Originally Posted By: Matcham
Tired with my rather ad hoc approach to mixing electric guitar, recently I decided to scour the 'net to find some method amongst the madness. Having just finished a mix session with a lot more purpose and results I'm happy with for the song, I thought I'd summarise what I found. Hopefully this will help some. And hopefully you more experienced mixers will chime in with your thoughts.

This summary assumes you're in the ballpark with your guitar/amp combo. (Easier said than done!)

Approach one.
Simple. Insert 'Waves CLA guitars'. As many report, it just works.

Approach two.
Inserts in sequence:
EQ. See below for go-to frequencies.
Compression. Fast attack. Medium or fast release depending on desired sound.
Effects:
Slap delay. Around 100ms.
Room reverb. Roll off low frequencies.
Sauce as desired. Eg phaser, chorus.

EQ frequencies
1. Roll off below 80-150 Hz
2. Cut 100-150 if bass frequencies masking bass guitar. Or boost for more bass.
3. Boost 250 for warmth if desired, but may add mud.
4. Sweep from 250 to 4000 for offending frequency/s. Poss 800.
5. Cut 2000-2500 if harsh.
6. Boost 2000-3000 for snap of pick
7. Boost 3000-5000 to push guitar up front, or cut to keep clear of vocal
8. Boost 10000 for clarity
9. Roll off above 12000.


I would have to listen to the song before I could tell you what I would do in the mix, because I can't just randomly pick one of the options. Most of the time when EQing you really want to be cutting out all the harsh frequencies, rather than bosting certian frequencies. However, be careful about cutting out alot of frequencies just becasue you hear something that sound weird, as it may an overtone, fundamental, or even a harmonic with certian notes. I have trouble with EQing when I mix, so most of the time I hardly ever EQ when I mix my backing tracks and I find the real tracks don't need any EQing, plus my room is not well treated. I really should do some songwriting, reocrding , producing and mixing so I can really get my skills down. It is so much fun. I'm glad you like the CLA guitar plug in. My favorite plugin on electric guitar, and even acoustic is the Kramer Pie. You only need a little bit of it to get just the right amount.

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