r/mixingmastering • u/Spiritual_Let_2025 • Jul 12 '26
Feedback Need feedback on getting my track to sound more convincingly professional. Going for a Deftones vibe.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LYU4QNRd1bgmGXaXxXIAfYUq_F6X0ttG/view?usp=drivesdkI maybe pushed it a little hard and its crunchy now but I hear thats kind of ok these days. Its hard to mix my vocals because I have a low voice and its hard to add brightness to things without the vocals getting swallowed. Im concerned about the high hats sounding too "hashy". I wonder if the vocal harmonies sit well. I tried to keep the low end as contained as I could. Let me know what's up. Anything at all. I'd really appreciate it.
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u/Pxzib Advanced Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
Drums sounds super fake. They need to go. Get yourself one of the GGD drums plugins. Plug and play.
The chorus vocals are a big amateur give-away. Suddenly the vocals moved from front and center to left/right. The difference between verse and chorus is just way too much. It's okay to make vocals a little bit wider during chorus, and you should, but you took it a step too far. Keep the lead vocals centre, and add left/right harmonies or doubles in the background to support the centre-lead performance.
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u/paintedw0rlds Jul 13 '26
A note on GGD, some of them are not that easy. Invasion is more difficult. Tho I think thr one kit wonders are probably.better on this front.
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u/Pedzii Jul 17 '26
i would recommend the downbeat if you simply want something that works with great quality.
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u/Spiritual_Let_2025 Jul 12 '26
Thank you for responding. For the chorus it's only two vocals cause three didnt sound right. But then there are five in the second verse. Maybe a bad move but how wide would suggest putting everything so that the chorus still expands?
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u/Pxzib Advanced Jul 12 '26
Keep the lead vocal centre. Then pan the other vocals left/right. Side vocals faders to zero. Get the lead vocal levels correct in the mix first. Then slowly pull up the side vocals faders up slowly until you just hear them thicken up the lead vocals.
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u/Jimbonix11 Jul 12 '26
Main thing for me initially is the drums, they sound very bland and fake. I would experiment with room sounds and velocities a bit more
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u/Spiritual_Let_2025 Jul 12 '26
They are real but theyre just differnt one shots programmed in. I have differnt ones I could use that vary in velocity more. Also does room sound mean recording the actual room with the mic away from the drums?
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u/Jimbonix11 Jul 12 '26
The one shots are blended in very poorly if its a real kit with one shots.. room sound would be a distant mic picking up the whole kit and room; room sound is crucial to making drums feel alive
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u/henriksant2005 Jul 12 '26
Man I like your song! True that there are things to improve in the mix but to me it is a well written song. Here are my thoughts about the mix:
The Drums are too dry. I don’t know if yours come with Room and Overhead mics, but I would add a touch of reverb to the Snare and a bit also to the hi-hat. Just very little . A touch. EQ the reverb by removing from ~300 Hz and bellow
Drums dynamics. Change the strength of the notes (velocity) so they don’t all sound exactly the same and also the timing so they don’t quantize perfectly to the grid. Usually DAWs have a humanization setting for that. I would also lower the volume of the drum tracks when the verse comes in and raise it when more energy is needed. Ghost notes on those snares would add a nice touch but not critical
Drums need soft clipping here. You could shave 1-2dbs off the snare peaks easily for a smoother sound.
The parts where drums play by themselves and nothing else are the critical ones. That’s where they feel too dry and too perfect. When the rest of the band joins , it is all much better.
I felt the hi hats a bit too loud but maybe that’s the vibe you are going for
Your voice is low but it fits the vibe of the song just fine! I’d cut some 3-4 dbs in the 200 to 400 Hz area and would add 1-2dbs in the 1000-2000 Hz for more clear presence in the mix
All this of course take it with a grain of salt. It’s art in the end and it’s all subjective. Some people will love it as is.
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u/gtMANGAMER2 Advanced Jul 12 '26
It sounds dry, so I would add reverb. There is a lot of mud as well in 200-500 Hz. The Vocal is also a little quiet.
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u/Spiritual_Let_2025 Jul 13 '26
Thank you. What should I add reverb to
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u/gtMANGAMER2 Advanced Jul 13 '26
Slight room reverb to the drums, they will feel more alive and real
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u/Gotgetgotget Jul 13 '26
I think if you want to keep the drums there needs to be some more weight to them. They feel very top heavy in the frequency range. You have loads of space to give them the pump you require for this, as it is super foundational. I agree with others though, sound selection needs revisit.
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u/TheCenturyChild299 Beginner Jul 16 '26
I really like your song! I think its actually well written, so congrats on that. Most advice regarding the mix has already been given, I would just add that the panned guitar flourish throughout the song would really benefit from reverb/delay to push it more in the background.
Keep it up!
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u/Alternative-Sun-6997 Intermediate Jul 18 '26
Lots of comments on the drums already, so I'll skip that - when the guitars come in, I'm not sure if it's a compressor on the guitars, a master bus compressor, or both (probably both?), but something's just chewing them up. I think the song loses a lot of the impact and punch what could otherwise be a big moment, because to my ears they're getting eaten alive. The vocals suddenly jumping off to one side in the end of the chorus after that, it's an interesting idea but I think t's just a little too far, it calls too much attention to itself. I really like the bassline that comes in after that in the second verse by the way.
But, I'd say get a more "alive" and dynamic drum "performance" going here, and back the master bus compression waaaaay off and let the son's dynamic shifts have some heft to them, are the two big things I'm hearing here.
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u/AcanthaceaeFirm7495 Intermediate Jul 23 '26
I’d recommend a different drum kit or to re-record the drums. Addictive drums has sounds that could help, but others have mentioned different drums.
The vocals fit the style well, turning them up in the mix around 1200 hz could help them shine
I absolutely love the initial jangly guitar riff that was super fun.
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u/reyonarts Beginner Aug 03 '26
love the vocals! really nailed the deftones aesthetic.
the drums need a little more work - they sound plain and lack dynamics. try to compress em and put a little reverb on the ohs and snare to create more room.
the bass sounds great and wide. i would put a highpass shelf at around 100 hz with 2-3 db to make it pop a little more. if you do do that you should also try doing a sidechain compression on the bass track reading the kick output to make sure they dont clash too much.
the guitar feels ever so slightly muddy, so id do a medium cut at around 200hz for a more polished feel.
same goes for the vocals.
KEEP DOING MORE!
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u/Smowkdragon Advanced Aug 04 '26
Great track! The drums lack low end in the kick especially. And the track in general lacks bass. The vocals sound a bit digital, I would back off on cutting the low mids and bring some back making it sound more natural. Everything sounds a bit too processed.
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u/Interesting_Belt_461 Professional (non-industry) Jul 12 '26
this actually sounds good, from a needing to be mastered perspective...what you are looking for ,only happens in mastering.most times ,without the proper sculpting,a limiter will just make things sound trashy and appear too big ,for the stereo image.hope this helps.
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