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Advice for a mixdown checklist

  • 13 replies
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Topic Advice for a mixdown checklist
Howdy,

I want to make an infographic or basic list of things to do once you believe your track is done. Something to stick somewhere to help double-check things like:

have you monitored in mono? is your mix too narrow or wide? are all elements EQd and in their own space? etc

any idea of what things you would add?
2
Listen verrrrry quietly (~ 50dB) to see that the most important parts of your mix are still present. This is crucial for double checking the balance of your mixdown
3
Always reference your mixes. Often you'll get caught up in your head and ideas and after hours of mixing you might not catch mistakes. Choosing the right reference is KEY, obviously, so it's important to use a referencing track with an artist similar to yours, a sound guitar/keys/etc that matches, in order to help you pick out things in your mix that may need adjustments
4
http://www.loopmasters.com/articles/1893-5-Common-Mixing-Mistakes-To-Avoid
5
Check out beyerdynamic's virtual studio: https://en.audiofanzine.com/surround-sound-spacialization-software/beyerdynamic/virtual-studio/news/a.play,n.15795.html

It provides several different acoustic environment simulators from stadium to car to help you test the success of your mixdown.

Edit: most importantly, it's free :mdr:

[ Post last edited on 10/02/2014 at 07:36:46 ]

6
Quote:
I want to make an infographic or basic list of things to do once you believe your track is done. Something to stick somewhere to help double-check things like:

have you monitored in mono? is your mix too narrow or wide? are all elements EQd and in their own space? etc

any idea of what things you would add?


I would add, "Did you give yourself enough time away from the mix to be able to judge it objectively?" It's very hard at the end of a long mix session to really know what you've got. Give yourself a little space from it. Preferably overnight, or at least a few hours. When you come back to it, you'll hear it with more objectivity, and will likely notice a lot of stuff you missed at the end of the session.
7
Quote from Mike:
I would add, "Did you give yourself enough time away from the mix to be able to judge it objectively?" It's very hard at the end of a long mix session to really know what you've got. Give yourself a little space from it.


Absolutely. Also related to something I would suggest, which is not to take too long on a mix. By that I mean, there's a certain point we reach where the mix doesn't get better, just different. You want to avoid being stuck in an endless mixing labyrinth or no return. I think Mike's suggestion helps with this as well
8
I make a habit of saving backups of different finished mixes before changing them around so I can always go back just in case the original was better than the endless tinkering done afterwards. one of the first things i would recommend to others out there
9
Quote:
Absolutely. Also related to something I would suggest, which is not to take too long on a mix. By that I mean, there's a certain point we reach where the mix doesn't get better, just different. You want to avoid being stuck in an endless mixing labyrinth or no return.

Yes, very true. It's always difficult to know when you've reached that point where you're no longer improving the mix, but actually harming it.

Quote:
I make a habit of saving backups of different finished mixes before changing them around so I can always go back just in case the original was better than the endless tinkering done afterwards. one of the first things i would recommend to others out there

Agreed. That's very important. When I make a significant change in a mix, I "save as," and name the file with a description of the change, like "Lead vocal up 2dB." I leave myself a breadcrumb trail so that I can retrace my steps if necessary.
10
A bit late but i just signup for this:


-Don't take your mix fot granted.

-Leave it alone for a week so you can listen again. Sit back after some nights of good sleep.

-Listen on different locations and setups: portable radio, car, livingroom of a friend etc.

- Let a friend or colleague press the bypass buttons of eq and compressors but don't let him/her tell when. Close your eyes and listen to determine which is best. ( you guess if it is the bypassed version or not)

-Louder sounds always better... Use the gain to level things out so you can listen to the changes at the same levels.

- Let others listen too ( listening session's) let them write down what they think. Read and review that with them. Remember to keep open minded. Nobody likes there mixes to be trashed by others. But somethimes they got a point you missed.

It's not about what you got to use ....    but how you use what you got...

[ Post last edited on 10/12/2014 at 01:08:19 ]

11
Quote:
Let a friend or colleague press the bypass buttons of eq and compressors but don't let him/her tell when. Close your eyes and listen to determine which is best. ( you guess if it is the bypassed version or not)

I hadn't heard that one before, that's a cool idea!
12
Your welcome :)

It's not about what you got to use ....    but how you use what you got...

13
Quote from angelie:
A bit late but i just signup for this:


-Don't take your mix fot granted.

-Leave it alone for a week so you can listen again. Sit back after some nights of good sleep.

-Listen on different locations and setups: portable radio, car, livingroom of a friend etc.

- Let a friend or colleague press the bypass buttons of eq and compressors but don't let him/her tell when. Close your eyes and listen to determine which is best. ( you guess if it is the bypassed version or not)

-Louder sounds always better... Use the gain to level things out so you can listen to the changes at the same levels.

- Let others listen too ( listening session's) let them write down what they think. Read and review that with them. Remember to keep open minded. Nobody likes there mixes to be trashed by others. But somethimes they got a point you missed.


great tips and awesome thread. I would also add listen with reverb with 0% dry (for EDM. the extra reverb helps emulate how the music sounds in a club). Also, there are mixed feelings about this but I always try and do all my mixes in Mono then pan afterwards. Helps pick out outliers and get an overall balanced mix imo
14
Quote:
Also, there are mixed feelings about this but I always try and do all my mixes in Mono then pan afterwards. Helps pick out outliers and get an overall balanced mix imo

An interesting approach, and if it works for you, great. Because stereo placement is such an important tool for finding space for each element in a mix, doing a mono mix first would probably cause me to make decisions regarding volume and EQ that I wouldn't have made if I panned the tracks early in the process. Obviously, it's important to check a mix in mono to make sure you're not having phase issues, but I prefer to wait to do that until I've gotten a rough balance together, with tracks panned.