Mixing and Mastering with LPF and HPF

[musicman67]

I have been spending a lot of time mixing and mastering my work only to be disappointed at how it sounds outside the studio.

 

I'd like to think I've done the basics...Soundproofing, room symmetry, etc. I reference tracks using magic A/B which does help. I've been wondering if I should use LPF and HPF on the channels (not the buss) to try and clean it up even more. Everything I use is a sample. I am still a little old school in using my Tascam 2488 MK II for guitars, etc. I seldom use real instruments though. I guess one draw back is that I use ported Rokit KRK 8". I also have a set of 4" Yamahas that I use to double check my work but it's not very effective.

 

Would I use the HPF and LPF before or after the channel eq on any given track. Also a little unsure how to properly use them. I had used a LPF on a bass guitar sample. As soon as I started hearing a little bass dissipate I turn it back just a hair.

 

Any thought, comments, or notes would be aprreciated. I love to write music but I am spending 80% of my time mixing and mastering.

 

Thanks in advance for your time,

 

Tony

[Maddcow]

I have a feeling that you meant to post this in the Logic forum, not the MainStage forum.

[Eric Cardenas]

Moving this to the Music Production forum.

[David Nahmani]

I had used a LPF on a bass guitar sample. As soon as I started hearing a little bass dissipate I turn it back just a hair.

Do you mean a HPF? Why are you doing that exactly?

 

There are no recipes when mixing/mastering. You start by listening, make decisions on what needs to be done, grab your tools, and get to work to reach the goals you've decided upon. So listen to your mix, and if something is too aggressive, maybe you use an EQ or a LPF to tame the aggressiveness. If something is too dynamic, maybe you use a compressor, or volume automation, to reduce the dynamic.

[Mixerjack]

You have to be specific about what you mean by disappointing. Anyone who advises you without hearing what you are talking about is just guessing...

 

So post an audio example of where you are and where you'd like to be. We'll see if we can steer you in the right direction.

[musicman67]

Sorry to just get back to you now. Thanks for the replies. @ David N, yes you are correct I did mean HPF. I will load something soon to show you what I mean. Also my apologies for posting in the wrong spot. Thanks for the fix Eric.

 

Tony

[Joe Lonsdale]

I suppose the main question should be: how long have you been doing this and how many tracks have you finished? Those commercial tracks you are ABing against are written, performed, recorded, mixed and mastered by experienced guys/gals at the top of their games in professional facilities. You want to compete? Good luck! What I mean is, don't be hard on yourself. If you keep reading books, watching tutorials, attending training events and generally learning more, you'll get better with every song. I reckon I produce and mix around 150 songs a year and have done for a decade and I still don't produce stuff as good as the top guys! Some of that is because my studio is 'budget', some is because a lot of the artists I record are s#!+ (there, I've said it!), some of it is because there isn't enough budget in a project to get the best musicians involved, some of it is because the artist and I aren't a good match, most of the time its because I am not a good as I want to be. I am getting closer, but it's so hard to keep making improvements! Some things I have learnt that may help you: every 'fake' instrument you use detracts enormously from the sound and feel; Real drums are a MUST; there's no excuse for fake guitars and bass; tuning vocals is an exercise in restraint; it's in the ear not the gear; software is a massive distraction from the entire POINT OF MUSIC - a good mixer will do a better mix with stock plugins than an average mixer can with the entire UAD collection; finish every track and move on; use a good mastering engineer and ALWAYS attend and get involved in the process; learn how compression works; learn and use many kinds of reverb; continously develop your vocabulary of EQ; don't apply processes you don't understand; master 'phase'; mix quiet; don't collect opinions on your mix - except your own, the artists and your mastering engineer. I must try and follow my own advice!