Hi team how's it going

I need help with my mixing
everything sounds good after I have mastered it's just that it sound all squashed

I have an idea it's a lack of have a great knowledge of using the reverb correctly

I don't use many plugins on my channels
Just EQ Compression and what ever is needed after that and then reverb that to only on some instruments

Could anyone guide me on how to solve this issue I'm having

If I was to use reverb on instruments what type of reverb should it be?

Should I use the same reverb on all of my instruments with same settings? Or mix them invidually

Should there be a diffrent reverb on the drums and instruments?

Or should I add reverb in the mastering process

Please guide me

 

An audio example would be useful. Additionally, 'squashed' isn't something I'd associate with a lack of reverb, more with too much compression and limiting.

 

You may well be right because I do compress every channel should stop compressing instruments

Also I use a limiter heavily when I'm mixing to reach the desired LUF

 

I think you've answered your own question. I've been guilty of working on a song and excitedly adding parts on top of other parts, overdubbing, then eq'ing and compressing on the fly, then slapping a compressor and limiter on the master. Then wondering why all my good work isn't shining. It's because I didn't mix the track. You need to go back, pull the faders down, takes the compression off each individual track and one by one rebuild your song. Get the kick and bass locked in. Then think about what the vital elements are. A vocal, a synth line, pads? .... not everything has to be of equal loudness. Dynamics is a good thing. Get a balance then see what needs eq. Regarding reverb, I try and keep it down to two. Place them on an Aux, one for a short room reverb and one for a hall or large room. Imagine your song is being performed live. You'd want to hear the drums tight. So in a room. For a vocal, a big space is lush and warming. Many other instruments can stay dry. This will also help with space and clarity. Your mix will open up. I hope this helps. Mixing well isn't easy but if you're methodical and aware of what you are trying to achieve you will get there. Don't jump ahead to mastering while you mix either. @No Avenger will agree.

 

Hey thanks for the advise that has helped me alot

Thanks a million

 

Would it be worth using a maximiser instead of a limiter to push the loudness up?

 

I will do wot?

@abbas786, the higher the LUFS, the more it'll sound squashed. I don't know of any mixing technique that will keep a song alive at -5LUFS.

And a maximzer is on principle the same as a limiter. A limiter chops off the peaks above the threshold and after that you set the output. A maximizer rises the input which is then chopped off at 0dB.

 

Last edited: Aug 11, 2020

Max LUFS for streaming is -14 ... I mixed many songs at -5 LUFS(ish) and have since gone to -10 and find it much more open and dynamic...To my ears anyway! Best of luck fam!

 

"reverb in the mastering stage"?? Wait. Hold up. Start from the top. Post an example. Then tell us what you have done. Otherwise it's just guessing games, like "did you put a compressor or limiter on the master, squashing things to bits?".

You make the mix sound good without anything on the master. Try that and your mixes (and masters) will become better.

 

Use less compression. Learn what attack and release do, and then adjust accordingly.

Reverb has nothing to do with sounding "squashed"

You can overcook something with a single plugin if it's not set in a tasteful manner that benefits the song

The one that helps the song. Depends on the song

If the instruments sound better with different reverbs, use different reverbs. If they sound better with the same reverb, use the same reverb. Simple

Depends on the instruments and the song. Acoustic guitar playing percussively in a fast song will need different reverb than slow strings in a ballad

You can, if the song needs more reverb overall. There are no rules. Try it and see if it sounds better with it. There's no way to know without checking

You don't limit to a specific LUFS number. While there is a number, this is a guideline. You limit to what sounds good, keeping in mind the area you need to be in. You also should probably check similar songs and learn what they are using.

It's exactly the same as a limiter

"Max LUFS" is a gross misunderstanding. Plenty of successful and great sounding releases are more than -14 LUFS. For some genres, it's an important part of the sound. Best of all is to reference professional "known-good" tracks and make an informed decision. -14 LUFS is not a magic number that guarantees your master will sound good, you have to check with similar songs that are good to get the results you're after

 

Sorry I meant max LUFS for streaming services...They will turn your mixes down once they exceed -14 (some go to -12). There is no "magic" number for anything lol...Just a guideline, the louder and more crushed you make your music to get maximum rms levels the smaller and more boxed in your mix will sound...especially once the streaming service turns it down even more.

 

5 seconds sample before and after master output track

 

Hi guys I have fixed the issue by turning off compressor and limiter

When I was mixing I had left quiet abit of headroom

Now I want to make my master loud around -14 luf how do I make it loud without messing it up ?

 

I use cubase 10.5

 

You are funny.

What LUFS has the mix and at which TP, mind you?

On principle you can use subtle tape compression and a clean limiter with ISP option (on, ofc). But is the mix good enough to not need any 'special' treatment (depth, RMS vs peak, saturation, eqing)?

 

You don't reach the loudness only with a limiter.Good EQ and saturation,pan-mid/side,selecting the right sounds/instruments according their dominant frequencies,voicing may help too.Your track will sound effortlessly louder,fuller if you take the good decisions.
Using compression and limiting is not forbidden if you do it the right way and don't overdo it.

Personnally I use more than 2 reverbs for a track.I like to give a special ambience to the different groups of instruments.Be careful,using them too much makes the song muddy and not pleasant.Using a delay instead of a reverb may be a wiser choice sometimes.

 

split the "heavy duty" across more than 1 "machine/plugin" so you can control it all the way thru.

instead of smashing +11db on 1 unit, split it into 3 or 4 each doing only +2-3db

lowpass everything that needs it before you start squashing.