Three Steps To A Cohesive Mix

This may come off as hypocritical considering that I run a website dedicated to mixing tips, but I don't like "mixing rules." When I started mixing I fell into the trap of thinking that there were special mixing tricks that were going to revolutionize my mixing. I learned the hard way that there are no secret rules. The only "secret" is hard work and drive.

With that said, I'm going to give you some tips today that will help you create a cohesive mix. To do this, we're going to look at a few rules and break a few rules.

So what do I mean by a cohesive mix? I mean that all of the instruments and tracks within your mix need to sit well together and balance each other out. Let's look at a few ways we can do this.

1. Don't solo your tracks.

Nobody listens to your individual tracks in solo. They listen to the entire mix. It won't do you any good to go EQ a vocal or guitar by itself without listening to it in the context in the mix. Remember that your goal is to create a cohesive mix with balance and continuity. The only time you may want to solo a track is to EQ out a weird frequency or for some editing work. However, in general you should mix your tracks in the context of the mix and not by themselves.

2. Do what sounds right, not what looks right.

It's so easy when mixing in a DAW to rely on our eyes more than our eyes. We will look at an EQ curve and think, "Wow, that EQ curve is way too step," and we won't even bother listening to see whether we like it or not. EQ is a tool, use it as such. Break the rules that say you should never boost EQ by so and so amount. Do what sounds right for the mix. Use mixing techniques and rules only as guidelines and as a starting point, but you are going to have to stray away from that depending on each individual song. That's why you don't want to use the same EQ curve on every vocal track. It may work in one song, but need something totally different for another. Experiment and listen to what sounds right!

3. Use EQ to help frequencies sit together.

EQ isn't just a tool to alter the sound of a track or cut out certain frequencies, it's also a great way to get your tracks sitting together in a mix. Let's say you are mixing the bass guitar and kick drum. One great way to get those two sitting together is to boost one frequency at, let's say 60hz, and cut the other one at the same spot. (The frequency that you cut will depend on your individual song. 60hz is just an example.) This will help each one to come through the mix but allow you to hear them individually. Practice the same technique on electric guitars.

Use these tips as guidelines and as a starting point. As I said at the beginning of the post, these are not cure-all's for your mixes. They will however help you to getting a more cohesive mix.

Mixing - Editing - Mastering

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Adaptable Mixing

Do you still listen to the radio?

I do. But not near as much as I did say, five or ten years ago. I mainly now listen to music on my iPhone or computer at home.

So what does this mean for us as mixing and recording engineers?

Well, one thing it means is that we need to make our mixes more adaptable. Let me explain.

When your audience is primarily listening to the radio, they are more than likely hearing genre specific music. There are rock stations, hip hop stations, country stations, etc that focus their music primarily on a particular genre. So if you were mixing a rock song, you knew that more than likely that song would be played before or after another rock song, or at least a song pretty close to it.

However, today that is no longer the case. With more and more people abandoning radio and listening primarily to their own mixes, the genre continuity is disappearing. What this means is that our mixes need to be able to flow seamlessly from one genre to the next. If they don't, they may stand out in a negative way. This is why we need to make our mixes adaptable.

So how can we make our mixes adaptable?

One way you can make your mixes more adaptable is simply to think ahead when you are mixing. As you are EQ'ing your kick drum, maybe pull in some reference tracks from a few different genres and find a sound that you think fits seamlessly with all of them. Now, obviously you don't want to make it sound like a genre it's not. The goal is to make the transition more seamless and less brunt.

I believe that by doing this we can stay ahead of the curve, or at least with the curve in an ever so fast changing industry.

So next time your mixing, think ahead and try to make your mixes adaptable.

Mixing - Editing - Mastering

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Using Stereo Reverb To Widen A Mix

In today's world of unlimited tracks and digital instruments, it's rare to have a mix with less than four instruments, but, it happens.

So let's say you have a mix that is fairly simple as far as instruments go. Electric guitar, bass, drums, and vocals. You may be wondering how you can get a wide sound with such little instruments. One way you can do this is simply by using a stereo reverb track.

Note: I'd like to say right here that there are plenty of great albums with a primarily mono mix. Don't feel like it has to be wide. 

Okay so let's say you've got your one electric guitar panned dead in the center. If you want to widen it up, simply put a stereo reverb on there. All you do is a create a stereo aux channel, slap a reverb plugin in on there, and put a send on your guitar track to that channel. By finding the right level, you can create a wider sound without getting too spacey, especially if you've got a good reverb plugin. (I recommend RVerb by Waves)

You can use this reverb trick with any track as well. It doesn't have to just be guitar. You could even throw it on a drum buss to give it more of a room sound if it's too dry. You don't want to get too crazy using this trick, but it will definitely help open up your mixes using subtle reverb.

Remember as I noted before, there is nothing wrong with a mono mix. Great bands and great albums have been made with very little instrumentation and a primarily mono mix. This trick is only if you want to widen up your sound a little bit but don't want to throw off the balance of your mix.

Hope that helps!

Mixing and Mastering

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What Is The Best Way To Record Or Mix "X"

One question I hear all the time is, "What is the best way to record or mix x?"

The problem with this question is the word best. 

Anytime you approach recording or mixing with the idea that there is a "best" way to do something, you undercut creativity. Sure there are rules and guidelines that will help you along the way, but you have to be risky and try new things. A ton of what we do in the industry today is because of people trying things that others thought ridiculous.

I think the important question to ask is, "What way can I record or mix that sounds the best to me and adds creativity to the song?" Because this is a subjective field, you are the one who gets to decide where its good or not.

So next time you sit down to record or mix, remember to be creative and try new things. Don't be afraid to break the rules and you just might come up with a great new sound.

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Mixing In Context Part One: Using EQ To Create Balance

Over the next few weeks I'm going to be doing a series on mixing tracks within the context of the mix. This is such a huge aspect of mixing that many people seem to miss. As you learn how to mix in context your mixes will begin to flourish and it well help you get a more cohesive mix.

Today we're going to look at using EQ to create balance within the mix.

EQ is a wonderful tool. I use it probably more than I do anything else, and it has a wide array of applications within a mix. One very important aspect that can often be overlooked, is using EQ to create balance within a mix.

So what do I mean by balance?

I mean that EQ can help certain tracks sit together more comfortably by utilizing control of the frequencies. For instance, if you have two electric guitars in a mix, you can find a particular frequency that you like and do a subtle boost (about 3db) on one and a subtle cut (about 3db) on the other. What this will do is help each one to sit together more properly.

Now these sort of techniques are subtle, but will add up when done to a lot of tracks. Use these sort of tricks on things like multiple backup vocals, dual electric or acoustic parts, etc. You'll start to hear this nice subtle separation of your tracks, but by keeping it subtle you won't be changing the tonality too much.

So remember when you are using EQ on your tracks, keep in mind what frequencies you are boosting and cutting in relation to other instruments and how you can use EQ to help the instruments sit more nicely together.

I'll be posting a video tutorial soon on doing this so be on the look out!

Need Mixing and Mastering?

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Where To Pan Your Tracks When Mixing

One of the first questions new mixing and recording engineers have is, "Where do I pan my instruments?"
This may seem like a simple question to someone whose been in the field for a while, but even something like panning and setting levels can be daunting if you don't have any experience or know where to start.

Today I'd like to give you some suggestions on where to pan your instruments in a mix.

Note: This is not a cure-all or an objective rule to panning. The rules change. Music is subjective. Take it for what it is. [end rant]

First off, I'd like to touch on a particular kind of panning that helps to widen your mixes. I've mentioned this before, but I think it bears mentioning again.

LCR Panning

LCR panning refers to left-center-right panning. The idea is that you either pan something hard left, right, or dead in the center. This will help you to widen your mixes and get a huge sound. You certainly don't have to do this, but if you are going for a wide sound and don't have much experience mixing, this is a good place to start.

So, to the question. What do you pan left, center, or right? Well it depends. On a lot. But here are a few rules.

Center Panned

• Kick Drum
• Snare Drum
• Bass Guitar
• Lead Vocals

Those instruments and tracks are almost always going to be panned in the center. So that's a good rule of thumb to start with. Let those tracks cut through the center of the mix. 

Now, the rest of the panning process is going to depend on what instruments you have in your mix. If you have, say, only one electric guitar, you will probably want to keep it in the center. If you have two electric guitars, you'll have to play with it. I like to take two rhythm electric tracks playing the same thing, and pan them hard left and right. This widens the mix lets each guitar track breathe and not fight for attention. Then you can have the lead guitar or solo guitar cut up the middle. 

Whatever you decided to do panning-wise, make sure your mix is balanced. Try not to have 80% of the tracks coming out of the right speaker or your mix will sound unbalanced. Don't be afraid to keep your mix mostly mono if you don't have a lot of tracks. In fact, you should get your mix sounding good in mono no matter what, but that's another blog post. 

So, to recap: Pan your kick, snare, bass, and vocals in the center. The rest will depend on how many of that instrument you have. Also, try LCR mixing to create a wider mix. 

Soon I'm going to do a video tutorial on panning automation that will help you open up your choruses and get creative with your panning. 

As always, remember if you have any questions about mixing send your questions to info@willsterling.net and get your question featured in the Question of the Week. 

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How To Get The Right Reverb Level On Vocals - Video

In this tutorial we show you how to get the right reverb level on a lead vocal track.

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Three Items You Need To Start Home Recording

I get this question a lot and so I think it bears mentioning.

What do I need to start recording my own music? 

Although this answer will vary depending on the person you ask, here are three items that I think are very important when first getting into recording.

1) Recording Interface

When first starting out, it's crucial that you get some sort of recording interface. A recording interface is basically an external sound card with preamps that allows you to plug microphones and other instruments into your computer. You can usually get a USB or firewire version of one of these for around $150 and it will most likely come with some sort of free DAW. Which brings us to our next point...

2) Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)

That's just a fancy of way of saying recording software. You will probably want to have some sort of program on your computer that allows you to mix and edit your tracks once you have them recorded. These softwares also allow you to bounce your songs to down to MP3 or WAV files, so you can get them on your iPod or upload them to the internet. If you don't know what software you want to use, try starting out with something free like Studio One. We'll assume for the sake of the post that you aren't planning on going purely analog or bypassing a computer altogether.

3) Microphone

You are going to need a decent microphone, and contrary to popular belief, you don't need to spend a ton of money. Depending on your interface, you'll either want to start out with a dynamic or condenser microphone. If you go with a condenser microphone, make sure the recording interface you have has phantom power. Condenser microphones have a hotter signal than dynamics, but also require extra power. I personally think condenser microphones are a great place to start. You can get the MXL 990/991 package for around $80 and that gets you two microphones off the bat. This will allow you to record things like acoustic and vocals at the same time. If you can't get a condenser, then start out with a Shure SM57 or 58. These mics are great once you learn how to use them and practice mic placement. They will run you around $100.

So there you have it. Three things to get you started with home recording. Total cost of getting these three things shouldn't run you more than $250 to $300 depending on your choice of interface and microphones. Once you have these three things, you'll be on your way to making great recordings and learning the ins and outs of mixing.

Have a Recording but Need Your Song Mixed?

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