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Why do my mixes sound muffled?!??
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Seany_G
Hey guys,

Okay so I got some tech 12's with a Pioneer Djm-500. I have a cable running from the rec out to my ty ass sound card in my computer. Then I record with Cool Edit Pro 2.1.

Anyway, I'm trying to record a demo and they keep coming out really flat and muffled sounding. Like not CRISP at all. The difference is really noticeable and it takes away from my mixes a ton. So what could it be?
Problem with the mixer (broken crossfader?), loose cables, ty sound card, recording it wrong?

If you guys could give me some suggestionsit would be greatly appriceated. This is so frustrating because I just recorded my best demo yet, i burn it onto cd and it sounds all muffled and ty. :(

HELP! :)

~Sean
stupidisco
most likely its the ty soundcard.

what kind of soundcard is it? i recommend the audiophile 2496 from m-audio.
Nabistai
quote:
Originally posted by Seany_G
Hey guys,

Okay so I got some tech 12's with a Pioneer Djm-500. I have a cable running from the rec out to my ty ass sound card in my computer. Then I record with Cool Edit Pro 2.1.

Anyway, I'm trying to record a demo and they keep coming out really flat and muffled sounding. Like not CRISP at all. The difference is really noticeable and it takes away from my mixes a ton. So what could it be?
Problem with the mixer (broken crossfader?), loose cables, ty sound card, recording it wrong?

If you guys could give me some suggestionsit would be greatly appriceated. This is so frustrating because I just recorded my best demo yet, i burn it onto cd and it sounds all muffled and ty. :(

HELP! :)

~Sean


If you say you have a ty ass sound card, then your ty ass sound card will probably up the sound.
Boomer187
check out Izotope Ozone 2, its a direct X plugin that will master your mixes.


It gives them that produced feeling.
vhx1
bottom line if your sound card is then your soundquality is going to suck. Izotope ozone won't do much in this case but it does help a bit
Seany_G
Yeah Thanks guys. I forgot to mention that I gave my mix to a budy who's going to sound engineering school. He mastered it and it still sounds like shyt...all flat and not crisp. So I guess it's the sound card...
Boomer187
its times like these that I am glad I bought an audiophile card :).

save and buy. its worth it.


although you might have a card conflict if you have a firewire card. I know I did, simple solution, never have the firewire card in.
Inertia
my soundcard is quite e, but i recorded some today, and it was surprisingly good quality.
joctane
Thank god some1 posted a message about this. I have the SAME PROBLEM...my mixes sound like when I record into Cool Edit 2000.

I have a SoundBlaster Live soundcard which I bought when I first purchased my computer.

I tried editing the mix in Cool Edit 2000 by normalizing it, amplifying the sound, increasing the loudness of it....but nothing comes of it.

So is the conclusion that its the soundcard???

If so, it seems most people are recommending the M-Audio Audiophile:conf:
stupidisco
quote:
Originally posted by joctane
Thank god some1 posted a message about this. I have the SAME PROBLEM...my mixes sound like when I record into Cool Edit 2000.

I have a SoundBlaster Live soundcard which I bought when I first purchased my computer.

I tried editing the mix in Cool Edit 2000 by normalizing it, amplifying the sound, increasing the loudness of it....but nothing comes of it.

So is the conclusion that its the soundcard???

If so, it seems most people are recommending the M-Audio Audiophile:conf:


m-audio audiophile 2496

its like $130.

ezbeats
well, probably sound card, who knows, it could be a combination of various things, but one thing i noticed when i first started to record mixes what i was 'overpowering' (dont think thats the best technical term, but oh well) certain things. like, the recording program, is there a bar that lets you see the 'db' or whatever thats called, basically how strong the signal is. usually its a bar that goes from green to yellow to red. same goes for your mixer, if your mixer has this option (most do, unless its a real p.o.s. mixer). try to kep the bars peaking at the yellow, or maybe 1 'click' or bar into the red. i used to have my mixer all the way up, and the signal would reach far into the red. the mix sounded very distorted and muddy, now i really focus on keeping them at the same level right at the yellow or barely, barely into the red. just a suggestion, i coulda used it earlier on, cause it makes a huge difference in sound quality for the recorded mix
Inertia
quote:
Originally posted by ezbeats
well, probably sound card, who knows, it could be a combination of various things, but one thing i noticed when i first started to record mixes what i was 'overpowering' (dont think thats the best technical term, but oh well) certain things. like, the recording program, is there a bar that lets you see the 'db' or whatever thats called, basically how strong the signal is. usually its a bar that goes from green to yellow to red. same goes for your mixer, if your mixer has this option (most do, unless its a real p.o.s. mixer). try to kep the bars peaking at the yellow, or maybe 1 'click' or bar into the red. i used to have my mixer all the way up, and the signal would reach far into the red. the mix sounded very distorted and muddy, now i really focus on keeping them at the same level right at the yellow or barely, barely into the red. just a suggestion, i coulda used it earlier on, cause it makes a huge difference in sound quality for the recorded mix


these are he decibels. actually, most mixers, aside from showing you this, have numbers next to each step. normally start somewhere near -8db and go up to like 6dB. you are supposed to peak at 0dB, and never go past it. going past 0dB is called clipping, this is bad, and it's why it's shown in red. also, consider headroom; most tracks have sections that are more charged than others, so i try to get tracks at -2dB when theyre starting, that way when they reach their climax it's at 0dB. it also gives me space to mess with my EQs and not go into the red.
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