see, now that i'm doing an a/b on this specific track, i'm noticing that the initial mix through the new driver install has more clarity in the higher end and less bass. the new mix through the new driver install has too much bass and not enough clarity on the high end. that would suggest that the new driver install has more bass and less highs - that i exaggerated the bass on the old driver install (leading to too much on the new one) and undermixed the highs.

but, how can i be sure that this driver install is clean? the difference over the highs is much less audible on the laptop. the new mix has more of an oomph on the bottom, but has lost it's tightness. it's not less clear in the highs. that might suggest that the new driver install is a little flatter on the bottom, but is cut through the high end.

i need to be clear that the source is identical. it's a hardware difference. and presumably specifically a driver difference.

i don't like the fact that i can't determine what is the cleaner, least obstructed signal. and, i don't like the idea of using mixes that i can't reconstruct.

so, i think i need to spend some time tomorrow doing two things:

1) i'll need to check if the difference in the highs resolves itself tomorrow when the equipment cools down.
2) i'm going to need to try and break a few things to see if i can recreate a signal that nulls with the initial one.
3) i think i need to do a temporary vanilla xp install to try to and be sure that i'm getting a flat signal.

i don't think the highs were flat this morning. i think that happened when i connected to the internet. i'm leaning heavily towards disabling the network card in that machine altogether. it's integrated, so i'd have to take out in the bios.

the bottom line is that it still seems as though i'm not hearing what i'm actually creating. and i can't get anywhere until i'm sure that the sound quality is not being interfered with somehow.

i want to move forwards. but it's like trying to paint in the dark. you can imagine the result, and hope you're getting it right, but you can't actually see what you're doing. it needs resolution.

i should point out that i've been able to determine that i'm *not* hearing things.

i had all of the initial renders. i created a few new renders. now, if the gear was working correctly and i was hearing things, those files should be identical. you can test to see if that's the case via phase inversion. if they're the same, you should get a flat signal when you paste the inversion on top of the original. we then say that the two signals null.

the renders i created today did not null with the renders i created a few weeks ago. the cubase projects have not been modified in that period, i can be sure of that by checking the dates on the project files.

that should not make sense. they should null.

so, what that indicates is that the signal that was coming out of the mixer a few weeks ago was different than the signal that is coming out of the mixer today. that can only be true if something was broken at that time. so, that's a mathematical proof that the files are in fact different and i'm not tricking myself.

it's sort of strange, though. because in some cases the drums actually do null. the bass does not come close to nulling. it's normal for otherwise identical files to not null over reverb, and so i might expect some bleeding over the amp simulation. but, it's far too profound for that. the guitars also tend to roughly null, except at the high frequencies. put together, this is consistent with what i was experiencing - a floor in the sub-bass along with a cut in the high end.

i've been fairly certain that what i'm getting out today ought to be the clean, correct version. but, i'm not entirely sure if i mixed some of these things before or after it broke. the first track actually nulled perfectly. the next couple of tracks were mixed on the same day, but i re-rendered some of them. the result is that i'm lacking a control.

if i was absolutely certain the device is stable, i could start over, but i'm really not.

so, i guess i should take a step back and realize that i've built up a level of complexity that i'm better off finding a way to jettison. that's what i ought to be focusing on - ensuring clean drivers and starting over.

you know, this is a piece of music to be proud of - maybe especially because i was 15 when i wrote it, although this version was created (initially with vocals) when i was 17. you've got that harpsichord part at the beginning, which was programmed into an ry30. bass parts inspired by tony levin. arpeggiated guitars, moving into a slow motion sweep pick on a big bass beat, opening up into those trills as the climax and falling into a big open chord grunge chorus. all kept together by a percussive use of noise as a rhythmic background, including a sample of a printer. it's something a mid 80s peter gabriel might have come up with. as art pop it's arguably rather revolutionary. this is old,, but it's really worth fighting for to get just right. i just really wish the gear would cooperate in stabilizing a sound so i can actually do it.

no. it's....

when you're dealing with subtle shifts in tone, it's useful to focus on certain subtle aspects. there's a trill in this song at about 3:06 fairly high up on the e string. that's a relatively high frequency, in the way it intersects with the guitar effects. it's also the most important part of the song, in my view. it seems to come in and out of the mix. when i can hear it, i know things are well. when i can't, i know i'm losing some high end.

as mentioned, the point of this replacement was to clarify the tone. i could initially hear it through the bandcamp stream. now i can't. and now i'm consistently missing it through the mixer, too.

i'm really back at square one with no further leads.

:(

wait. ok. somehow "enable audio enhancements" got clicked. turned that off. sounds normal. phew.

the laptop as a whole sounds weird, though.

i'm more confused than ever. the mixer is getting funny again. and this mix was meant to increase the clarity on the bass - which it does through both cards in the recording pc. and yet it absolutely wipes the bass out on the laptop.

there's a corrected mix for this up.

https://jasonparent.bandcamp.com/track/aliens-are-more-likely-than-god

the clarity is refreshing, but i have to say it's exposed a few problems, especially in the bass. for the first track, that's an asset - i'm finally getting the nice thump i wanted. for the fourth, it's creating something that needs serious attention from some limiters. and the fifth is going to need some compression. i was hoping this would be quick, but i'm going to have to be a little more systematic.

bass always takes a long time for me to get right. the source material is not the best. it will come through.