Quik Tipz (As Found By Groovemaster Freakwncy)

[WingsOfAnAngel]

Secret Techniques for EQ'n Drumz:
When it comes to equalizing your drums, don't mess around. The drums represent the heart of your mix & should be treated with respect. Below are some invaluable secrets from ModernBeats for EQ'n drums for Hip Hop:

Frequency Selection - If your serious about obtaining a clean and punchy sound for your drums, then you'll quickly learn you must be selective in the frequencies you should to boost and cut for each drum track. Most important to remember - Avoid accumulation of the same frequencies. Particularly, avoid over boosting low end frequencies. This will only muddy up your drums, as well as, mask other important tracks in the mix. Ensure your drum frequencies are even across the board!

Clean it Up - To achieve an overall punchier & cleaner mix, try cutting low end frequencies between 250 - 500hz on drum tracks such as kicks & toms. Cutting frequencies in this range will actually sharpen up drum tracks that sound too bold, harsh, & up-front. For punch, try adding 250 - 350hz into your snare & clap tracks. This will give more snap & body to the rhythm, as well as, balance out where your cut previously on your kick & tom tracks.

Adding Clarity - Cutting out the low frequencies from 100-200hz on cymbal & hi-hat tracks will add clarity while also allowing the other drum tracks that contain natural lows in those same ranges to come through in the mix. Also, boosting highs from 9khz - 12khz will add brilliance to cymbal tracks & boosting around 8khz will add crackle to your snare & clap tracks. If your not satisfied with the depth & feel on your kick tracks, then add a 4db boost at 40hz using a narrow Q of around 20. This will give the kick tracks the punch you're looking for. But ...don't forget...high pass your sub kick tracks from 34hz & below, canceling out unwanted low end rumble.


Get Your Beats Bouncin' like the Pro's:
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!


[Taken From ModernBeats]

 

[Loose Cannon]

good find, thank you.

 

[KEV31]

good post I really needed this

 

[Freakwncy]

Quik Tipz: How the Heavy-Weights make Hitz

So...you produced a mad beat. The artist and record company love it. They buy it. They take it into the studio to record vocals to it. Now they're ready to mix. But...is the beat truly as hot as it could be?!? Heavy weight producers would say no! Here's why...

Too often in Hip Hop, producers make killer beats only to have artists record vocals over them that simply don't agree with the arrangement of the original beat. The problem is the lyrical ideas of the artist and the production ideas of the producer don't match on first try. So..when a producer sells a beat that isn't then re-arranged to better fit the lyrical performance that is recorded over it, the overall song will lose it's power due to the vocals & beat clashing.

The lesson to be learned is 90% of the time production should not end when the beat is sold. Heavy weight producers take pride & joy in re-arranging their productions to fit around vocal performances by opening up spaces for certain lyrical lines while adding in new fills & riffs in between other vocal lines. In short, professional producers sculpt their beats around vocal performances!

In fact, with the perfect combination of catchy hook vocals answered by catchy hook fills & riffs, hits can truly be born! Nothing makes a better formula for a hit than catchy "question and answer" phrasing. The problem with alot of amateur hip hop productions is that the artist's vocals (the questions) simply run over the producer's riffs (the answers). Real producers re-pave the road and come out with hits!


[Taken From ModernBeats]

 

[Freakwncy]

Quik Tipz: Pro Speaker Positioning Methodz

Before spending too much time producing and mixing the beats you work so hard on everyday, make sure the near-field speakers you use to create your hits are properly positioned and angled!

Your near-field speakers should be placed the same distance from each other as they are from your ears. In other words, a 1 meter distance should exist between both speakers while you sit 1 meter away in front of the speakers.

Additionally, your speakers should be at level with your head and ears. If they aren't, you won't be hearing the sound accurately. Avoid artificial coloring and reflections that can destroy how your productions may sound on different systems by making sure you monitor your music at proper near-field distances and at straight angles to the ears.

Sure...your productions may sound great in your own studio. But...unless you've positioned your speakers at accurate monitoring distances and angles, you might be disappointed once you hear your musical works on other systems!

[Taken From ModernBeats]

 

[Freakwncy]

Quik Tipz: How much Compression is too much?

While compression can work wonders to add punch and presence to your mix, it can also ruin it faster than you can say "it's destroyed". Below are some guidelines to help you avoid destroying your mixes with too much compression...

Compression typically performs best when gain reduction occurs only where peaks in audio signal are present, even if those peaks occur several times throughout a mix. The idea is to control the peaks in signal all the while having most of the signal remain underneath the threshold and hence, uncompressed. Optimum gain reduction occurs once you have achieved this type of balance.

If the compressor is always attenuating (gain reducing) the signal you feed it, you are not achieving optimum gain reduction. This is where compressors start to ruin mixes with what is called pumping and/or breathing.

Pumping and breathing occur when so much of the signal is crossing the threshold that the overall volume of the signal is reduced entirely! Once the dynamics and/or peaks in the original signal soften & go back underneath the threshold, the volume actually becomes louder again due to the original signal recovering from excessive compression!

Compression is a powerful tool: Abuse it, and compression will ruin your mix. Treat it with respect, and compression will enchance your mix!

 

[Freakwncy]

Quik Tipz: Secrets to a Platinum Vocal Sound

Nothing is more important in a song than the lead vocal. Simply put...the lead vocal is the primary focal point of your entire mix. Because of its importance and need for constant placement within a mix, proper microphone, EQ, and compression techniques are essential. Learn the same techniques as used in platinum hits...

1) Microphone Techniques: In order to achieve a professional high fidelity vocal recording, using a condenser mic along with a good pop-screen is the only way to go. Condensers capture vocal resonance and vocal frequency spectrums far better than dynamic microphones. Also, before recording, be certain to switch the mic's settings to the cardioid pickup pattern with the high pass filter enabled to remove low end rumble from the source recording signal.

2) Vocal EQ Techniques: If proper microphone techniques have been implemented, a minimal amount of EQ should be needed. However, if you find the vocals could still use added clarity, try boosting 1-3 decibels between 5khz - 7khz. If you're needing an extra airy texture added to the vocals, try boosting 1-3 decibels between 10khz-12khz. Also, any low frequencies 100hz and below should be rolled off and/or high-passed to add further low end control to your overall mix.

3) Vocal Compression Techniques: With compression, you are seeking to even out inconsistencies in volume levels while at the same time trying not to destroy the natural dynamics inherent in the vocal performance. The trick is to set your compressor with a high ratio of 5:1 to 8:1 with a semi-fast attack and a medium release time. Most important is your setting of the compressor's threshold: Set your threshold level where gain reduction occurs only for the loudest volume peaks in the vocal recording. This will even out level inconsistencies all the while retaining natural vocal dynamics.

 

[Freakwncy]

Quik Tipz: Top Compression Methodz Revealed

Ready to achieve optimum, punchy, in-your-face, hip hop compression settings for a kick? a snare? bass? percussion? Learn what compressor settings platinum hip hop producers use below...

Ratio & Threshold settings dictate amount: Heavy weight producers use Ratio settings 4:1 to 7:1 for most hip hop applications. Ratios 8:1 & above are more effective for limiting, not compression. For Threshold settings, the Pro's use anywhere from 10db to 15db of gain reduction on kicks, snares, percussion, bass, or guitar. After you set the ratio and threshold, the real power comes in with your attack and release settings...

Attack times dictate snap: To ensure the most punch per track in your mix, you need to assign each track it's own compressor attack settings one at a time. Starting with the kick, set your attack to its slowest possible setting. Next, increase the time of the attack until the kicks timbre dulls slightly. Once you've reached this point, decrease the attack time slightly to un-dull the kick timbre and leave it at that setting. Repeat this method for all other tracks you wish to add optimum punch to!

3) Release times dictate recovery: Now that you've optimized the attack for each individual track needing punch, now you must assign each track its own release setting too. Again, starting with the kick, set your release to its fastest possible setting. Next, decrease the time of the release until you hear the compression fully recovers the kick's volume before the next kick pulse begins. Repeat this method for all other tracks needing optimum volume recovery!

 

[Burna]

word, nice find!

 

[pg16kid]

Props, i get these newsletters too but since i hardly read them, its good you post them here!