Mixing process

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Undernithe
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Mixing process

Post by Undernithe »

*Disclaimer- I search before posting* :)

Question here is about the mixdown process (production wise, not DJ mixing).

What instruments/tracks do you start with in the mixing process?

I start with the kick as my focus point, and mix around it. I usually try to start mixing the low frequencies first (i.e sub bass, bass line/toms/percs etc….anything thats dipping low into the freq spectrum)

I simply move up the freq spectrum in sequence according to where the frequencies lay (i.e synths into hats and finally noise if im adding that in.)

Does anyone have other preferences or a simpler ways to mix in order to manage sounds better? Im really trying to break the habit of constantly jumping back and forth between the tracks and realize im doing more harm than good to the overall balance. Nothing worse than wasting loads of time and later have to refresh from that last save point because focus gets lost. Thanks!

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Re: Mixing process

Post by Patriek »

From the moment i actually have some nice loop, i am already working on my mix. For me it's an ongoin process, untill the track is done. I do focus on the sub/kick a lot, cause i tend to make them to loud compared to the rest of the track. I jump back and forward during this proces! My ears pick up different things every time i listen to my track (in my car, phone, @work etc etc).

I do save every version though, just so i can always go back a few steps :)
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Mono-xID »

same here...i'm mixing while producing...i tried once (and ONLY ONCE) and pulled all faders down,reset EQ's and Compressors and all that.Didn't worked as the track lost the feel i was trying to create.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Lost to the Void »

I mix to the main elements first.
If the main element is groove, for example, then I zero the desk, get the groove elements working, kick, bass, Percs and hats, then fit everything in around it.
Generally I'm pretty good at Eq-ing the track as I build it, so once I go back to fine tune the mix after composition, I rarely have to do any big mix adjustments.

It's all about picking the right sounds in the first place.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Mattias »

Yep mix while producing it. Then leave it when it's done and revisit it with fresh ears to make the small adjustments. Especially important with fresh ears for the hihats and top-end material in the tracks.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Críoch »

Mix as I go along. As I never really finish anything, I'd never get the practice in otherwise :mrgreen: haha
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Mslwte »

I mix as I go along as well. I keep checking the analyser on th master just to make sure I'm not being to silly. I find that if I do a complete mixdown at the end then I can lose the original vibe of the track and get in danger of scraping the project. Do it as I go but I'm probably building everything around the kick, and the bass if there is any.

And then exactly what Mattias does. Leave it for a while and then come back later with fresh ears eq the hi's..
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Re: Mixing process

Post by saminedia »

the mixing process can be quite a bitch to me, i've realised that some of my best stuff has been made on the crappiest speakers/headphones, then mixed further on better monitor speakers. i think its just basically a situation where if i can hear too much during the writing stage, i get lost in tweaking parameters and lose out on creative song writing..

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Re: Mixing process

Post by ross-alexander »

Tired ears are a killer for a mix I always try and rest and return esp if its been a long session. I mix as I go eq and process as well, I usually.save odd strip settings to re use as well. I think if I ever feel the need to zero out and rebuild a mix I have gobbed it :) I am always trying to improve my approach each time as its far from where I want but it keeps you.going that.

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Re: Mixing process

Post by arc »

I've come to the conclusion that I absolutely suck at mixing. No matter how hard I try to get a good mix from my tracks, they never sound good enough to me. I'll listen to somebody's track on SC and think to myself "Fuck! I should just give up..."

I usually mix while I'm making a track, adding EQ, compression, etc., but I never really feel like I know what I'm doing. Even though I have a pretty good understanding of mixing theory, I always find my self completely baffled why some sounds peak at -0.5 db but yet still sound quiet. I'll alter the EQ a little, mess around with compression, but yet I always end up feeling like I have no idea if what I did helped or hurt the mix.

Like compression. I understand very well what it does conceptually, but it just seems like my ears are incapable of hearing the subtle effects it has on a signal. Light compression seems useless to me. If I use compression, I'm compressing balls-to-the-wall, fuck subtlety, because if I can't hear it, what's the point?

I've spent countless hours trying to master mixing, but it seems like I'll need to spend hundreds if not thousands more until I actually feel like I know what I'm doing.

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Re: Mixing process

Post by Críoch »

Something I do when I'm trying to get stuff sitting together etc.. is checking the phase of individual bits.

If its completely wild, I'll try & tame it back, by reducing the effect that is causing it by a few %, or reducing the stereo width on it with the utility. Not sure if other people do this, but I think it makes things sound a lot tighter & present sometimes.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Mono-xID »

arc wrote:I've come to the conclusion that I absolutely suck at mixing. No matter how hard I try to get a good mix from my tracks, they never sound good enough to me. I'll listen to somebody's track on SC and think to myself "Fuck! I should just give up..."
Same here,mate :) .But on the other hand it's just fun to make music so i don't give a toss to be honest.I somehow feel that my tracks will never ever sound like a production from a "Pro" but i'm cool with what i've achieved so far.There is no way back now,i've found my obsession :).
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Re: Mixing process

Post by saminedia »

ICN wrote:Something I do when I'm trying to get stuff sitting together etc.. is checking the phase of individual bits.

If its completely wild, I'll try & tame it back, by reducing the effect that is causing it by a few %, or reducing the stereo width on it with the utility. Not sure if other people do this, but I think it makes things sound a lot tighter & present sometimes.

Im interested in this, could you expand on it a bit? How do you go about checking if things are in phase? i've been thinking about this myself recently.

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Re: Mixing process

Post by Mslwte »

ICN wrote:Something I do when I'm trying to get stuff sitting together etc.. is checking the phase of individual bits.

If its completely wild, I'll try & tame it back, by reducing the effect that is causing it by a few %, or reducing the stereo width on it with the utility. Not sure if other people do this, but I think it makes things sound a lot tighter & present sometimes.
yes and no, i do it but sometimes i will leave to phase on some parts as to not lose the vibe etc.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by Críoch »

saminedia wrote: Im interested in this, could you expand on it a bit? How do you go about checking if things are in phase? i've been thinking about this myself recently.
No probs man..

Just basically look at the phase meter. When its jumping all over the place.. theres phasing.

I have a utility on the master too, that I can A/B in mono & hear what stereo is being lost when in mono.

After that, its just a case of winding back the wet/dry % on some of the fx that are affecting it / using a utility plug on a particular channel (eg: Something with a wide delay) and dialing back some of the % from 100% to make it "narrower" or using EQ / changing stuff around on conflicting channels to reduce clashing.

As James said - it can be good too, as that can be the sound that you want..

But for me, when I do this, its usually on stuff that needs to sound more prominent, or is not present enough when I mono it. After doing x, y & z - I'm usually happier with how it sounds.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by arc »

Mono-xID wrote:Same here,mate :) .But on the other hand it's just fun to make music so i don't give a toss to be honest.I somehow feel that my tracks will never ever sound like a production from a "Pro" but i'm cool with what i've achieved so far.There is no way back now,i've found my obsession :).
Yeah, I'm never going to quit. Ever since I first got into Techno, I've wanted to learn how to make it myself. As a technohead I think I have a natural inclination to the technical details and learning how things work from the inside. I've never had a desire to be a DJ, only a producer. So I'll be damned if I don't learn to make proper Techno - mixing, mastering, and everything in between.

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Re: Mixing process

Post by saminedia »

ICN wrote:
saminedia wrote: Im interested in this, could you expand on it a bit? How do you go about checking if things are in phase? i've been thinking about this myself recently.
No probs man..

Just basically look at the phase meter. When its jumping all over the place.. theres phasing.

I have a utility on the master too, that I can A/B in mono & hear what stereo is being lost when in mono.

After that, its just a case of winding back the wet/dry % on some of the fx that are affecting it / using a utility plug on a particular channel (eg: Something with a wide delay) and dialing back some of the % from 100% to make it "narrower" or using EQ / changing stuff around on conflicting channels to reduce clashing.

As James said - it can be good too, as that can be the sound that you want..

But for me, when I do this, its usually on stuff that needs to sound more prominent, or is not present enough when I mono it. After doing x, y & z - I'm usually happier with how it sounds.
Thanks, i kind of get it now.. But what is a phase meter? Does it come standard in you daw or is it a plugin you use on the stereo but? Sorry for the basicness of my understanding.

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Re: Mixing process

Post by Críoch »

I use Voxengo Span - Its free.

http://www.voxengo.com/product/span/


Phase is measured by the "correlation meter" in this pic.

When the green bar is to the right - everything is in Phase. Jumping around = varying degrees of phasing. I'd stick a mono utility plug (or any plugin that makes the signal mono) on the master & check if it sounds good / bad / what you want.
Voxengo Span.jpg
Voxengo Span.jpg (20.69 KiB) Viewed 1972 times
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Re: Mixing process

Post by msl »

I mix as I go. Practice makes perfect, just stick with it. My mixing skills have improved greatly over the last years, quality monitors and learning to really listen to sound help.
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Re: Mixing process

Post by kuba_rubacha »

Dont forget about gettin your room eq'd and treated before you even thinkin of proper mixdowns


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