how much 'bleed' do you tolerate?

gaybear · Post by **gaybear** » Fri Jun 11, 2010 1:05 am

plenty, some, none at all?

personally i like a little bit of bleed. it makes the over all track feel more cohesive. within reason of course.
except on the vocal track i suppose

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Fri Jun 11, 2010 1:11 am

Yeah I totally don't mind a bit of bleed, like cymbals in my guitar tracks or bass in the drum track...
If you're recording off the floor like that, you're probably looking for a "live feel" which is exactly what you get when your shit bleeds trough a little, IMO.

gaybear · Post by **gaybear** » Fri Jun 11, 2010 1:16 am

i think sometimes, if tracks are too bleed free it sounds kinda creepy

aen · Post by **aen** » Fri Jun 11, 2010 1:55 am

Depends on the piece. Usually I need a BIG. Drum sound, so it's pretty shitty to have all the other Instruments spilling over into the distance mic.
A little bit is usually fine, the other night we did a percussion track with four mics and everybody was in everybodys track, but it was cool, cause we panned that shit. HARD. Bass guitar getting out is a big problem for me though. We tried to do some live tracking with 2 guitars, bass and drums, and it just turned into mush from the bass bouncing all over. I imagine in a lower volume situation it would be easier to deal with, but we ended up with seven tracks of "bass and..." and one of bass.

So in general, I dislike bleed. I do a fine job of making shit sound live when it ain't.

Al_ · Post by **Al_** » Fri Jun 11, 2010 3:47 pm

Yeah, bass is usually the biggest problem--that and the vocal mics if they're open. When doing actual "recordings" I try and limit it as much as possible; but then alot of the stuff recorded at ALBQs turns out pretty decent so what the hell do I know.

UlricvonCatalyst · Post by **UlricvonCatalyst** » Tue Jun 15, 2010 10:45 am

There's no one hard-and-fast rule regarding bleed, though as others have mentioned it's a good idea to try and minimise the amount of bass leaking onto the other tracks as it can muddy up the track.
Personally, I like a bit of guitar bleeding onto the drum track. I'd go as far as to say my favourite recordings are ones which actually sound like a band is playing together in a room.

seanpark · Post by **seanpark** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 3:45 pm

For most of the stuff I do, I let it bleed quite a bit. Usually make some serious effort to isolate vocals.

I do this for a number of reasons but probably mostly because I've only got one room and I like doing things live and linear.

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 4:01 pm

all bleed. all live. all the time.

relationship of command was recorded live in the studio. they just set up mic's and played

kim · Post by **kim** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 7:10 pm

usually some bleed on the vocals tracks, i need to record them to a really loud backing, but i don't mind, i usually keep the vocals centered so it blends well with a bit of bleed on the tracks. the other things like guitars and bass are usually recorded without a mic but with line out on a small amp i have or sometimes even just straight from my pedalboard into a usb interface into my laptop so no bleed.

Zeezee · Post by **Zeezee** » Sat Jul 31, 2010 12:07 pm

robroe wrote:all bleed. all live. all the time.

relationship of command was recorded live in the studio. they just set up mic's and played

Fun House by The Stooges too. I'm a fan of that live sound/vibe.

oh.my · Post by **oh.my** » Thu Dec 23, 2010 4:08 am

One of my favorite recording projects was really spontaneous, and we didn't even have any headphones handy -- just computer speakers. There were quite a few vocal tracks, and EVERY TRACK included the entire song mix, albeit quietly, in the background.

The finished song sounded wonderful!

Sloan · Post by **Sloan** » Thu Dec 23, 2010 4:21 am

It depends on the track. Typically I try to minimize it and get the cleanest tracks I can, then if I feel something needs bleed, i just add it in when i mix.

aen · Post by **aen** » Thu Dec 23, 2010 7:34 pm

robroe wrote:all bleed. all live. all the time.

relationship of command was recorded live in the studio. they just set up mic's and played

Right. With some seriously pro isolation, barriers, spacing, and other super ninja recording tricks.

And certainly no overdubs.

That just wouldnt be punk rock.

rich · Post by **rich** » Wed Dec 29, 2010 3:13 pm

infinite bleed.

Post by **Doog** » Fri Dec 31, 2010 12:37 am

It can make drums sound that much more realistic, but it can also prove to be a Pain In Da Ass, especially if you're a fan of using a very wide stereo image- hearing the kick drum come from 5 places isn't too realistic.

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 2:17 am

aen wrote:
robroe wrote:relationship of command was recorded live in the studio. they just set up mic's and played
Right. With some seriously pro isolation, barriers, spacing, and other super ninja recording tricks.

And certainly no overdubs.

When bands say they tracked stuff "live in the studio" they don't mean the amps were pushed up against the drums or they were all crowded around in a circle, or even in the same room.

I once tracked "live in the studio" without being able to see my drummer because he was 2 doors down the hall. We were still playing at the same time but it wouldn't have been different to if we were playing to a drum track or if he was playing to a click/guitar accompaniment. The bass player could see each of us through little windows, but he was the only one who could see everybody.

proroby · Post by **proroby** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:51 pm

robroe wrote:all bleed. all live. all the time.

relationship of command was recorded live in the studio. they just set up mic's and played

I didn't know that, but I tend to agree. This also delves into the question of one take or one track at a time. One takE!

Freddy V-C · Post by **Freddy V-C** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:55 pm

Recording my band's most recent EP everything was recorded live except the vocals. All the amps and the drumkit were mic'd up in essentially the same room but it was divided into sections by some movable sound-proof wall type things. So the drumkit and each of the amps were essentially isolated from eachother. There's a little bit of bleed but not a lot, and the small amount there is makes everything sound that bit more 'live'. I've recorded with loads of bleed before though and it's sounded like turd...

Al_ · Post by **Al_** » Wed Jan 05, 2011 12:24 am

Freddy V-C wrote:it was divided into sections by some movable sound-proof wall type things

Gobos!

DGW · Post by **DGW** » Wed Jan 05, 2011 5:11 am

This post reminded me that Monte Allums makes a bypass mod for the Boss SD-1..