How to optimize channel gain-asking for a friend

[GlennM]

I'm back. After saving a test musical composition to disc on my model 12, I pulled the sd card and copied the .WAV file to my PC. From there I opened the file in Audacity. I was very surprised to find that the overall volume as well as the balance of instruments was far too loo and surprisingly bass heavy and muddy in the middle. Needles to say, I started playing with the normalization and equalization settings in Audacity. What I am wondering is how to get a better recorded sound in the first place. In an extreme case, should I maximize the pre amp dial and minimize the channel slider, or is it the reverse? Is there a general rule of thumb which governs mixer settings, ( think mixer 101 for dummies). I will say out loud that its going to be a long journey fighting the instrument for notes, fighting the effects boxes for tone, fighting the mixer for levels and fighting my own self for being critical of it all. Please advise.
GlennM

 

[-mjk-]

My first piece of advice would be to make sure that you are hearing things properly. You apparently mixed something on the Model 12 and the files sound differently on the PC than what you heard when mixing. Are you listening on the same monitor speakers? Headphones on one and speakers on the other? What's different?

 

[GlennM]

Good observation, I am playing the T12 output through a PA system primarily. I also have a reference monitor and good quality cans connected. Each accentuates things differently. The PC has a different set of speakers. Ultimately what I will do in all likelihood is preserve .WAV's and Mp3's of the music I record. Even though music CD's and DVD's are going the way of the Dodo, I'll still burn something for the shelf. I think the problem I'm wrestling with is how do I get more green bars when recording and yet honor the 0db line on the T12's channel screen when the signals are being played or recorded?

 

[Max Relic]

My first piece of advice would be to make sure that you are hearing things properly.

This. And be aware that "hearing properly" includes the room / ambient where your mixing takes place. And headphones are not created equal.

@GlennM,
should I maximize the pre amp dial and minimize the channel slider, or is it the reverse?

Search "gain staging" to learn the basics and get in the ballpark. Work your Trim, compressor, Eq and fader in top-down order: the goal is to get an optimal signal level, inside the Model 12 that's around -12 dB, incidentally indicated by a thin horizontal line across the LCD meter screens.

 

[GlennM]

MAx, Gain staging is the term? Got it. This surely helps. Appricated.

Glenn

 

[-mjk-]

Good observation, I am playing the T12 output through a PA system primarily. I also have a reference monitor and good quality cans connected. Each accentuates things differently. The PC has a different set of speakers. Ultimately what I will do in all likelihood is preserve .WAV's and Mp3's of the music I record. Even though music CD's and DVD's are going the way of the Dodo, I'll still burn something for the shelf. I think the problem I'm wrestling with is how do I get more green bars when recording and yet honor the 0db line on the T12's channel screen when the signals are being played or recorded?

There is quite a lot going on here. The levels you are trying to achieve are typically done in Mastering, not Mixing (at least on digital systems). At any rate, you need to listen on the same speakers in the same space. Most people rely on their mobile phones because they are used to them.

 

[Max Relic]

@GlennM , unfortunately there is not a quick and dirty answer to your friend's apparently simple question
Luckily there are many ways to acquire basic knowledge from the net, starting from the stickies in this forum (recording and mixing skills are shared across all the sections and can be considered almost device independent), Youtube tutorials from acknowledged authors and -last but not least- good old books.
This video should be of help:

 

[Logrinn]

As stated in the above video, and also elsewhere here on the forum - but unfortunately there seem to be too little focus on it - is the fact that the fader is not involved in setting the adequate level when recording.
So regarding ”should I maximize the pre amp dial and minimize the channel slider” - you should definitely work with the gain knob (”pre amp dial”) to get enough signal when recording.

Also - Audacity have different ways to display a waveform. Depending on how you choose to look at it, a waveform that at first look quite low in volume looks quite sufficient when you choose another one of Audacitys way of displaying waveforms.

 

[-mjk-]

To see what your file actually is in the real world, you can check out Loudness Penalty.

 

[Max Relic]

Anyway, if your primary concern is to boost the level of your recordings because they sound too soft when played in your audio system, firmware 1.40 addressed two specific aspects:

- A normalization function has been added, and the maximum volumes of individual tracks, including master mixes written by recording or importing, can now be readjusted in a range from −20 to 0 dB.
- An analog input gain boosting function has been added, making adjusting gain easier even when input signals are quiet.

The first option is found in MTR > NORMALIZE, the other in MIXER > GAIN BOOST.