MY MIC SOUNDS NICE, CHECK 3
Apr 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Jason Scott Alexander
SIX-STRING THEORY
If you’re working from a clean DI bass track, you’re likely going to need some plug-ins to juice it up a bit and make the bass cut through. Start by filtering out the muddy sub frequencies (50 Hz and below). That will increase overtones and the recognition of bass line in the mix. Then, if one wasn’t used during recording, install a noise gate. Next, use a compressor with attitude—Joemeek and the 1176 are perennial favorites—set for slower attack and a mid-to-fast release, and don’t be afraid to pour on the compression ratio. If needed, work in some fairly tight EQ prior to compression, boosting at 100 Hz for a harder sound, 400 Hz for more clarity, 800 Hz for punch, 1.5 kHz for pluck and 5 to 7 kHz for more finger sound. Then, really crank the compression again to make it fat and punchy.
Think of this electric-guitar chain much as you would your stage setup, with a 70 to 80z filter to take out the lows and another to cut the highs above 8 kHz. Next, place any compression (usually just a touch), or in place of a compressor, use tape or valve saturation such as McDSP Analog Channel. Following that, most guitars need some really broad EQ (Pultec or Neve are Ken’s favorites) around 3 kHz and 12 kHz to boost attack and bring about more sharpness. Last, use more forensic-style EQs to notch out any ringing or resonant frequencies that aren’t helping your cause.
For acoustic guitar, you typically place EQ after the compressor because you want to take the compressed sound and highlight it with EQ. But in the case of a more jangly pop acoustic guitar—where you generally need to remove many of the highs and lows so that the mids cut through a thick mix—you need to EQ first so that the compressor doesn’t react to all the frequencies that you won’t be using.
Start off with a meaty EQ—a Neve 1073 is nice if you have the means—to bring out the high mids and take out a bit of the lows. Low cut at 70 Hz and boost a few decibels around 3 kHz and 10 kHz for more attack and presence. Follow that up with something like an 1176 compressor to make sure that no notes go by unnoticed even in the densest parts of the song.
CUT A HOLE IN THE VOX
The order of a vocal chain is about as personal as the engineer himself. While almost all start off with a low-cut filter around 80 to 120 Hz to eliminate mic bump and unwanted noise, whether to follow up with the de-esser or multiband compressor next is seen interchangeably. Quite often, a second compressor will follow a multiband to make a vocal really aggressive and in your face, followed by a gate to remove any excessive headphone bleed and other unwanted noise, making the vocal sound immediate. Regardless, any EQ that’s necessary to make the vocals fit into the song should come at the end, so that the other processes act on the raw emotion and dynamic of the vocal only.
KEN LEWIS’ MIX CHANNEL SETS FOR URBAN/DANCE MUSIC
KICK
”Basically I just use EQ followed by compressor as needed. Typically slow attack on the compressor, like 40 or 50 ms. Much faster and you take away too much bottom with the compressor. If the kick doesn’t have much bottom but needs it, sometimes I’ll use Waves MaxxBass to give it a little sub boost. A little goes a long way.
“If you’re dealing with a beat that has a heavy bassline, find different center frequencies for your kick and bass. Trying to boost the same frequencies on both tracks usually sounds terrible. Sometimes using small amounts of notching EQ on the kick and bassline helps carve a space for each. If the kick hits best at 80 Hz, boost a bit of 80 Hz on the kick and notch out a bit of 80 Hz on the bassline. If the bassline sits best around 110 Hz, boost a bit there, and notch out 110 Hz on your kick, carefully. Use really tight Q's on the EQ notching. I like Waves Q1 EQ for this, plus Sony Oxford and MDWII EQ's are good as well.”
SNARE
Generally, sampled snares from drum machines or loops won’t need much work to get them ready for mixing. But, if the snare lacks impact and needs it, Ken compresses it first with a slow attack and mid-to-fast release.
“Often I’ll do this with a 1176 or Joe Meek SC2,” says Lewis. “Conversely, if its a short tight snare you can elongate it a bit with a very fast attack/fast release compressor, careful not to crush the transient too much. Then I EQ to taste with a Pultec for shaping, and/or a parametric for more pointed work. Sometimes I’ll end the chain with an instance of Cranesong’s Phoenix plug-in. Phoenix is one of those voodoo boxes that makes certain sounds much more solid.
HI-HAT
“For urban mixes, all I'll often do is dirty up hats by boosting midrange notches with the Joe Meek EQ or the Pultec MEQ5. Often around 2 to 3 kHz. If a hat is too pointed, I’ll sometimes use a limiter like Waves L1 to crunch it a bit and give it some length.”
SYNTH BASS
“If a synth bass is too subby with no midrange, I'll sometime slam it with a Waves L1 with a very fast release. This makes the bass buzz a little bit which will put audible frequencies into the midrange that you cant get with EQ, and this will help it sit in small speakers. The L1 will definitely also take away some low end, so I’ll add an EQ after the L1 and put some low end back.”
VOCALS
Ken always starts his vocal chain with a filter to remove everything below the singer’s range.
“Usually I just filter out below 80 Hz, and often up as high as 150 Hz with a female voice. If there's nothing there helping the voice, get rid of it!”
If the voice is really sibilant, he’ll insert some mild de-essing followed by compression.
“But, if it’s not too essy, I’ll go straight to a compressor like Waves RVox, or McDSP’s MC2000 multiband compressor bank. Sometimes McDSP’s G Channel is all you need with a vocal because you can filter, compress and EQ all at once — eliminating the need for multiple plugs in your vocal chain. It’s not rocket science. Just scroll thru the presets until something sounds like a noticeable improvement, then tailor your setting from there,” Lewis suggests. “As always, use your ears to guide you.”
Ken Lewis is one of hip-hop and pop’s most in-demand mix engineers, having worked with superstar talents including Kanye West, Usher, John Legend, Common, Mariah Carey, Jay Z, Mary J. Blige and countless others. He has also been a technology panelist at Remix Hotel NYC.
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