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    My 5 Favorite Mixing Tricks: 1. Take Notes

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    Jaime Saldanha
    The document provides 5 mixing tricks for crafting better mixes: 1) Take notes while listening to fully evaluate a mix; 2) Use the volume knob to focus on different frequency ranges; 3) Try "top-down mixing" by processing groups and the mix bus before individual tracks; 4) Avoid soloing tracks to maintain mixing context; 5) Use subtractive EQ to carve out space in the mix. The document recommends additional mixing resources and an online course.

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    My 5 Favorite Mixing Tricks: 1. Take Notes

    Uploaded by

    Jaime Saldanha
    44 views3 pages
    The document provides 5 mixing tricks for crafting better mixes: 1) Take notes while listening to fully evaluate a mix; 2) Use the volume knob to focus on different frequency ranges; 3) Try "top-down mixing" by processing groups and the mix bus before individual tracks; 4) Avoid soloing tracks to maintain mixing context; 5) Use subtractive EQ to carve out space in the mix. The document recommends additional mixing resources and an online course.

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    The document provides 5 mixing tricks for crafting better mixes: 1) Take notes while listening to fully evaluate a mix; 2) Use the volume knob to focus on different frequency ranges; 3) Try "top-down mixing" by processing groups and the mix bus before individual tracks; 4) Avoid soloing tracks to maintain mixing context; 5) Use subtractive EQ to carve out space in the mix. The document recommends additional mixing resources and an online course.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    44 views3 pages

    My 5 Favorite Mixing Tricks: 1. Take Notes

    Uploaded by

    Jaime Saldanha
    The document provides 5 mixing tricks for crafting better mixes: 1) Take notes while listening to fully evaluate a mix; 2) Use the volume knob to focus on different frequency ranges; 3) Try "top-down mixing" by processing groups and the mix bus before individual tracks; 4) Avoid soloing tracks to maintain mixing context; 5) Use subtractive EQ to carve out space in the mix. The document recommends additional mixing resources and an online course.

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    My 5 Favorite Mixing Tricks

    1. Take Notes

    Legendary mixer Bob Power once told me that every time he returned from a listening break, he
    would force himself to listen to his mix from beginning to end. Instead of stopping playback
    when he heard the first thing he didn’t like, Bob would keep listening and write down each
    problem he heard. Only after making a complete pass through his track would he start
    addressing each note.

    Bob taught me an important lesson about valuing my objectivity. Whenever you are approaching
    your work with fresh ears, it’s an opportunity to hear your mix in a new way. Make the most of
    these moments. Be fully present and engaged during playback, and listen from beginning to
    end. By doing so, you’ll move more quickly through the mix process, and ultimately craft better
    mixes.

    2. Use The Volume Knob As A Tool

    Your ears perceive frequencies differently at different volumes. At lower volumes, your ears are
    much more sensitive to midrange frequencies. At higher volumes, your ears become more
    sensitive to the low and high frequencies (shoutout to Harvey Fletcher and Wilden Muson for
    figuring this out in the 1930’s).

    You might be aware of this phenomenon already. But do you use it to your advantage when
    mixing?

    Use the volume knob as a tool to help you zero in on various areas of the frequency spectrum.

    If you’re trying to balance the kick and bass (which have a lot of low end information), turn your
    speakers up. This will help you to hear the low end more clearly. Conversely, if you’re focusing
    on riding vocals (which sit primarily in the midrange of your mix), turning your speakers down
    and mixing at low levels will allow you to make better balancing decisions.

    3. Try Top-Down Mixing

    Top-down mixing is a technique that flips the traditional mixing process on its head. Instead of
    starting a mix by processing individual tracks, first build a solid balance using faders only. Then,
    add your first layer of processing (EQ, compression, saturation, etc…) to the mix bus. After
    you’ve taken things as far as you can, move on and process the subgroups in your mix (drums,
    vocals, guitars, etc…). Finally, add additional processing as needed to the individual tracks in
    your mix.

    This technique often produces results more quickly than the traditional, “bottom up” approach.
    As a bonus, you’ll typically use fewer plugins too!

    4. Avoid The Solo Button

    When you solo a track, you remove all the context you need to make the right decisions.
    Remember—mixing is all about making a group of sounds blend together as a cohesive unit. It
    doesn’t matter how each track sounds by itself, because the end listener is never going to hear
    the individual tracks.

    Don’t make adjustments to your plugins while tracks are in solo. Instead, make them while all
    the tracks are playing together.

    Resist the urge to solo tracks, and your mixes will sound much better.

    5. Use Subtractive EQ

    This technique has made a greater impact on my mixing than just about any other. If you want
    to learn how to incorporate subtractive EQ into your workflow, ​my how​-to article​ is a great place
    to start. ​Dave Moulton’s website​ has a great tutorial as well.

    For more mixing tips, visit ​BehindTheSpeakers.com​.


    Mix By Design is an online training course that will teach you
    how to mix like a pro. You’ll discover a simple, step-by-step
    system you can use to break through overwhelm, sink into
    the creative flow, and make your best mixes yet.

    Ready to get on the path to pro mixes?

    Click Here To Learn More About Mix By Design

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