When it’s time to mix a recording, you need a strategy
LearningMixing is not only an art, it’s the crucial step that turns a collection of tracks into a finished piece of music. A good mix can bring out the best in your music—it spotlights a composition’s most i…
Add that Final Polish to Your Mixes
LearningThe article title alone is enough to cause some professional mastering engineers to run to various forums and start complaining. "That's what's wrong with this industry, these kids don't know how to …
And Mastering Loses...
LearningOne of the main functions of mastering is to make a mix transportable: In other words, it should sound good over any playback system
Make Your Timing Tighter Than Tight
LearningIf you think that "sample accurate" has something to do with random drug tests, you're probably browsing the wrong web site. But if you've heard the term applied to digital transfers, loop timings, e…
When Noise Attacks Your Signal, Fight Back!
LearningIs noise really a problem? After all, analog tape hiss is almost extinct. We have 24-bit converters with signal-to-noise ratios that far exceed that of the CD. Low-level hum? Today's signals have ple…
Proven Ways to Enhance Your Vocals
LearningSo what’s the best way to record vocals these days? The answer, of course, is that anything goes if it gives the sound you want. Following are some of the possibilities.
It's Possible to Get "hot" Masters without Losing Dynamics
LearningI was driving along one of those Floridian roads that goes between the coasts, and is flatter than the Spice Girls without auto-tuning . . . in other words, a perfect place to crank up my car's CD pl…
Sometimes Little Improvements Add Up to Big Ones
LearningThe whole is equal to the sum of its parts…as anyone who ever used analog tape will attest. Who can forget that feeling of hearing yet another contribution to the noise floor whenever you brought up …
Panning According to Craig Anderton
LearningThe idea of panning seems pretty obvious, right? You turn a panpot (real or virtual) to place a sound somewhere in the stereo field...
To Your CPU, Mixing Is the Ultimate Power Trip
LearningYou gotta love plug-ins, but they’ve changed the rules of mixing. In the hardware days, the issue was whether you had enough hardware to deal with all your tracks. Now that you can insert the same pl…
Tips for Mixing Rap Vocals
LearningIf I had to pick the most frequent question I get asked on a regular basis – it would have to be “how do I mix rap vocals?” Or some variation thereof. At least once a week, if not more often.
All About Dithering
LearningIt's a dirty job to go from high-res audio to 44/16, but someone's got to do it.
The Secrets Behind Wide, Spacious, Pro-Sounding Mixes
LearningHere are some secrets behind getting those wide, spacious, pro-sounding mixes that translate well over any system.
Exploring the Art of Filthy Signal Mutation
LearningI like music with a distinctly electronic edge, but also want a human "feel." Trying to resolve these seemingly contradictory ideals has led to some fun experimentation, but one of the more recent "h…
How to Compress a Guitar or Bass
LearningDynamics processing with studio-oriented processors? Been there, done that. But have you re-visited it lately in a guitar context? Dynamics control for vocals or program material is very different co…
