I feel like I shouldn’t have to say this, or even write a post about it. But, yes, you should record to a click track. I know the greats like The Beatles and The Beach Boys sometimes didn’t use a metronome, instead opting for the live-band-in-the-studio setup. But nowadays, pro-level music is set to a...
The traditional way of using reference tracks to improve your mixes has been to import high-quality WAVs into your DAW. I would rip them from CDs using iTunes and then simply move them into a channel at the end of my session. However, like the rest of humanity, I don’t buy CDs anymore. Instead, I...
I sometimes use the word “hacks” when describing the EQ cheatsheet I give away to my email subscribers. If you need a refresher you can download it here. To me, “hacks” is a synonym for the word “tip.” Yet, people LOVE to freak out, feel insulted and call me out for it. How dare I! It’s...
One of the final steps of getting mixes to translate to other speaker systems is the finalization process when you’re mastering. You can take pretty broad strokes while you’re mixing and make some drastic mix moves to make your mix explode from your studio speakers. But, getting those crazy mix moves to translate may mean...
A quick early translation trick I’ve been doing lately has been helping me control the low-end from the start. Because I always get a rough mix going on a one-driver mix cube, there’s not a lot of low-end bass response going on during that whole process. But because I also have a secondary monitoring system...
Have you ever read the advice “Use your ears?” Probably. Also, you might have often asked yourself while mixing and mastering, “am I doing this, right?” Well, some articles say, “If it sounds right, it is right.” Still, you would not necessarily know what those pieces of advice mean, right? I am a mastering engineer...
Is there harshness hiding in your vocal track? Want to find out how to wipe it out? Read on true believer! I got a revision request from a producer who thought the vocals were a little harsh in the 9 – 10 kHz area and he wanted them to sound a little smoother. Now, harshness...
I’ve got a mix confession to make. Although my studio setup is pretty sweet, it’s not where I make the final call on mix translation. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got Focal monitors with a sub, a pair of Yamaha HS5s and a Behritone mix cube. So I’ve got plenty of speakers to choose from...
One of the most difficult parts of running a successful studio is setting your rates. Charge too much and no one will hire you (unless you’ve got the industry credits to back it up, of course). Charge too little and you’ll end up working 16-hour days, seven days a week. But by pricing your services appropriately,...
Got an email from a subscriber yesterday that made my day: “My new album Parts and Labor just went up on Spotify, etc. and the Step-by-Step mixing and parallel processing courses are what pulled it over the finish line.” This is the sort of stuff that I live for. Being able to help musicians release...