How to make a live mix that doesn't sound sterile...

Yeah.... I don't download files like that. Apparently its  zipped because my zipper was listed as the option for opening it. Downloading zipped stuff is not something I do.
 
A better option would be to take the better examples and post them as MP3 files on a site like Soundcloud  so people can stream the music.
 
I'd be more than willing to listen like that.

http://stabilitynetwork.blob.core.windows.net/g-tunes/20131110_Vineyard_SJGDavid_28_Willing.mp3
 
Better?

Thanks, Walt. I was over-light with the reverb.
 
This is an image of the gig.
http://stabilitynetwork.blob.core.windows.net/g-tunes/GigPhoto01.jpg
 
I had direct lines on every mic. I can back off the compression on the tracks if you think the vocals are over compressed. I used the CA2A on every track, including guitars, trying to keep it light, but it came in a little heavier during some of the parts.
 
The mics were mostly dynamics. 1 cheap condenser on the acoustic guitar on the right in the picture.
 
 

Yeah, those acoustic guitar jacks always sound terrible, IMO.  But everyone uses them for live gigs.  That's what they're made for.  I'd never use one of those jacks in the studio, though.  Much better sound if you ignore the plugin jack and instead do one of these techniques:  http://www.cakewalk.com/S...reader.aspx/2007013311
.  But this is moot if you're not going to add overdubs in the studio.
 
As for the vocals, during a live performance the singer is not always going to be exactly 6"-9" from the mic capsule, and they're not going to be singing as consistently as they would for a studio take, due to body position and other performance related things.  So you're going to have to be pretty heavy handed with the compression in your FOH mixer.  Unfortunately, this really takes away from the dynamics of the song when recorded.  As a possible alternative, you could try to manually ride the fader during mixdown, presuming you know the song pretty well.  Then you might be able to drop the volume of the softer vocal parts a bit to compensate for the over-compression you'd previously been forced to do.

Yes that's better.
 
On the mix, Lots of issues there. So, going by what you said... this was an outdoor concert on a windy day.
 
Sounds like 2 guitars and 2 singers. 
 
It sounds like you got a good signal from each of the mics and guitars. 
 
The electric pickups in acoustic guitars are what they are.... they work and sound OK for the job they have to do.  As far as that goes, there's not a major issue with the guitars.
 
The vox..... I understand that you are balancing the signal from the board against what the speakers are doing.  Many speakers tend to have really powerful horns so that the highs you hear live are exaggerated and as a result the FOH needs to turn the highs down to keep from shattering glass and ear drums. This shows up in the board mix as dull sounding vox.
 
How to fix the mix:  What I would attempt.  Place a little bit of a stronger reverb on the entire mix.... not heavy but enough to give a sense of space to the mix and blend things a bit more.  On the vocals, use an EQ to brighten the high end, or use something like Ozone  int eh master bus to add that high end sheen  and sparkle to the entire mix.
 
If you are looking a truly live sound, you need to be miking the audience as well using a nice condenser turned toward the audience, located near the center front of the stage so the bleed from the PA and stage is not too badly out of sync with the music. Stage mics, especially the dynamics most often used on stage will not pick up the audience sufficiently.
 
Lastly, and I know this is not so much under your direct control... get the pickers to tune their instruments.
 
All in all, this is not a bad job.
 

This last mix sounds even better, and definitely sounding more "live".  Nice work!  I might suggest some mix changes to push the "lead" vocal up a bit and drop the background vocals down a bit so they don't take over.  Particularly the woman's vocal seems a bit too loud to me.  But that's just personal preference.

To me the issue is in the lack of room sound around the guitars and the vocals especially. The voices are just too close and direct. Even outside there is some form of ambience. I would try setting up a convolution reverb with a nice tight space. Maybe a small club. The good thing about the direct recordings is you can do this. Add some ambience in later. The rooms would be tight spaces and not over noticeable. But just add it in and it will make it sound a little better. You could even get away with one reverb space and sent varying amounts of the sources into it. It really needs to be the sort of reverb you don't hear but if you turn it off you notice something has changed. Small rooms with low amounts of return level. Make sure you have decent levels going in and through your reverb chamber but small amounts being returned. Best signal to noise ratio that way and the reverb will sound more natural. It does not need to be long and obvious. If you can hear it, too much then.
 
The guitar sound is what it is. That direct electrical sound. There is some hardware that can change the direct sound from the DI into more acoustic and natural guitar sounds. There has to be a plugin somewhere that can do it! The best way to disguise the DI acoustic sound is to put it into a nice tight space too. It will make it sound a little more convincing. 
 
There might even be some outdoor reverb spaces. (tight ones best for this I would imagine) Try them but if not I would be going for a small club sound. Does not matter the recording started outside, it is where they end up and where you put them. (ambience wise) Early reflections on their own are effective for adding some depth. Bob Katz has mentioned that one. Maybe on guitars.
 
You don't compress on the individual tracks necessarily. I would leave them alone unless there are things jumping out. If not try some gentle compression on the voices as a whole on a separate buss. Balance of the voices is even more important too. Go for a mix that feels good rather than sounds good.

That sounds like it has come to life a bit for me. You could turn the reverb down a touch too and try altering the room. I find you can often shorten a room space by a tad. It is also good to run any reverb returns though some sort of EQ before returning to the mix. I would take out the bottom end of the reverb slightly on this. It can sometimes add too much low end to the sound.
 
The voices need a slightly different EQ for me. I would be adding some upper mids to punch them through a little more. The reverb (if it is post send) wil get louder once you EQ the vocals too. May have to readjust. (I like all reverbs being post send so any EQ changes are reflected in the reverb sound too)
 
At the start, one of those acoustic guitars sounds almost electronic or synthy or something. (lead sound?) Could be FX on or was that coming from the stage. I would have no effects on both the guitars as well. Run them without any compression too. Try and get the most dynamics out of the performance if you can too. That really adds to realism.
 
That is what so good about a live gig usually. Any live gig. The instruments are largely uncompressed and the most dynamic and snappy of performances can come out in a live situation. I don't use compressors much in a live situation either. The mix can start to sound too produced and compressed instead of snappy, punchy and dynamic.
 
In that live to studio mix you may find there are no compressors over any of these tracks and you may only need subtle and relaxed mastering compression only to just even things out nicely. That is the nice thing about well played and sung acoustic music, it should be a dream to mix.
 
Go for balance first, then EQ then compression (if needed, maybe avoid). Then I add in very slight touches of room sound to these things as a group usually.
 
Those waves look good too. Not too loud or too soft. What reference are you working at K wise. I like to do a lot of stuff at K -14. My mixer is calibrated for that. I find K-12 a little hot and you have to keep all the levels higher inside your system to achieve it. But K -14 seems to be easier to work at without anything coming too close to 0dB FS. And of course K -20 for that pristine, attack transient crisp sound. I would be tracking any live gig at K-20 as well in case the performers make loud sounds unexpectedly which they do.
 
 
 
 
 
 

"Yeah, those acoustic guitar jacks always sound terrible, IMO."
 
Oh but not always...
 
LR Baggs makes some excellent pickups for acoustic guitars. I have one in my James Goodall, I don't or "rarely" use it? But it sounds damn nice! It helps to have a hand made James Goodall Jumbo too ;-)

This last mix sounds pretty good to me, so I'd run with it. Nice song.
 
Peace and Blessings, John