Mix Challenge

Mellow Browne wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 25, 2025 21:53 CEST

@SonicAuthority : interesting subtle flanger effect in the background.
reverb tail on vocals is very long, I think you overdid it a llittle bit too much. The reflections are a bit aggressive, just like the overall mids in your mix. The midrange is on the verge of bracking up into distortion in my opinion, I think it is because of your headphones. I checked them out and they are sold as gaming headsets? The overall balance and gain staging is quite good though. It’s just the details you were overshooting a little bit too much. There is a certain squashed and overcompressed atmosphere in the chorus. But I think I understand your vision and the it goes definitely in the right direction.

Mellow,

Thanks for this feedback. You are right on point.

The subtle flanger effect was a carryover from an earlier mixing decision.

It sounded much better when I started mixing than it did when I finished, but I kept it anyway.

I agree with the vocal reflections being too much, I used a dry signal follower for dynamic control of the reverb so it would pump when the dry signal disappeared, but as you are aware it was overused. However, I'm okay with this because it sounded less energetic without it, and I would rather have it too hot than not enough. I would have liked to experiment with this more to dial it in just right. I try to use minimal 'written' automation as it starts to cement the mix in place, and I don't like being in that situation.

You are correct about the mids being pushed almost to distortion, I can hear it as well. I think what happened was I was mixing for too long, for too loud, without enough breaks and had ear fatigue from this single session mix. Unfortunately I am limited to just that pair of headphones right now as I am in-between studios, and working with what I have. I may experiment with a new EQ curve for them, though.

This was a time-restricted mix for me, and I submit a rough mix simply hoping to make it to round 2 for another shot.

I appreciate your feedback!

Edling wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 24, 2025 22:40 CEST

@hjchjc

Solid overall balances and panning of all of the tracks, however none of the synths really pop out of the mix and they somewhat all blend together a bit. This could probably be improved with EQ:ing them a bit more, allowing them to each fill their own space in the sound. The lead piano on the bridge is beautifully processed with nice reverb and chorus (at least I think so) which really makes it cut through the rest of the tracks!

So happy you liked the piano! That was the last thing I changed before submitting. Re: the synths, I liked how washy and reverb-y it was but if I go to the next round I'll definitely give them more EQing and automation to isolate the different tracks. Also glad you liked the balance because the drums are obviously really loud haha.

@SonicAuthority

I think the flanger fx is cool and could be even a bit more audible, but I'm not sure on which track this is.

I get the point with cemented automations, but sometimes this is exactly what a mix needs. I personally don't like volume /fader automation and fix things per clip gain function IF possible.

If you suffer from ear fatigue you are definitely listening a bit too loud with your headphones and you should turn the volume down. Give yourself enough rests to make sure you don't get ear fatigue and make a break of 10-15 minutes every 45 minutes or so if you know that it will be longer session. After that break I recommend you to listen to pink noise for maybe 2-3 minutes with pink noise at a lower level than you mixed before the break to recalibrate your "inner spectral balance" , this can help to recognise things you were overlooking before.

Edling wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 24, 2025 22:40 CEST

@LCM!

Solid drums sound, maybe the extra snares used for accents are a bit loud, but that might also be a matter of taste. Great vocal sound with that nice big 80’s reverb. It sounds that there’s quite a lot of compressions on the chorus synths which removes the initial ”swell” of the synth panned to the right in your mix. While making it more even, it removes some of that accentuated punch on the beats that I think was a nice touch from the original sound.

Thanks! There is no compressor there, in fact. I think this perception might be attributed to the use of the JS PingPong plugin, a kind of some collaterall damage that went under the radar.
Very kind of you.