I can’t count the number of times I see these titles on forums and message boards:
“My mix sounds muddy, I’ve EQd everything but don’t know what to try next”
“I’ve mixed my instrumental, now how do I mix my vocals”
“My drums sound great on their own but they get lost in the mix”
I think this is a common pitfall for a new mixer, and once I noticed it it’s painfully obvious to hear. Everything sounds great on it’s own. Everything sounds great ON ITS OWN.
A common method for new mixers goes something like this - start will all faders down to nothing, turn up the drums, get them sounding great, then turn up the bass and mix it in, then the guitars etc etc. The problem with this is simple - how do you know what instruments will be fighting for the same space as the drums. How do you know where the vocal sits against everything else.
EQs and frequency spectrums are one of the first tools we learn to use as engineers - we understand how terms like “boxy”, “muddy”, “harsh” refer to specific frequency ranges, so we make adjustments to improve those sounds. But an easy pitfall with this method is thinking on a micro level, not a macro level.
I was working with a production student of mine on a heavy techno track. We’d carefully selected our kick drum samples first, then built the track over the top. As we added layers, we started to notice the kick not hitting hard enough, even though we were working hard to keep our production elements from clashing. So we grabbed an EQ and started working.
Once we were happy with the sound of the track we solo’d the kick - it sounded horrible! The amount of top end and sub we’d added was something my traditional engineering self was slightly sickened by.
But it worked. It worked in the track, in the context of everything else, even though alone it sounded awful.
This is the most important thing to realise when mixing - no one’s going to listen to the kick drum, the bass, the vocal, on its own. The listener has the stereo file only. So if your tracks don’t sound cohesive all together, your listener’s never going to know how long you spent on that snare drum.
This is the big pitfall in mixing, and the solo button is the enabler.
So, if you’re tired of your mix not fitting together, here are my top tips for a cohesive mix:
1 - start your mixes with all faders up
This works for me because immediately I hear where masking or frequency clashes are happening.
2 - EQ with all tracks playing together
You’ll get the quickest feedback as to whether the changes you’re making are achieving their desired effect
3 - Don’t use the solo button
Of course, it’s not quite as simple as that. But I only use solo if I already know exactly what I’m looking for, or if I’m trying to isolate a specific noise/sound.
4 - Try changing the volume first
We often dive in to EQ and compression, forgetting that the most powerful tool is to simply crank that volume!
5 - try Subtractive EQ first
Subtractive EQ is a way more powerful way to make your tracks sit better. If there’s a clash in frequencies, making space by taking away some of that energy will be much more effective than adding more. Also, when your EQ is level matched you’re actually boosting frequencies too, and in a much more musical way!
If you’ve made it this far and want to learn more about mixing basics, or a fresh approach, I can’t recommend Recording Rev’s 60 minute mix videos on YouTube. It’s such a clean and effective way to mix, that capitalises on the no solo mindset.
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