Got Any Good Mixing Tips?

[michaelhigh]

Another one... You know the deal about cutting out subsonics and really low frequencies from tracks that don't have musical energy down there to tighten up the overall sound? I've found there's a corresponding phenomenon in digital when working at 44.1 or 48kHz: Removing highs from tracks that don't have a lot of high frequency energy. A steep high cut starting at around 15-18kHz warms up the sound, and gets rid of that funky stuff that happens when high frequencies start bumping up against filter limits. Audition all your EQs to see which ones handle this kind of function best; I can hear definite differences between different EQs.

 

 

As a bassist I use this technique most. I do record analog mostly, and I do tend to leave the low in,by and large. I may be missing something that could apply to improving my sound as well when doing non-bass tracks...

[michaelhigh]

Of course, this is easier to do with automation; you can preserve what you've done already, start over, and then compare the two. "Zeroing out and starting over" is definitely a great exercise.



Definitely true in my case. Approaching the mix with all the "problems learned" gives you a leg up, and allows you to focus on "just the good stuff." Good suggestion, Jeff.

My late-stage tricks:

In junior high band we had a very forward-thinking director. We would do rhythmic exercises to tighten our ability to make entrances as a group by randomly choosing an odd number (to take away the 1-2-3-4 factor). He would count 4 for nothing then we would each count to ourselves in silence, then clap on, say, the 27th beat. First we would do this with the lights on, then off for comparison. Lights on - distractions, laughing, cutting-up, bad for unison entrance rehearsing. Turn the lights out, better concentration, no distraction, better unison clap on beat 27. Whem we are robbed of a sense the others escalate to a greater precision. I think this is why musicians tend to perform eyes-closed.

[Phait]

Amp-sims tip

 

If you have a hard time double-tracking guitars, just setup 2 audio channels. On each, insert the amp plugin. Tweak them individually, for example Track 1 might have the sim's mic right against the amp, Track 2 would have the mic farther away to capture room sound. Select the same input for both tracks, start recording.

 

Shift one of the recordings ahead for slight delay, maybe pitch it down a little. Pan/level to taste.

[LeonardScaper]

I listen to 98% or more of my collection in a moving car.

 

 

As far as critical listening goes........you need to get out of the room from time to time. I like to take a walk around the house. You may be surprised at what jumps out at you when you're out in the kitchen fishing out a cold beer from the fridge.

 

.....or crank the mix and listen from outside the window.

[Rekel]

I see Leonard already beat me to it. It is indeed quite revealing to listen to your mixes from another room. In the old days, I even used to transmit them to my car radio in the studio's parking lot

Someone else already mentioned listening to a very low volume level to check for balance. Especially important for lead vocal level to check against the music and if you can still understand the lyrics.

If you can't fix things with eq between tracks that are competing in the same frequency, try a completely different pan positions to get separation even if it means an unorthodox approach.

As has been said, taking regular breaks is very important and keep checking what you're doing against reference material that you like and fits the musical style. Use your own headphones that you are most familiar with to double check where you're going, too.

And last but very important and often overlooked, arrangements. Change or even get rid of fills, licks, parts, etc that clutter up the song and take attention away from the overall message. Change inversions on e.g. guitar chords when they are in the same register as for example, a piano part. Even use only a few notes from a chord instead of playing full chords which are already covered by another instrument. Try playing fills inside the lead vocal holes as much as possible and perhaps land on another note as the singer hits when he/she comes in again.

Don't be afraid to not use parts that were already recorded even if that decision hurts the player's ego (and that could be you) because he/she (or you) thinks the part was a stroke of sheer musical genius at the time of recording them. I see all too regular that people record way too many tracks just because it is technically possible. Quite often, less is more.

Finally, if you are recording and producing a band, don't hesitate to politely ask them to leave the control room, save for perhaps the most experienced one (often but not always, the band leader) when you set up the mix.

Nice thread and just some random thoughts from me.

[UstadKhanAli]

Arrangement = mixing, if you know what I'm sayin'. Sorta like mixing before you mix.

[philbo]

There are hundreds of tips... One I use a lot is to turn the mix way down and see if it still works when quiet. If it does, it'll always sound good loud too.

[Rekel]

Arrangement = mixing, if you know what I'm sayin'. Sorta like mixing before you mix.

Absolutey, Ken. I preceded my arrangement comment with "and last" but I actually should have said "first"

[cherry412]

Craig--when listening in mono, one speaker or two?

[echoshock]

I'd appreciate mixing tips in regards to basic fundamentals of track setup and levels etc. What is your high level process as far as setting up tracks, setting track levels, master fader, mixdown process, etc. Before I learn about proper compression and giving each element a space in the mix, I want to make sure my basic track setups and methods are correct, if that makes sense.

So at the risk of stupid questions:

What is the first thing you do with all of your tracks before starting the mixing process in regards to levels?
Do you set them all to a certain level?
And how do you set the master fader? Does it matter at this point?
What is the process to mix down to a stereo file?
I mean I think I'm doing these items properly but who knows since there's no way to confirm.

[UstadKhanAli]

Usually, I'm kinda mixing as I track, and that's often how I begin. When I'm finished with overdubs and it's truly time to begin mixing, I will, if necessary, group all the faders and bring them to a level that's healthy but nowhere near "slamming" the Master Fader (getting near the red, in other words), thereby overloading the mix buss.

 

I usually keep my Master Fader at "zero" at this point, but if I need to alter it later (to add fades or gentle increases/decreases in volume), I'll do that if the song calls for it.

 

To mix down to a stereo file, lately I have been mixing by recording everything to a stereo track, as opposed to performing a Bounce To Disk. I've been told that it sounds better, and to be honest, I haven't A/B'd them yet, but so far, it sounds quite good.

 

I don't know that this is the only way or even the best way to do it, but since I tend to mix as I go, this way seems to work well for me.

 

What do you do?

[the stranger]

I find that if you put the cream and sugar in the cup before you pour the coffee, it's makes for a more satisfying mix, ultimately resulting in a better cup of coffee. Good water is also key to effective preproduction brewing strategies.

[UstadKhanAli]

I leave most of the expert mixing to the bartender.

[Jeff da Weasel]

I find that if you put the cream and sugar in the cup before you pour the coffee, it's makes for a more satisfying mix, ultimately resulting in a better cup of coffee.

 

 

Dislike.

[UstadKhanAli]

I really dislike it...I don't like the taste of coffee.

[the stranger]

He must like his coffee black.

[Anderton]

Craig--when listening in mono, one speaker or two?

 

 

Two, but only because it's too much of a hassle to switch things around. Just make sure you're listening in the center, and not having the speakers interfere with each other in some way (e.g., one is mounted on a reflective surface and the other one isn't).

[Anderton]

I'd appreciate mixing tips in regards to basic fundamentals of track setup and levels etc. What is your high level process as far as setting up tracks, setting track levels, master fader, mixdown process, etc. Before I learn about proper compression and giving each element a space in the mix, I want to make sure my basic track setups and methods are correct, if that makes sense. So at the risk of stupid questions: What is the first thing you do with all of your tracks before starting the mixing process in regards to levels? Do you set them all to a certain level? And how do you set the master fader? Does it matter at this point? What is the process to mix down to a stereo file? I mean I think I'm doing these items properly but who knows since there's no way to confirm.

In most cases, you want to keep the master fader at 0, and have peaks hit no more than -6dB or so at the output. This headroom is important because of intersample clipping, where clips occur that most meters can't register. If you find yourself with "level creep" where the faders start coming up in level, don't reduce the master level. Instead, temporarily group the levels of all your channels together, then bring them up or down as appropriate.

Like Ken, I often have some kind of rough mix as I go along just because I want at least a semblance of mix available when doing overdubs. This serves as the starting point for a "real" mix. But, sometimes I find it's helpful just to put all the faders at the same place, and start from scratch. This can give a different perspective on a song, which might get lost during the tracking process.

Hppe this helps!

[Anderton]

I'd appreciate mixing tips in regards to basic fundamentals of track setup and levels etc. What is your high level process as far as setting up tracks, setting track levels, master fader, mixdown process, etc. Before I learn about proper compression and giving each element a space in the mix, I want to make sure my basic track setups and methods are correct, if that makes sense. So at the risk of stupid questions: What is the first thing you do with all of your tracks before starting the mixing process in regards to levels? Do you set them all to a certain level? And how do you set the master fader? Does it matter at this point? What is the process to mix down to a stereo file? I mean I think I'm doing these items properly but who knows since there's no way to confirm.

In most cases, you want to keep the master fader at 0, and have peaks hit no more than -6dB or so at the output. This headroom is important because of intersample clipping, where clips occur that most meters can't register. If you find yourself with "level creep" where the faders start coming up in level, don't reduce the master level. Instead, temporarily group the levels of all your channels together, then bring them up or down as appropriate.

Like Ken, I often have some kind of rough mix as I go along just because I want at least a semblance of mix available when doing overdubs. This serves as the starting point for a "real" mix. But, sometimes I find it's helpful just to put all the faders at the same place, and start from scratch. This can give a different perspective on a song, which might get lost during the tracking process.

Hope this helps!

[UstadKhanAli]

In most cases, you want to keep the master fader at 0, and have peaks hit no more than -6dB or so at the output. This headroom is important because of intersample clipping , where clips occur that most meters can't register. If you find yourself with "level creep" where the faders start coming up in level, don't reduce the master level. Instead, temporarily group the levels of all your channels together, then bring them up or down as appropriate.

 

 

Yes, that's important because you can still have clipping if you bring down the Master Fader level instead of the individual faders. And I keep mine at approximately -6dB at the output as well (obviously, that's not true if I have a limiter at the end, but before the limiter, it would be -6dB or so). With 24-bits, there's no need to slam the meters.

 

 

 

Like Ken, I often have some kind of rough mix as I go along just because I want at least a semblance of mix available when doing overdubs. This serves as the starting point for a "real" mix. But, sometimes I find it's helpful just to put all the faders at the same place, and start from scratch. This can give a different perspective on a song, which might get lost during the tracking process. Hope this helps!

 

 

I've started from scratch before when I'm not feeling it, taking off whatever plugins I've had on and starting from scratch. Usually, no, but once in a while...

[roomjello]

Two, but only because it's too much of a hassle to switch things around. Just make sure you're listening in the center, and not having the speakers interfere with each other in some way (e.g., one is mounted on a reflective surface and the other one isn't).

 

 

Unless your control room is small and non-symmetrical and you have your speakers in corners like many many people do.

Then you may end up showing reflections that you shouldn't using 2 speakers. I would suggest just one for mono listening in this situation.

[roomjello]

Lead Vocal tip- add 3rd order harmonics for bite.

Bass tip- Low shelf around 150hz and cut till the bass sounds even yet still full. Do this instead of adding highs.


Drum microphone tip- use dynamics for novice drummers, condensers for pros.(saves in repair/replacement costs)

Banjo tip- use an AEA r84.

Kik tip- Loosen the heads till it sounds big(simple but overlooked) try one mike in, one out, use both or the best at mix time.

Music stand tip- if you use the full metal type, cover with a soft blanket under the music, especially for vocalist/narrators. Stops horrible reflections and comb filtering as they move/ turn their head

[stomias]

Parametric sweep......multi-band compression.

[iqi616]

Another one... You know the deal about cutting out subsonics and really low frequencies from tracks that don't have musical energy down there to tighten up the overall sound? I've found there's a corresponding phenomenon in digital when working at 44.1 or 48kHz: Removing highs from tracks that don't have a lot of high frequency energy. A steep high cut starting at around 15-18kHz warms up the sound, and gets rid of that funky stuff that happens when high frequencies start bumping up against filter limits. Audition all your EQs to see which ones handle this kind of function best; I can hear definite differences between different EQs.

 

 

Can the high-cut be done in the analogue domain? I like to do my high-pass filtering before the converters so my inclination is to do the same for the high-cut.