Getting professional grade recordings

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sirus1987

Inspired
Soooo Im not a super tech savvy person and have gotten a few OK recordings with the AXE FX, mostly with lead tones, but any time I try recording distorted rhythms they always come out kinda bassy and muffled. Even when I eq things properly and it always has some undesirable qualities and doesnt fit well in the mix. Now I dont think this has anything to do with the AXE FX per se, but probably more my lack of knowledge with recording and the fact that Im just going straight into the USB port. I literally have an kindergarten level of recording knowledge and dont know anything about mastering or anything of the like. Any advice on how to get professional quality recordings? Any settings or tricks or tips on how YOUR process works would be amazing
 
I'm no expert either, but something seems a little strange here. Do your tones sound correct via the AXE analog outputs? If you solo the track in your DAW does it sound the same? If not, I've seen some cases where people were accidentally applying a second amp in the DAW without even realizing it. That may or may not be the case here.

How are you recording and monitoring? What software, etc?

I'm sure other more experienced users will chime in once they know what you are using, etc.
 
Uh, . . . so what are you recording? JUST the Axe Fx, or other instruments as well? Are you using the Axe Fx as your audio interface or something else? I'm not sure I can help, but your question is very open ended and too general.
 
I find that most factory presets need to be brightened up, but this may be because i have tried most presets using an LTD C1000 that has EMG Active HB pickups. I have found that all the "Preset A Day' presets from November (found at the silentundergroundstudio dot com) sound just a bout perfect though, and perhaps this is because the presets were tweaked using a similar guitar and pickups form the same manufacturer. So maybe try one or more 'preset a day' presets, even if you have single coil pickups, you can get one free each day of February.
 
sirus1987 said:
Soooo Im not a super tech savvy person and have gotten a few OK recordings with the AXE FX, mostly with lead tones, but any time I try recording distorted rhythms they always come out kinda bassy and muffled. Even when I eq things properly and it always has some undesirable qualities and doesnt fit well in the mix. Now I dont think this has anything to do with the AXE FX per se, but probably more my lack of knowledge with recording and the fact that Im just going straight into the USB port. I literally have an kindergarten level of recording knowledge and dont know anything about mastering or anything of the like. Any advice on how to get professional quality recordings? Any settings or tricks or tips on how YOUR process works would be amazing
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YouTube is full of great information.

If you are starting at a really basic level, go to YouTube and starting searching recording guitars, mixing guitars, eq for guitars, or search particular to your style like: how to record and mix modern metal guitars.
 
it could be a number of things, but I get the feeling a big part of it might be the IR youre using. A lot of the stock ones are boomy/dark to my ears but there are a handful that sit really well in the mix (the TV basketweave (F103) is one off the top of my head). Another issue I think could be hindering you is that you arent used to dialing a tone designed to fit with other instruments, alone it'll sound full and all of those nice guitar tone adjectives but in actuality its fighting with your bass, kick drum, and cymbals. Guitar is a mid range instrument, dont be afraid to shave the top and bottom off because even if it sounds thin and wimpy alone it'll have the rhythm section backing it up at the end
 
what you'll always find is a great tone by itself is rarely a great tone in a mix. youtube isolated guitar tracks...they almost always sound meh to terrible by themselves. throw them in a mix with bass and drums and all of the sudden they are sitting exactly how they need to.
 
if you are serious about learning recording you should checkout creativelive.com ad services like nailthemix.com
later is great as you get access to top notch original material so you can reference and compare it to your own material and.

on Creative Live you will find tons of great and very helpful and indepth courses.. like mastering compression and eq, they cover lots of topics and its well presented

also there is tons of free material on the net.. but you need to wade through all the material
for free, http://therecordingrevolution.com/ offers also great material
https://www.youtube.com/user/recordingrevolution

but as a general matter, the tone of the guitars doesnt matter if the tone of drums and bass are not delivering..
its all about the big picure. and Drums and Bass are setting the foundation of your mix.
if your guitar sound alone is great, it doesnt mean it will transfer great onto a recording
i found myself struggling lots of years bout guitar tone, but the guitar tone wasnt the issue, i was on a wrong road, it always the lack on drums and bass. once i got better with that.

there is no easy solution for that except for dedication and patience
there is not one single rule, but its more a decision about hundreds of small details that will distribute to the whole picture.

sure they are general rules like,
- find the proper amount of gain, but use as less gain as possible with not sound undergained, and instead pick harder, for more punch and clarity
- dont use old and dead sounding strgings
- find the right IR/UR for a well balanced tone
- proper gain staging
- literally use highpass filter almost everywhere :)
- learn how to hear and notch out distracting frequeny in the frequence spectrum of the recorded guitar tone that will make your sound more definied and less washy

and it the end, its all in the hands, play well and play tight :)
 
Recording and mixing are both arts in their own right. Some guys only mix, and some only engineer.. it will not be an overnight thing, and no magic wand. you have to learn how to put things in their own sonic space, don't jump for the eq.. if you do eq, cut instead of boost, lots of boosting here and there add up to a bunch of crap in the end.
 
I find it very helpful to record tracks DI, and then reamp them in the mix. You have an entirely perspective when listening without playing.
 
sirus1987 said:
they always come out kinda bassy and muffled. Even when I eq things properly
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These two statements are contradictory. In a mix guitars can't be EQ'ed the same as when you listen to them soloed. They are going to interfere with the bass and drums and anything else you have in the mix. Try using a high-pass filter so the guitar is not competing with the bass for starters.
 
One thing to check is your input settings (far left of the grid). Some of the impedence options, other than "Auto", can produce a muffling effect, filtering off some of the high frequencies.
 
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Trial and error I'm afraid ...and many years with "ah ha" moments dotted around.

First thing I would do is nail down the frequency spectrum. Learn where mids are or various instruments. Learn where the bass frequencies normally lie. Then eventually you'll have a mental map of where things go on a general basis.
By going to find that information you'll no doubt run into more information along the way,
 
You could write a book on the answer to your question and still not answere it! Post a recording so we can listen and offer advice that is applicable to your situation.
 
I used to work as a professional photographer for the better part of a decade. People often asked after viewing my photos, "how do I take professional photos like these?". My answer was simple, I got them my business card and advised them that I would be happy to have them hire me to take their professional photos.

Recording is essentially the same thing. Its a skill and artform, but its also a business. I know a ton of guys who own smaller recording studio's, who invested a ton of money into outfitting it with nice gear, and that charge really reasonable rates, and that have the know-how to make any band sound their best. These guys are trying to support themselves and their families while doing what they live. So..... how do you get professional quality recordings ? Hire a professional to record your tracks, expertly mix them down, master them, and then provide you with a nice finished product.

Now, I'm not knocking doing some DIY home recording, its fantastic we have so many tools to be able to do get demo's at home, and they can sound pretty good, BUT, at the same time, buying an Ableton Live license, or a USB condensor mic etc, is not a shortcut. Watching a 30 minute Youtube clip on how to record isn't going to replace the decades of recording experience professionals have.

Want to record some stuff at home? Internet is full of help. Want to have a professional recording ? Two choices.... 1) hire a professional engineer, or 2) quit your job and spend the next couple of years learning to master your craft, hopefully under the study of someone who knows what they are doing and teach you the in/outs. Be advised that your not just going to show up and ask an engineer or producer to give you all their secrets, you might have to help out out the studio, sweep floors etc to earn your way, and then they might let you start out with some hands on stuff and build your skills.

Long story short, just hire a professional. Couple hours time with someone who knows exactly what they are doing will be money well spent, time well spent, time used efficiently, and you'll end up with a professional sounding track.
 
The tools available to the average person now are ridiculous and very very good.

I use two basic approaches.

1. I have an idea in my head of what I want. I take where I am with the mix, and focus completely on moving it to what I am hearing in my head.

2. I want my mix to sound like someone else's mix. By this I mean have the same vibe, energy, excitement, polish. I move my mix towards my "reference" mix.

Approach #2 is easier, even if you never get your mixes to sound as good as the reference. The reason is you can Google research about the reference mix and get information about how it was done. You can study who mixed the record etc. You can use tools in your DAW to A/B your mix to the reference. You can use tools in your DAW to analyze the reference for things like, overall level, overall compression, crest factor, frequency content, panning etc.

Something as simple as just looking at the waveform display of your mix vs. the reference can be revealing.

One thing that is not obvious is, incredible sounding records start with incredible songs. Followed by incredible arrangement. Followed by incredible performances.

The mixer is enhancing something really great to begin with. If you are home recording, be honest about the song, arrangement and performance. Be realistic about how much better a great mix would make.
 
Use other recordings as a tone reference as barhrecords mentioned. Find some of the multi track recordings and study these tracks. These particular things don't replace learning the different tools and techniques available (you will never stop learning these things) but they provide a reference for your end product and keep you pointed in the right direction.
 
guitarmike said:
Use other recordings as a tone reference as barhrecords mentioned. Find some of the multi track recordings and study these tracks. These particular things don't replace learning the different tools and techniques available (you will never stop learning these things) but they provide a reference for your end product and keep you pointed in the right direction.
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References help too if your room or monitors have issues.

By playing and listening, on your own system, to a reference track that you trust to be good. If you get your tracks sounding similar, you can get in the ballgame.
 
sirus1987 said:
Soooo Im not a super tech savvy person and have gotten a few OK recordings with the AXE FX, mostly with lead tones, but any time I try recording distorted rhythms they always come out kinda bassy and muffled. Even when I eq things properly and it always has some undesirable qualities and doesnt fit well in the mix. Now I dont think this has anything to do with the AXE FX per se, but probably more my lack of knowledge with recording and the fact that Im just going straight into the USB port. I literally have an kindergarten level of recording knowledge and dont know anything about mastering or anything of the like. Any advice on how to get professional quality recordings? Any settings or tricks or tips on how YOUR process works would be amazing
Click to expand...
Mixing secrets for a small studio is a great book to check out!
 
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