How to make room for the kick and lead to meld?

[Lehsyrus]

Hey everyone, so after almost two months I finally have a kick I can be proud of. The only issue is, when I stick it in with my melody, the kick is distorting the lead and sucking life out of the lead. When I bring the volume back on the individual layers for the kick, it doesn't have that pounding feeling it had when at full volume, and the lead stays distorted. My lead is exactly how I want it in the upper midrange and high frequencies, how would one go about making their lead and kick meld together just right without having the kick cover everything?

[Jonas]

Have you tried cutting the low frequencies of your lead? That might do the trick

[Xenophase]

Have you made sure that there isn't a limiter on the master? Also you might want to post an example so we can hear whats happening.

[ljk32]

Yes, posting an example would be a logical idea. Firstly, instead of having your kick playing together as individual layers, export all the layers to form a single kick file. It'll be much easier to work with. Secondly, if you've removed some of the lows of your lead and you don't have any limiters on the master, there's a strong chance the kick, or lead, or both are shit. So rather than it being a mixing issue, it might simply be a case of crappy sound design, as it is a lot of the time with noobs. Upload a file of the lead playing on its own, the kick playing on its own, then the kick and lead together.

[Neko]

This really sounds like the limiter on the master bus.
The problem you describe just shouldn't be there of you got no limiter on.
Or, your just lowcut your lead like Jonas said, or you have a weird kick which has loud peaks in the mid & high range. But in this case I assume you wouln'd be proud of it.
But to answer your question you asked in the topic title, there is already enough room for the kick and lead "to meld". You don't need to construct more room. But the limiter takes away your room so to speak.

[Kedde]

Firstly, instead of having your kick playing together as individual layers, export all the layers to form a single kick file. It'll be much easier to work with.

Depends. It gives less freedom to change the kick, but if it's 99% done already then this method is fine. Another way would be to route all the layers to one channel and put a limiter on that channel.

[Neko]

Ah now I got it, too. lol
Well, like ljk32 said in this case I'd bounce the kick. When you want to change this and that you still can change it in the kick project.
I mean kedde is right too, but when its not the limiter on the master neither a crap mix in the lows I'd go for bouncing the kick.

[boyestar]

Firstly, instead of having your kick playing together as individual layers, export all the layers to form a single kick file. It'll be much easier to work with.

Another way would be to route all the layers to one channel and put a limiter on that channel.

Judging from his "know-how" this is not going to have a good effect on his song.
He should probably stick with the equing on the lead.

[Lehsyrus]

Yes, posting an example would be a logical idea. Firstly, instead of having your kick playing together as individual layers, export all the layers to form a single kick file. It'll be much easier to work with. Secondly, if you've removed some of the lows of your lead and you don't have any limiters on the master, there's a strong chance the kick, or lead, or both are shit. So rather than it being a mixing issue, it might simply be a case of crappy sound design, as it is a lot of the time with noobs. Upload a file of the lead playing on its own, the kick playing on its own, then the kick and lead together.

This really sounds like the limiter on the master bus.
The problem you describe just shouldn't be there of you got no limiter on.
Or, your just lowcut your lead like Jonas said, or you have a weird kick which has loud peaks in the mid & high range. But in this case I assume you wouln'd be proud of it.
But to answer your question you asked in the topic title, there is already enough room for the kick and lead "to meld". You don't need to construct more room. But the limiter takes away your room so to speak.

I don't have a limiter on the master, I cut the lows from my lead and it sounds much better, but there is still some interference between the two. My kick is most likely the issue, I'll have to keep tweaking it some more.

Depends. It gives less freedom to change the kick, but if it's 99% done already then this method is fine. Another way would be to route all the layers to one channel and put a limiter on that channel.

That's not a bad idea, I'll try routing the individual layers to a separate send and slapping a limiter on it. The kick is majoritively done, I have been tweaking and messing around with the layer positions and small amounts of EQ cuttign here and there to try to clean it up a bit more, but I'm pretty happy with the result.

Ah now I got it, too. lol
Well, like ljk32 said in this case I'd bounce the kick. When you want to change this and that you still can change it in the kick project.
I mean kedde is right too, but when its not the limiter on the master neither a crap mix in the lows I'd go for bouncing the kick.

I'll give bouncing it a try, that may be exactly what I need to do, I can bounce individual pitches for the pitched kicks. Though would it be easier to cut it and pitch it after I bounce the final kick?

Judging from his "know-how" this is not going to have a good effect on his song.
He should probably stick with the equing on the lead.

I'll keep working on the lead, I've bounced the audio from the midi and layered the top, and the upper mids together which cleaned it up and had almost no impact on the songs sound itself, but I think I'm still pretty far off with the kick being completely finished.

I would post a sample but I'm stuck at work at the moment, I'll try to get something up later. Oh, almost forgot, is there a more simple way to pitch the tail than relying on Ableton's clip editor? I want to pitch the kick with the exact cents rather than by the semitones because in Abletons clip editor I can't hear the change at all unless it's drastic.

[SCH]

If there still is meddling between the two after cuting the lows of the synth, there's a clash between them EQ-wise.