The audio equivalent of the "cinematic look" to video/movies

W

WhiteShadow

Active member
I notice other guys seem to be able to make good, "studio-quality" recordings from home that sound good on all devices, crisp, warm, and professional. When I try to ask them how its done, I get deer in headlights look. Everyone is either tight-lipped, or don't know how they themselves achieve it. I call it the "cinematic look" of audio. You know how movies/TV shows have that "cinematic look". Well, I'm wondering how people get that "studio sound" to their recordings.

As far as I've been able to glean from just pure research, trial/error, practice, and just interrogating and asking other people, they don't seem to have any magic plugins or hardware/software that I don't have, yet everyone else seems to be able to make killer sounding stuff that sounds good on all devices/platforms.

The best I can seem to do is to get it to sound decent coming out of my monitors inside the DAW, but when I export the file it just sound like this brittle, scratchy, terrible atrocity. It certainly does not sound warm, crisp, and professional.

What is the "trick"? I know there's got to be one!
 
I don't know how high quality my stuff is. But I use a mic (Sm7b or Rode K2) with mogami cables into and audient id14 interface (interface is very important)
I am recording at about 107 decibels into reaper. I make sure that the input isn't high enough to possible clip. I don't use any post eq. Don't know how. But I get a pretty decent sound. If I record a DI, it is high quality just because of my interface, which I already said is very important.
 
Smashedguitarist said:
I don't know how high quality my stuff is. But I use a mic (Sm7b or Rode K2) with mogami cables into and audient id14 interface (interface is very important)
I am recording at about 107 decibels into reaper. I make sure that the input isn't high enough to possible clip. I don't use any post eq. Don't know how. But I get a pretty decent sound. If I record a DI, it is high quality just because of my interface, which I already said is very important.
Click to expand...
Could you post a song? Would be good to hear how tricks you use. I have Reaper as well.
 
The problem is in your monitoring. If you have decent monitors, the problem may be how your workspace is set up (i.e. where are monitors set up relative to your listening position and the walls), room shape and lack of treatment causing hearing inaccuracies, and there's also something to be said for just having to adjust and "learn" your monitors and how things sound in your room. However, getting things sounding really good on your monitors and then things sounding drastically different (and bad) on every other system generally means you aren't hearing things right back at the monitors to begin with.
 
watch a lot of youtube vids. A/B your stuff with "pro" recordings. try different things. according to reaper i spent three hours a day for years to get good, it takes time
 
Sounds like your monitors are too-close to a wall. This will greatly exaggerate the low-end components of your mixes so you in turn adjust levels accordingly, resulting in the "thin, scratchy" mixes you mentioned.

So, based on what you've said, this could be the single most-important thing to get fixed. Simply bring them forward, away from the wall 'til commercial songs you know well sound balanced from lows through to highs.
 
WhiteShadow said:
I notice other guys seem to be able to make good, "studio-quality" recordings from home that sound good on all devices, crisp, warm, and professional. When I try to ask them how its done, I get deer in headlights look. Everyone is either tight-lipped, or don't know how they themselves achieve it. I call it the "cinematic look" of audio. You know how movies/TV shows have that "cinematic look". Well, I'm wondering how people get that "studio sound" to their recordings.

As far as I've been able to glean from just pure research, trial/error, practice, and just interrogating and asking other people, they don't seem to have any magic plugins or hardware/software that I don't have, yet everyone else seems to be able to make killer sounding stuff that sounds good on all devices/platforms.

The best I can seem to do is to get it to sound decent coming out of my monitors inside the DAW, but when I export the file it just sound like this brittle, scratchy, terrible atrocity. It certainly does not sound warm, crisp, and professional.

What is the "trick"? I know there's got to be one!
Click to expand...
I dabble a bit, and can assure you there's no trick - just like any other worthwhile discipline. If you want tips, I would probably say the opposite of many - and that is put most all your time into practice, trial and error - not videos and forums. Trust me, you'll ingest tonnes of bad information and waste untold hours. Many seem to hate this advice but deep down I'm sure they know it's legit. Want to serve like Federer? Watching the tennis for months really isn't the best method to get there.

Get in there, keep at it, and slowly things will start sounding better. And please don't fall into that 'everyone else' makes killer recordings trap. They do not. Most folks make terrible recordings that you never hear. After decades of playing guitar I still suck at Eruption, but it seems like 'everyone else' nails it. No - 0.01% of people nail it - and I hate them for it.

I don't quite understand your comment about 'decent inside the DAW'. If you're playing back from the DAW (presumably through your monitors) and then exporting from there, it should sound identical. Either something is up with your export method, or your monitoring is changing between these two steps.
 
Monkey Man said:
Sounds like your monitors are too-close to a wall. This will greatly exaggerate the low-end components of your mixes so you in turn adjust levels accordingly, resulting in the "thin, scratchy" mixes you mentioned.

So, based on what you've said, this could be the single most-important thing to get fixed. Simply bring them forward, away from the wall 'til commercial songs you know well sound balanced from lows through to highs.
Click to expand...
That is incredible advice..now i want to see if my monitors are too close to the wall, lol
 
Monkey Man said:
Sounds like your monitors are too-close to a wall. This will greatly exaggerate the low-end components of your mixes so you in turn adjust levels accordingly, resulting in the "thin, scratchy" mixes you mentioned.

So, based on what you've said, this could be the single most-important thing to get fixed. Simply bring them forward, away from the wall 'til commercial songs you know well sound balanced from lows through to highs.
Click to expand...

Totally correct. Another solution to get the low-end right or overcome bad monitoring env is to use a decent, balanced pair of headphone to assess the exact amount of low-end in your mix. For example, Beyer DT770 Pro 80 ohms version. Most people will tell you "it is not possible to mix with headphones yadda yadda" and it's simply not true. It will take practice, trial-and-errors and it is not ideal but it is still a very useful addition to low-end monitoring in an untreated room.

Another trick is to use reference mixes that you like (with similar musical content of course). A/B them constantly with your own mix until the overall balance is basically the same. It is not cheating. Even seasoned pros do it all the time. It really helps overcome ear-fatigue etc. because you have a constant reference.
 
Last edited:
OK, here goes.

A lot of us, that have been playing forever...have a sound in mind. The pursuit of that, is the journey that can (but mostly wont) turn into A sound that makes you happy.

Kids that don't have a mental catalog of sounds they're 'perusing' ... can make killer sounding shit because they just are better at recognizing killer sounding shit, without a target.

There are 100000 examples of great recordings done with $20 plugins and mediocre headphones. You ain't gotta have a treated room to rock.

That said, I move a big box around behind my sub in attempts to get the perfect low end from my studio monitors...

It's like the gym. Do it. Then do it again.
 
WhiteShadow said:
Click to expand...



for raw tracks this is pretty decent. the drums need some work, the snare is way loud and needs some reverb, the kick could probably come up a tad and the whole kit needs a bus compressor, the overall mix is gonna need a bus comp too. id say watch rick beatos "how the pros use" videos about eq and compression, they will give you the basic run down and good starting points.
 
WhiteShadow said:
I notice other guys seem to be able to make good, "studio-quality" recordings from home that sound good on all devices, crisp, warm, and professional. When I try to ask them how its done, I get deer in headlights look. Everyone is either tight-lipped, or don't know how they themselves achieve it. I call it the "cinematic look" of audio. You know how movies/TV shows have that "cinematic look". Well, I'm wondering how people get that "studio sound" to their recordings.

As far as I've been able to glean from just pure research, trial/error, practice, and just interrogating and asking other people, they don't seem to have any magic plugins or hardware/software that I don't have, yet everyone else seems to be able to make killer sounding stuff that sounds good on all devices/platforms.

The best I can seem to do is to get it to sound decent coming out of my monitors inside the DAW, but when I export the file it just sound like this brittle, scratchy, terrible atrocity. It certainly does not sound warm, crisp, and professional.

What is the "trick"? I know there's got to be one!
Click to expand...
Is this "that" sound? This is one of my tracks, I can talk you through how I do it no problem!



 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top