Mixing. Get me started

MitchHolmes

ILLIEN
ill o.g.
I've done music all my life so I have a very good ear for it.

I've always mixed by ear however, I would like to know where to get started to truly become efficient.

I use reason 5.
 

2infamouz

Mad Beats, No Angry Vegetables
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 10
If you want to do proper mixes get Reason 6. R5 is great but R6 adds the SSL mixer.
I'm pretty sure the best mixing software is Dubturbo or Dr Drum Beat Making Software :rolleyes:

A book I really liked when I was getting into mixing was "The Art of Mixing" by David Gibson, pretty good visuals for thinking about the sound physically in a room.
 

2infamouz

Mad Beats, No Angry Vegetables
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 10
The best way to get good at mixing is just practicing. All the literature and tutorials or anything else you might find can help steer you in the right direction but it's all about your ears. And another thing about mixing is that it's so subjective - a mix could sound like shit to one person and sound like magic 2 sum1 else unfortunately. I've never really been satisfied w/ how my mixes come out so I just prefer to pay someone more experienced to mix anything I'm actually going to use on a project. I think the best thing you could do to get started is focus on creating an "accurate' monitoring room, which is damn near impossible to be completely flat (a lot of people get used to the coloration of their monitoring room and learn how to work around it, compensating for problems they know are in the room) - but at least try the best you can and you're half way there IMO.
 

God

Creator of the Universe
ill o.g.
I've done music all my life so I have a very good ear for it.

I've always mixed by ear however, I would like to know where to get started to truly become efficient.

I use reason 5.

1) Have a treated room, or at least a room where the acoustics are pretty balanced.

2) Spend quality money on a set of studio monitors. Some like the high-end Mackies, whatever. If you ain't spending $500 or over per monitor, you're likely getting substandard shit.

3) DO NOT MIX USING HEADPHONES.

4) Mixing is all based on the ear. You hav to practice, practice, practice. There are tutorials and boards, but usually it will take you months to even get a grasp on how to get a good mix.

5) There are two camps of mixing, the British and the American camps. The Brits use EQ automation to mix and duck frequencies moreso than the Americans. Americans usually just pull volume up or down. Try to learn both.

Good luck. Mixing is a profession in and of itself.
 
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