My mix sound harsh, want a silky sound

[Grace de Richebourg]

Hey guys
What is the plugin or the most obvious thing to try when your mix sounds harsh when you want it silky please ?
Thanks a lot

 

[Sebastian Holtzer]

M/S EQing on the Main Out is a good thing to try out I think and for FX-Channel too.
But i am just a hobbyist so i would like to know what professionals will tell.

 

[Craig Anderton]

The "gold standard" in pro studios is oeksound Smoothe. It's not cheap, but it's excellent for individual tracks (it's a great way to get rid of amp sim "fizz") as well as stereo buses and mixes. Waves Crurve Equator is very good and costs less. Both have free trials.

However, a sharp, narrow EQ notch between 2 kHz and 8 kHz may be all you really need. When you're dealing with that narrow a notch, it can be hard to locate the correct frequency and dial in the right amount of notch, but give it a try. I use this technique on many of my masters. It's minimally invasive and doesn't cause artifacts. If you need more info on this technique, I can post an excerpt from my Fender Studio Pro tips book.

 

[Sebastian Holtzer]

The "gold standard" in pro studios is oeksound Smoothe. It's not cheap, but it's excellent for individual tracks (it's a great way to get rid of amp sim "fizz") as well as stereo buses and mixes. Waves Crurve Equator is very good and costs less. Both have free trials.

However, a sharp, narrow EQ notch between 2 kHz and 8 kHz may be all you really need. When you're dealing with that narrow a notch, it can be hard to locate the correct frequency and dial in the right amount of notch, but give it a try. I use this technique on many of my masters. It's minimally invasive and doesn't cause artifacts. If you need more info on this technique, I can post an excerpt from my Fender Studio Pro tips book.

Do they use Soothe really on almost everything? I heard it`s like a wonderweapon everybody uses on everything.

 

[Craig Anderton]

Do they use Soothe really on almost everything? I heard it`s like a wonderweapon everybody uses on everything.

Maybe they do, but I use it strategically - only where needed. Without getting into too much detail, Soothe uses a bunch of dynamic EQs that cut response when peaks occur at particularly frequencies. A lot of smoothing can generate pumping and artifacts. This is most noticeable with program material.

For example, suppose you're using amp sims that generate fizzy resonances and you hear that in the master. Yes, you can apply Soothe to the master, and it will reduce those resonances. But this will also affect all the other audio. It's better to insert Soothe on only the tracks that generate the unwanted resonances.

Personal bias alert: I'm very much against "global" and "one-click" solutions, like compressing the master bus. It's better to simply compress the tracks that require compression. Ditto with pitch correction. Correct only the notes that actually sound wrong.

 

[Navar]

Hey guys
What is the plugin or the most obvious thing to try when your mix sounds harsh when you want it silky please ?
Thanks a lot

Normally a harsh mix has harsh signals. Vocals, cymbals, samples, synth, guitars and so on. So identifying and taming the single problems is the key.
I would suggest using a normal EQ if frequencies are popping out the whole time and dynamic eqs and tools if the harshness depends on the played note.
At the end you can use saturation plug-ins to smooth a mix but it also can make things worse.

 

[Sebastian Holtzer]

I would suggest using a normal EQ if frequencies are popping out the whole time and dynamic eqs and tools if the harshness depends on the played note.

Yes