 kHz Cut these frequencies to reduce sharpness onguitars, piano and cymbals.Boost these frequencies to add more life to thevocals.Furthermore these frequencies to add ambience tosampled and synthesised patches.

18 kHz Cut these frequencies to reduce hiss nosies.Boost these frequencies to add clarity the wholemix.

Applications:Frequencies:


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

When mixing tracks I consider these different frequencies. To eq successfully I look at eachfrequency range and see which one is best to use.

I try to use as many different frequencies as I can. This is known as shelling EQ and this rangesfrom 20 Hz - 20 kHz.

Here are the different frequency ranges that you can get:

Sub-bass frequencies

Bass frequencies

Mid range frequencies

High mids frequencies

High frequencies

Frequency links to compression!

Compression Parameters:

The audio compression is the reduction of an audio file in order toincrease the overall volume of the mix. (This reduction is in the dynamicrange).

Compression evens out the audio levels and reduces ‘spikes’ in mixes.

Threshold, Gain and Compressing:

The threshold affects the gain. So to prevent this the threshold should be turned down and the gaincan then be turned up. However sometimes it can work the other way around!

Compression sounds better if the threshold is at zero and if thegain is higher than the threshold.

The Compression Ratio:

The compression ratio indicates how severely the audio file iscompressed.

Here is an example of a compression ratio:

Ratio = 3:1 3 DBS = 1 DB (2 DB)

In my mix Timpani & Bass I have usedcompression, like this:

This screen shot shows that I have put compressionon the Heavy Drums in my mix. I did this so theystand out. I wanted them to stand out because theyonly happened a few times and you wouldn’t really

notice them if you was to listen to the whole mixonce.

However adding in the compressor has made the

The eq is different in each mix. So Icreated a wide range of differentfrequencies to mix up the sounds a littlebit. This was successful because of theanalyzer. The analyzer helped me tofind and delete unwanted frequencies. Italso allowed me to keep the frequenciesthat I wanted to have in my mixes.

I used this technique to

manage the volume in my

mixes. Also I was able to

remove the spikes and the

clicks in my work.

I also used the threshold and

gain in my work. This made the

mixes sound better and

professional. This is because it

allows the sound to absorbed

and managed. It went very well!


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

Heavy Drums noticeable. You can hear them very clearly! They are clear because I turned thethreshold to zero and then measured each effect carefully. This made the mix evenly balanced!

Reverb:

Reverb is the direct sound is a room, it’s like an echo. It is also the persistence or echo of a

sound after it has been produced. (In studios most sources produce little or no reverb).

In Africa I used reverb, like this:

This screen shot shows that I have added somedecay and sustain to the track. (The decay is at

300ms and the sustain is at 52%).

Also the following:

Dry single delay= 50ms

Destiny= 100%

Spread= 100%

High cut= 5000Hz

Crossover= 500Hz

Low freq level= 0.0dB

Mix= 25%

When adding in reverb sometimes you can add in too much, so I always do a little bit of reverb.

However in my music I like to add reverb rather than echo. Reverb is more fun to add in because

of the different controls. Like the compressor I balanced all of the different controls so they fit

together nicely. Despite the amount of reverb on the finished product, I had too much when Ifirst added it on to my mix. So I reduced the amount to a normal balanced amount. This made

the reverb go well with the other effects that I have used in my mix. (Adding in reverb was goodedit to make in this mix).

The Delay Designer:

This effect allows you to delay interments and audio files, for example, in Timpani & Bass I usedthis effect, like this:

I added delay onto the kick. The kick plays through

most of the mix. So I added in delay to make thekick last longer. This made a good impact on the

mix. It made it more amusing because it was

something that is different.

Delay is like reverb because if you add too muchthe mix will not sound right.

I put the delay only on the kick drum because it

Adding in reverb mademy work soundatmospheric becauseworks sounds asoundscape.


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

needed a little thing else added to it. I made sure that the delay matched the reverb. Despite

this both effects each had something different about them because if they are the same thenthey would clash with each other. The delay is quite low!

Tape Delay:

I used Tape Delay on the timpani. I did this becausethe timpani is the instrument that keeps mix in

time. (There is a lot of Tape Delay at the end of the

mix). By me adding this Tape Delay the end wassuccessful and effective. It ended the mix well and

made the track different from all of my othertracks/mixes.

Again this effect is balanced and it is heard clearly.

Tape delay is great way to start and end yourmixes. Plus you could even use it in breaks and riffs.

I used this effect because it is an effective technique to use. I know how to use tape delaybecause I have used it in pervious works because you can never have too much tape delay!

Distortion:

I used distortion twice in Africa! This is an add on from the delay.

I did it like this:

This distortion is for the dynamic microphones.

I used bitcrusher distortion.

The drive is on 6.0dB

The resolution is on 18bit

The downsampling is on 5x

The mode is in the middle

The clip level is at 0.0dB (This means that it will

not clip)!

I don’t normally use distortion however this time is different. I used tis effect by mixing the

settings around. If was worth it in the end because it sounds great with the rest of the mix. Thesame goes with the distortion below!

Which is like this:

And this distortion is for the condenser microphones.

And for this one I used clip distortion.

The drive is on 35.0dB

The tone is on 13300Hz

The symmetry is on +18%

The clip filter is on 2900Hz


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

The mix is at 80%

The LP filter is at 920Hz

The high shelving frequency is at 4200Hz

The gain is at +30.0dB

I wanted the distortions to sound different. I did this by choosing different types of distortions.By doing this it made each the microphones stand out and thats what I wanted to do. Also I onestronger than the other to make them stand out even more.

Echo:

I added echo in Africa, like this:

In most of my tracks and mix I have used echo. It isone of my favourite effects. As you can see:

The time is 1/16

The repeat is set at 68%

The colour is set at 52

Dry is at 70% and wet is at 68%

I added the echo on too instrument 8, which is called Rock Kit (they are drums). This instrumentis played all throughout the mix. So to make it more interesting I added in an effect that would

have a great affect on the mix. Echo can create many emotions in just one mix!

As I said before I like to use reverb more then echo. However in this case it is the other wayaround because in the screen shot above it shows that I have added more than half of echo. Thiseffective that it is not too much. (It is just enough)!

Automation:

In Timpani & Bass I originally had automation. However when I mixed it I turned it off and I have

decided to not to turn it on again. So this mix has no automation!

But in Africa I have used automation on the guitars, like this:

For this part of Africa I did the

automation like this because Iwanted peaks in the mix. So on

each note there is a little peakso that each time a note plays it

goes high in volume. (It can beunexpected)!

I made high and low to make itdifferent and exciting. As you

can see the peaks are high, butnot too high. I made it not too

high because it would have been

really loud if I didn’t. Also belowis another example of rising the

volume.

This distortion made themix sound different . Thismade the mix interesting.


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

Which looks like this:

In this part of Africa I madevolume change with the mix.This part starts of low and slowly

goes high and then low again.This goes with the vocals. I also

did some automation on thevocals to make them with the

rest of the mix. I did this tomake some of the notes stand

out from each other!

The Lyrics In Africa:

These two screen shots above shows that I have edited the vocals. If I am honest it was quite

difficult because if you cut it wrong the lyrics will not follow after each other. I edited thevocals because I edited the other audio and midi tracks. I did this by listening for the important

parts of the song, which are the intro,the middle,the riffs and the end. This is a normal song

structure. It is simple too!

Despite these problems I managed to edit the vocals to go with the whole mix. This is because Ihave kept the four most important parts of the song, which are key in a mix like this one.

I feel confident after practising this skill. So next time when it comes to editing vocals I know

what to do.

The Tuner:

I used the tuner for the recording of the bass in Timpani & Bass. Here is the tuner:

We should allow musicians to tune their instruments before they

play/record. This is because when you don’t tune an instrument itcan sound too flat or too sharp. (Tuning the instruments will makethe recordings sound a lot better). The tuner is very clever

because it can recognise all of the notes perfectly. So therecording will sound professional because the instruments do! The

tuner is on Logic, so I clicked on it and allowed the musician to


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tuner their bass. It didn’t take long to tune the interment. (There is also a smart phone app to

tune your instrument)!

Mixing the Volume:

Mixing the volume in Timpani & Bass looks, like this:

Timpani & Bass has varied volume. The timpani is up high and the drums are at different

volumes to make them varied a little bit. Also the bass is is in the middle because it is just

background music to help the mix flow.I listened to each instrument and only changed the volume of them, they need to be of course.

Some instruments lacked some clarity so the one that did turned them up and ones that did not Iturned them down a little bit. This mastered very well, like the mix below did:

In Africa it is like this:

Africa also has varied volume. Instrument 8 is up high and the drums are at different volumes to

make the drums unlike each other. Also the guitars are roughly at the same volume. This is sothey sound the same. Lastly the other instruments are either low, in the middle or high. (The

master in the middle because when I took the screen shot I had my headphones in and it was too

loud). But when I took out my headphones I put my mix onto speakers it was quiet so I tuned itup. This means that headphones and speakers sound different. So thats why it is best to mix on

both sources so you can get the best results. Also the effects will stand out on the speakers

more!


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BY: KATIE MORGAN.

I mixed the volume by listening to all of the mix and then seeing if the instruments lack clarity,

which they didn’t. This is because they were all at the same volume to start off with. But Ichanged them to make the mix sound stimulating and exhilarating.

Buses and effects:

The buses and effects in Timpani & Bass looks, like this:

This screen shot showsyou the effects and buses

that I used in Timpani &Bass.

Plus it also shows you how

I used them. There maybebuses one this screen

shot, but I didn’t actually

use them because I’d rather put the same thing on the different tracks individually. However Idid use quite a few effects in my mixes and here they are below:

The effects are:

Delay Designer

Channel EQ x 6

Compressor

Space D x 5

Tape Delay

The buses are:

Bus 6

Bus 5

Timpani & Bass from start to finish:


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Africa from start to finish:

Conclusion:

I have learnt a few things while mixing these tracks, for example, I learnt how to record and mix

the tracks competently. I have been able to practise using the different effects and because Ihave practiced I have memorised what each of the effects do and how you use them properly.

Timpani & Bass was harder to mix than Africa because it was tough to cut and edit parts as there

was a lot of clipping and loud booming sounds from the drums. However I managed to get rid offthese unimportant parts that effected the mix’s effects and automation.

Africa on the other hand was easier to edit because their was no clipping and booming sounds. Imade Africa different by duplicating certain parts of the song, for example,

I added more Marimba and

Xylophone sounds at the start

of the mix.

Each mix was different and haddifferent parts that needed editing. Timpani & Bass and Africa are mixes where you can do

almost anything and it will sound good. I found these mixes entertaining, especially Africa. This

is because Africa is a song that everyone knows and loves. However Timpani & Bass is a trackthat I created so people might not find it pleasurable like Africa. But some people will like my

work because it is unique. All of my mixes are dissimilar because some have effects and some


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don’t. Also I don’t always use automation and audio files. Most of my tracks or mixes are midi

instruments!

I am update with my work and I can’t wait for the next project. Finally the written work has

helped my with my practical work because I have researched during this project and I havepicked up a lot of information that I never knew about. (I will use this information for my next

project and other projects to come).

mixng analysis improvement

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