Noob to Recording - Feedback Appreciated

[MelodyMan]

Hi all, so I recently purchased a Macbook with Logic Express and have produced my first mini-song just to experiment with and see what I need to work on. Here's the link to the file:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/132286419a7763ab/

You don't have to d/l anything - it'll start playing and it's only about a minute long. Anyway I programmed the drums, bass, and strings and recorded all the guitar parts. I don't know a lot about mixing or mastering and went off some tips from my Home Recording for Dummies book.

I know many of you are pros at the whole recording thing, so I would appreciate any feedback as far as the mix and overall sound as well what you think of the "song."

Thanks so much!

[Rip]

Very nice job.

Only thing that really stands out to me is the drum performance.
Just very unrealistic to me. The 1/4 notes on the hat just make it drag..
and there is just a bit too much air (space) between notes.
Because they play such an unimportant role in the song at this point maybe try to
pull them back in the mix a bit.

Guitars sound great.

[Draco]

Originally Posted by Rip

Very nice job.

Only thing that really stands out to me is the drum performance.
Just very unrealistic to me. The 1/4 notes on the hat just make it drag..
and there is just a bit too much air (space) between notes.
Because they play such an unimportant role in the song at this point maybe try to
pull them back in the mix a bit.

Guitars sound great.

I second this - the drums are lacking some life. The rest of it doesn't sound bad at all.

[MelodyMan]

Originally Posted by Rip

Very nice job.

Only thing that really stands out to me is the drum performance.
Just very unrealistic to me. The 1/4 notes on the hat just make it drag..
and there is just a bit too much air (space) between notes.
Because they play such an unimportant role in the song at this point maybe try to
pull them back in the mix a bit.

Guitars sound great.

Thanks so much - I hear what you're saying about the drums. The hi-hat wasn't prominent enough to me, so I guess I bumped it up too much. And I gotcha about the space. Any other tips about making the drums sound more realistic? I did use different velocities, so all the hits are a little different. Should I try to make each bar different rhythmically? I just didn't want the drums to stick out too much since the melody is so important.

Glad the guitars sound good - that's my SOLID STATE Peavey Bandit 112 - who knew? Haha

[Crazy_Guitar]

Originally Posted by MelodyMan

Glad the guitars sound good - that's my SOLID STATE Peavey Bandit 112 - who knew? Haha

Sounds great! Reminds me of this...

Tech talk:
Ibanez JCRG-Paint4 through a Marshall VS-15, recorded with a Samson R-11 mic.

Guitar - Basswood body, maple/bubinga neck, rosewood fingerboard, Air Norton.
Amp - Medium/heavy gain on amp, 15W solid state, 1x8" Marshall Gold Back speaker. EQ settings as of a "typical" Heavy Metal tone.
Mic - Hypercardioid dynamic mic placed on "halfway" between the centre and the edge of the speaker cone.
Effects - No reverb, chorus, etc., just a bit of wah at the beginning.

Sometimes, less is actually more!

[jb4674]

I liked the tune. What type of interface did you use to record it with?

Jimmy

[MelodyMan]

Originally Posted by jb4674

I liked the tune. What type of interface did you use to record it with?

Jimmy

Thanks! I used a Lexicon Lambda USB interface and some terrible cheapass mics. I just ordered a Sennheiser e609 though, so hopefully things will sound even better.