Mixing Oceano’s Crushing Guitars: Joey Sturgis’s Layering & Bus FX

Oceano’s guitar sound is undeniably monstrous – a wall of heavy, articulate aggression that defines their modern deathcore assault. Ever wondered how that kind of power and clarity is achieved in the studio? We got a peek into a mix session with the one and only Joey Sturgis, alongside Nick, as they tackled Oceano’s guitars, and it’s all about smart layering with amp sims and some killer bus processing.

Forget just one amp tone; we’re talking about building a composite sound designed to work together, creating something truly massive. If you’re looking to beef up your own metal productions, these techniques are gold. Let’s dive into how they dialed in these tones for an Oceano track.

The Foundation: Triple-Layered Guitar Annihilation

The core strategy here starts with just two DI tracks – a Left and a Right (or A and B, as Joey prefers to avoid confusion). But here’s the kicker: these DIs are duplicated twice, giving you a total of three stereo pairs, or six tracks of guitar.

The philosophy is to create distinct tonal layers that complement each other:

1. A High-Gain layer: This is your main, beefy tone.
2. A Mid-Gain layer: This adds definition and string articulation.
3. A Low-Gain layer: This brings in even more pick attack and clarity.

The workflow is pretty methodical: nail the main high-gain tone with the first pair of DIs. Once that’s sounding killer, duplicate the tracks and tweak the amp sim settings for the mid-gain layer. Duplicate again, and tweak for the low-gain layer. This ensures each layer is built upon a solid foundation while serving its unique purpose.

Want to see Joey and Nick break down this entire Oceano mix from start to finish? You can dive deep into the full session right here on Nail The Mix.

Crafting Each Layer: Amp Sims and Settings

The beauty of modern amp sims is the ability to quickly dial in diverse tones. For this Oceano track, Neural DSP’s Archetype Gojira was the weapon of choice for the main amp sounds.

Layer 1: The High-Gain Core (90% of the Tone)

This first pair of tracks is designed to deliver about 90% of the overall guitar sound. It’s the meat and potatoes.

• Gating: Before hitting the amp sim, a simple gate is employed. In this case, Pod Farm was used just for its gating function – no amp modeling, just clean and tight DIs.
• Amp Sim: Neural DSP Archetype Gojira. Nick started with the “Juicy Chugs” preset – because why not, with a name like that? – and then tweaked from there.
  • Amp & Cab: They landed on Head 3 and Cab 3 within the plugin. This is speculated to be a 5150-style model, a classic for heavy tones.
  • Pedals (In-Plugin): The Gojira plugin’s built-in Compressor and Overdrive pedals were engaged, likely part of the preset or tweaked to tighten things up.
• Post-Plugin EQ: A crucial move here is an EQ cut around 3kHz. This helps tame that often-present hissy, resonant frequency that can make distorted guitars sound harsh. For more on surgical EQ moves, check out our EQ Strategies for Mixing Modern Metal.

Layer 2: The Mid-Gain Definition (Strings & Attack)

With the main tone established, the second pair of tracks is all about adding clarity and making sure you can hear what the strings and pick are actually doing.

• Purpose: This layer provides more audible information about the pick attack and string vibration, ensuring the riffs don’t turn into mush.
• Amp Sim: Again, Neural DSP Archetype Gojira, but with different settings. This might involve selecting a different amp model or preset within Gojira, or perhaps just tweaking the gain and mic placement on the virtual cab. They were looking for more of a “spank” tone here.
• EQ (In-Plugin): A notable tweak within the plugin on this layer was a cut around 250Hz to clean up any potential mud and keep it focused on definition rather than low-end power.

Layer 3: The Low-Gain Sparkle (Even More Articulation)

The third and final layer pushes the articulation even further, focusing on the top-end detail of the strings.

• Purpose: This layer adds even more string information and attack, almost like a DI blended in, but with a bit more character. It’s less about saturation and more about that percussive, stringy top-end.
• Amp Sim: Neural DSP Archetype Gojira is used once more, but this time configured for a lower gain sound, likely with a third distinct amp and cab combination to ensure tonal variety across the layers. The in-plugin compressor and overdrive might still be active from a preset, but the overall gain is kept lower.

Bringing It All Together: The Guitar Bus

Once all three layers are dialed in, they’re all sent to a dedicated guitar bus. This is where the magic of cohesion and final shaping happens.

Balancing the Layers

It’s crucial that these layers are balanced correctly. The high-gain layer forms the bulk of the sound, while the mid and low-gain layers are mixed in more subtly to add their definition without making the overall tone sound thin or overly scratchy. The panners for these tracks are linked and typically set hard left and hard right. Joey mentions an “ASU trick” here, referring to the technique of having almost DI-level sounding elements on top of the main tone to preserve clarity amidst heavy gain.

Guitar Bus Processing Chain

With the layers balanced, the guitar bus gets its own chain of processing:

1. Initial Control: L1 Limiter
   Right off the bat, a Waves L1 Limiter is used to “smash it down.” This isn’t about subtle dynamics; it’s about getting a controlled, aggressive starting point for the rest of the bus processing.
2. Mid/Side Magic: Center Plugin
   Next up is a “Center” plugin (like Waves Center). This is a slick way to adjust the balance between the mono (center) information and the stereo (sides) information without messing with individual track faders or panners. For Oceano’s guitars, the center was boosted, which can help push the guitars forward in the mix and solidify their presence.
3. Adding Width: Stereo Widener
   A touch of a stereo widening plugin is added for a tiny bit more spread. Joey notes that in Cubase (the DAW used), going into the red on these types of plugins isn’t necessarily an issue, so don’t be afraid to push things if it sounds good.
4. Excitement and Punch: OTT
   A fan-favorite for aggressive music, an OTT (Over-The-Top) multiband compressor (like Xfer Records’ OTT) is used to make the guitars “a little more exciting.” This is especially effective on chugs. A cool trick highlighted is how the OTT can boost the little tails of the chugs, bringing back that “oomph” and air movement you get from a real amp in a room – something often lost in direct-recorded or heavily processed tones. If you’re curious about how compressors can shape your metal tracks, dive into our Metal Compression Secrets.
5. Final Polish: EQ on the Bus
   The last step on the bus is another dose of EQ to sculpt the overall tonal balance:
   • Cleaning Up: Cuts are made around 2.2kHz – 2.4kHz (to remove what Joey calls the “baby crying sound”) and another dip around 4kHz-ish.
   • Adding “Expensive” Sheen: A boost at 14kHz is applied. Joey loves this frequency, mentioning it “makes everything sound expensive.” It adds that high-end air and detail.

The Final Touch: Trackspacer

After all this processing, the main guitar bus is then sent into a Trackspacer plugin. While not detailed in this specific clip, Trackspacer is typically used to dynamically carve out space for other elements in the mix (like vocals or snare) by reacting to a sidechain input.

Why This Layered Approach Works for Oceano’s Sound

This meticulous, multi-layered approach allows for a guitar tone that is both incredibly heavy and impressively clear. The high-gain layer provides the power and chug, while the mid and low-gain layers ensure that every note and pick scrape cuts through, even in the densest, fastest passages Oceano is known for. It’s a modern metal production technique that delivers massive results.

These are some serious pro-level techniques, but they’re totally achievable in your home studio with the right tools and understanding. Want to see Joey Sturgis apply these concepts and mix the entire Oceano track from scratch, plus get your hands on the multitracks to try it yourself? Dive into the full session on Nail The Mix. And if you’re ready to go deeper into the world of modern metal mixing, be sure to check out our comprehensive course, Unlock Your Sound: Mixing Modern Metal Beyond Presets.