So the leads sound fine but the rhythm guitar sounds like it gets compressed when it comes in. The track that the rhythm guitar is on only has a little bit of reverb from my reverb bus. My question is; is this and EQ issue or a compression or is it something else that im missing?
Heres a snippet of the track to show what im talking about.
Problem Area by Nuclear Winter Music | Free Listening on SoundCloud
Hi there Earl!
A thought---It sounds like your kick and instruments are sharing a compressor; the pumping effect I hear on your posted full-mix sounds like your rhy gtr is fighting with your kick for the final effect of a bus compressor or some unit applying (downward) dynamic operations
A way to visualize how this occurs / what this sounds like:
-visualize the master bus compressor as discrete box with audio flowing through an input valve at the bottom of the box, the inputted flowing audio wants to flow upwards to the ceiling of the box to be heard at whatever volume is ultimately decided by whomever is running this show... Within the box, at a specific height (numerically specific volume (-12db etc)), there is flexible rubberband capable of blocking audio from flowing upwards. when audio attempts passage the band stretches partially, blocking flow upwards (aka: audibility)
-An example of this: a rubberband is placed at -12db away from 0.0db (a compressor's chosen threshold). instrument audio routed to the bus compressor enters the compressor unit. as audio flows upwards (gets louder), reaching towards volume ceiling, the audio begins to fight against the rubberband once reaching -12 high up, attempting to reach upwards towards the 0.0db ceiling of the bus unit---the band stretches at this point compressing the audio's sonic/dynamic qualities, restricting the flow upwards.
-Disposing with previous visual---An important note given my proposed diagnosis
Earl: when routing all audio through one final compressor (not multiple busses with discrete compressor units per bus) the compressor can only given attention to one individual at a time (this attention shifts as volume of each inputted track dips/rises in volume) and the attention is prioritized to the audio with highest volume exceeding threshold---imagine the rubberband will bend most acutely to which ever upward flowing audio is physically pressing element is pushing hardest (loudest), leaving less surface area for the quieter elements to reach upwards pressing into the rubberband
This last point relates to your situation
Earl--- your mix sounds as if the gtr(s) and kick a both firmly pressed into the rubberband (attempting to audibly exceed the bus compressor's threshold)---- so, when the guitar's audio volume dips below the threshold the kick is physically given room to press more deeply into the "rubberband" (and vice versa: as the kick recedes in volume, and the guitar physically has more surface area to press into the compressor and pumping is heard as the "shift of attention" occurs)
this alternation of gtr/kick pressing into the compressor causes the audible pumping effects, and it just so happens that pumping-guitars in such a transient manner (courtesy of the kick) sounds decidedly: "uggh" to most listeners...again, and I believe others have mentioned this: guitars are usually squarewaves already before mixing stages (stems from amp sims, real amps, etc), and compressing squarewaves is usually a bizarre endeavor by itself lol
Now, what is causing this pumping is something only you can figure
Earl within your project/daw. For example: do you have a some type of vst plugin somewhere in your daw's various pathways/routing shared by your instruments
Additionally: if you have counter-productive gain staging within your project/daw setup clipping occurs.
this could be your source of dynamic-alterations---though traditionally (*never say never) digital clipping cause hard clipping (shaving off audio, squarewave products etc), not rounded sounding pumping side effects
Perhaps these thoughts are of some use!
wishing the best
-MadHat