Edit Your Way To A Better Guitar Tone - Mixing HEAVY Guitars

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One of the biggest challenges we all face as metal producers is getting those damn guitars to sit right when mixing our heavy guitars.
Not only was this an extreme frustration of mine for years, but I constantly hear of other people dealing with the same issues to this day.
Different era.
Fancier plugins.
More advanced amp modelers...
SAME OLD ISSUES WITH MIXING HEAVY GUITAR TONE.
Even when we do get our guitars sounding decent on their own, getting them to gel within the rest of the mix always proves to be a major pain in the ass.
Why is this?
After years of banging my head against the wall..
chasing my tail..
overprocessing my guitar tracks to complete crap in a desperate attempt to finally achieve the heavy guitar tones I've always wanted in my mixes..
I finally got to see how a real pro handles heavy guitars in a mix.
The answer to this guitar tone mixing problem is often the last place where people tend to look.
This truth is that it all comes down to how you EDIT your guitar tracks.
No EQ, compression, or saturation plugin can help a guitar tone that's not in the pocket.
The most subtle of timing discrepancies can really do a number on your perceived guitar tone.
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[@FrightboxRecording]

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[@spikessignal]

There's thousands of videos on mixing. But I don't come across videos on editing nearly as much. You've been a big help man.

[@FrightboxRecording]

Glad the vids are helping you man!

Years ago I didn't edited guitars but I tried to play tight while recording.. now I do both 😁 try to play the best as possible while recording and check out the guitars and correct little details on the editing 🙂 👍

[@tompung6802]

Well that was something good anyway. You practiced and did your best. I did that too before I saw a YT video that you could actually edit guitars. Editing is a great tool but never an excuse for sloppy performance.

[@FrightboxRecording]

@@tompung6802 Exactly!

[@stewartsmyth3422]

Totally agree with you that it's not cheating. To me, it's about serving the music and if it makes a recording sound awesome, isn't that what we all want?

[@FrightboxRecording]

Well said!

[@awjbutt9418]

Thanks for the tip. This is extremely helpful. Must say your the most informative youtuber Ive come across so far.

[@blastbeatdown]

This is sick man. I learned two quick things about editing just from watching this. You should do more videos that focus on editing. I always thought that was one of your strongest traits as an engineer.

[@dankabbott9321]

ive been watching your vids like a mad man this weekend, thanks for what you do

[@anthonyryan9954]

I’m new to mixing metal but this is important, from your videos on editing specifically in relation to other metal mixing videos I’ve seen, I’ve noticed that metal engineers are seriously smarter than most other genre engineers. Usually you can very obviously hear when someone bypasses the effect their showcasing, but with metal music, the difference in sound that’s being referred to as a huge improvement, is sooooo small!!!!! And I know it only lends to the idea my ears aren’t as experienced as they can be, but I must say they are a lot more experienced than your average streaming consumer. You guys are crazyyyyy

[@OmgItsAlexOfficial]

It's the un-sexy stuff like editing guitars that makes a mix clean and clear and punchy.

[@FrightboxRecording]

Exactly! You're a smart man.

[@heavymetalmixer91]

For me editing is a hassle, not because it-s boring, but because it takes a lot of time to get it done.

[@AlexeySolovievMusic]

Really awesome video! Thanks so much for all of your wonderful videos Bobby! Learning so much great stuff about metal production from you! You are the best bro 😀👍🔥🔥🔥

[@FrightboxRecording]

Thanks so much Alexey!

[@recordman555]

Your philosophy of Production is spot-on, Bobby. I like to do "whatever it takes" when it comes the realisation that it's MY name that appears as PRODUCER on that track that is released.

[@crissabater7698]

Great video again. Even though I am a pretty tight player I have certainly learned something here from the DI tracks. Will look to utilise this. Cheers.

[@samravi9978]

Woah, thanks a bunch man I did this to all my double tracks &, everything's so tight now!

[@FrightboxRecording]

Hell yeah!

[@JohnsonPyjamaMetal]

Why didn't I think of that sometimes I just can't get my tracks as tight as I want them. this helps so much. Thanks!!

[@ZedChuva]

I spent the late 80's and most of the 90's recording to tape on a Tascam 4-Track. And to this day, I still try to do everything in one take. I CAN'T (cause I suck), but I do my best, cause once I start punching in, I can't stop. haha Great info and video.

[@FrightboxRecording]

Thanks Zed!

[@Fiveash-Art]

Glad I found this channel.

[@renanalbuquerque324]

Thanks from Brazil!

[@gabrielsanchez1979]

badass vid!

[@FrightboxRecording]

Thanks Gabriel!

[@leearmitage]

thanks man great tips, think I need to do this at times haha

[@FrightboxRecording]

It can be a pain in the ass..but it's worth it!

[@leearmitage]

@@FrightboxRecording yeah I'm going to give it a go on one of my old tracks

[@SHR3DtheSky]

I didn’t understand a word this guy said in the intro. Sick butt rock though!

[@tompung6802]

Editing guitars in PT is so much faster and smoother than in Cubase. I hope Steinberg will make it as easy and fast like PT very soon.

[@FrightboxRecording]

Unfortunately Pro Tools really is king in the editing department. It's one of the only reasons why I still use it. Thanks for watching Tom!

[@tomix1970pl1]

I don't have this problem.I play long enough to play in time but i have just realized that i can get track and i will have to fix it.I wouldn't even work with something like this myself.I would say '' it is not in time, sorry you need to play again ''.But i have just changed my mind.

[@greghillmusic]

I just can't get this editing thing down. Now all my stuff sounds rushed. I think it's cuz I line up the transients with the drums instead of the pick attack.

[@EviloveMetal]

Isn't there little gaps in the audio where you spliced it? How do you fill in those gaps? Thanks for the tutorial & great channel!

[@FrightboxRecording]

I fill the gaps manually by hand, then crossfade and consolidate.

[@skylermccarthy6623]

Awesome video, super helpful! I have one question though. Bass DI tracks usually have "muddier" looking transients, making it harder to visually edit them. Any tips?

[@FrightboxRecording]

Hello Skyler! They can be a little muddier than guitar transients, but they're usually workable if you set your waveform view hight a little higher within your DAW.

[@skylermccarthy6623]

Thanks man. I'll try it out!

[@alexiswoodbury7326]

I'm wondering... is the 'unedited' version a real track that someone sent you? It's so off that it sounds like it's done on purpose ! hehe

[@NacekO]

Hello Bobby. It took me a long time to start ignoring this BS "editing is cheating" advice and my sound improved as soon as I started editing things. I have a question about drum editing. Let's say that the drummer is playing sixteenth notes with the kick and hitting the snare on the second and fourth beat. The drummer being the drummer is not hitting the snare at the same time as the kick. So I edit my kicks so they sound consistent but the snare is right between two kicks. Is there anything I can do about this or am I screwed. I know I can nudge just the snare into the right place but I want to avoid doing that because I wish to have room mics in the mix and in those as you know you can't put the snare on the kick if they haven't been played at the same time. Is there some sort of trickery I could to?

[@zaydacevedo9437]

What hot keys did you use to apply fades and consolidate in pro tools?

[@TheGarageRecordingSC]

Where do people think the term cut and paste comes from ?? 🤜🏻🤛🏻

[@factoriadelruido]

Hi! What do you think about the use of tools like Elastic Audio or Audiowarp (Cubase), to quantize guitars? Cheers!

[@FrightboxRecording]

I only use time stretching in extreme cases. I find old school splicing and nudging to be much more transparent. That being said, I know of many guys that use time stretching with great success. If it doesn't sound like it's hurting the tone, go for it.

[@factoriadelruido]

@@FrightboxRecording Thanks!!!!

[@jacobstracener4702]

Out of all the mixes you’ve worked on, if you had to give a rough percentage how many performances would you say needed editing like this? Like is it a common thing, or was the performance in this video particularly sloppy? (Specifically guitars)

[@FrightboxRecording]

I'd say 99% of the performances I work on need editing. Even if the player is super tight...modern metal calls for insanely tight performances. They even edited the crap out of the black album way back in 1991 and Metallica were a well-oiled machine back then.

[@jensloetzsch]

I agree, editing is not cheating if you don't overdo it. I know it's for demonstration purposes but this is a example of bad guitar playing, this is horrible sloppy. For me personally, i practice my ass off to play even and tight but on high tempo quad tracks, there is sometimes a little bit of editing needed. For me, the most important thing is , play as tight and even as you can, practice more if necessary ! Editing is sometimes needed for professional sounding but not an excuse for sloppy playing !

[@FrightboxRecording]

Unfortunately a lot of players don't practice nearly enough. Editing to the rescue!

[@timmokoo5679]

Yea that bad example is very badly played. I think you should aim for better even before edits.

[@BrokenCompassRecords]

how do you deal with guitars that rely heavily on time based effects? i think one would also need edition, but messing with that would screw the tails... am i supposed to edit the track, and reamp the signal with my delay or reverb?

[@FrightboxRecording]

I edit the DI directly and then send it to an amp.

[@heavymetalmixer91]

I watched this video and went back to the DIs in my current mix . . . shit, all of them are a mess. This is gonna take a while : /

[@FrightboxRecording]

I know the feeling....but it's the little things that most people skip that make a pro mix a PRO mix.

[@heavymetalmixer91]

@@FrightboxRecording Something I noticed today (I started my current mix to edit everything), is that phase aligning the Snare with the Overheads helps to remove the harshness on the cymbals. I've yet to try on other drums mics.

[@mattmedeiros9531]

Normally you have a link to the band you are working on in the video. I dig this deep pocket thrash, what is it?

[@FrightboxRecording]

Just a riff I wrote for the purpose of the video.

[@mattmedeiros9531]

@@FrightboxRecording Well now you gotta finish the song... maybe the album! It's a ripper!

[@mozwall_2560]

do you use the same technique on the bass track? or is that left fairly unedited

[@FrightboxRecording]

Very similar deal: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m6mreXRnmL2Bps0

[@mozwall_2560]

Frightbox Recording thanks man! i really like your channel. about to record an EP and looking for someone to mix and master it. i will definitely keep you in mind

[@megahendrix]

Are u using elastic audio? with what combination of keys can i edit like you ?, I mean to move the selected transient like in the vídeo

[@FrightboxRecording]

Hey man! I am not using elastic audio. I only use it in extreme situations. What do you mean by "tabs"? In the video I'm using tab-to-transients to find the transients to make splices at. Let me know if that makes sense!

[@megahendrix]

@@FrightboxRecording just edited the first question, sorry My Bad. Thanks for the add on fb by the way. I'm currently mixing an album and your content has been such a treasure , thanks for your labour

[@richardcochrun3869]

Doubt this question will get answered because I'm 5 months behind but how do you fill in those gaps from pulling back the samples? Its clearly audible then later in the final mix its gone without explanation.

[@FrightboxRecording]

In Pro Tools there's a command called "consolidate" that generates new files of any selection. I always use that command to generate clean looking WAV files after editing.

[@richardcochrun3869]

@@FrightboxRecording awesome I will definitely check this out. Thanks for the response!

[@andresgil5248]

What are DI's?

[@FrightboxRecording]

The clean guitar signal of the guitar, itself. Not the amp tone.

[@andresgil5248]

@@FrightboxRecording thank you this was one of the first videos I watched now that I'm getting into home recording,after watching several other videos I noticed how common of a term DI is, haha now I feel stupid for having asked

[@ChadKirk]

There's no way you didn't purposely mess up that second one. There's no way someone could play so untight. There's a literal 8th note difference.

[@FrightboxRecording]

Record a bunch of local metal bands...you'll soon realize the messed up track was actually tighter than the norm.

[@MattHall]

I thought the second one sounded better

[@FrightboxRecording]

The second one was me playing guitar sloppily on purpose. To each his own!

[@MattHall]

@@FrightboxRecording haha I have no idea why I was more drawn to it

[@timmokoo5679]

@@MattHall It (of course) can have it's own appeal but it is not what metal songs generally try to sound like.

[@MattHall]

@@timmokoo5679 I think it really depends on what subgenres of metal you're listening to

[@vladv5126]

Alternate title: why you don't let both of yout guitarists track rhythm.

[@FrightboxRecording]

😂Dead on!