First of all , i want to say Hi to everyone. Been lurking on AudioZ for quite some years. I tried to give back something to the community a few years ago , some DNB & Dubstep refills , sample packs , preset packs + various samples from producers . Since i lost interest in neurofunk , i decided a year ago to try and jump onto this trap trend. Since i m having a severe case of writers block , i ll be breaking down a lot of my "weird" hard trap projects and making a drum kit first , then a sample pack. Free for the community .
This is a track i mixed (well, at least tried to...) & then sent to a friend for some tweaks and feedback. After receiving the WAVE file , i re-tweaked it a bit.

Ask me anything about the track or if you want the drums , i ll zip em up and post a link here.

As for the mixing tips, a lot of dudes are asking me about the drum levels.
I keep things like this :

Fruity SOFT CLIPPER on the MASTER BUS with default settings.
KICK : -6db ( -3db or even 0db if i want them to really hit hard)
808 / Bass : I keep it always 3db lower then my kick. Most of the time it peaks at -9db.
Snare : 1db higher then the kick . Usually , -5db.
Hi - Hats : I usually find a level where they sound good , and after that i turn them down even more. But
if you want , -18db is a good starting point. Same goes for FX & Cymbals , Crashes.
Pads : -25db to -20db , just use your ears.
Leads : -15db to -9db .

As for monitors , i have KRK Rokit 6 G3 paired with the KRK 8s2 subwoofer , which i keep bypassed with a pedal tho , when i mix , all hooked up through a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. And as for another refference i have another pair of JBL LSR305. But , i ve got an untreated bedroom ,except for the isolationg pads ... So i always refference the eq curve of well mixed / mastered tracks.
Load up OZONE 8's EQUALIZER (works with 7 too) , select MATCHING and then click on -6DB.
Try to keep your track from 1khz to 20khz along that line.You could go 1 or 2 db higher , but don't overdo it. See picture below. Same principle as you would be matching the levels of your track using a PINK NOISE sample, but instead of the 3db per octave , you would be using 6db.



Cheers :D.


EDIT :

Since i already wrote a lot , decided to continue a bit more...
The dB levels i posted are subjective , they're my way of mixing down a track. I try to mix both visualy (using meters) and by ear. I was going to invest in a MIXCUBE , you know , the old passive AURATONE which is discontinued , but luckily there are some newer active versions from AVANTONE & (budget model) from Behringer. These are good for balancing all of your drums , instruments and especially vocals. There is a catch to it, everyone uses just one speaker, thus meaning mixing your track in MONO.
Due to financial problems, i did not manage to invest in one , yet, but i found a free alternative.
IMPULSE RESPONSES of an actual AURATONE 5C. ( as a bonus , i found some impulses of the YAMAHA NS10)
This is how i balance eveyrything using that impulse. I tend to use my headphones for this. Choose some good cans for mixing, flat . ( i've got the KRK KNS8400)
Use any vst to counteract that loss of the ghost center , which headphones don't have. Sorry if i made myself misunderstood, i m romanian, btw. I m reffering to vst's such as 112dB Redline Monitor, TB ISONE, Sonarworks Refference... In other words, vst's that help headphones translate to speakers.

I , personally, like 112dB Redline for that. Load it on the master channel. Then use any vst that can load Impulse Responses (IR) , example WAVES QCLONE. Just load the impulse and see how your track sounds, which frequency or what element stands out the most, since you 'll be hearing the mid-range mostly.

You get the point. I ll leave a link with the impulses for everyone to download , along with pictures of the settings i use. I DO NOT OWN the impulses. I remember downloading them long time ago from a website...





DOWNLOAD AURATONE 5C + YAMAHA NS10 IR

 

Last edited: Dec 13, 2017

Would love more like this, Thank you fine soul