Qua z mo // Blog

Quik Tipz: Get Your Beats Bouncin'


So you've finished with the bulk of your mix - you've EQ 'd, compressed, gated, panned, & added effects to your complete satisfaction. So you're ready to lay down your final mix, right?

Wrong!

Now it's time to take your mix to the next level. Adding in mutes, drops, & other types of automation will help shape and give a new energy to your mix that you hadn't imagined before:

Try muting out bass & drums tracks near the end of 4 bar phrases throughout your song and you'll see what we mean. Listeners love dynamics - adding in automated mutes & drops on bass & drum tracks throughout your song adds the dynamic energy hits require. Also, experiment with different combinations of drum drops. Don't use the same exact drum drops over & over - Mix it up!

So what other types of automation will bring the final mix to higher grounds? Well, depending on your console/computer setup, all of the following can be automated: Mutes, Pans, Effects sends, EQ, Compression, Gates, and more. Don't fall short during the mix process, your beat deserves more. Imagine the energetic & dynamic possibilities with all that you could automate!

Quik Tipz: Prized Background Vocal Techniques You've put in some hard work to achieve the perfect lead vocal mix. Now, it's time to bring the song to a new level by adding the background vocals to the mix! Below are some great unknown tips on how to attain some prized background vocal textures... 1) Add Silk: Unlike the up front full-bodied texture of your lead vocal track, take a different complimentary approach with your backing vocals. Add some silk by applying an overall high-pass filter as high as 900hz to the background vocals. The higher the high-pass the more sheen and silky the texture becomes. Also, for even more sheen, boost 11-12khz 1-4 decibels using high-shelf EQ. 2) Add Depth: To ensure a large impressive sound, you need to record several tracks of background vocals: double takes, triple takes, as well as, stacking harmonies. Take advantage of this multi-tracking by assigning each track its own panning placement. For example, pan low vocal/harmony tracks hard left & right. Next, pan medium vocal/harmony tracks 75% left & 75% right. Lastly, pan high vocal/harmony tracks 40% left & 40% right. Now your backing vocals will hug around your lead vocal perfectly! 3) Add Distance: To further add contrast apart from your lead vocal, apply different effects settings to your background vocal tracks. Typically, heavier effects should be applied to background vocals when compared to lead tracks. This helps add distance & a unique character apart from your lead mix. Some good background effects to apply are subtle ping pong stereo delays, hall reverbs, plate reverbs, and choruses!

Please Check out my New Track 8 if you think you got something for it just let me know

*Qua z mo

May 06, 2008.  Mariah may be pregnant.

According to the insider, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, Mariah has told her inner circle that she may be pregnant. The insider explained, "Everything is happening so fast, it's like a whirlwind. We haven't even had time to digest the wedding, now we're hearing that she may be pregnant."

No word yet on how pregnant Mariah is. But given that her and Nick Cannon only started dating 2 months ago, we hope she's less than two months....

Developing...

May 06, 2008. Sometimes you gotta shake your head....

Click this link

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=31985044

Building a great mix starts with organizing how you approach it. To achieve the best mix for hip hop, break down your mix into a specific order of steps as the Pro's do. The following mix methods will help you avoid rushing or losing focus on achieving the best sound:

1) Place priority on mixing the drums & bass first. Achieving a solid drum & bass foundation gives your mix a strong backbone. If you focus on the drums and bass first, the rest of your mix will naturally fall into place.

2) Even though many producers mix the entire instrumental song before adding in the lead and background vocals - it's a big mistake! After you've built the drum and bass mix, move straight into placing your lead vocal tracks into the heart of it. Build a solid mix with these 3 components before adding in your other tracks.

3) After the drums, bass, and vocals are solid, add in your other melodic tracks such as guitar, piano, strings, etc. Leave out any percussion or sound effects at this point. Pan these melodic tracks around the lead vocal, finding a pocket for each addition. Make sure not to compete for the lead vocals attention, but instead support the vocals as complimentary.

4) Save the percussion and sound effects tracks for last. Typically it's wise to pan these last tracks outside your drums, bass, vocal, and melodic tracks. Use your percussion and effects tracks to fill in spaces in the mix that seem unbalanced. By this step your mix should be well shaped and balanced!
- 2008-04-13