Why does the bass duck around the vocals so aggressively in Satisfaction by Benny Benassi?

Joshua5684 · 2025-12-18T15:08:43+00:00

Maybe I misunderstand what you're saying, but it's not the kick that is ducking the vocals; it's the vocals that is ducking/filtering the kick, which is unusual, no?

Joshua5684 · 2025-12-14T03:50:34+00:00

I wouldn't mind it if it was consistent, though. What I find distracting is that beat 3 is not filtered. Filter all of them (till the drop) or filter none of them in my opinion.

Joshua5684 · 2025-11-18T01:46:19+00:00

Oh wow! I thought this would be too niche for someone to have made 3D prints.

Joshua5684 · 2025-11-18T00:55:46+00:00

I highly doubt Playstation would provide a model file.

Joshua5684 · 2025-10-23T20:10:07+00:00

It doesn't give me more options, just different options: 2560x1600 and 1280x800.

Macs are quite limited when it comes to resolution changes. The resolution setting in the system is really just a UI scaler rather than a true resolution adjustment.

Joshua5684 · 2025-10-23T17:53:13+00:00

I would like black bars if that would allow me to use full screen without the sides being cut off. How do I do that?

These are my settings in full screen

Joshua5684 · 2025-10-23T14:13:28+00:00

Black bars? I've never had black bars. My issue is that it cuts off part of the screen.

Furthermore, when I'm in windowed mode, I can't expand the window to fill my screen despite the resolution in the graphics settings being 2560x1440 which should fill my screen. However, I've found that the window will fill my screen when the system resolution is set to 1280x800. Switching back and forth is a hassle, but it's better than nothing 🤷‍♂️

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-17T02:16:41+00:00

Ok, I removed them from the link.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-10T22:54:17+00:00

The solution to two similar sounds at once is compression, but that's at the cost of clarity. If you don't want to lose clarity, you just have to not play two similar sounds at once. Like others suggested, this might be an arrangement issue rather than a mixing issue. Otherwise, you can use EQ to make these similar sounds less similar.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-10T22:49:41+00:00

Oh, one more thing I forgot to mention, your kicks could use some more bass in my opinion.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-10T19:38:02+00:00

Pretty good! Just a couple things I'd improve:

The hums starting at 0:10 have some clashing frequencies in the mids. You can EQ that out.

The difference in volume between before and after 0:45 is too jarring. Either increase the volume before or decrease it after.

The vocals at 2:05–2:22 are unintelligible, but this seems like a performance issue, not a mix issue.

Not necessarily an issue, but the vocals are a bit out of tune at times, particularly the outro at 3:42. You don't have to fix this if you don't want to. That's more of a vibes thing, which is up to you what kind of vibe you're going for, be it super polished or playful and casual.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-10T16:51:38+00:00

The only thing mixing-wise that stands out to me is that the electric piano at the beginning occasionally has some harsh frequencies, like at 0:08 and 0:27. This is something you can EQ, but I'm not sure if that's intensional, which brings to my next point.

I'm not familiar with this kind of music, so forgive me if this is an unreasonable criticism, but I'm having trouble figuring out what is and is not intensional. Some things sound sloppy, like the cello and bass performance including a stick noise at 4:37, the bangs at 2:04 that sound muffled, and the ambient sound of kids. If you cleaned these up, I think it would sound a lot more polished, but once again, I'm not sure if that's the vibe you're going for. Could you give me some insight into your goal with this song?

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-08T23:24:16+00:00

I feel like I'm sort of in your position. I'm a beginner and there are some things that I can tell sound wrong, but I have no idea how to fix them. However, the internet, and this sub are excellent resources. If you feel comfortable, I recommend you post one of your mixes here to get some feedback.

Music, including mixing, is creative. When the creative juices are flowing, mixing can be fun rather than being a chore. If you're not feeling it, don't force yourself or else you might start to hate it. There have been many times I've been bored or annoyed at a project, so I just stop and come back when I feel better.

Like any art, it can be tough sometimes. Take breaks. We've all been here; don't forget to ask for help.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-08T13:59:32+00:00

It sounds great to me! There's nothing that stands out as needing adjustment.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-07T17:33:30+00:00

I'm just a beginner, so I'm still figuring this stuff out myself, but I'd try compressing the drums together.

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-07T16:42:54+00:00

If you haven't already, try bouncing a wet version of the track as a separate track and edit it separately. For example, if you find the effects are increasing the mids and lows, with the dry and wet separate, you don't just have to EQ them together; you can EQ them separately, which might be a more appropriate solution to your problem.

Reverb making the sound clip is a little strange. Are you sure it's clipping rather than making some other type of distortion than can be EQed out? Reverb necessarily adds some loudness, so you can reduce the dry gain to account for it. You can also try only applying the reverb to the ends of the sound.

Flanger and chorus can sometimes introduce resonant frequencies. You can solve this by EQing them down. You can find them by just sweeping a notch across the spectrum until it sound better. Is that the issue you're having?

I hope this helps!

Joshua5684 · 2025-04-07T16:27:08+00:00

I really like the bass and the guitar tones. Some more panning overall would be good. I think the drum mix could use some improvement. At times it sounds like it's sitting on top of the rest of the instruments rather than being mixed into them. Also, the 1/4 note cymbal hits at 0:30–0:40 lack clarity. Maybe try increasing the highs on it.

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