Help/Advice pls

[ernstinen]

RE: Bus ReverbDo you REALLY want reverb on tracks like bass and kick drum? I sure don't! MAYBE if it's a very short, ambient reverb, but longer reverbs like ones used on vocals, snare, woodwinds etc. on the whole stereo mix would make it sound like it was recorded in a church! Personally, I wouldn't recommend that IMHO.Jus' wonderin' ---Ern

[billg]

Oct 29, 2008, 10:39am, ernstinen wrote:RE: Bus ReverbDo you REALLY want reverb on tracks like bass and kick drum? I sure don't! MAYBE if it's a very short, ambient reverb, but longer reverbs like ones used on vocals, snare, woodwinds etc. on the whole stereo mix would make it sound like it was recorded in a church! Personally, I wouldn't recommend that IMHO.Jus' wonderin' ---Ern A lot of times (most times) I put a light touch of a reverb on the stereo buss, I think it helps to gel things and also makes the mix sound more "live". It's easy to overdo it though . . . it's almost a "if you can hear it it's too much" kind of thing. But I also tend to like recordings that aren't really very modern sounding which could be the difference. I'm about as modern as a Studebaker.

[og]

Oct 28, 2008, 9:08pm, ernstinen wrote: Oct 28, 2008, 5:34pm, og wrote:Care to elaborate?NO.****Jus' kiddin', Og! I still use an analog board, a classic Soundcraft to mix all my digital tracks through, and use outboard gear. So this might not apply to everyone else who goes completely digital, I don't know.But on my reverb sends, I'll roll off the highs and lows a bit. And on the reverb returns into the board, I'll EQ both channels of the stereo reverb according to what tracks they are sent to and how if affects the overall sound.For instance, I'll solo the reverb and listen to where the "mud" is, normally about 400 to 800 hz. Then I'll roll off those frequencies until things clear up. It takes time and patience, but it really helps in the end.Maybe you digital guys can expand upon this! Have fun experimenting!Ern Thanks, Ern. My songs generally don't have a lot of tracks, but I like to be able to hear each part. Mud in a sparse mix stands out, I think.

[devin]

"If you can change the level of an instrument in the mix by a tenth or two-tenths of a dB and you can hear the change that you made, the mix is getting pretty good. If you can change some other instrument by that amount and not really hear any difference, then chances are that the instrument you are playing with is not where it should be. The problem may be down to level, or EQ, or compression, or reverb, but it is not quite ready for prime time. "@ Mojo: this paragraph alone was worth the click to that Roger Nichols article...thanks!

[mojobone]

Oct 29, 2008, 10:39am, ernstinen wrote:RE: Bus ReverbDo you REALLY want reverb on tracks like bass and kick drum? I sure don't! MAYBE if it's a very short, ambient reverb, but longer reverbs like ones used on vocals, snare, woodwinds etc. on the whole stereo mix would make it sound like it was recorded in a church! Personally, I wouldn't recommend that IMHO.Jus' wonderin' ---Ern I didn't say master bus; merely "bus", though there are uses for 'verb on the master bus as well, usually for tight ambience as Bill mentioned or to add back 'space' lost due to close miking in a live situation. There are some situations that may call for reverb on the kick; for example when you have a two bar intro that consists entirely of quarter notes on the kick and nuthin' else...The analog equivalent is to have a reverb on an AUX bus so you can send several instruments (not necessarily all the instruments) through a single reverb. The reverb return gets its own fader/EQ which can be automated or ridden at mixdown. In a busy mix, I'll remove everything below 1-2Khz from the reverb return, or if there are lots and lots of instruments no 'verb at all, only delays, or maybe only the vocal and the snare get reverb...distance makes depth, but we don't always get to work in the ideally sized room, particularly when it comes to drums.