Description
For the price of a couple of pints of beer (or a few coffees and a biscuit if you prefer) our chief engineer will listen carefully to your mix in our acoustically clinical environment with trained, experienced ears, then advise on mix specifics on your track.
This service is helpful for a professional second opinion. It’s even more helpful if you don’t have properly set up room response, high-end monitors or are mixing on headphones.
If you don’t have the luxury of a sub (properly calibrated with your satellites and room), then this is worth it for the low-end confidence alone!
We will write a decent length report on relevant elements of the track, with detailed instructions of how to fix what’s wrong, and can explain any of the technical jargon afterwards if you want.
An impartial 2nd opinion can also be helpful in keeping good band relations (“OK, I suppose the guitar solo was a little too loud after all!”)
ACTUAL MIX EVALUATION EXAMPLE POINTS:
- “I think the piano is slightly too overpowering. Just drop it down by -2dB & that should balance it nicely with
the vocal & strings” - “I think the hi-hats coming in at 1 min are a little sharp & overpowering due to the sharp Q on a filter.
- Adding a second EQ afterwards in the chain will smooth it & keep the overall filtered effect. Try an EQ cut of -5dB at 8.8kHz, Q of 1 should ease back the volume & tone nicely. The high end can all be brought up together during mastering, which will restore a little brightness to the hats here but keep them balanced with the rest of that section. Only apply this EQ to the filtered hi-hat section 1:00-1:21, as the rest is fine”
- “Love the intro. I wonder if the Ebow guitar & the harp conflict ever so slightly around the same frequencies. I suggest you approach this with EQ – Put an EQ cut of around -2.5 or -3 dB @ 500 Hz on the Ebow Guitar, Q of 1, thus letting the harp come through clearer.”
- “The fast roll snare sample is a bit muffled. I suspect this is an artistic choice, so that’s cool. But maybe try it a little brighter & it would sound more natural. If it has a little snappy energy restored around the 2kHz mark that should cut through nicely.”
- “That lovely fat kick drum could keep its vibe but have a little more immediate punch with a little EQ boost of +0.8dB @ 100Hz, Q of 1.2″
- “The short cello solo line (1:18, 1:40 etc.) doesn’t sound integrated fully, kind of sits on top a little muddy. Could it be brighter & quieter? Try a dual EQ approach. Cut of -2.6dB @ 363Hz, Q of 0.7. Then do an EQ boost of +1dB @ 1911Hz, Q of 0.7. This should go a long way to making it sound more natural with the track. Also is it a little dry? What would it sound like with maybe 5% less dry balance on the reverb?”
- “The acid bass coming in around the 3:20 mark could be much more prominent as it comes in. Maybe a faster volume automation curve? It could also stand out in the mix more with an EQ boost of +1.7dB @ 1000Hz, Q of 1″
- “At 2:55 the keys come in a little strong in my opinion, which also lessens the dynamics of the build. Maybe drop them -1dB & see what you think”
- “Perhaps the 1st lush chord pads that come in slowly end up a little loud? The sudden drop works really well though. Maybe the end level could come down by -1 or -1.5 dB, as I do feel it slightly overpowers the rhythmic parts the first couple of times it comes in. (however, I think it works perfectly in the midsection [section around the 4 min mark] so only adjust the volume for the first parts).“
- “Vocal may benefit from a slight EQ adjustment: -0.7dB @ 280Hz, Q of 1. And also +1.4dB @ 3200, Q of 0.9”
Or treat yourself to an easy life and let us do the Mixing for you!
