First project in Reaper (Remix)

Can't even begin to know how to use it so it's all up from here.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=476208&content=songinfo&songID=11936680
Well you of all people should know... wait for it... Dont fear the Reaper... sorry... I had to.. :D :D

Maybe we'll do that next! :lol:

So I reworked this a little today. I got the bright idea to seperate the drums and piano from the rhythm track into individual tracks. Added a little reverb, panned the piano right against my guitar left. This allowed me to get rid of guitar 2. Got rid of backing vocals. Re recorded the guitar. The new one is with my black Les Paul Studio.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=476208&content=songinfo&songID=11937810

I could hear lots of instruments sort of jumping out, which I enjoyed.

Awesome playing. Nice growl on that geetar. The creaminess of you riffs on the first one was nice. I'm sure it was on the second, but I probably glossed it over.

OK, so for vocals. Bear with me. There's a scene in a recent movie where one guy said that he used to put cologne on before bed because he worked with formaldehyde and it smelled bad. He used to try to cover it up using the cologne. The other guy said that it just covers up one bad smell with another. That's the scene that comes to mind when I hear you in these studio sessions. When you throw your vocals way back into the mix and reverb them beyond recognition. Your voice is what it is. It's your voice. No two ways around it. When you doctor it up too much, to me, it makes it sound worse. The result isn't pleasing. You can stll hear your voice, but it's presented worse. It just doesn't go well with the rest of the track, I guess.

As proof, you could not hide behind anything towards the end of the song in that section when it's mostly vocals. There is no doubt in my mind that your voice sounded the best during that section than it did at any other point in the song. Maybe the best I've heard it, even. It was so much better un-buried with the lowered reverb. Perhaps i hear the reverb more in the mix with all the instruments?

Some of what I hear is just maybe some uncomfortable phrasing or technique? Not sure of the term.

If the vocal track isn't strong enough to bust through, double track it?

Other than the vocals, I thought it was a pretty good job. Not sure though, as I was distracted?

I thought there was cohesiveness in the mix. It was believable. The separation was better with the piano thing you did.

The doubles or harmonies were nice, too. You didn't do that in the second? I went back to listen and I couldn't pick them out. At least not that same section, anyhow.

1st off, I have never liked BTO and they are one of the bands I told my bandmates early on that I never wanted to cover. So you getting me to listen all the way through TCB is impressive. :D

I agree with Roy on the vocals. This is the best I've heard you do yet, but it's buried down in the mix. Try this...cut the reverb way down. Are you using Reaper's built in ReaVerb? If so, go here and download these impulses. Go into ReaVerb and in the Impulse Generation area, click Add then File. Browse to wherever you put the .wavs you downloaded and pick Ruby Room. It's a nice low-key reverb.

Now, copy and paste your vocal track so you have 2 of them. Add ReaDelay to the 2nd one and play with the delay times just on one of the tracks. Pan each vocal a little off-center, 1 to a side (about 5-10%). The doubling and delay gives it a smoother sound and just that can cover up some technique issues. Trust me, I've used it a lot! You can turn the dry signal down on the 2nd vocal track too, so that's just the delayed signal coming through. Keep your delay times down though, otherwise it will just sound like an echo.

I've been meaning to try something like that, Jeff, but have not yet. I'm glad you spelled it out. 8)

I'll listen more closely over the weekend, but I have to say I like the jazz bass tone on this, plus the reaching riffs. Are those real or canned?

I'll listen more closely over the weekend, but I have to say I like the jazz bass tone on this, plus the reaching riffs. Are those real or canned?

That bass is a one of a kind unit Laz that I like to call

ThunderFingers!

He is playing his Tobias on this one. :mrgreen: We use the low Z line out on one of his GK heads and it works well to reproduce his tone.

OK Here is version 3 with all of the above suggestions taken into acount.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=476208&content=songinfo&songID=11939038

I played yet a different guitar on this one. Seems to be what ever one is handy at the moment.

Now, copy and paste your vocal track so you have 2 of them. Add ReaDelay to the 2nd one and play with the delay times just on one of the tracks. Pan each vocal a little off-center, 1 to a side (about 5-10%). The doubling and delay gives it a smoother sound and just that can cover up some technique issues. Trust me, I've used it a lot! You can turn the dry signal down on the 2nd vocal track too, so that's just the delayed signal coming through.
This is the technique I have been using Jeff, I just way over did it. :oops:

PS Thanks for the link. I'll download those to add to my FX library.

This guitar is smoking!!!!! I listened to it some before reading. Not great for A/B testing, but the guitar was never an issue. Great, great or great. Take you pick! :lol: Just for fun, maybe you could share with the rest of the class your guitar chain? This was captured very well. You've probably described it in other threads and not changed it. if so, I'll go back and dig it up.

Alrighty, this whole entire mix jumped up a big notch just because the vocals are more natural. No hiding. Well, nowhere near as much. It's sooooo much better.

My next step on the vocals would be to adjust the Take's clip gain as the words/phrases start to fade out. You've probably done some, but perhaps a tiny bit more?

There were a few spots where the vocals fell back a bit more than I would have liked them too. I'm not a poor musical-taste BTO hater ( :mrgreen: :mrgreen: J/K, Jeff) , so I listened again. I was going to point out a few low spots, but the first phrase as example enough. could it be as simple as a bit more volume on the vocal tracks? Could it be a tiny bit of room making while you singing? Maybe bring down the rhythm guitar while vocals are present? Just a little bit more prominent? I wonder, too, if you added just a touch more of your delay technique back into it.

Just curious. Did you use a Reverb on any of the other tracks? Perhaps how you got the rest of the mix to get along well could be applied to the vocal track(s)? Just another wild stab. Throwing darts. Dung on the wall. Spit balling. Trying things on. Seeing if anything fits. Being annoying with metaphors. hmmmm, perhaps an orignal song coming out. "The metaphor blues" I'm rambling again.

Overall, this is a kick-butt mix. Such energy. You're owning this song. 8) 8)

I used the same reverb on everything, just to different intensities. None on the bass of course. To even out the vocal I have to learn how to boost and cut volumes of certain sections of a track on Reaper. I can do this on Audacity. I'm a Reaper noob and it is frustrating. A easier and better fix is to get myself a decent large diaphram condenser mic instead of singing into the cheap dynamic one.

Guitar chain? Ultra simple. Les Paul and of facimile. Last one was an Agile AL 3000. Middle was a Gibson. First was a Kramer Standard Pro, made by Gibson, mahogony body, maple cap 24 3/4 scale ect. you get the idea. :lol: From there I go into my Peavey Classic 30 on the dirty chanel. I close mic the cab with a Shure mic that is very similar to an SM 57 and distant mic with the cheap dynamic mic I sing into. Put on head phones and adjust respective levels and positions of the mics until I like what I hear. No reverb, no FX. I do all that in Reaper. All that. :lol: I double the track, pan left and right 40% with one side dry and the other all reverb. I adjust the reverb to taste with the fader on the reverb track.

This will get easier and better as I learn Reaper.
Overall, this is a kick-butt mix. Such energy. You're owning this song.
The young lad in the photo above has a hand in this. :mrgreen:

The young lad in the photo above has a hand in this.
I meant to mention his bass playing as well. He's really driving this thing home. (was that not a fine example of "cool-speak" or what?)

I think one of my toys has a Peavey sim. I'll have to find & experiment. 8)
To even out the vocal I have to learn how to boost and cut volumes of certain sections of a track on Reaper.
"Envelopes", if I recall? I'll look next time I have it open.

Version 4
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=476208&content=songinfo&songID=11939624

I tried using that envelope thing. Maybe I just need to use it more but I don't care for manipulating what is already there in that manor. I did the vocal over again and got closer to the mic with a little more gain. Then I applied some very mild compression to it. I like Reaper but after looking at the manuals and tutorial I could spend an eon mastering everything it can do. I just want to do a Frank Zappa and shut up and play my guitar so I think I will stick to the basic functions of the software. I never was a punch in kinda guy. I think this dates me as an analog dinosaur although my trusty Fostex 4 track studio could execute a punch in. Still can if anyone has a high quality cassete tape handy. :lol: I'm sure I'll learn slow and sure as I go. I do think investing in an entry level condenser microphone is an idea. I need better head phones too.

Version 4
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=476208&content=songinfo&songID=11939624

I tried using that envelope thing. Maybe I just need to use it more but I don't care for manipulating what is already there in that manor. I did the vocal over again and got closer to the mic with a little more gain. Then I applied some very mild compression to it. I like Reaper but after looking at the manuals and tutorial I could spend an eon mastering everything it can do. I just want to do a Frank Zappa and shut up and play my guitar so I think I will stick to the basic functions of the software. I never was a punch in kinda guy. I think this dates me as an analog dinosaur although my trusty Fostex 4 track studio could execute a punch in. Still can if anyone has a high quality cassete tape handy. :lol: I'm sure I'll learn slow and sure as I go. I do think investing in an entry level condenser microphone is an idea. I need better head phones too.

That sounds really good!