recording low heavy death metal..help

astrozombie2099 · #1 02-05-2009, 11:00 PM

hey guys im in a tech death metal band and we to are own recording all the time trying new thing and what not..but we cant seem to get a great end result..with the same gear we have had much better results recording softer types of music..with out getting to far into all that were doing id like some general tips on recording extreme forms of music..its got to be different than other types..and give me tips on recording bass of this type of music..how have you done it? thanks...if you want to hear what are current tracks sound like to get an idea of the recording quality were getting go to.. www.myspace.com/towerofsilence1 i don't run the page so don't message me on myspace...thanks guys!

astrozombie2099 · #2 02-05-2009, 11:02 PM

o and another note.. we use a 5 string bass and a 7 string guitar down tuned, if that helps at all

lemur821 · #3 02-06-2009, 12:11 AM

How are you making these recordings? From here it sounds like one microphone somewhere in the room while you all play, which probably isn't going to cut it.

bassophil · #4 02-06-2009, 04:08 AM

Quote:

How are you making these recordings?

Thats the point. You need to tell us your recording setup and what "parts" of the sound you want to be better - just the bass?

My first impression was there have been made mistakes in the mix (every instrument needs his OWN frequncy band) but you never can tell that for sure from hearing a complete mix. Perhaps the mistakes have been made earlier in the chain (i.e. in the recording)...

So please enlighten us about your recording setup

astrozombie2099 · #5 02-06-2009, 10:52 PM

we have a usb interface (aardvark) running into cubase..the drums have like 7 mics..in those tracks that are up now the guitar and bass cabs were recorded at the same time with a powered mic is not sure what the brands are..its all at are practice space i can get all that info if needed...the next time around the drums were recorded alone with the 7 mics..then i (bass) will probably go direct and maybe with a mixed cab and use both at once i here that's nice..and the guitar will be one mic on the cab....the problem that i am wanting fixed is the "roomy" sound it sounds very merck and distant i want it crisp..the new drum tracks sound fine..so its mostly the guitar bass and over all "feel" of the songs...hope that helps feel free to ask more questions and toss out tips on what ever might help...thanks a ton guys!

astrozombie2099 · #6 02-06-2009, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bassophil

My first impression was there have been made mistakes in the mix (every instrument needs his OWN frequncy band) but you never can tell that for sure from hearing a complete mix. Perhaps the mistakes have been made earlier in the chain (i.e. in the recording)...

can you tell me more about this

bassophil · #7 02-07-2009, 03:04 AM

Hey Rob!

Quote:

the guitar and bass cabs were recorded at the same time with a powered mic

That could be the problem causing the roomy sound. To make sure i got you right: you recorded guit and bass at the same time with one condenser mic (powered) in the room? If so thats what gets you a roomy sound.
Try this instead: record bass and guit seperatly one after another and use a dynamic mic (unpowered) which you place DIRECTLY infront of one speaker, especialy when recording guits. Place it so close to one speaker that there is nearly no space between cab and mic but without contact

. You will have to try around a little with the angle of mic to speaker for the crispiest place.
This way ("no distance") you can reduce recorded reflections from the room, what is giving you the roomy sound.
Standard mics for that (esp. guits) would be Sure SM57, Sennheiser 606 or 906 but thats up to you to try out (i think you got something fitting in stock with your drum mics)

You can still use your condenser mic as a second signal (set up 3-5ft away from cab) and see if you wanna give a bit to the mix.

Your plan to record the bass via DI signal and mic is a very common way and will probably help you to achieve your wanted sound. Try that!

As far the mixing is concerned, every signal has got some areas in the frequency band where its significant sound got its base. Make sure not to overfill these frequencies with other signals. Let your ears guide you here

You also should keep your lows/lowmids a bit more tidy (which is difficult when you have bass and guit in one signal).
An approach to this is to low cut the guits at ~150-250Hz boost them a bit above that while making some space at the same area in bass and bassdrum. Boost the bass a little at ~700-800Hz while taking the guits a bit down there and seperate bass and bassdrum in the lows (bassdrum lowcut at ~30-50Hz is common f.e.).

Be always aware of the fact that all this is just a VAGE guide and you always have to adjust to a lot of things given by your recording situation and the sound you want to have.
There is not something like the one master recipe!!
So rely on your ears

I hope this helps a little
...keep up that nice music - i like it!

Stay brutal!

Phil

atheos · #8 02-07-2009, 03:15 AM

Play the bass with THIN pick and with LIGHT touch. Hard playing will kill the lows which are absolutely essential when doing low tuned metal.

And record bass and guitar both separately with own mics, recording both with a single mic will sound horrible, no matter what. Seriously.

Baryonyx · #9 02-07-2009, 07:14 AM

Definitely record the bass and guitars seperately, close mic'd if you're not going to do it by DI...

Because at present, the mixes sound sloppy and airy, like there is a pillow over my speakers.

Metal Mitch · #10 02-07-2009, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astrozombie2099

the problem that i am wanting fixed is the "roomy" sound it sounds very merck and distant i want it crisp..the new drum tracks sound fine..so its mostly the guitar bass and over all "feel" of the songs...hope that helps feel free to ask more questions and toss out tips on what ever might help...thanks a ton guys!

yeah I hear it. the drum tracks sound fine and so does the guitar tone. at this stage the guitar and bass are called "scratch tracks" so don't sweat it. to crisp it up and get rid of the room sound, keep the drum tracks and overdub cleaner guitar and bass tracks.

run the bass DI, forget about the cabinet mic. DI removes the limitations of the cab freq response.

retrack the guitar cab mic with no room bleed, i.e. dead silence while dubbing his track. if you still get ring from the drum kit in the room, isolate the guitar cab in another room.

have fun

astrozombie2099 · #11 02-08-2009, 12:56 AM

hey thanks a lot guys! you all have real good ideas!..i just joined this site and its very cool to see other musicians willing to help out and not just talk s**t haha. i will write a lot of this down and bring to it practice and put it to action!