Discover The Advantages Of Strategic Mixing

What Defines A Good Mix?

The chain of events that goes into a good mix is delicately crafted and subjective. However, some typical outlines have proven efficient and are used today in the music industry. The stages of music production are different between recorded music and sequenced music. Steps in recorded productions require the efforts of the previous stage to be close to the final before they begin. Producers may give input at each stage, but each person has their focus. In sequenced music, the producer can flip between aspects of the songwriting, arranging, recording, editing, and mixing stages throughout the creation process. They're not forced to finalize things until it's time to mix because, with MIDI, nothing is "printed." This blog focuses on the process of mixing sequenced music, more specifically, a digital mixing process in SoundBridge.

Your Overall Mix Is the Priority.

If you spend too much time focused on how individual elements sound in isolation, you are not addressing that the product is - in fact - the overall mix. The temptation to focus on the changing component is strong, but it is essential to take a step back from it and observe the effect of its change on the whole. For example, in general, compressors on individual instruments should be adjusted against the overall mix. The dynamic performance with many level changes might sound great in isolation but masked and unclear when in context. Another example: the typical high-passed vocal treatment in today's mixes can sound unnatural and nasally out of context but fine in its proper place. This tip is backed by how our brain processes music. We can separate elements of a combination of sounds - so treating a single element against other elements is just as effective as treating it in isolation. It has a higher probability of sounding good in the final product.

But Where Do I Start!?

1) Get some documentation and notes from the producer (if it's you - make some notes yourself) and examine them. Have a written list of things you want to fix… maybe something like this.

Kick sounds boomy
Vocals are unfocused
I do not like the tone of the guitar - maybe filter it a bit
Effects on the snare need some automation
Pop @ 2:10
I like the background vocals as they are - try to preserve those

2) If you're unfamiliar with the song, listen to it and all its parts individually. Know the music like the back of your hand.

3) Get a rough mix and make one yourself. This is your noncommittal chance to hear the song transform into what it's supposed to sound like. However, references are best used with some degree of detachment. In other words, they don't have to make sense or be technically correct - don't get accustomed to these ambiguities.

Technical or Creative?

Technical tasks don't affect the way the song sounds. They are more for organizing and optimizing workflow and require little sonic knowledge. So, technical mixing tasks include normalizing the equipment, housekeeping (renaming, ordering, coloring, consolidating), checking for phasing, making groups, and restoring damaged audio. Any task that will affect the way something sounds is creative. They require a lot of concentration. It is important not to let the technical tasks above interfere with and distract you from this flow of intuition. It is best to do the technical tasks first. Creative mixing tasks include dynamic processing, equalization, embellishment, and modulation (about everything that isn't technical).

In what order do I mix instruments?

Serial Approach - Start with a couple of tracks, and when you're happy with that mix - add another - and another - etc.… Rhythm, Harmony, Melody Approach - Start by mixing rhythmic tracks (drums, percussion, bass), then harmonic instruments (pads, guitars, keys), then melodic instruments (vocal, solo instruments). This technique, arguably, makes little sense sonically. It is, however, easy to maintain and organize.

Order of Importance - Mix tracks in order of significance. This seems self-evident, but remember that every song highlights a unique combination of parts. For instance, the beat is vital in hip-hop but not as important in rock or jazz. The advantage of this approach is that the more essential instruments get the most room to grow.

Parallel Approach - Bring all faders up and set a rough balance before tweaking parts individually until you've fine-tuned the overall sound. The advantage here is that nothing is manipulated in isolation. The drawback is that it becomes difficult to focus when many tracks are involved. This technique is best used when fewer than eight tracks are in the mix.

In What Order Do I Mix Sections?

Mixing engineers usually work separately on the various sections of a song because each unit is likely to merit a different mix. The question remains…. where do we start? There are two main methods.

1) Chronologically - Start from the first section and go to the end linearly.

2) Order of Importance - Mix the essential section first (typically the climax or chorus) and move to the other sections later.

The Coarse-to-Fine approach

There is no justification for attempting to perfect everything before the late stages. Mixing is a correlative process. You will always have to re-touch your earlier decisions when adding something new. There needs to be constant accommodation and balance. This is why so many engineers have adopted the coarse-to-fine approach. This approach means the engineer starts with coarse (drastic, noticeable) changes to not waste time (because they will have to re-touch the setting repeatedly) and later backs off with more specific and subtle settings. The coarse-to-fine approach is a virtue from the pan position to modulation parameters.

Example: Coarse treatment (early stage)

Example: Fine Treatment (later stage)

Dealing With Deadlock

The Inability to Evaluate or Specify What is Wrong: Sometimes, we know something is wrong but cannot determine it.

Refer to your reference track - a balance you wish to achieve. The comparison is often revealing.
Revert to listening in isolation
Try a different approach

Vicious Circular Reassessment: We tend to remember and focus on the recent changes we've made. This hypersensitivity can make us neglect issues that arose sometime earlier. When we eventually notice them, it's too late to change them without causing a new imbalance.

If you find yourself re-assessing a minor detail for hours, you probably need a break. Take some time away from listening to recharge the perspective you need.
Listen to the mix and try to move your focus to another instrument for a while.
Push the mix forward - trust yourself and know when to move on. You can go back and fine-tune it later.

Unfixable Raw Tracks: You have three options.

Hide them - Make them negligible, subtle, or masked
Trash them - Delete them or substitute them. It is okay to add and remove audio during the mixing stage - consult others involved in the production first.
Break them - Take advantage of effects to make damaged audio sound intentional.

Stabilizing

Check the mix...

On Different Speakers - popular setups, both flattering and flat setups, old and new, analog and digital

In Different Rooms - reflective and absorbent (not too extreme though - most people won't be listening in these environments), big and small.

At Different Points in the Room - stand far back enough so that the large waveforms in the low end have room to form the way you meant for them, too. Be conscious of room modes. It is best to experiment with this in proper listening areas.

At Different Levels - sometimes, the most exciting parts of your song aren't coming across as effectively as you think they are. Everything sounds better and louder. Because of equal loudness curves, listening to low levels alters your perception of bass and treble. A good mix should barely change when played at different levels.

In Mono - Whether you like it or not, your mix will be played in Mono - somewhere somehow. Make sure this does not ruin the experience. Many mastering plug-ins and most speakers feature mono mode.