Mixing

[Talling]

Hi, i am new to a lot of this, i would like some help with my mixing.

 

[Trucky]

Welcome to the Forum!

What help with mixing are you wanting?
Feel free to ask a specific question here in the Forum.

Here's a link with video resources and mixing related information to get you started..
Mixing with Studio One

Please update your signature (see link and example in mine) with your system specs.
That information is a good place to start and helps when responding to issues or questions.

 

[Craig Anderton]

This could be an interesting thread! There are as many ways to mix as there are people who mix. I have distinct personal biases about the "best" way to mix, but that's the "best" way for me. Take any "pro tips" you see on YouTube with a grain of salt. Your listeners won't care what mic you used, or your compressor's settings. All they care about is your music's emotional impact. That's all you need to think about when you mix - not "is this a great mix?" Creating something that moves people is the goal of a mix. It doesn't matter how you get there.

Here are some of my personal biases (FWIW developed over half a century of being a music industry professional) that I think are at least worth considering.

• The less tracks there are in a mix, the more importance each one has, and the easier it is to mix. If you need lots of tracks, sure, go ahead and lay down your layers. But always ask yourself if a track serves the music.
• EQ is the key to great mixes. Use it to carve out a sonic space for each track, so they don't conflict or mask each other. There's software that does that for you, but I recommend not using automated tools. People will be listening to your music, not software programs. The music needs to sound good to you, not an algorithm.
• Start your mixes in mono. This will really help you identify what needs to be EQed to make each instrument sound distinct. Then after you have the right balance and sound, start populating the stereo field. If your mix sounds good in mono, it will sound fantastic in stereo.
• I'm in the minority regarding this viewpoint: Mixing and mastering are two separate disciplines and require two different skill sets. Good mixing engineers are not always good mastering engineers, and vice versa. The goal of mixing is to get the ideal balance of all the instruments. The goal of mastering is to bring out the very best from that balance.

I could go on forever but I'll shut up now.

 

[SwitchBack]

Hi Talling, welcome
For better advice it would be good to know more about your situation and where you want to go with mixing. As Craig suggested you don't need much nowadays to have fun with recording and mixing, needing just a few pointers to get you on your way. But depending on the end goal the road can be long and bumpy too.

 

[TDF1981]

Mixing can be either a service or a form of art. Depending on what you want it to be you‘d want to follow different routes. But what‘s true for art is true for mixing as well: you need to know your tools. Learn the basic tools (eq, compressor, limiter, gain staging) and you can already go very far.

 

[lokeyfly]

Hi Talling,

This could be an interesting thread! There are as many ways to mix as there are people who mix.

This...

I have distinct personal biases about the "best" way to mix, but that's the "best" way for me. Take any "pro tips" you see on YouTube with a grain of salt.

Its like stating the best way to ride a horse. It's a silly premise and should be avoided.

Your listeners won't care what mic you used, or your compressor's settings. All they care about is your music's emotional impact. That's all you need to think about when you mix - not "is this a great mix?" Creating something that moves people is the goal of a mix. It doesn't matter how you get there.

It does matter, but Craig is ultimately making the process clear for you, so that you arent overwhelmed by getting lost in the minutia of mixing (your subject).
"Jump off the cliff and develop your wings on the way down." [Kurt Vonnegut jr.]

Tell us about what it is you are trying to do when mixing, specifically. It doesn't help answering your question by providing a vast checklist, or what it is we think you're attempting. Even if we had, it will take you a while to develop, and improve such skills. The good news is, if you want to get better, you will. So let's start, by you directing your question in a way we can best understand.
Thanks

 

[lokeyfly]

Hi, i am new to a lot of this, i would like some help with my mixing.

No specifics?

If you dont know where to begin or you're a little shy, you can reach out to someone who tutors, and can get you started such as Johnny Geib [Home Studio Trainer]. He has a very relaxed and friendly demeanor. As for us? We're all meanies.

JohnnyG

studiooneforum.com

 

[Craig Anderton]

I find iZotope's Tonal Balance Control a great reality check when mixing and mastering. It inserts in your master bus, does no processing, and draws from a database of musical frequency response characteristics for different genres. If your response goes too far outside the "tube," there may be an issue. The curve below is typical of what my mixes look like prior to mastering.