Monterey Jack Final Mix

[mark skinner]

   Hello , here's a new instrumental I'm trying to finish up . I'm finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I put my Washburn Monterey custom studio guitar thru a workout. I'm Just now learning how to capture it.  Piezo and built in magnetic neck pickup (21st. fret) were used . Drums were cobbled together from 3 vst's , Ibanez active bass and piano thru an arpeggiator.  Any suggestions for improvement will be Greatly appreciated .     Thanks ..  mark Here's a mix I've settled on after everybody's help.                     - Final Mix-

Edited May 1, 2023 by mark skinner
New Mix

[Johnbee58]

Very pleasant o take in.  I don't hear anything that needs correcting.  Your playing is excellent and so is your production & mix.

?John B

[Bajan Blue]

Mark - excellent track and very nice guitar work.

I always struggle a bit with my piezo equipped guitars - but this sounds good - did you treat the guitar after recording?

Cool stuff

Nigel

 

[mark skinner]

 @Johnbee58 Thanks for the listen and compliment. @Bajan Blue Nigel , I actually treated the guitar tracks on this one as if I were playing an electric. L/R and lead guitar was sent to TH3.  Chorus, Randal "clean" amp (no cabinet), digital delay , and tremolo on the lead guitar. I also used Pro Channel "saturation" on the lead . It's also got a mild sweeping pan from "pancake". Cool Vst.  The biggest thing I've found for a couple of my guitars (going direct in) is an EQ preset in Quad Curve. It's called "big and bright". I think it used to be called J200. I'll usually adjust it some but it usually does a good job of removing a lot of the piezo quack. I prefer using a mic but this thin bodied guitar honestly doesn't sound that good but it's a Dream to play .   Thanks ..   mark                             

Edited April 23, 2023 by mark skinner

[treesha]

Sounds real good ! nice playing and tune and arrangement. Nice mood.  I like pancake too, the real ones and the vst. I listened a few moments to the first then when I scrolled down saw the second link, yes it does sound a bit cleaner.

[jack c.]

do i hear some steely dan tones?????????????less piano notes.beautiful chords/changes.jack c.

[steve@baselines.com]

Great!  Not to mention those interesting piano trills.  Well done and professional sounding.  Loved it.  Thanks for mentioning some of the products you use - got to check them out.

Steve

 

[bjornpdx]

Nothin' cheesy about this song (ha ha)
I don't understand guitar speak but whatever you did with the instrument, it sounds really good. Great job on this one.
-Bjorn

[daryl1968]

Great performance Mark. You pick some lovely chords out there. 

Nice mix but I'd like to hear more bass. 

[mark skinner]

@treesha Thank You for the listen and response . I just recently got pancake. I'm Really liking the "slow walker" preset. It adds a lot of depth to a guitar without being very obvious. 

17 hours ago, jack c. said:

less piano notes

I agree with you Jack. First time using an arpeggiator with a controller and not being a keyboard player ,  it's like having a new toy. I've now settled the track down but kept the fast flurries that I liked. The keys were the main thing I wasn't sure about in the song. Thanks for that. @steve@baselines.com  I Really appreciate that. I wish everyone would include a little info on how they processed their guitars.. @bjornpdx I try not to be too cheezy , sometimes it doesn't work out. Thank You. @daryl1968 I struggled with the bass on this one , and deleted several days work playing slap style with a different bass. I went with a more subdued track. I tried getting a little more presence on it in the remix. I guess funk should always highlight the kick/bass.     Thanks' for the observation.  The top Soundcloud link now reflects Remix 2. 

mark

[FreeEarCandy]

Very nice Mark. Your guitar work and arrangements are outstanding!

[noynekker]

Hey Mark . . . another fab creation from the southern stringmeister ! . . . amazing guitar work, you always deliver the goods. Really enjoyed this, it's very catchy, the piano gives a jazz combo feel, but the Monterey eventually steals the show. You really hit every fret on this one ! How many guitars do you actually have, not sure we've heard this one before ? (that's a nice looking guitar, you shouldn't just leave it laying in the leaves like that)

Edited April 24, 2023 by noynekker

[Larry T.]

Great work all around. I agree the bass could be coming through a bit cleaner/clearer. I've found that SI Bass is very clear and running aux tracks in Console View is a great way to adjust/correct although I don't use SI Bass too often as I usually play the bass with my Yamaha 4 string through a Focusrite Scarlett Solo interface and use multiple aux tracks to beef up/adjust the sound. Also, I do tend to record some of the instruments/VST's section by section (i.e. intro/verse1/verse2/chorus1/etcetera) which really gives me the freedom to adjust the sounds of each instrument in each section so as to get the best audio for that individual section. Very time consuming and takes more effort but I enjoy hearing the results????

Edited April 24, 2023 by Larry T.

[mark skinner]

 @FreeEarCandy Thanks , I always enjoy your Great creations as well. @noynekker Thanks for you time ,  comments and hits on my SoundCloud page. I for sure Don't have enough guitars. I got a real deal on this one. I talked the guy "up" $50.00 , he looked Real confused .. @Larry T. Thank You.. I'm curious about how you use aux tracks on a live bass? This one was an Ibanez that I rarely play.        mark

Edited April 24, 2023 by mark skinner

[Larry T.]

8 hours ago, mark skinner said:

@Larry T. Thank You.. I'm curious about how you use aux tracks on a live bass? This one was an Ibanez that I rarely play.        mark

Hi mark. Here's my work flow:

1. Create an Audio track.

2. Record via Scarlett audio interface my 4 string bass part.

3. Go to Console View. 

4. On the Audio bass track Left click the + on Sends. Left click on Aux Track.

5. Rename the aux track "aux 1 bass1" or whatever.

At this point I can use both tracks Pro Channel EQ for adjustments and/or create another aux track from the original (or the first aux track) to further manipulate the bass audio.

Here's a screenshot of my current project Velocity:

Edited April 24, 2023 by Larry T.

[Asato Maa]

Wow! Very bright and wonderful music! I listened with pleasure!
Did you specifically decide not to highlight the kick drum?

[Wookiee]

@mark skinner I may over use this with your music Mark but this is cool cool cool grooving  . Sounds well balanced on my Event 20/20's

[KSband]

Sounds real good, great recording.

 

[DeeringAmps]

?'s ?

What more is there to say but "most excellent!"

t

[Ross S]

Great work, excellent performance and production! ?