Article Content
I do not own anything hereif you would like please leave a comment, like, share, and/or subscribe (づ｡ ‿‿ ｡)づ. 'Critical thinking is a desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to meditate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider, carefulness to dispose and set in order; and hatred for every kind of. 'Feel Good' by Logic sampled Kanye West, Common, Pusha T and Big Sean feat. Kid Cudi and Charlie Wilson's 'Good Friday'. Listen to both songs on WhoSampled, the ultimate database of sampled music, cover songs and remixes. 50+ videos Play all Mix - Logic raps 'Buried Alive' over Gorillaz' 'Feel Good Inc.' YouTube Logic Performs Buried Alive LIVE on The Cruz Show - Duration: 4:10. Logic 'Feel Good': Multi-million dollar deals, got a million dollar deal When I was younger, I would wonder how a milli.
Logic Instrumentals Download
Mixing vocals to pre-mixed instrumental is an issue that just about every engineer will encounter. The idea of recording vocals to a mixed down instrumental has been around for decades. On rare occasion that vocal and instrumental would be released as the actual song. In Hip Hop, this is fairly common, and comes with the intention of the combined vocal and instrumental being the final release. Because Hip Hop producers mix their tracks with this intention, there's a unique set of skills that comes into play for throwing vocals into the mix.
The Instrumental
A pre-mixed instrumental is probably somewhat compressed (or, sometimes highly compressed). It's been 'maximized' to play loudly. The challenge here is that loudness isn't as simple as turning the level up. After a certain point, loudness can only be achieved by increasing the density of the record, rather than the volume. The issue is that if the track is exceedingly dense, there is no room for the vocal.
In fact, the first thing one has to do is turn the instrumental down in volume significantly in order to make anything work. By this token – the louder the instrumental – the quieter the end mix. Ironic, no?
Variables
What port does sricam use. We need to approach this mix with the forethought of compensating for whatever quality the instrumental is coming in as – highly compressed, mp3, possibly in mono, the list goes on.
But first thing's first. Get the vocals sounding the best you can on their own. There are some great tutorials for this right here on the site. I'd start with Mixing Rap Vocals Part 1.
Since the information on vocal treatment is covered elsewhere, I'm going to focus on working the vocals with the instrumental, and treating the instrumental.
The goal is to get the vocals to sound like they belong with the instrumental as much as possible. So we need a two pronged approach:
- Open up the instrumental to allow for the vocals to fit in, and;
- Match the vocal to the instrumental.
And we need to do this as non-destructively as possible. What is winrar.
Opening up the Instrumental
To open up the instrumental, try to do as little EQ as possible. EQ is the method most people seem to recommend, but EQ is used to correct tonality issues. If the instrumental is too dense, that's really more of a dynamics issue. Turn the instrumental down, and use an expander or transient designer to rebuild the peaks of the drums. It can take a while to get used to using an expander. 3 to 6db of dynamic range adjustment is usually a good start. If the record is clipped, you may need to use something like iZotope RX to get your peaks back.
Layering
What port does sricam use. We need to approach this mix with the forethought of compensating for whatever quality the instrumental is coming in as – highly compressed, mp3, possibly in mono, the list goes on.
But first thing's first. Get the vocals sounding the best you can on their own. There are some great tutorials for this right here on the site. I'd start with Mixing Rap Vocals Part 1.
Since the information on vocal treatment is covered elsewhere, I'm going to focus on working the vocals with the instrumental, and treating the instrumental.
The goal is to get the vocals to sound like they belong with the instrumental as much as possible. So we need a two pronged approach:
- Open up the instrumental to allow for the vocals to fit in, and;
- Match the vocal to the instrumental.
And we need to do this as non-destructively as possible. What is winrar.
Opening up the Instrumental
To open up the instrumental, try to do as little EQ as possible. EQ is the method most people seem to recommend, but EQ is used to correct tonality issues. If the instrumental is too dense, that's really more of a dynamics issue. Turn the instrumental down, and use an expander or transient designer to rebuild the peaks of the drums. It can take a while to get used to using an expander. 3 to 6db of dynamic range adjustment is usually a good start. If the record is clipped, you may need to use something like iZotope RX to get your peaks back.
Layering
Sometimes an instrumental is so compressed, there's no transient at all for an expander/transient designer to grab. In this case, you may need to get inventive. Often times, I'll find drums that match or compliment the drums in the record. I'll lay my own drums into the track. If you can't make it, fake it.
Mid-Side
Another place you can get a little dynamic is in the 'side' information. M-S processing can allow you to separate the sound that lives in the center from the sound that lives on the sides. Pulling the center down but keeping the sides up a bit can help in creating a sense of dynamics, and a 'pocket' for the vocal to live in.
Equalization
If there's anything that really steps on the vocals, notch it out a hair. Subtlety is the goal here. It's impossible not to make compromises when you are EQ'ing the entire instrumental.
Vocal Processing
Once the vocal is in a good place on it's own, there comes the game of 'matching' it to the instrumental. The idea is to make the vocal sound like it belongs with the instrumental.
Compression
For example, the instrumental may be highly compressed, and your vocal may be very dynamic. The result here is that the vocal will always either sound like it is buried by the instrumental, or so loud that it feels like it's hanging over the mix. Neither of these are great, but if I were to err, I'd lean toward the side of the vocal being over the mix. You can minimize this effect by compressing the vocal until it starts to compete with the density of the instrumental. This takes a lot of tact, and often requires a number of compressors working in tandem in order to reduce the negative artifacts of over compressing a voice. If you are careful in your approach you can get the vocals pretty darn compressed without them sounding 'bad'. But it's a negotiation.
Tonal Quality
The instrumental may be very bright or very dark. You may want to lean your vocal EQ to compliment this. A bright vocal on a dark track will sound a little unglued. This goes for the rest of the frequency spectrum, and overall tonal qualities like distortion. If the track has a distorted or saturated quality to it, you may want to purposefully distort the vocals. Obviously don't do it if it's too detrimental, but it's something to consider.
Reverb
Lastly, match the space. If you have a mid-side processor, solo the side signal, or turn the center signal way down. This will expose the quality of the reverbs used in the instrumental. Finding a similar reverb/delay, and EQ'ing the reverb to match the tonality of ambience in the instrumental will help bond the vocal and instrumental in the most transparent way. This takes a while to get a feel for, and is somewhat subject, but it's highly effective.
Logic 44 More Instrumental
—
So those are my tips on mixing vocals to an instrumental track. Hopefully that helps, and feel free to leave questions or your own tips in the comment section below!
Mixing Rap Vocals to a Pre-Mixed Instrumental (Part 2: The Beat)
Mixing vocals to pre-mixed instrumental is an issue that just about every engineer will encounter. The idea of recording vocals to a mixed down instrumental has been around for decades. On rare occasion that vocal and instrumental would be released as the actual song. In Hip Hop, this is fairly comm
Mixing Hip-Hop Course
Want to take your Hip-Hop mixing skills to the next level? Mixing Hip-Hop from Matthew Weiss includes 5+ hours of in-depth mix training, teaching you how to get the best possible sound out of all your mixes and productions. For a limited time, you'll also get a free bonus Hip-Hop Mixthru.
For a limited time, get 25% off by entering the code MHH25 at checkout.
Are you missing our best stuff?
Sign up to be the first to learn about new articles, videos, courses, contests, freebies, discounts & more. You'll also receive a FREE gift immediately.
In book one of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, he claims every action is aimed at some good yet these aims vary between individual and context. For example, the end of the medical art is health, of shipbuilding the vessel, of strategy the victory and so on. Furthermore, as seen above, the concept of good can vary; the good in health is sustenance, in the vessel travel, and in victory honor. Yet, Aristotle is not looking for an in-exhaustive list of what the good could be, instead he is looking for the highest good out of all these goods.
This highest good must also fit into three criteria: it is desirable for itself, it is not desirable for the sake of some other good, and all other goods are desirable for its sake. Furthermore, Aristotle later includes that the highest good must be acted upon because if one does not act to achieve any aim then they will never achieve it. In other words, the highest good is a solitary nucleus, which all other goods are acted upon for; for Aristotle this highest good is happiness or eudaimonia (which translates to living well). He argues this by going through the list of what many may consider the highest good of actions; for example pursuing wealth, honor, or wisdom. Yet, these do not fit the criteria he is trying to fill. Instead, he examines all these aims and realizes happiness is the highest good because it is what living well consists in and the latter aims are sought because they promote living well, not because they are what living well consists in.
Now Aristotle turns his view to how one achieves happiness, which he claims to be the function of man.Thus, Aristotle finds it crucial that he separates man from all else. He does so by claiming humans share biological and physiological processes with animals or plants, such as motion and perception, but humans differ in their ability to think rationally. Therefore, Aristotle deduces what sets humans apart from other living entities, giving us the potential to live a better life, is our ability to be rational and apply reason in action and context. Therefore, using reason in ones life is what happiness consists in. Yet, anything done well requires virtue or excellence; living well consists in activities caused by rational guidance in accordance with virtue or excellence . That being said, it follows that the highest good, which is happiness, is pursued throughout life in which one utilizes rational guidance in accordance with virtue or excellence. Happiness can only be achieved through action and such a feat is not merely gifted to humans but learnt throughout life; the highest good is a growing process.
What Aristotle claims to be the highest good is questionable, but his conception and deduction of the highest good is not only plausible but also realistic. To be more specific, his belief that only action can allow one to achieve this goal and it is a goal achieved through a growing process speaks to the nature of the human condition. For example, if one wants to get a good grade on a test the two major components to achieving such a goal are action and learning. Action in that one actually completes and writes the test and learning in that one does the necessary readings and processes to complete the test with a certain degree of excellence.
Furthermore, this belief in action and progress in the attainment of the highest good is a true recognition of human nature. Of course we have been gifted with the power of reason above all other animals but such a power is not polished without constant repetitive use; the utilization of reason in ones life is a progress only achieved through action. For example, Marcus Tullius Cicero believed that justice was a natural component of the human being, void of any action or progression; justice was Cicero's conception of the highest good. Yet, such a claim disregards the nature of a human being. For example, how can a baby be born with justice when it has neither the understanding of such a concept or the ability to act upon it? A human baby is no different than an animal in that's its primary functions are survival until they have grown and learned from the environment around them. Thus, Aristotle, and an educated reader, would disagree with such a claim because of Cicero's disregard for the role of action and progression within human understanding and nature.
Yet, as one can see, my praise of Aristotle's reasoning is with his deduction and conception of the highest good but not with what he believes the highest good is. This is because happiness is not the solitary nucleus Aristotle claims it is. Let us reiterate Aristotle's criteria for the highest good which are: it is desirable for itself, it is not desirable for the sake of some other good, and all other goods are desirable for its sake. Furthermore, lets keep in mind the highest good is crucial to living well. With that being said, we can then see that if happiness is suppose to be desirable for itself and not some other good then why is it that happiness is crucial to living well? This shows that the pursuit of happiness is actually a component of living well; living well is the nucleus. Aristotle tries to claim happiness and living well are actually one in the same thing but this is illogical.
Living well is an actual state of being, combining both physical and emotional aspects of the human being together while happiness is merely an idea pursued by the individual human being. Thus, one can claim happiness is a component of the human being, falling under the emotional aspect of a human, yet it is not the driving force of living well. Instead, Aristotle's whole argument that happiness through rational action exercised with virtue and excellence merely seems more like a strong position for the difference between man and animal but not an argument for the highest good based on his criteria. With that being said, happiness as discussed above is nothing more than a luxury of separation from the state of nature; our ability to reason has separated us from our more primitive roots and thus allowed us to live comfortably. Yet, living well is not plausible without examining the roots that make no distinction between animals and humans; survival.
Thus, it can be argued the highest good is survival, which allows us to access all other luxuries in life. It is not a question of separating human from animal, but a question of living well. For example, who are we to say an animal that does what is necessary to survive does not find happiness in relaxing with its fellow species? Why does rationality need to be the defining factor in happiness? The bare necessities for survival are the highest good because they allow us to access all other goods such as happiness. Without the basic necessities for survival a living thing would become weak or die making it unable to achieve anything. For these reasons, survival fits all of Aristotle's criteria: it is desirable for itself, it is not desirable for the sake of some other good, and all other goods are desirable for its sake. Happiness as well as many other components of life are by products of the necessities for survival.
What do you think? Leave a comment.
