The Basics of Starting a Mix - Setting Levels - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2024
- ➡️➡️The Basics of Starting a Mix - Setting Levels: bit.ly/32pgEPc
In this episode, we’re going to concentrate on the basics of starting a mix. This is a good thing for beginners but it’s also an amazing discussion point for anybody who’s intermediate or advanced.
For me, the best way to start a mix is to open it up and get the balances and panning right. - So let’s get going.
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Now you know how I start my mixes. How do you start your mixes? Do you want to see more videos like this? Let me know below!
Thank you so match, i need to improve my mixes to the next level!You are all invited to listen my music!
Well.....I start them the exact same way...since that's what you taught me duh ;p
I'm glad I watched this! I'm similar but you've presented it in a polished & professional manner from which I've learnt so cheers! And you were mixing on the phones? I didn't plug my phones in until you'd started the drums so I rewound the tape & of course, I could actually hear what was happening...;-))
I start my mixes with "Oh crap, my recordings suck. Gotta do em over" LOL
Yes sir more please, from here on what is your workflow, do you go to eq first or compression?? Stuff like that... Thanks a million in advance
I start my mixes like this... I ruin them always later :-)
Hi Network Unplugged haha we all do my friend!!
lol it hurts so much
@@ProducerGio l
I watch this video every time I'm starting a new mix. It's so valuable to be reminded of the basics.
Wow!! Thanks ever so much
Warren, you do realize that you have raised the bar for what all other 'RUclipsrs' must strive for.
Aw shucks thanks ever so much! There will 50 like this within the next week or two my friend! Haha
@@Producelikeapro Nice. :)
True
agree. he's a real professional
No, no hasn’t. This is vague and poorly explained and generally a disappointment. Seriously, I’ve tried to watch many of his videos and he is one of the worst at explaining mixing concepts.
Warren, Your generosity is beyond compare....You really are a diamond in the internet! Love you man G xxxxxx :)
Hi gagsmedia you’re very kind my friend! I’m so glad to be able to help!
If I get tracks to mix that I didn't record, one of the first things I do, even before volume and levels, is "track housekeeping," where I name, group, and color the tracks in a way that suits my workflow. I will also created busses and/or VCAs for the groups so that I can easily change levels on multiple tracks globally. During my second pass at volume and levels I like to place markers to identify the sections of the arrangement. Checking the overall levels is important in the beginning as well in order to leave enough headroom for mixing. If I get my kick and snare peaking at -18dBFS after processing I can be pretty confident in that regard. That's my yardstick to get everything else in the ballpark. I generally go drums, bass, lead vocal(s), guitars, keys, etc.
Is that -18dbfs with the kick and snare combined? Do you use a VU meter set to -18dbfs?
That's good Warren, saves time in the long run. I've seen people work on individual instruments (eq, compression, effects etc.) first, then bringing them together. They usually have to go back and work on the instruments individually again!!! This way we've got the big picture from the start. Cool!!!
I almost always do drummers perspective when panning. As a drummer, I sometimes feel really unsettled when things like the hihat are on the right. Especially when you have a lot of toms.
Interesting!
I always had a feeling this would be the case, because I always see them (in my mind’s eye) from audience perspective, and it always throws me off, at first, when I hear it from Drummer’s perspective.
Solution: MONO DRUMS! 🤠
I have always mixed from a drummers perspective, although i'm not a drummer, when in the studio. Whenever I mix live (my day job), I mix audience perspective.
😐
IMO drummers perspective is the best because only drummers will really notice what the panning is, so you might as well pan how they would prefer
Thanks ever so much Camden for sharing!!
This is pure gold. Warren, is there a chance to have another episode with the continuation of the same mix?
It's pure logic too. I am also interested in seeing the further mixing steps with track and 2 track handling. Cheers
Would like that too!
SkankTv RO Thanks ever so much my friend! Yes, I’m excited to keep going with this mix!
@@Producelikeapro Can't hardly wait! :D
@@Producelikeapro thank you very much Warren, hope to see the next episode about this video :)
If you were a musician writing and recording from home, track by track; would you encourage this kind of organic work flow as you add tracks. Or would you recommend just slamming everything in mono and 0db?
This was very helpful. It really gave me an idea on how to make things stand out without being overpowering. One problem I have with my mixes is that the kick, snare and bass are usually overpowering.
Otherwise, when recording my guitars, I'll record one take on two tracks, delete one take, pan both off to their respective sides and record the second take on the track with the deleted take.
After that, I begin recording vocals and then I'll do all the volume adjustments.
Short sweet and straight to the point. I love it
Thanks ever so much!
What a great teacher you are!
Thank you so much Warren. Your videos have really helped me improve my mixes in a short period of time. I really really really appreciate you sharing your experiences and knowledge.
Great revision of the basics.
Thanks for the knowledge.
Love what you do, Warren. Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks ever so much my friend!! Glad to be able to help!
Excellent tutorial thank you sensei best part is watching you bop to the music as you mix
Thanks Warren, good stuff! :-) My amateur home recording mixing is much like this, but usually keep the stereo width within 60% L&R as I feel headphone wide stereo can sound synthetic and living room listeners probably are moving around going back and forth past the stereo speakers getting more L or more R at any given moment...so no titillating stereo and almost-mono will keep the integrity of the mix better in that scenario. I try to capture the tone on the recording so I tend not to use many plugins...just reverb to taste and mostly limiting to control dynamics.
very interesting video. Thank you.
Thanks for another very informative video. I try to mix in mono at first in order to get as much clarity as possible via volume, EQ and compression, and then pan later - any thoughts on that? Another difference from your process is that I try to keep my faders at unity (0dB) since they are not linear and adjust volume via gain - any thoughts on that?
Mixing in mono is definitely a good idea to keep up, but I like to do panning early on as well to start hearing that whole spread, and then switch between mono and stereo while listening.
Also, I think you have the right idea with gain balancing at unity before moving faders. Warren didn't really talk about gain staging or any VU metering, which is a good thing to start with even before panning and moving faders. You'll start to get a good pre-mix even just by dialing in the gain sweet spot for each track.
Awasome vedio, you teach very core and basic concepts . It is really improving my mixing , thanks alot !!! Love from India ❤️
Thanks ever so much
In reelbus v4 I add a little wow and flutter to everything...movement is what made tape great. Love the stuff Warren.
Helpful stuff thanks. Gives confidence in my own abilities as I approach initial mix almost like for like. i really like the majority of that track's instrumental too, kinda had an early 90s Billy Bragg vibe until the lyrics came in and dismissed that notion lol.
I do about the same thing with stacked bgvs but I'll pan them maybe 2 or 3 percent apart. For example, the high octo 100 left right, and the other high bgv 97 left right. Sometimes if theres a single low bgv in the group of the stack bgvs I'll Aux it to a doubler to kinda fill in the gaps. Sometimes that works 👌
Very good example. Thanks Warren!
Thanks ever so much!
Awesome video!! Thank you sir!
My only gripe with these videos (and I mean all of them) is they always start with great sounding stems, as if they have been eq’d on the way in.
My mixes never sound this good from the get go. You could argue I need to work on my recording technique, but all my instruments are either dI or superior drummer 3 etc.
I rarely ever EQ on the way in. Most of my demoes are done using our Audient iD interfaces so that it is close to everyone’s experience. Of course there are plenty of videos of us using hardware on the way in which if course colours the sound. Mic placement combined with the best sound source is of course the most important part of any recording
DI’s with great virtual instruments will give you great results!!
Something I think people get wrong a lot is to raise up what isn't loud enough, when it's almost always a better idea to lower what's too loud. And groups are super useful when you're trying to balance out, say, the drums against other instruments, once you've got the drums balanced in regard to each other.
I always love your in detailed videos, I highly recommend them to everybody open to learn...:)
Thanks for this content, it's worth it's weight in gold. Thanks Warren, and as a great Man I know always said "have a marvelous day" 😋
This was really great...so informative! Thank you!!
Wonderfully informative, cheers Warren.
Superb explanation of how to start a mix. I am glad I do more or less the same thing in the early stages of a mix.
Have a marvelous day sir!
Thanks ever so much my friend!!
Thank you really really good learned a lot but up to now I have only used EZ drummer but your teaching method is great, I have been doing this in the same order but keeping my eye on the gain structure so as keep my headroom, how would you apply panning when you have four thick rytham guitar tracks in the mix, two being distorted both in harmony? Thank you again Stephen
A little imperfection in the vocals! Nice. The fact that I was able to hear it and that you used it is awesome!
Absolutely my friend! We love the imperfections!!
@@Producelikeapro you're the best mate!
Thanks, Warren! Sending SoCal love up the 5 from San Diego!
Thank you my friend!
Very informative! bookmarking this video. thanks!
Thanks Warren for sharing all of this incredibly helpful information!!
The thing I’m always a little unsure about when setting up an initial static mix, is what levels to aim for. If my thinking is correct, plugins like UAD use an internal reference level of -18dbfs to model 0Vu. When setting levels should I be aiming for -18rms, or am I over complicating this part? Thanks!!
Lovely brother
Absolutley a great way to start. The best I have seen on this.
I spent hours on a song my band recorded, I sampled drums, eq on each guitar and the even the bass. I then hated what I had.
I done this to the same track and it is like day light and dark on the sound.
Thanks!
Thanks, Warren, this is excellent. I agree volume and pan settings are good first steps. You did this all by ear, but do you also check signal strength or measure volume levels against a VU or other meter? Also, except for the piano, your tracks all look perfect wave form size! I guess that comes from quality tracking. Mine usually need to be adjusted first.
Hi Warren, excellent vid, very helpful, thank you, all the best, Darren Ross.
Warren, you've done it again! Brilliant video. As a relative beginner, the hardest thing is getting started, but you bring your fun-loving, positive attitude to the table and give us an example of how to fly through the opening stages of a mix. This is a great thing for those of us who tend to be perfectionists and/or over-thinkers. Love it!
Hi X S thanks ever so much my friend! That really means a lot! I am so glad to be able to help in any way I can my friend!!
Cool thank you Warren
Thanks ever so much
While I'm on the subject will you give me a word on this signal chain for my master bus I'm new so it might not be a good way but This is the routing I'm trying to make happen in my hardware rack: My out put goes into my Drawmer 1973 then into my Empirical Labs Fatso EL7X then I have it going into my two KLARK Teknik EQP-KT Pultec type EQ's one on left and the other on right then through an ART Dual Limiter Classic PWM Limiter when it comes back after setting levels and coming back into the Pipeline plugin made for hardware set ups in STUDIO ONE v.5 it has a weird kinda Phasing sound like its coming through a pipe or slighly coming out of a phaser stomp pedal for a guitar sort of very faintly and this is after adjusting the sample rates on the ocsiliscope on the Pipeline plug in it has one built in to the plugin. For now I guess I'll just stay in the box. I just spent a ton of money investing into my new personal studio so I can produce my own music for the sake of publishing my productions and now I can't even make my investment payoff. CHEERS Mate
Thanks again, great video. What about normalizing all tracks to some level, say -12db as a starting point? What do you think?
I start my mixes pretty much the same way but I do drummer pesrpective. I have a mix template with the most common plugins I use already loaded on the tracks but bypassed. I recommend templates for anyone who wants to save a bit of time and start a mix just a bit faster.
It works wonders for live sound as well with a decent digital board.
Do you use live drums?
@@jasonsimmons7479 Yes and no. If there is a drummer to be recorded then yes. If a drummer wants to work with me for my songs then I also prefer live drums but if that isn't possible then I program the drums and use drum sample software. Live drums are far superior to samples I think.
Warren could you please share which open Type mixing headphone is your go to Mixing Headphones?
great video
Hi Warren and seasons greetings. There are several approaches worth discussing. What you showed here is a good start. But what about gain staging with a VU meter and how would you approach this? Using drums as an example, if we imagine there could easily be 18 separate mono tracks using Midi drums and perc', which so many people are using, you'd want to create buss tracks for group volume. parallel compression and a buss track for reverb. But before any of that, you could start by getting all your wavs to a consistent level. This can be done by normalising every file to -3dB, then using clip gain to reduce to -6dB. All clips would then have a consistent volume level at -6dB and all faders would at this point be at 0dB. These could be reduced to say, -12dB to allow for creative balancing as you spin all the other tracks in. How would you use a VU meter to accomplish gain staging, beginning with clips. then addressing fader settings? The goal here being a non clipping output master bus level at -6dB. Alternatively, and for better accuracy, using a VU meter calibrated at -18dB, it could be used to adjust all clips to read 0dB. The VU meter could be deleted from the channel insert afterward. Next, to move all faders down say to -12dB and create the busses. First job would be to match the kick and bass, again using the VU meter, then balance the kit after that. So, the option here is to either use a VU meter or not for better gain staging. Its a lot of work either way. A 'go to plan' every time should be the aim, as opposed to reaching for the faders in a haphazard 'trial and error' methodology, endlessly hopping between clip gains, buss levels and the onset of 'faderitis'!
I'm curious how this approach works for you. How does mono compatibility work? My point is not all content "sounds" the same volume at the same dB level on a meter; as such, one would expect a rough balance mix to be not balanced if all you were looking at were dB readings on your meters. Mid-range content will sound louder as compared to other content, say low-end, at the same level. So while it's good to keep an eye on your meters, it is "engineering" after all, you can't completely mix that way, particularly if you're approaching mixing from the perspective of creating a balance, which is what we're actually doing.
A better approach might be to start with one source, maybe drum overheads, give that an appropriate amount of headroom, and then build the rough balance around that. Remember, you're balancing not just volume, but frequency content, and dynamics. If you're concerned about neatness of levels, put a gain control at the top of each track, and then normalize that level to whatever your fader gave you, then reset the fader to "0." You might find that once you've pulled all the elements in, the overall level isn't that bad or off, with sufficient headroom.
But you have things like Groups and VCAs, so if you're pegging your master, just pull the ALL group down.
Given the effectively infinite headroom available in digital, and gain controls on essentially every plugin, this obsession with "gain staging" is curious, particularly from people who haven't worked in analog, where gain staging really is an important thing.
@@gjergjkastrioti1688 Hello and thanks for your own comment, I find my approach works well 'out of the gate' because I have at least some uniformity in gain levels to begin with. Essentially, before we can approach mixing, we need to monitor the input levels and quality of the audio source as our primary concern. Also, a lot of people are claiming that plugins are optimised to work within a certain range and if we don't hit that spot, we're not getting the benefit of the plugins. Once we have captured the source audio it makes sense to pay attention to the clip volumes, if we didn't already monitor those as they were being recorded. Assuming we didn't do either, we would have to repeat this process until we achieve an optimal signal level. I personally go for a nominal -3dB print but there are no hard rules. I just find this helps me out when I'm mixing my own tracks. But having said that, we don't want a low profile signal anymore than we want a maxed out one, relative to fader throw. So my point really is, what audio print profile are people aiming for and why? I agree with you about midrange etc and even having a nominal level doesn't mean you won't be reaching for the faders! I just wonder what Warren might have to say about this. It is important for gain staging, even though we don't have the noise floor problem as in the days of tape. As long as we're not clipping on the master channel we don't need to worry about clipping on the individual fader tracks, but for the sake of good housekeeping, I would try to avoid clipping on the mix faders. There are so many videos about gain staging, so I won't labour the subject myself and really all I'm saying is that it helps me to get a place to start if my clip levels are similar. It would be helpful if you'd try it for yourself and then post your comments about the pros and cons etc. I think a lot of our notions about recording are endemic throwbacks to the tape days and a lot of those habits and methods are related to noise floor (tape hiss) problems. If tape is your thing, you'll still need to think about that. That's not an issue anymore. thanks to modelling, unless you might be recording outside. or the noise is what you want. A lot of people are also using pink noise to help them get a rough mix. That's really interesting because the audio manufacturers use the pink noise gradient as the ideal default when tuning their cones. This is of interest because if we want our mixes to translate to sound good across a wide variety of consumer devices, we need to understand the role pink noise plays. To prove this, as I have done myself, then just analyse the frequency response of your favourite recordings and then compare that response to the pink noise gradient. In all cases, you will see that the mastering engineer has taken that into account, which is why you don't see wild fluctuations or deviations from it I think we should be obsessed with the quality of our releases, so I'd be guilty on that score. One thing is sure - the more we have going on in a mix, the harder its going to be to balance it. I mean of course, that it will increase the amount of frequency masking, phase cancellation and relative output volume as we mix. I record using drum samples, not live drums - as so many others are even if not admitting to it! In live performance with a band I'd always want a live drummer myself, although that's very genre dependant. Jean-Michel Jarre with live drums - ? Green Day with a drum machine -? LOL.
Good video .
Hi Warren,
What about Kick and Bass level? What do you think about the King's technique setting kick at -3dbvu? Do you think it's useful or you could have a pumping kick all the time? I'm really struggling about drums and bass levels
Great video on getting started - thank you. Just wondering, Warren, if you do any of the track edits before this to get rid of extraneous noise, get proper alignment, phase etc, or does that come after this step?
Thank you Warren...always a good idea to revisit the basics.
It is Devin! haha
EXCELLENT explanation, Warren and MUCH appreciated! If you could, please consider Craig Sanderson request as there are quite a few of us that DO get mixes that are, well for lack of a better word, in a state of dismay. Thank you ever so much for your continued sharing of knowledge and audio mentorship (PLAPer)...
Hi Warren
Long time fan, first comment...
I was wandering how you pan your drums. Do you pan from the drummers perspective (hats left, 1st tom left, 2nd tom slightly right and floor tom further right.
I know this is a known point of discussion.
I find that when mixing from the drummers perspective, I can mix in a way that the listener is litteraly sitting between the musicians. With the drummer in his back, the bass and vocals in front of him and everyhthing else panned to taste around the listener.
What's your point of view?
Best regards
Wim
Great lesson - live music is just that - people and their instruments spread across the stage - it helps to remember that when mixing!
Thanks ever so much my friend!
To compare, listen to before mix at 2:22 and after mix at 14:25 The difference is really impressive with just volume and panning, wow
Thanks ever so much
Hey Warren! Can we know what kick sample are you using? Sounds really good!
I didn't always do this but now I keep all my channels at -5 db and wait until the end to add any effects like reverb or delay or what ever. Also watch out for the bass monster it will crush all sounds
Do you think there is a benefit to mixing in mono until the end and then render to stereo?
Love this.. If I missed the Comment on this forgive me. When setting the Hats to either the drummers perspective or audience perspective, is there a way to balance properly if there isn't a tambourine for instance? Or do you like to leave it in Left or Right field? Thanks
This is so great. I bought Mixbus 5 a week ago and this is exactly what I've been doing since. Adjust volume, pan stuff around, get rid of excess tracks, create groups and assign tracks to buses (and turn the drive/tape saturation UP). Bonus: I started working on this exact song last night. Now I know a bit more about what to fix and how to do it. Thank you :-)
Love it!
Thanks ever so much
Mixing drums from audience perspective - yes!!..... how many times I have had people tell me I am wrong - when actually its just a personal choice.
Thank you so much. Very useful.
Hey Worrent I hope you're ok. I was wondering is the headphone youre using specialised for mixing and if so what are they I'm looking for a mixing headphone as I dont have any acoustic treatment at my home studio any suggestions?
What the difference between gain staging and leveling?
Great video. I do a similar process. However, something that I've been trying to wrap my head around lately is bus master vs. Master fader. Do you send a mix of the entire song to a stereo Aux before going to the Master fader? I've read that this is where you would insert some overall compression or/and EQ and not on the Master fader. Perhaps you can do a show on that and explain the pros and cons?
oh , no kidding!!! I am trying to wrap my head around Pro_Tools 12 and just all this in gen...its a major learning curve i guess...but i believe one day i will master it all...no pun! :)
This is what I do always. The master fader is set at unity gain and only used for volume. Everything else goes to the master bus
what DB do you bring up the kick when you start your mix? I usually bring it when it reads 6 DB on the meter.
I listen to the drum overheads to hear where everything is placed in the stereo field. Then I check the phase on the drums. Then normalize all clips to -6db peak and do a rough mix on the volumes and panning.
B. Robertson do you have any advice for checking the phase?
Can you please have Sean Beavan on an episode. Nails, Manson, Slayer, 8MM, No Doubt etc.
Nicely recorded! I hate when the raw tracks sound awful.
I agree these sound great even before mixing other tracks you have to get through a lot of pain just to clean up the noise and that's even before you even start mixing
Are drums always the loudest levels in the mix?
For the life of me I can't understand why anybody would pan drums from the drummer's perspective... and I'm a former drummer! Surely your mix is just an intermediary between the band and the audience and unless you're being deliberately "creative" you would therefore want to represent the band as they would play to an audience directly. Imagine putting a track from the drummer's perspective synced to video of the band - everything is going to be panned audio-wise opposite to where it is visually which is utterly incoherent - the illusion that places the listener in an imaginary audience in front of the band is lost. To match your mix in the video the drummer would have to sit with his or her back to the audience and that's just rude!!! I'd be interested to hear arguments FOR panning from drummer's perspective.
I prefer audience perspective as well, however, whatever anyone wants to do is ok! I hear you though haha
Besides this, what are all the steps you do before starting to mix?
Moin Warren i looked so many videos about mixdown mastering from various yt channels and nothing fit to my sound.. because i got up to 5 different guitars at the same time and every technic failed.. after severals videos you said the magic sentance" thrust your ears" .. after 6 month of muddy sound i found my own mixing style and mastering... Warren huart and gregory scott are the best to find your way to produce your music. The rest at youtube show a way how to
produce their music. Thx alot for sharing your wisdom i know this is not common!
Wow! Thanks ever so much! I really appreciate it!
I have one quick question are you channel fades reading in rms, classic peak sample or peak?
Great advice as always Warren.....I often despair that people (mixers) dont use their ears instead of some unobtainable theoretical maths bullshit......( that might have been a bit strong....)
Two things I have loved as I've discovered your channel and binged many, many hours of videos: 1. Even though I've engineered, produced, and mastered hundreds of my own projects over the years, what I know is infinitesimal to what I have yet to learn and always will be. 2. It's also nice that sometimes it helps me see how much I DO know as well and that so many things that are just instinctual auto-pilot knowledge for me are the result of 20 years of experience, studying, experimenting and just doing it, even if I had no idea how to do it "right." Thanks so much for this channel!
Great video! Thank you!
Glad you liked it!
Loving your videos Warren! I've been following your work for a number of years now. Thanks for the detail and time you put in to your content. It's a pleasure to see how you work in your music productions. All the best! Ken :-)
Thanks ever so much for your great comment!
Hey Mr. Huart, I have a question. Is mixing different in each genre, for country, pop, rock, dance, etc... or is mixing the same process in every?
I start very much the same way getting it leveled volume and pan wise so I can Lke you said make an informed decision on the steps I take next I love how yo break down your work flow sometimes with a more complicated song its easy to get lost in the complicated parts so starting with the basics is vital As wealso do recording here and not just mixing and my mix sessions are from the recorded sessions I add in gain staging as one of the first steps usng the HoRnEt MKIII plugin saved my butt a couple of times Rarely do I get stereo tracks so I mix mostly in mono so panning alonfg with sidechaining later in the mix session really helps out Again thank you for being so generous with your time and knowledge
Up until about 4 months ago I was still using a 8 track porta-studio. I never knew there was going to be more than panning and volume in a mix until today lol.
Glad to be able to help in any way I can!
I've been addicted to watching your videos ever since I came across your interviews w/Hugh Padgham recently. I learn something new w/every video I watch. Your videos are a goldmine of information that benefit anyone...from someone trying to learn tips and tricks to improve their own recording and mixing to someone who just may be curious as to all of the elements that go into creating a recording and finished product. Thank you for making these videos - they are 1st Class, both entertaining and high value educational tools!
Wow! Thanks ever so much! I really appreciate your wonderful comment!
What a magnificent video! Awesome!
Hi Warren, love your tutorials man, you ROCK!!! Hey gotta question, if you were the guy who recorded that, would you have been doing any of that balancing as you were going through the recording process or do you wait til every tracks been recorded before you start moving faders and adjusting the panning?
I’ve Recorded at -18 dbfs. In the mix shoud i keep this level on MIX BUS ?
Always great info.
Nice ID44 you have there. Up to anything in particular with it?
Awesome video. Thank you ever so much, Warren. I guess I tend to do too much too soon.I use to apply EQ and compression to e.g the drums as soon as I balanced them and move then on to the bass and other instruments. This video is an eye opener for me. I try to have the discipline to get a good overall balance and panning at my next mix before I start to do anything else. I'm curious how it will work for me. I think it's a very good approach to follow your example, especially when there's no rough mix available to listen to to get a first impression,
My standard practice has been to first apply the low cuts that I know I'll eventually do and THEN do the volume/panning. Do you see the order of that making a difference?
I’m still very much learning and finding my own best practices, but what I’ve learned over the last 3-4 songs is this. I’m a composer/producer so I’m always working on my own music soup to nuts, and not somebody else’s, so this is obviously a bit of a difference to yours. I start with a tracking file in Cubase. Get all the scratch vocals, guitars, bass and drum loops written. Then sequence them with the arranger track until I get a layout I’m happy with. Duplicate the file which is now my arrangement project. I’ll track the final vox in context to the full song now. Record overdub guitars where needed. Ad drum fills and other little bits and pieces. I’ll render all the stems out to WAVs and bring them into a mixing project template which has all my eq and compression plugins instantiated and control surface mapping in place. I’m really glad you mentioned baking any FX from the tracks into the stems as I’ve long hummed and hand over this. I’m going to take your advice and give that a shot on my current track. The delay and mod and verbs and even compression added during arrangement are a part of the sound design, so I can see now that they should be treated as such and baked into the mixing stems. I also export all my stems at 0db so all volume faded mixing is done in the mixing project. I don’t like having a backing synth track so quiet with the fader at 0db in the mix. Thanks for another great lesson
Priceless, bro!
You’re very welcome
Great video Warren, Go back to the basic's!!
Yes indeed my friend!!
noob here- i've been starting by hard panning the OH mics left and right, and then using a graphic eq to take the highs out of the kick, and the low-lows out of the snare, cymbals and vocals. I use the bass control on amp plugins for guitar. interesting that you pan from the audience's pov as my instinct has been the opposite. i'm definitely gonna try this first thing when i next record :)
Brilliant. In this world with endless amounts of plugins and tutorials on how to sound like this and that, bringing it all back to basics is a serious reality check. Thank you for this video Warren.
I never pan the hihat mic. I like it when the close mic for the hihat stays in the middle and the overheads/rooms create its stereo image. When the hihat mic is panned, to me it sounds like there's a bit too much spread and that can be distracting.
I think it all depends on the OH style and overall mic placement, but yeah, a heavy-handed HH can sound weird.
Hi, Warren, thank you for the very informative video. I've been recording a few years now but have only just started being more diligent with the mixing process. I,m now doing them very similar to this. very good to have it reiterated by someone who knows what they're doing.I've got a lot to learn but I'm enjoying the process . Many thanks
these videos provide so much information and confidence in my personal mixes. Thank you
Thanks ever so much my friend