Try applying the distortion directly to the 808 track or apply it to a high passed parallel track so that the low frequencies are clean.
Mid side eq 808.
Try this with your own equalizer settings.
If a track has multiple guitar parts route them through a bus using mid side processing on the guitar bus.
Automate the mid side tool to boost the volume of the side channel during a chorus or other section of the track.
Mixing with mid side processing.
Here are a few tips and tricks for using mid side audio processing effectively.
Basically it splits a stereo signal into mid and side channels.
But take heed good reader m s techniques can absolutely ruin your mixing if applied indiscriminately.
Now the tone of your 808 will come through more clearly over smaller speakers.
Now the mid is all the mono information that is to say everything which is identical in the left and right speaker and the side channel is the opposite.
In this example a bit of low shelf attenuation on.
With a parallel track you can add a layer of mid and high frequency overtones to the sound to taste.
Other tips to eq an 808.
If for example we find our low end to be clean and clear in stereo but a bit blurry or phasey when folded mono we may have some excess stereo information that isn t playing nicely together.
It contains any information which is different between the left and the right speaker.
You can hear the difference when you to boost the high frequencies of the mid or mono signal.
In my youtube video on mid side eqing i illustrate what mid side processing does by going into the mid side eq and showing the audio effect of cutting and boosting in the middle and sides of the stereo field.