14 Mixing Tips I Wish I Knew When I Started
►► Download my mixing guide for FREE here: bit.ly/3FsElLV
The 14 “plateau-smashing” mixing tips that have had the biggest positive impact on the quality of my mixes (and career), allowing me to make a living from music.
Every single one of these mixing tips was a watershed moment for me that markedly “upped my game”, and unlocked a new level of possibilities. I hope you find them equally transformative!
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In this tutorial, we cover…
00:00 - Overview
00:49 - Mixing Tip 1: Good Headphones
01:31 - Mixing Tip 2: Reference Tracks
03:00 - Mixing Tip 3: Mono Switch
05:04 - Mixing Tip 4: Top-Down Mixing Approach
06:15 - Mixing Tip 5: Kick Anchoring
08:21 - Mixing Tip 6: Hi-Pass Almost Everything
09:40 - Mixing Tip 7: Separate Sub Bass
11:51 - Mixing Tip 8: Kick & Bass Buss
14:38 - Mixing Tip 9: Auxiliary Channels for Spatial Effects
16:10 - Mixing Tip 10: Sidechain Compression (Boss Level)
18:07 - Mixing Tip 11: Room Reverb Channel
19:40 - Mixing Tip 12: Saturation Trick
21:17 - Mixing Tip 13: Check Your Mix
23:17 - Mixing Tip 14: Mix for Others
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📝…And here’s the blog version of this video: ???
🎧 Headphones I recommend I:
Sennheiser HD 650 (open back): bit.ly/MyHeadphones650
AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio (wireless): bit.ly/TMA2Headphones
Audio-Technica ATH-M50XBT2: bit.ly/3VSmUK2
beyerdynamic DT-770: bit.ly/3tbULRB
beyerdynamic DT-1990: bit.ly/3UBLjCs
🔉 Monitors I recommend:
@ADAMAudioBerlin T8V: bit.ly/AdamTV8
Rokit RP8: bit.ly/3HbyADH
Yamaha HS7: bit.ly/3VYGV1o
Plugins I use in this video:
Mixchecker Pro: bit.ly/3Y7nZPZ
🎛 Discounted Plugin Deals:
bit.ly/2NGRIgL
💻 …And some of my Favourite Software…
🎤 Vocal Processing (I use all of these):
Celemony Melodyne: bit.ly/3l5cmaA
Antares Autotune: bit.ly/3MeBY0a
Waves CLA Vocals: bit.ly/3aGx4LM
🎶 My ENTIRE Music and Video Equipment: bit.ly/2K4eFHZ
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Cheers, and happy producing!
Will
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• 14 Mixing Tips I Wish ...
#ableton #mixingtips #musicproduction
Great tips. I want to add something extra. If you’re not sure the EQ (or other effect) improves the track or not, place your mouse on the bypass button, close your eyes and repeat the on/off until you don’t know when it’s on or off and choose the setting that sounds best (with your eyes closed). Also make sure that if you apply any processing, that the output level is the same as it is without the effect plug-in. Don’t rely too much on the analyzer. Yes it’s good to put one on the master bus but let your ears do most of the job. If it sounds good, it is good. Last tip and probably the most important one: mix at a low volume. Our brain works in such a way that we define louder sound as better, which is not always the case. Another benefit of mixing at low volume is that it’s easier to balance each channel inside your track. It also prevents hearing damage in the long run. Keep in mind that your ears are the most important tools you have as a music producer! So how loud should you be mixing at? A good rule of thumb is between 75 and 85 dB SPL A weighted. You can measure the SPL with a dedicated hardware SPL meter. You can also download a free or paid decibel meter on your smartphone.
Love it, Emiel! Great tip 🤙
@@EDMTips Thank you for your kind reply! 😊
Be prepared to lie to client, they are often right but cannot communicate what they want and will go Into long winded metaphors to make simple requests, sometimes they are just rebeling and trying to take control back from you. Test them by A/B ing between before and after alteration, but with no difference. They will often make a decision and be happy long enough to finish whatever you need to finish- works better if their away from the console or desk.
Excellent tip bro! Thanks
@@EDMTips Great video mate! Thanks
Best tip I ever got, from a sound mixer in a TV studio in fact, was a very simple, zero cost one. Turn your volume down so you can barely hear your mix and listen again. Anything that's too far forward or to far back in the mix will stick out like dog's nuggs. First time you do it and say "hey, where did those high hats go?" you'll see how valuable it is.
Absolutely, that's a great tip indeed!
You don't speak too fast, You speak clearly. You explain things very well. Everything seems simple with your videos. Thanks a lot for your Work 🙏🙂
Thank you so much, Jeremy, I really appreciate the support! 🙂
As a mixing engineer these are the best tips. This person holds no secrets back. Great to see this
Thank you, really glad you found it helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
Ok the reverb send tip blew me away I never would have thought of throwing an eq and sidechain comp on it. Big like and follow for that one!
Rock on! You're welcome! 🙂
So many useful tips, I always use reference tracks in my masterings, but never thought of using them for mixing. This video is gold, gonna save it to never forget any of those tips, great work thank you.
Just going to say what everyone else is saying: this is hands down one of the best tutorials on this platform. Your way of explaining things is so simple while still explaining "why" you're making the decisions. One of my favorite uploaders 💪
Thanks Will - some absolute gold in here. Another option for emulating different systems is the Reference Check feature in Sonarworks, and you get to calibrate/correct room and headphones as well
great tips but I want to add something extra. Putting reverb on an aux\send\bus isn't just about giving more control, there is a more detailed way to explain it (albeit a bit longer, but its stuff you should know). It also leaves the dry signal completely unaffected. For example, lets say I had a lead sound that cuts through the mix very nice, loud and prominent. If I was to put a reverb straight onto the lead, the more reverb I add the less the lead will cut through the mix, the less loud and prominent it will be because the dry signal becomes lower the more reverb I add. If whoever is reading this ever dj'd before, its similar to how a crossfader works on a mixer. dry/wet is basically a crossfader between the reverb and the dry signal. Most professional dj's don't touch the crossfader at all they just leave it centered, and they instead use the track faders to mix in and out because it gives them more control. The same principle applies with routing send fx to a new channel versus using them as an insert. If I put a reverb on my track, it will make the dry signal lower. If I turn up my track to compensate for the loss in dry volume, it will make the reverb too loud. I may try balancing the wet/dry signal again to be more dry, but then the dry signal will become too loud. And it becomes an infinite loop of trying to get it to sound right but it will never sound as good as using the reverb on a send because I can fine tune how it sounds more accurately this way. Reverbs are send effects, there is a reason why they are listed under this category. They are not supposed to be insert effects, they are supposed to be sent on a bus. Insert effects are for example compressors, limiters, eq and so on. Stuff that doesn't add extra elements to a sound, but instead modifies the signal. Knowing the difference between insert effects and send effects you should consider to be mixing basics. What to send, and what not to send you should already know. If you don't know, you should google around difference between insert and send effects and try to get it stuck into your head which are inserts and which are sends. Anything that is insert put it straight on your channel, anything that is send you route to a new channel (send\aux\bus). As a general rule of thumb the way to think about an effect you want to add is "how does this effect my sound?" Anything that has a dry/wet knob, is usually a send effect. Unless there is some bizarre insert plugin that has dry/wet knob that I have not seen (I have tried many, literally never seen it) consider this to be 100% accurate. Chorus - duplicates the sound into multiple voices, and detunes them to play at different semitones to add width to the sound, has a dry/wet knob. send fx obviously Reverb - adds reverb to a sound, if you dunno what reverb is the simplest explanation is it simulates what the sound would be like in certain environments. e.g you can have room reverbs, hall reverbs, cathedral reverbs etc. has a dry/wet knob. send fx obviously Delay - adds delay to a sound, think of delay as you are in a cave and you shout "HEY!" (basically echo, but not exactly since echo can also refer to reverb as well). You hear yourself saying Hey hey hey hey (dipping in volume until you cannot hear it anymore). That is basically what it does. has a dry/wet knob. send fx obviously Compressor - modifies the sound so that it stays at a consistent level of volume, does not have a dry/wet knob. insert fx obviously Limiter - modifies the sound so that it never peaks above a certain level of volume, does not have a dry/wet knob. insert fx obviously If you start thinking about it like this, it becomes very obvious which fx you should have on a send channel and which you shouldn't. But you could go 1 step further and research which are inserts and which are sends, and get that stuck into your head. The majority of you probably know this already, but there is bound to be some beginners here that don't and that is the purpose of this comment
Wow, this was very helpful, im a musician but new at mixing/studio work and this info is great thx!
This video tutorial JUST AMAZING. I'm producing as my hobby since 2015 and I have seen some of these tips from hundreds of different videos. Focusing these gems in one video is just an incredible shortcut for the ones who want to be producer in the very early of their production process. Thanks, Will!
These are gold. Not just the tips, which are all solid, but the delivery. You absolutely nail the why, not just the how. And in a way a child can understand. Top class.
Thanks so much, Joe, I am glad you found it helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
@@EDMTips Can you do a series on Rock based mixing ? i think it would expand your audience and would be interesting to see what elements would be changed and why
I'm happy to say I'd incorporated all these tips into my productions many years ago and can say you nailed it. The tips in this one video could save any newbie years of frustration! Excellent presentation too! 👍👍
Thank you so much, I appreciate the feedback and kind words of support! 😇🙌🏻
Super helpful! Def will try to use the compression on the reverb for my vocals. Recently got a delay plug-in with duck function and that helped immensely already!
Rock on! Glad it helped! 🙂
You are a gift from the electronic music gods. I have been trying to wrap my head around 90% of these things in mixing and you answered and helped me understand them all in less than an hou after I read a whole book on mixing and came up empty.
Awesome tips. Thanks man!
kick/bass bus tip was awesome thank you!
Wow, never learnt so many brilliant production tips in a single video, Epic!
Thank you so much for this video! We find so much gold in it. An interesting subject you could talk about is managing volumes of the different tracks over time, for different sections (climax, build up, break). It could allow people to bring contrast to their songs, and not keeping the same volume fader of the different tracks on the whole song.
Great suggestion! Definitely something we go into in my Accelerator program
one of the best tutorials ever!!!!so much experiance compressed in one video. Thank you!
You're very welcome, glad it was helpful!
AWESOME!!!! Thanks for the tips!
You're welcome, Tony, I am glad you found this helpful! Which one was your favourite mixing tip?
Thank you, Will, for the great and smart tips.
Thank you, so much! You are amazing! The tip nr.10 is something completely new to me and Im so thankful!
This is the first of your videos that I've seen. I had to "like and subscribe". So much valuable information given freely and without unnecessary nonsense.
Super tutoriel ! Lot of Thanks from France 👍😉
Thank you for sharing your knowledge mate! Big luv bruv!
You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful 🙌🏻
Great video! Thank you!
Love your videos and tips. I remixed a bunch of my older tracks. they sound a lot better now! Thank you.
Thanks for the knowledge!
You're welcome! Glad it was helpful :)
Overpowered video, info is over 9000! 😂 good job!
Another Excellent tutorial (sir)Will!!Thank you for passing all your knowledge on, your the number 1 on my you tube list for production advice!!
Thanks Darren! Really glad it help, and thanks for support!
That sidechaining of reverb and dry vocals and then compressing it, is the cherry pick of this video. Thank you .
That's great! Thank u so much!
You’re welcome, glad you enjoyed it!🙂🙌🏻
very good explanations - thanks a lot !
This might be the single best video on the topic.
This is just amazing! Thank you so much for this video.
You’re welcome! Glad you enjoyed :)
Dude oh my goodness. He is not kidding about the difference mixing in mono makes. Wow. Same with the kick anchoring. Love it man thank you so much
Blooming Amazing Mate! THANK YOU and Cheers!!!
Thank you! Cheers!
This is hands down the BEST tutorial I've ever seen and I've been mixing and mastering since the 70's. It not only reveals the usually secreted tips of the giants in the biz, but you explain and demonstrate the "how to" and "whys" AND make it understandable to even the newest of nubies. Kudos and Well Done !
Thank you! That means a lot to me :)
@@EDMTips You are a great teacher, for real!
Man you’ve been popping up more and more often in my feed and I can now say this channel is one of the most valuable with regards to music production.
Thank you! I appreciate the kind words :)
Thanks for sharing. Ive always struggled getting a good sounding low end. I look forward to working on applying these techniques!
You are so welcome!
Pretty good video! I have forgotten about the mono trick, but I will keep it in mind from now on
Amazing tips! Thanks a lot!
You're welcome, glad you found them helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
i've done mixing in mono a lot, and sometimes i even forget that it's mono and it sounds great until i realise, that i haven't yet tried to listen to stereo mix. it blew my mind how clean and full everything sounds. so yeah, mixing in mono is a great way to relax your ears and balance volumes/frequencies. also it's a good way to check if there are some crazy wide sounds, that lose a lot of punch in mono. also one of the reasons i think mono is important is because people sometimes tend to play songs on mono devices (like a phone speaker for example).
Hundred percent!
Hear hear! Happened to me as well, when you switch back to stereo the 'gates of heaven' open for you! Such a satisfying experience...😊
💯
Most phones actually have two stereo speakers. I know this because one of my phone speakers wasn’t working, so I wasn’t getti;g the full stereo sound.
I actually accidentally exported my track in mono to send to some other artists for feedback. They said it sounded really flat. And then when I looked back in my DAW I was like well no wonder... it's in mono lol.
Thanks for explaining so relax and simple. This helps a lot🙏
You're welcome, glad you found it helpful! 🙂
These tips are pure gold. I felt like I had a few "eureka" moments here, especially your tip to EQ reverb separately from the dry stem. Brilliant stuff. Thanks for sharing! Instant sub.
Awesome, I am glad it was helpful! 🙂🙌🏻 Anything else in particular you’re struggling with and would like me to cover in my future videos?
@@EDMTips if you haven't covered it already in another video, what are your top 5/10? plug ins you use when mixing/EQing/mastering your music? It's easier to make a good product when you're using the right tools!
Thank you so much for sharing! Loving this channel🤩
I am glad you found my videos helpful! Thanks for watching and supporting 🙂
Thank you for these tutorials....you are the best on these teaching
Thank you so much, I really appreciate the support! 🙌🏻
Great video, you are very good explaining and go straight to the point (unlike many others), I really appreciate that!
Thank you for your feedback, really appreciate it! Anything else in particular you’re struggling with and would like me to cover on my channel?
Thank you so much for those tips. It's going to help me a lot on my mix.
You're welcome, glad it was helpful 🙂
Woo good one sir more Grace on your part you just on points
Will, these tips are gamechangers THANK YOU FOR THIS
You're very welcome, Ruben! Glad you found it useful 🙌🏻
This is an enormously important presentation, disseminating really great ideas and tips. Thank you for your generosity!
You're welcome, glad it was helpful! 🙌🏻
Massive tips! Esp taking the low end off of everything but kick and bass. Makes such a difference! Thanks!
You're welcome, Danny, glad dit was helpful! 🙌🏻
Awesome tips Will, so quick to apply to productions too. Top work mate!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
This channel is so helpful. Thanks for sharing my friend
You're welcome, glad you found my videos helpful :)
11:15 wow that you even mention this is golden. I make dubstep and usually you want to modulate the mid and highs while keeping the sub bass untouched. I learned this from INFEKT but I'm very impressed that it's here aswell
It is indeed an invaluable tip! 🙌🏻
Mono-switch is extremely useful! Been using it in my template for over 2 years
I came across your channel and guidance in 2019. Now, i have two 2nd and 3rd place winners of remix competitions. As well now on a label that has gotten plays and attention from Ferry corsten, Armin Van burren, cosmic gate, many others, and about to release this September on blackhole recordings as well as Flashover recordings . All this to say to new comers, KEEP GOING, practicing, and keep the faith in your sound. Y’all got this ❤
Great info loving your growth 🙌😍
You're welcome, Reg! Thank you for watching and supporting the channel :)
I like the tell and show approach, bruv. Nothing beats giving advice and then showing them in action. I too, learned a few new things. Cheers.
You're welcome, I am glad you found this helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
Love it, Will. many thanks ill get there soon with your help thanks again.🍻👍
This is great advice, thank you
Thanks Sir You Are A Great & your tips Also
Thanks for this video and one more time great tips and tricks 👏👍
You're welcome! Glad you found this useful :)
Awesome man! Love this!
Thanks a ton!
ULTIMATE TIPS... THANK YOU SO MUCH 😊😊
You're welcome, glad you found them helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
I'm honestly so lucky for making music that doesn't even want a crazy punchy and crisp mix. EQíng a separated reverb was also one of the biggest moves forward for me, it's rare I don't do my reverbs this way nowadays. Reverbs can unexpectedly sound straight up ugly sometimes, but usually it's all just in the tone. Then there's getting creative with it, plenty people sidechain so wet ducks when dry is up, but the sky is the limit.
Great job. Well done.
Cheers mate!
Wow so clear and simple ! Thanks for the tips !
You're welcome, glad it was helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
Took me a while to realize the group and fx tracks in Cubase are buses and aux channels with different names. But I got some of your tips going and having a blast. Your channel is wicked, and has given me more confidence to master my own tracks too 👍👍
You are good at what you do. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, and you’re welcome!
Such a good teacher!!! I am happy to discover your channel.
Thank you, Stephane, I am glad mu videos have helped you so far! Thank you for watching and supporting the channel 🙂
This vid is super helpful and so well put together! You earned my subscription. Thank you! I usually Group my reverb on my vocal track with a dry chain and another chain for Verbsuite from Slate Digital which gives the option of picking up the lows and reducing the highs but I didn't think of compressing the Reverb - definitely going to try adding that to the reverb and see what kind of magic happens.
Thank you, and welcome aboard!
Great tips, thank you.
You're welcome, glad it was helpful!
🔥 great tips great tips Thank you.
You're welcome, glad it was helpful! Which one was the most useful to you?
Great tips. One of the best I have listened too. Great teacher you are. Master channel on mono was great for me.
Thank you so much, I really appreciate the feedback :)
These tips a great. Thanks for the share
You're welcome, glad you liked it! Any point in particular you found useful?
I’m so glad I found your channel thank you for the great tips
You're welcome, Boris, glad my videos have helped you so far! Anything else in particular you’re struggling with and would like me to cover on the channel?
@@EDMTips mastering tips I use Ozone on my master bus in Logic I would love to hear any tips thanks
WAW! Super cool! Specially TIP 10 with sidechaining vocal on the vocal reverb! wow! Super cool! Thanx for sharing! Also the saturation on SN etc is cool.
You're welcome, glad you found it helpful! 🙌🏻
Kick and Bass Bus ... wow a huge tip for me - this sounds so much deeper and more pro but with the reverb aux channel chain tip my eyes get wet because i was so thankfully about this huge tip!! Greetings from germany, Alex.
It is indeed a nice little tip! Glad it was helpful :)
Awesome tips that I can use. Thanks.
insane vid. thank you so much
You’re welcome! Glad you enjoyed it! :)
Thank you really much !) Very useful techniques. You totally helped me to solve my low end issues. You doing great job and really helping. Thank you for quality and knowledge.🙌👍
Really helpful thanks. I'm not an EDM guy but getting the bass and kick to play nicely is the bane of my life. Splitting, bussing etc is a must.
You're welcome, Alan, glad you found it helpful! 🙂🙌🏻
Awesome tips, muchas gracias mi Amigo! 👊🏼
You're welcome, glad you found this helpful! 🙌🏻
this is so useful, thank you so much
You’re welcome!
Again, THANK YOU!!!
You're very welcome, glad you found it helpful!
Sidechain to the reverb on vocals is really a good thing. I was wondering for years why my vocals so lost and not in front. This technique with low cutting reverb is hugh. Saturation on vocals great as well. That's are information that beginners not know and come up with frustration by joining the own music. Thank you for sharing ❤️❤️
You're welcome, glad you found it helpful! 🙌🏻
Thank you so much for this video 🙏🏻🙏🏻
You are so welcome!
Excellent advice!
Thank you, glad you found it helpful! 🙂
Instant improvement to my mix, Thank you
You're welcome! Glad you found these helpful! 🙂
You make amazing content. Very clear, precise and professional! Thank you!!!😎🔥🔥🔥🔥🙏🏽🙏🏽
You're welcome, glad you liked it! 🙂 Thanks for watching and supporting the channel 🙌🏻
Thanks! I really appreciate this dude 🙏 this answered all my questions
You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful and thanks for the support! :)
Excellent tips!!!
Appreciate it! 🙌🙏
Great tutorial!
superb -thanks so much... learnt stacks
You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful! Anything else in particular you’re struggling with and would like me to cover on the channel?
Great tutorial mate thank you!
You're welcome, glad you liked it! 🙂🙌🏻
Man, I've been mixing and producing since the mid 90s, I've seen a lot, but this video brilliantly sums up the most important tips and techniques so far! Great work, keep up!
Appreciate it, Nagyember, I am glad it was helpful! 🙌🏻
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I've got the same headphone. Adding sonar works is even better 😊
I am very grateful for your work. Thank you very much.
You're welcome...Thanks as always for watching and supporting!🙌🏻