# Best mixes you've heard



## Bluemount Score (Sep 16, 2020)

Just curious for some examples of music you heared that you consider as very well mixed. Mainly interested in orchestral tracks, but could be literally anything, samples or live recorded.


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## Locks (Sep 16, 2020)

Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".


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## Bluemount Score (Sep 16, 2020)

Locks said:


> Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".



Thank you, I have to very much agree, this is great


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## Uiroo (Sep 16, 2020)

Orchestral wise it would be this:


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## ChrisSiuMusic (Sep 16, 2020)

One of my favourites:


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## doctoremmet (Sep 16, 2020)

Locks said:


> Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".



This is indeed a gorgeous example of a great mix. I think I may have mentioned this one before, but one of my favourite mixes in the pop domain is Blue Nile’s album A Walk Across The Rooftops. Especially the title track:


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## Jimmy Hellfire (Sep 16, 2020)

I rarely listen to orchestral music - not a lot to contribute here.

But as far as rock goes, this is an incredible production.


It's very dynamic and yet powerful and transparent - extremely unusual, going by contemporary standards.

And: the drums sound like actual goddamn drums! You simply don't hear drums any more. You hear a bunch of bullshit, but not drums. It's a lost art. This here sounds absolutely fantastic. Having a drummer of that caliber of course helps matters as well.


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## ProfoundSilence (Sep 16, 2020)

This one is on my list of things I struggle to find fault with. 

Other than that, I think the last jedi is probably my favorite orchestral score mix at the moment.


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## b_elliott (Sep 16, 2020)

I like what has been posted by others above.

Lately nothing orchestral has blown me away. 

However this small ensemble showed up on my radar. Even on my cheap-ass pc speakers it sounds great. An impressive mixing job.

I am led to believe that a large % of the listening audience is likely hearing your product on a mono system so this factor plays heavily on a mix engineer's mind.



Audio Engineer listed as Leon Michaels.


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## Simon Schrenk (Sep 16, 2020)

Whenever I hear such a question, this track pops up in my head:


The song starts at around 0:55min.
The whole sound choices are so pleasing to my ears (especially the synth bass - man, do I love Matt Johnson)... just love the whole mix! Sounds warm, not too bright, but very very high class...


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## Vin (Sep 16, 2020)




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## doctoremmet (Sep 16, 2020)

Vin said:


>



Talk Talk +1


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## Jimmy Hellfire (Sep 16, 2020)

ProfoundSilence said:


> This one is on my list of things I struggle to find fault with.




The fault was at 00:02, the alleged "bass drum", followed by the "snare" sound.


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## whinecellar (Sep 16, 2020)

In the orchestral world, many (if not most) of James Newton Howard's scores are just sublime. And of course many of Zimmer's classics - I still think Gladiator is one of the best recorded & mixed scores of all time. I'm very fortunate to have a pair of large PMC mastering monitors - put on "The Might of Rome" and prepare for assault on your chest cavity. Freaking insane.

In the synth/electronic world, BT's new record "The Lost Art Of Longing" is a master work - so inspiring on every level.


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## Kent (Sep 16, 2020)

Anything on Bob Katz's Honor Roll is pretty stellar:









Honor Roll - Digido.com


Digital Domain - we ensure musicians, independent artists and record labels get the best sound possible. Bob Katz provides the best in mastering and mixing.



www.digido.com





::edit::

A few videos of things on that list, from softest to loudest ^ (though I do recommend reading Katz's thoughts on each)


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## Kent (Sep 16, 2020)

And on the topic of Steely Dan (& co.), here are the classic Engineer favorites for learning the sound of a room:


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## GNP (Sep 16, 2020)

I keep listening to HZ's Sherlock Holmes score and can't keep help but thinking...damn, it's really well mixed! Fucking Alan Meyerson


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## Akarin (Sep 16, 2020)

This is my favorite orchestral mix:



Everything is so clear and you can hear the room and the placements.


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## Geomir (Sep 16, 2020)

Rick Rubin, back in 1986, worked his miracle with Slayer's "Reign in Blood" album.


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## DrSgtShock (Sep 16, 2020)

Behemoth's The Satanist is probably the best, modern, all-around metal mix I can think of.


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## el-bo (Sep 16, 2020)

Locks said:


> Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".




It's strange, because when I hear more recent (Let's say, 'In Rainbows' onward) Radiohead material, I think that the mixes aren't what would be traditionally thought as great. Far from it, in fact. I don't really hear glue. I hear disparate elements that occupy much more of the stereo-field than apparently we are supposed to, these days.

Listen to that tambourine in the left-speaker - Rough as hell (Not a whiff of quantise, audio-tidying etc.), and I'd venture - way too loud. But it's great! Feels real and live, and these elements tickle me even more when I listen in headphones, as I mostly do.

I think this direction was definitely informed by Thom's first solo album, which is so beautifully raw:



Takes me back to the four-track days. Really feel like I'm in the same room as him.

Yesterday, I sa saw an interesting video which seems to turn the idea of balance somewhat on it's head:



---
-----

Anyway, to circle back to the topic at-hand, here are a few examples that come to mind:

Still one of the best sounding albums I've heard is 'Mind Bomb' by The The:



Then there's 'Secrets Of The Beehive' by David Sylvian; this gem, in particular. Pretty dense mix. Lot's of stuff happening, and yet they still manage to capture and reveal the depth of David's voice. Liquid/Sonic gold, I tells ya:



And lastly, no mix list would be complete without a proper schooling. Trevor Horn demonstrating that a great mix starts with a great arrangement:


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## Scoremixer (Sep 16, 2020)

GNP said:


> I keep listening to HZ's Sherlock Holmes score and can't keep help but thinking...damn, it's really well mixed! Fucking Alan Meyerson



If it's the first film, then it's mixed by Geoff Foster fyi


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## bill5 (Sep 17, 2020)

Steely Dan was what immediately popped in my head, Aja especially. Fleetwood Mac's Rumours also comes to mind. And while people gush over Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon (again just speaking production-wise), I thought Animals never got its due. Also several of the Beatles' later albums weren't exactly chopped liver. 

Edit: good grief. How could I forget Alan Parsons. e.g. Turn of a Friendly Card.


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## Locks (Sep 18, 2020)

el-bo said:


> It's strange, because when I hear more recent (Let's say, 'In Rainbows' onward) Radiohead material, I think that the mixes aren't what would be traditionally thought as great. Far from it, in fact. I don't really hear glue. I hear disparate elements that occupy much more of the stereo-field than apparently we are supposed to, these days.



I would agree with that. It's an LCR style mix (where everything is either centre or hard-panned left/right) so definitely a non-traditional approach. One of the biggest issues with this mixing technique is that they have pretty poor mono compatibility because all the hard-panned parts lose 6 dB when mono summed so a lot of elements can get pushed to the background.

But I think it really works well for this track. The stereo spacing of the percussion sounds great and the mixing is done so well that it still sounds great in mono even though a few elements get pushed back a bit.


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## el-bo (Sep 19, 2020)

Locks said:


> I would agree with that. It's an LCR style mix (where everything is either centre or hard-panned left/right) so definitely a non-traditional approach. One of the biggest issues with this mixing technique is that they have pretty poor mono compatibility because all the hard-panned parts lose 6 dB when mono summed so a lot of elements can get pushed to the background.
> 
> But I think it really works well for this track. The stereo spacing of the percussion sounds great and the mixing is done so well that it still sounds great in mono even though a few elements get pushed back a bit.



Not ever tried listening to these in mono, but I might try it. I do most of my music-listening on headphones, these days, so that already gives a skewed perspective of the mix. I might try listening to the last albums on speakers, to get another experience.

Cheers!


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## doctoremmet (Sep 19, 2020)

el-bo said:


> It's strange, because when I hear more recent (Let's say, 'In Rainbows' onward) Radiohead material, I think that the mixes aren't what would be traditionally thought as great. Far from it, in fact. I don't really hear glue. I hear disparate elements that occupy much more of the stereo-field than apparently we are supposed to, these days.
> 
> Listen to that tambourine in the left-speaker - Rough as hell (Not a whiff of quantise, audio-tidying etc.), and I'd venture - way too loud. But it's great! Feels real and live, and these elements tickle me even more when I listen in headphones, as I mostly do.
> 
> ...



Whoa. I have all of those albums. The Sylvian one is indeed mixed to perfection. His live act around this time (well, one year later - 1988) had one of the most incredibly good bands you’ll ever hear. I used to have a cassette bootleg of a gig. Mark Isham, David Torn, Ian Maidman, Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri. With Torn on fretless guitar, it was really sounding HiFi and polished yet raw. Their live mix equalled the record’s so to speak haha. The entire thing is on YT now of course in reasonable audio quality. The very last song they play (off of the 1986 Gone To Earth album, the title track) is the best one of that set. Mark Isham and Torn are doing solos that still give me goosebumps every time I hear them.



Song starts at 55.10. Worth every minute of your time.


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## doctoremmet (Sep 19, 2020)

Weird. My original YT link was changed?! Now it has a link to Orpheus? It was a link to a concert called In Praise Of Shamans, 1988.


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## Dietz (Sep 19, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> I still think Gladiator is one of the best recorded & mixed scores of all time.


+1!

Trivia: I seem to remember Alan Meyerson mentioning the fact that this was one of the last "true" analogue mixes he did (... talking about scores of that size, that is).

... but then, the sound he achieved for the "Inception" score isn't flimsy either! 8-)


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## classified_the_x (Sep 19, 2020)

that last Demi Lovato track.

seriously, nowadays most pop tracks are well mixed. think Dua Lipa... I don't like EDM mixing so much though...

don't like 80s and 90s pop rock mixes neither. but current pop stuff is usually well done


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## J-M (Sep 19, 2020)

ProfoundSilence said:


> This one is on my list of things I struggle to find fault with.
> 
> Other than that, I think the last jedi is probably my favorite orchestral score mix at the moment.




I generally struggle to find fault in Adam "Nolly" Getgood's mixes. I still remember the days when he was just a great guitar player. Then he just decided to get good at lot of things (pun intended)...


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## darcvision (Sep 19, 2020)

doctoremmet said:


> Whoa. I have all of those albums. The Sylvian one is indeed mixed to perfection. His live act around this time (well, one year later - 1988) had one of the most incredibly good bands you’ll ever hear. I used to have a cassette bootleg of a gig. Mark Isham, David Torn, Ian Maidman, Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri. With Torn on fretless guitar, it was really sounding HiFi and polished yet raw. Their live mix equalled the record’s so to speak haha. The entire thing is on YT now of course in reasonable audio quality. The very last song they play (off of the 1986 Gone To Earth album, the title track) is the best one of that set. Mark Isham and Torn are doing solos that still give me goosebumps every time I hear them.
> 
> 
> 
> Song starts at 55.10. Worth every minute of your time.



first time i heard david sylvian is from merry christmas mr lawrence which a collaboration with ryuichi sakamoto, also i'm suprised he's doing ending music for anime called monster. i like his voice, very calming and relaxing. btw here's the track


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## bill5 (Sep 19, 2020)

I haven't heard of half the people y'all are talking about. Thanks for making me feel old. :(


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## storyteller (Sep 19, 2020)

i just added a pair of Auratone 5c monitors and it has really been an fun adventure in hearing good mixes versus bad mixes on them. Even mixes I thought were good show their warts with them. That said, I think the best mixed modern pop song I’ve listened to recently is Bad Liar by Imagine Dragons. I think there is a bit too much parallel compression between the kick and bass, but the mix is really REALLY well done. For all those that think Radioactive sounds good as a grungy modern rock reference track, you will have your eyes and ears opened between the two tracks. The video is pretty cool too!


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## Rasoul Morteza (Sep 19, 2020)

The recent Total War: Troy soundtrack mixes were very impressive, at least to my ears.

Cheers


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## Morning Coffee (Sep 19, 2020)

The Beatles, Yellow Submarine album (Side B is more orchestral focused.). I still like it after all these years!





Adele, 21 album. (great all-round, contemporary pop, organic sounding album mix.)


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## tebling (Sep 19, 2020)

If we're talking about legends of engineering, this thread isn't complete without mentioning *Alan Parsons*. Here's a gem:


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## Sunny Schramm (Sep 20, 2020)

Interesting view on mixing:


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## Saxer (Sep 20, 2020)

I love this mix. Especially how the voice cuts through at this low level.




Beautiful orchestra & voice


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## el-bo (Sep 20, 2020)

doctoremmet said:


> Whoa. I have all of those albums. The Sylvian one is indeed mixed to perfection. His live act around this time (well, one year later - 1988) had one of the most incredibly good bands you’ll ever hear. I used to have a cassette bootleg of a gig. Mark Isham, David Torn, Ian Maidman, Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri. With Torn on fretless guitar, it was really sounding HiFi and polished yet raw. Their live mix equalled the record’s so to speak haha. The entire thing is on YT now of course in reasonable audio quality. The very last song they play (off of the 1986 Gone To Earth album, the title track) is the best one of that set. Mark Isham and Torn are doing solos that still give me goosebumps every time I hear them.
> 
> 
> 
> Song starts at 55.10. Worth every minute of your time.




Haha! We've had this conversation, before  A timely reminder, however, as I didn't listen to the whole of that gig. It sounds great. And because of the quality of the recording, it takes very well to some eq'ing :D

Cheers!


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## el-bo (Sep 20, 2020)

stefandy31 said:


> first time i heard david sylvian is from merry christmas mr lawrence which a collaboration with ryuichi sakamoto, also i'm suprised he's doing ending music for anime called monster. i like his voice, very calming and relaxing. btw here's the track




That Sylvian/Sakamoto collaboration is actually on the same album that the track I posted is from (Secrets Of The Beehive). I'd definitely recommend the whole album. And thanks for that track...Never heard it before.


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## Kent (Sep 20, 2020)

storyteller said:


> i just added a pair of Auratone 5c monitors and it has really been an fun adventure in hearing good mixes versus bad mixes on them. Even mixes I thought were good show their warts with them. That said, I think the best mixed modern pop song I’ve listened to recently is Bad Liar by Imagine Dragons. I think there is a bit too much parallel compression between the kick and bass, but the mix is really REALLY well done. For all those that think Radioactive sounds good as a grungy modern rock reference track, you will have your eyes and ears opened between the two tracks. The video is pretty cool too!



Listen to the Thriller album on them. About 80% of the mix was done exclusively on them and it shows!


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## Markrs (Sep 20, 2020)

Decided to pick a live concert and a youtube one at that! This is part of Spotify's Landmark series. It is Tears For Fears and it sounds great for a live performance (as does the band)


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## doctoremmet (Sep 20, 2020)

el-bo said:


> Haha! We've had this conversation, before  A timely reminder, however, as I didn't listen to the whole of that gig. It sounds great. And because of the quality of the recording, it takes very well to some eq'ing :D
> 
> Cheers!


I repeat myself haha. At least I’m consistent. And yes... that concert is great.


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## doctoremmet (Sep 20, 2020)

el-bo said:


> That Sylvian/Sakamoto collaboration is actually on the same album that the track I posted is from (Secrets Of The Beehive). I'd definitely recommend the whole album. And thanks for that track...Never heard it before.


The original single version has a slightly different arrangement IIRC. Some of the melody lines are done with synths, whereas the Secrets Of The Beehive version has a strings arrangement.


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## el-bo (Sep 20, 2020)

Markrs said:


> Decided to pick a live concert and a youtube one at that! This is part of Spotify's Landmark series. It is Tears For Fears and it sounds great for a live performance (as does the band)




Haha! I actually considered posting this, but the 'live' aspect made me decide against it. SFTBC is still a fantastic album, and 'The Working Hour' is one of my favourites tracks. This version is great, and I had it on repeat, pretty obsessively, for a period a couple of years ago.


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## el-bo (Sep 20, 2020)

doctoremmet said:


> The original single version has a slightly different arrangement IIRC. Some of the melody lines are done with synths, whereas the Secrets Of The Beehive version has a strings arrangement.



Interesting! Will check it out


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## Markrs (Sep 20, 2020)

el-bo said:


> Haha! I actually considered posting this, but the 'live' aspect made me decide against it. SFTBC is still a fantastic album, and 'The Working Hour' is one of my favourites tracks. This version is great, and I had it on repeat, pretty obsessively, for a period a couple of years ago.


It is interesting there is a 100+ thread on their discussing the mix and how good it is. I also had a quick listen to a BBC concert of theirs, the difference it the recording and mix quality is very stark


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## bill5 (Sep 20, 2020)

tebling said:


> If we're talking about legends of engineering, this thread isn't complete without mentioning *Alan Parsons*.


I already mentioned him. Catch up!


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## Ryan Fultz (Sep 21, 2020)

Personally, these kill me:


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## ManicMiner (Sep 21, 2020)

Not orchestral, but I've been enjoying the production quality on this guy Pete Bellis, *1:07* onwards.
Its not overcrowded, not a lot of elements, but the elements that are there have a lot of space.
Kick/bass right balance, great low end.


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## Broojacker (Sep 23, 2020)

Interesting theme and various cool mixes.
My favorite game orchestral sound is Dark Void (2010).
It`s huge persussion and latemotive make me excited.


Greatest mid close orchestral ethnic sound and non standard signature Shadows of Mordor(2014)


And bonus one of the greatest modern metal smooth sound that I heard:
Soilwork - Stabbing the Drama (2005).


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## Saxer (Sep 23, 2020)




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## Wunderhorn (Sep 23, 2020)

For orchestral music, *Lauri Porra's Entropia* album (on BIS) sounds fantastic. Detailed yet powerful, great mix IMHO. I have the SACD and 5.1 Flac files. Highly recommended.

Unfortunately it's not on Youtube.
But here is the publisher's sound bites:






BIS Records - Lauri Porra - Entropia


Electric bass, rap, and orchestra Great-grandson of composer Jean Sibelius, Lauri Porra began playing the cello at the age of six, but later switched to bass guitar. In addition




bis.se





For non-orchestral I love *Afro Celt's "Flight"* album, so well balanced, full and the mix does not get out of shape at really high volumes.


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## NekujaK (Sep 23, 2020)

For acoustic music, anything from Alison Krauss & Union Station. Simply gorgeous mixes:


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## Ruffian Price (Sep 23, 2020)

Broojacker said:


> My favorite game orchestral sound is Dark Void (2010).


Interesting! My go-to reference is McCreary's next game soundtrack, SOCOM 4 (2011). Completely forgettable title otherwise if not for that amazing mix IMO. Especially impressive how they blended separate recording sessions in different spaces, ending up with some ridiculously clean percussion:

(I know, makes no sense to link YT as an example for transient clarity. But what can you do)


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## ed buller (Sep 23, 2020)

Anything by Alan Meyerson !

best

ed


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## Bluemount Score (Sep 23, 2020)

ed buller said:


> Anything by Alan Meyerson !
> 
> best
> 
> ed


A mixing engineer once told me that the beginning of a track of mine sounded like an Alan Meyerson mix. I printed that compliment out and hung it up in every room.


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## BlackLP (Sep 24, 2020)

Lately, I am loving the new Ulver's album in its entirety, the mix included.

It's a very simple album instrumental-wise speaking. This song only has drums, bass, guitars (not doubled), a few keyboards, main voice (not doubled) and chorus voices, but all those elements sound really well balanced and really "organic" and "natural".

I think though that the mix is so great because the arrangement already works by itself. Again, "orchestration" is the first mix.

For me, this album is one those of examples for "Less is more."


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## tf-drone (Sep 24, 2020)

probably this one, quite innovative.


But seriously, if you are looking for orchestral mixes, there are many High End Labels. Try HYPERION or LINN, or ECM for jazz. Just to name a few.


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## BlackLP (Sep 24, 2020)

el-bo said:


> Yesterday, I sa saw an interesting video which seems to turn the idea of balance somewhat on it's head:




That video is very interesting.

It reminds me of this song, in which, at least listening in my home studio, at the minute 04:31 the guitar solo is absolutely "unglued" from the mix, totally at the right front of the "stage." It's funny because I don't feel that effect so clearly listening with headphones, so it can't be just a matter of panning and volume.



P.S: That's the exact moment where my heart cracks listening to that album.


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## Rory (Sep 24, 2020)

kmaster said:


> Anything on Bob Katz's Honor Roll is pretty stellar:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Also on Bob Katz's list, Traffic's _The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys._ Katz's comment:

_"_The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys – Traffic
Remastered from the original tapes by Jeff Willens. Engineered by Brian Humphries. This CD deserves special merit for a very classy, clean modern technology digital transfer, very transparent, revealing a great, historic 1971 mix. Years of veils have been removed to show how well it could be done back then (but rarely duplicated). Monitor gain at -8 dB indicates that some (2dB likely) modern day limiting was used to raise the intrinsic loudness. The recording may or may not have suffered due to the limiting, but I do not have access to the master tape to say. This fabulous, clear and full 70’s early rock mix rivals anything that can be produced today. You can literally smell the hallucinogens in the air. Universal Music. 314548827-2, ©2002."

This is a 2010 remaster, not sure what I think of it.


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## Rhythmattic (Sep 25, 2020)

Jeff Waynes War Of The Worlds. The Orig Release.

Incorporating Every element , Brilliantly Executed.

As for Non Orchestral , Many albums By Yello..
As for another artist, One I personally consider a Reference CD is Thomas Dolby "Aleins Ate my Buick" It is outstanding..
A mix is always more than just a mix, .... it is the production.


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## robgb (Sep 25, 2020)

Locks said:


> Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".



It's a matter of taste, of course, but I personally can't stand that mix. But I'm not into reverb heavy mixes.

This is more my kind of mix:


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## Kevperry777 (Sep 27, 2020)

Linda Ronstadt “Straighten up and fly right.” This is a great track to test your monitors with. Great, punchy brass..saxes, mutes all sitting in a 3D space mixed by George Massenburg.


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## Monkberry (Sep 27, 2020)

Just because it's nice to hear an old school live mix every now and again.


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## b_elliott (Sep 28, 2020)

A bit dated from 20+ years ago, but I visited a friend at a high end studio on the west coast. He was tasked with dialing in a set of IRS Infinity V speakers ($45,000). What took me by surprise is after the oscilloscopes and freq. analysers he was testing this system against a country music record. He was not a country music kinda a guy so his answer intrigued me as to why test with country music. He said Nashville has the best recordings in the industry and top sound engineers since they have invested mega millions in equipment. 

The artist was George Strait and I believe the testing LP was Easy Come Easy Go. I went out and bought it after my visit despite my Zappa tastes. 

This all may have changed in the past 20 years but I can't help but notice Robert Plant and Jack White still use Nashville for their recording, engineering needs. 

So, don't overlook Nashville for quality engineered products. Prolly remains the best on the planet.


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## Ivan M. (Sep 28, 2020)

Locks said:


> Not orchestral, but the song "Reckoner" by Radiohead is probably one of the best mixes I've ever heard. Everything has its own space but it's all glued together masterfully. The mix was done by Nigel Godrich who was the producer for "In Rainbows".




Interesting how different we all are, even if many of people here consider this as the ,,best mix" I can't even listen to it, the high end is just to annoying! (Btw, my headphones are ok.) It's mixed like it's the main element, while it's not, and just distracts from the vocals.


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## Ivan M. (Sep 28, 2020)

b_elliott said:


> IRS



I got surprised for a moment haha :D


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## Bluemount Score (Sep 28, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> Interesting how different we all are


Probably better this way. Everything "good" would be figured out way too soon otherwise.


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## Ivan M. (Sep 28, 2020)

Interesting how most stuff posted is acoustic, and then some pop/rock mix. Maybe we find it most natural sounding, I guess no surprise there.

This is what I listen to when checking how speakers / headphones sound:




and consider this to be the most pleasing mix possible.

(Notice it has body, those 500+- freqencies, which most mixes today cut out aggresivelly.) This mix is just perfect for my taste... including the music


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## b_elliott (Oct 2, 2020)

On the heavier side I was very impressed with the sound of Fight's A Small Deadly Space (1995).
Mix engineer Attie Bauw, Rob Halford. Mastered by Bob Ludwig. 

Though I was not listening to much metal at the time, this one really stood out. Still does.


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## doctoremmet (Oct 2, 2020)

b_elliott said:


> Mix engineer Attie Bauw


Cool! I just mentioned him somewhere in another thread. This guy used to be one of the only Dutch people owning a Fairlight back in the mid eighties. He produced a band called Weekend at Waikiki (my science teacher was a member of that band... as was Tom Holkenborg, aka JXL). Cool to see his name here too!


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## b_elliott (Oct 2, 2020)

@doctoremmet Love Bauw.

Without trying to steal the thread there is one other mixer who completely blew me away but seems to have fallen off the face of earth. The name escapes me however the album was King Crimson's original Lark's Tongues in Aspic (1973).

How he recorded/mixed especially the percussion duo Bill Bruford and Jamie Muir remains stunning to my ears. If it has been a while, listen to what is captured in "Easy Money". I don't believe I have ever heard such well recorded and imaginative percussion work. A brilliant recording/mixing job.

When I last checked the engineer moved outside of the UK and I could find no other of his recordings of note.


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## doctoremmet (Oct 2, 2020)

Will check! Love the album. I also quite like Steve Hillage. His stuff with Gong, his 1981 production of Sister Feelings Call + Sons & Fascination. His production of The Charlatans (UK) Up To Our Hips lp, and especially his System7 seminal trance-acid hybrid Alpha Wave (with Plastikman). The guy has made an impact on a gazillion genres and subcultures.


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## CT (Oct 4, 2020)

If we're talking more about pop stuff than classical/film, I love this.


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## Consona (Oct 5, 2020)

This is quite interesting, the same source material, but mixed by two different subjects...

The original:


The remix:



The latter take has a huge advantage of various better tools for denoising and cleaning the sound, but still, who would say those drums and everything are the same recording. 

But one thing about the older metal is, the overll sound is more seamless, coherent and full, the modern metal tends to have more clean and distinct sounds, but some fullness and energy is lost in that process. But the latter mix is really good for the todays' metal standards I think, while being recorded more than 20 years ago.


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## Electric Lion (Oct 11, 2020)

Mine would be the soundtrack to Planet Earth 2. It is the first and only album that immediately struck me upon first listen as being absolutely masterfully mixed. Totally stunning. If I could ever get my music to sound even 1% as good as this I would die happy. Absolutely gorgeous.


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## Bluemount Score (Oct 12, 2020)

Electric Lion said:


> Mine would be the soundtrack to Planet Earth 2. It is the first and only album that immediately struck me upon first listen as being absolutely masterfully mixed. Totally stunning. If I could ever get my music to sound even 1% as good as this I would die happy. Absolutely gorgeous.



Ah yes, I love it too..


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## PeterN (Oct 18, 2020)

Damien RIce "O" bcs hardly any mixing was done to it. He recorded it in his attic or something, with a messy room. So the whole album became highly intimate, I recall you can hear some car passing by in some song. The lady singing back vocals is as present as can be. Some mixer engineer would have fuked it up - but now its a masterpiece. But this is not possible on all genre, its best on mellow acoustic stuff.


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## Lionel Schmitt (Oct 18, 2020)

Electric Lion said:


> Mine would be the soundtrack to Planet Earth 2. It is the first and only album that immediately struck me upon first listen as being absolutely masterfully mixed. Totally stunning. If I could ever get my music to sound even 1% as good as this I would die happy. Absolutely gorgeous.



haha.... this has exactly the nasal and hollow/empty sound that I'm fighting again in my own mixes. 
And also barely center/close/mono elements. Everything is wide, no depth.
So - you can get such a mix by using lots of stereo enhancer on your master and individual tracks 
(I just clicked into the video at a random point, listening for a few minutes)


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## karelpsota (Oct 18, 2020)

Heard a lot of great stuff. Thanks for sharing everyone.



My ref tracks for the different things:



*Smiley face orchestral*






*Minimalist soft stuff*





*Pop with Dimension*





*"Do not mix kick louder than this"*









Kirk Franklin - Love Theory (Official Music Video)


Listen to “Love Theory” here: https://KirkFranklin.lnk.to/LoveTheoryIDConnect with me!Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kirkfranklin/?hl=enFacebook: https...




youtu.be








*Wet Funk*






"How to mix cheap sounds properly"






*"Do not compress or dip mids more than this"*


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## pianistje (Oct 18, 2020)

For pop music i always admired TOTO.Dense mixes ,lovely eighties stuff, but so rich sounding to me.


And i recently re-discovered the Amsterdam chamber orchestra...now this is how classial should be played and recorded. I love it to bits.


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## pianistje (Oct 18, 2020)

O yes...i accidentally stumbled into this topic. THANK YOU ALL...opened my ears for some lovely recorded stuff. Thanks again !!


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## Bluemount Score (Oct 18, 2020)

pianistje said:


> O yes...i accidentally stumbled into this topic. THANK YOU ALL...opened my ears for some lovely recorded stuff. Thanks again !!


Yea same for me... lots of fresh inspiration here, in lots of different styles


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## CT (Oct 18, 2020)

As simple a mic setup as you can get, and the result is incredible sound.


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## Bluemount Score (Oct 19, 2020)

Regarding samples and orchestral music, I wanna add this one, mixed by @Joël Dollié


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## PeterN (Oct 19, 2020)

Bowies Space oddity has about 70 million views on youtube. Mixed in the most weird way, parts LCR, drums only on left, a horn clipping, shitty echo in end, it wouldnt even pass on a novice mixing class today. It would be laughed at. But it works. Nobody would dare to do this today.


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## Macrawn (Oct 19, 2020)

It's nice when people explain why they think something is a good mix. Just posting a link to a song is sorta unhelpful cause there are tons of good professionally mixed songs out there. Saying what's cool, different, or better than others helps me "get it" like the space oddity explanation.


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## MarcHedenberg (Oct 19, 2020)

This soundtrack gets absolutely shat on by some critics for sounding generic, and while I understand where that's coming from when you're comparing to Martin O'Donnell, I think the mixes are absolutely amazing. 

There's so much going on in the orchestration here. Lots of low end and lots of high end, but at no point does one get overbearing. It would have been very easy for the amount of brass and violins to become ear piercing, but it never does, and yet, the french horns still bite and simultaneously have enormous weight to them, and the string shorts still poke out. The snares have this wonderful snap when the other drum hits coincide. On the flip side, with that amount of percussion, I can see how it could have easily become boom-y as well, but that sub-100Hz never obscures the rest of the mix. All these things seem contradictory to me because I struggle to achieve this on densely orchestrated mixes.

Now I'm not a pro, but if my ears don't deceive me, it does sound like a much fatter mix than most of the orchestral soundtracks I've heard (it's certainly a lot fatter than classical recordings anyway). My uneducated guess is that the brass and drums have been compressed or at least multiband compressed a wee bit to achieve that fat sound.


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## bvaughn0402 (Oct 19, 2020)

Electric Lion said:


> Mine would be the soundtrack to Planet Earth 2. It is the first and only album that immediately struck me upon first listen as being absolutely masterfully mixed. Totally stunning. If I could ever get my music to sound even 1% as good as this I would die happy. Absolutely gorgeous.



Which song is this?


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## Soundlex (Oct 19, 2020)




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## Electric Lion (Oct 21, 2020)

bvaughn0402 said:


> Which song is this?



The whole album.


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## MrPeabody (Oct 28, 2020)

Rory said:


> Also on Bob Katz's list, Traffic's _The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys._ Katz's comment:
> 
> _"_The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys – Traffic
> Remastered from the original tapes by Jeff Willens. Engineered by Brian Humphries. This CD deserves special merit for a very classy, clean modern technology digital transfer, very transparent, revealing a great, historic 1971 mix. Years of veils have been removed to show how well it could be done back then (but rarely duplicated). Monitor gain at -8 dB indicates that some (2dB likely) modern day limiting was used to raise the intrinsic loudness. The recording may or may not have suffered due to the limiting, but I do not have access to the master tape to say. This fabulous, clear and full 70’s early rock mix rivals anything that can be produced today. You can literally smell the hallucinogens in the air. Universal Music. 314548827-2, ©2002."
> ...





That clip is NOT the album version of Low Spark. That's an alternate take and/or a completely different mix from the one Katz mentioned. This is it:


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## Fenicks (Oct 28, 2020)

I just got new headphones. Going through this thread to acquaint myself with their sound is going to be fun.


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## Alex Niedt (Oct 28, 2020)

The sound of Massive Attack's Mezzanine album is perfect, to me. Love Spike Stent's mixes.


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