21 Mixing Tips That Nobody Told Me

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In this video, I share 21 mixing tips that nobody told me when I was learning.
This is a super in-depth video at over an hour long… but if you watch it to the very end you’re going to save yourself years of wasted effort. Inside, I cover mixing, mastering, EQ, compression, and more.

[@masteringcom]

Enjoy the video guys - I know it's a long one but I had a lot to cover! If you do you want to speak to somebody on our team about getting mentored by us, you can book a free call here: go.mastering.com/survey1671783104003??el=21-mixing-tips-that-nobody-told-me-youtubeorganic&htrafficsource=youtube

[@MyFeltMusic]

0:04 #1 How to nail the car test 4:28 #2 Fix your room 5:17 #3 Manage your perspective 7:19 #4 Train your ears 10:22 #5 End in mind perspective 12:20 #6 Don’t use band aids 12:41 #7 Balancing is 80% of the mix 15:17 #8 Don’t neglect volume automation 19:22 #9 Progressive referencing 21:44 #10 Any workflow works 28:12 #11 Mix fast 29:42 #12 Intent based EQ 33:27 #13 Fearless compression 37:21 #14 Don’t neglect clipping & limiting 40:29 #15 Close your eyes 41:45 #16 Mix in 4 dimensions 43:39 #17 Know what matters 52:44 #18 Objective vs subjective 54:02 #19 Lean into subjectivity 59:56 #20 Master the objective first 1:01:16 #21 Get clear on what’s holding you back

[@bradneumannusa]

Man you're a cool guy! Thanks 👍

[@hstone0808]

Most under rated comment ever.

[@DavidFlow]

As Always thank you for the value Rob 🙏

[@rafalvarezsevilla]

this is one of the most complete mixing videos i've ever seen on youtube, very good work!

[@timothyoreilly3824]

Love your approach--portions of this are invaluable!

[@streetclique5140]

Great video, that frequency test I guessed between 600hz to 800hz. One way that you guys can help young engineers like us is to give us a session that mixed with vocals reverb and totally completed so we can dissect what was done and how the end material should sound like .

[@bradfordknights7554]

thanks. I learn a little bit every time I watch one of these. you're very relatable.

[@mixedbygoat]

Thank y’all fr for giving this knowledge out

[@j-station]

13:05 Some of the BEST advice that new mixers can get. Listen at this point and let then sink in. It’s major in helping one to gain enough confidence and understanding to actually progress. You can’t have your friends mid grade recordings and then come down on yourself bc they dont sound pro at the end of the mix. Really love this point. “Fate has already been sealed”. To a large degree this is so true.

[@AllThatJuice208]

Your guys' videos are the best on KZbin straight up.

[@lllConlll]

Great video man, excellent tips !

[@AlexSzokolyai]

Man I really wish these videos were around when I started Mixing! Love the in-depth and honest material. Thank you.

[@baconbitsstudios3902]

Man, I have literally watched over 1,000 videos on KZbin since I started this dream three or so years ago, and this honestly is the one of the most practical and sincere Ive ever seen. I needed to hear this. I will be contacting you guys on your course.

[@Manali999]

how did it go?

[@robertrussoyesyoudid]

very good

[@carlfrisk6263]

Great primer. Thank you for this.

[@jamesmichaelcabrera9613]

I was right on point with the one kilohertz. I knew exactly what frequency you boosted I've been training my ears for years but I have an engineered anything. I just love music

[@LloydMajor]

Thanks for the class!

[@jirifryda9868]

Man, thanks for introducing the Soundgym to me. Very practical thing and i really need it. :)) Also all of your tips are very useful! Great video. :)

[@trenzer]

39:21 Putting limiters on individual tracks, never did that. Great suggestion!

[@jasonsparks7201]

I enjoyed your video immensely. The order of each of your processes and techniques was very understandable to me. As I'm listening to your explanation of each step in the mixing process, I could mentally visualize my preferred next step and, soon after, you've moved into the same steps. Very well done. Thank you!

[@TheSwollenOne]

Thank you for making this video!!! Super informative. Could anyone site where MixedByAli talks about Volume Balance and Volume Automation as mentioned in this video? Would love to look more in depth on that. Thanks in advance. Thank you again for making this video!!

[@earflower]

Great video. Especially the end. People learn 'mix tricks" now before they learn where to deploy them, or how to record/ produce anything good. Garbage in, garbage out.

[@ManpahulSingh]

It would be so handy to have chapter markers/time stamps so that we can come back and reference specific tips if needed. But damn, this video had much more to take out of all the videos I've watched in the past week combined! Great work! Edit: Came back to refer to one of the tips and absolutely delighted on knowing that the tips are now separated by each chapter. Thank you so much dude!

[@jorriffhdhtrsegg]

#7 is literally the most important. Beginner mixing involves beginner tracking/arranging unfortunately and can be quite a struggle....i guess i overpracticed when starting but upon finding and starting to do decent source material it was more obvious that i should do less (and that i was better than i thought as long as i did that!). Seeing it as a whole where you swap between elements a lot rather than focusing on a single instrument is great too I also have some fix for my own weakness which is to do nothing in the bass until all instruments are balanced, separated, compressed etc. and all the mid cuts or boosts take place (why? Because otherwise i boost the kick or bass, in the low end, then at end realise i didn't need to so must fix that...its a known personal bad habit so i have a rule!)

[@bradneumannusa]

@masteringcom thank you so much! You are a real pro in your field. I enjoy every one of your videos, which are quite interesting and easy to understand 👍 Best of luck to you kind man!

[@petecarrollmusic]

Superb video/breakdown !

[@cheery-hex]

I'm 3 mins in and this is GOLD. thank you so much for doing this!

[@TNT-km2eg]

How clever !

[@martinmyggestik292]

Brilliant video. Thanks a lot ❤

[@TNT-km2eg]

To know brilliant you gotta have it

[@mma4696]

Thank You 🎉

[@drydessert4198]

Thank you for sharing your know how. Nice piece of music (first example). Is that one of your original production? Released?

[@Lorka_music]

lovely, thank you.

[@imark7777777]

I think gain staging is more important in these live environment for the whole flow through. In the digital realm of recording as long as you have enough signal coming in that you're not hearing the noise floor it's not as much of an issue anymore. It would be interesting to see where that whole mixing in mono thing came from all the stuff I found a crossed is that it was to check mono compatibility and in some cases that helps discover things well mixing.

[@rocktonmusikschule]

Learning the monitors and listening to great sounding music is also a big one.

[@dreatraxxtheproducer]

Thank you.

[@Rambo-dg7mr]

Use can opener by Goodhertz for mixing in headphones...job done...👍😎👍

[@musicman2047]

What’s the song/artist called that you’re playing in the fist part/beginning of the video? UPDATE: Nathaniel Stewart - “Fathers Son”

[@heddshot87]

The thumbnail is perfect

[@silkroad1201]

When you did the frequency boost test, I thought you were talking about just the snare lol. I was thinking, "Trick question, you didn't boost anything on the snare! Just the rest of the song" I need to train my ears to listen to what people are saying

[@deephouseprodunderground6092]

the more important tip training this is the most important one

[@D-C1]

about 6 years ago, i started a mix session, still havent settled on a kick drum, but ill get there.

[@davidlanese9106]

🤣

[@nicephorenicephore1640]

Ok , i think i ' m gonna listen to this video more than twice.

[@1loveMusic2003]

Reference tracks. Get used to hearing good mixes through your system and room.

[@sheddybhulji8196]

great as always. thanks

[@RokSivante]

That was interesting… especially what a huge majority was “uh uh” (variations)!

[@multiversedm]

There are a standard set of frequencies to remove from a majority of produced and mastered tracks. These are the same frequency cuts used across hundreds of songs in a single mastering session.

[@lematrix01]

Very good Video

[@bryandubon9665]

I'm going to get taught by you guys, I'm going to hit yall up in a month or so.

[@canastraroyal]

Cool song!

[@docshadrach]

Audeze LCD-X with Goodhertz CanOpener Studio

[@rafalvarezsevilla]

gain staging is very important when you're mixing with lots of hardware emulated plugins, as they have a sweet spot where they react as intended. though, sometimes you don't want to use them as intended ;)

[@jorriffhdhtrsegg]

In Reaper i set a default of -12db on any new tracks. Helps the process immensely, and instead of having to go back and turn down near the end, its more like i turn up at the start when necessary

[@rafalvarezsevilla]

seems legit, though is this pre FX or post? pre FX it's recommendable being a little conservatice, to make your hardware emulations happy if you have some, post fx depends a lot on your further processing strategy, and that depends a lot on the genre. for electronic music you want to get as loud as possible while still being clean, for other styles you can be more conservative. @@jorriffhdhtrsegg

[@cosmicsimonmusic]

Absolutely valuable, I knew a few things there but the part about vision, emotions vs technical (and which should come first) and managing the perspective of the mix, using reference mixes and slowly going towards a place where you learn your headphones and monitors to get close to the end result is king. All these tips will make the difference for sure. In my opinion it is totally fine, too, to do a sales pitch, this industry is hard as it is, we all have to pay the bills and some of us need to provide for a family, absolutely no shame in that, thank you! If this is a hobby for someone then not spending a chunk of money is understandable, but why tell someone what they should do when they are making the sacrifice and taking the time to do something for us, and give us free quality content in the process, most people need to earn a living folks!

[@1loveMusic2003]

The first thing I would address is the uneven low end with bass notes popping out randomly.

[@tozzlin2964]

for getting a flat room sound, sonarworks is all u need, not even LCD-X... real talk

[@LegionIO]

How do you switch the reference track so quick?

[@TDiamond777]

the train your ears section you didn't really give reference of what wasnt boosted originally. i mean if you played it w/ the the eq off then on id believe i need to train my ears. but just having the eq on the entire time through the section you can't necessarily say someone needs training then. because thats what it sounds like originally

[@stevekirkby6570]

Depends how many people are in the car 🤣 Good advice in this vid... to add: To be honest, a retired, long time engineer here (+education, and production) it's all a balancing act. What sounds good in your car will not always sound good in the room and different again for a venue. As they say, you can't please all the people all the time, so you have to just get it sounding 'best as' in as many listening environments as you can experience. So, depending on the destination, you may mix differently too: club mix, radio mix ... and then of course there are the different genres to cater for, as some will expect a balanced 'pure' mix, and others a bass heavy and punchy mix.... it's all food for thought, but really there is no magic formula.

[@robertrussoyesyoudid]

cool I need to know

[@plummetplum]

Bloody hell 9.41 i was spot on 1000Hz and that was just on my phone ha

[@markclason2717]

I'm so used to seeing you on advertising in KZbin that I first looked for the SKIP button! Ha!

[@masteringcom]

😆

[@legerdemaine7]

Just recently found this channel and its amazing! One thing, youre doing a sound engineering video, stop smacking! Get a water bottle, take a sip or swish it around, and get back to the video. Turns out you can edit you as well. Otherwise, ease keep up the good work!

[@vincentbrown-scott4610]

❤

[@justinreilly3107]

What if u mix in headphones? There are no “room” reflections from my line in synths and drum machines?

[@ronehi27]

this is gold

[@PaulFisherMedia]

What about software that mimics other speakers

[@TNT-km2eg]

KZbin university students evaluating . Would bees , could bees

[@marceloribeirosimoes8959]

Thanks GOD, 1kHz was my shot... ...good to sse that I'm identfying freqs yet... :-)) Really cool video! Thank you very much.

[@gulagwarlord]

Yep... 1k was my guess too... I don't even have the best headphones but I do use sonarworks.

[@marceloribeirosimoes8959]

@@gulagwarlord Cool!!!

[@TNT-km2eg]

Never heard of books , maestro ?

[@andrewboos4338]

I'm fortunate enough to dislike the 1k frequency in certain settings. so it stood out to me but not enough to be irritating. so my official guess was 800-1k

[@marceloribeirosimoes8959]

@@andrewboos4338 That was a nice shot anyway, Andrew! That's for sure.

[@FortVine]

Isn’t it better to use a gain plug-in and automate the gain of a track so you can adjust the fader independently? If you use volume automation it locks the volume into place on the track and the only way to higher or lower the fader is to highlight all the volume automation and push it up or down. That takes so much time… Maybe I’m missing something.

[@Jahk-mode876]

Yea as always it's your preference, u could use the fader then use a vca track or volume trim in protools also clip gain, again it might be what he prefers

[@Tony-yp7ok]

Well you could do that (as long as the gain plug-in is last in your fx chain) but there’s really no advantage. Once you’ve automated the volume you can still use trim to ride the entire track up or down if you want to.

[@FortVine]

@@Tony-yp7ok How do you use trim?

[@Tony-yp7ok]

@@FortVine it depends on which DAW you use - they all do it differently. If you do a search for volume trim and the name of your DAW I’m sure you’ll find some instructions - it should be very straightforward.

[@SR1B]

@@FortVineyou could do that (automating with trim plugins instead of the fader), but then Pre-Fader sends would not be Pre-Fader sends anymore, that’s the only drawback.

[@drinkinslim]

Hard to believe he's not talking about headphone EQ-correction and room emulation , such as Slate VSX, Waves nx studios, and more.

[@yawns3004]

Since he didn't can you fill us in?

[@drinkinslim]

@@yawns3004 Well, similar to rooms, headphones never have a flat frequency response, so companies like Slate Audio and Tone Boosters (to just name a couple) have EQ correction profiles for headphones. These make the frequency response of headphones flat for mixing. However, to make headphones behave and sound more like actual speakers in a studio room, Slate Audio produced the VSX headphone system, which includes many emulations of pro studios, cars, boombox and even other headphones. Waves Audio has a few pro studio emulations that can be combined with the likes of Tone Boosters' TB Morphit, to provide studio environments with EQ correction.

[@yawns3004]

@@drinkinslim thanks! I didn't know any of that before

[@masteringcom]

Yes if you're using headphones Sonarworks can really help, Slate VSX is great too but not a true replacement for a treated room - just a supplement IMO.

[@drinkinslim]

@@masteringcom I think Slate VSX is of most value to those who don't or can't have a studio room, or can't afford studio-specific gear, speakers, treatment and acoustic correction, and travelers (like myself). The latest version of VSX is their best yet but, personally, I think that EQ-correction is more important than feeling like you're listening to speakers in a studio. 1) because ya get used to the stereo image in headphones and 2) because so many consumers listen on headphones or earbuds. There's more to this story, but it's a whole topic in itself. 😎

[@gorillagorilla111]

i’ve always wondered why people who mix entirely ITB don’t just bring their laptop to their car, plug in to the speakers and spend an hour mixing there? I guess you’d be using your CP’s converters but maybe not such a big deal? Or bring a little apogee interface or what not , and send that into the car aux. Am i missing something really obvious with this idea ?? 😬

[@drinkinslim]

People could totally do that, but it'd be easier to put on a pair of Slate VSX headphones with one of the car emulations. Saves a lot of moving gear and sitting awkwardly in a car. 😂 Having said that, of course you need money to buy the VSX.

[@cheery-hex]

b/c then you'd just go back to your room and the sound will suck there. then go to the stereo and it will suck there. on and on

[@gorillagorilla111]

I guess my point is, if it's so common to be frustrated w the mix in the car, maybe some tweaks while in the car could help. Then see how it holds up in the studio. Seems that might save some time from the classic 'tweak it 12 times in the studio because each time you hear it in the car it sucks' problem. But I do get it, that the issue of mixing translation is more complex than that. I've learned some valuable things though mixing in my car occasionally. Every extra 1% counts.

[@channelone4620]

The aim isn't really to get the mix sounding great in your car. The aim is to get the mix sounding great everywhere, including your car. This is why we also test for laptop speakers, phone speakers and crappy mono speakers.

[@MrRubyscube]

Yep, this is actually brilliant for balancing the low end. Then you balance mids and highs + panning on your monitors in a room with treatment on first reflection points. Lastly you use headphones to check and clean up reverb tails and general depth. Great workaround when you don't have a completely treated room to work in.

[@williampetty3075]

How do you record your screen without it affecting the quality of the audio?

[@me3tthebeat]

obs

[@yakmartin5429]

Gorgeous and insightful, thanks! Maybe a demonstration track that doesn't sound like "the mummified version of Dutch Uncles" would have done your work more justice.

[@bobbybowring4499]

yep, got the 1000hz.

[@BaguaBro]

I guessed 1,2k w one earbud👍that sort of snare roll off into the highs was nasty.

[@BaguaBro]

25:25 I just wanna hollow out them mids. And i want a mix-gel compessor on the master.

[@chickenslothstudios699]

Wow. Guessed the 1k on the nose. Proud of myself.

[@palman215]

at last somthing clear

[@iamanzio]

Feeling like a pro because i guessed 1k 😎

[@catlestocai3924]

The application link is not working

[@rays7805]

Height, width, and depth is three dimentions, not four.

[@NaymitMayne]

Honestly no matter what you need to have a great sense of what sounds good and now to get there. All this stuff is great but if you can’t have an overall goal of how you want something to sound and know how to use plugins it’s pointless

[@davidlanese9106]

this is spot on

[@petegiant]

The overuse of saturation ruins many mixes.

[@russellbutterfield1419]

I remember watching your top down mixing videos in the past. I never use top down mixing simply because its not really giving you the right perspective in the way of learning frequencies and learning what to cut and what to boost etc, its how you learn properly. The only thing I have on my mix buss is a very gentle compressor to glue the tracks together. You was promoting your top down mixing a few years ago, how to get great mixes from top down mixes etc. but in this video is seems you have shyed away from the idea, I could have told you this years ago, top down mixing is not teaching people to mix properly, the old original conventional way is much better, its how you learn. If you have an eq on your mix buss with cuts and boosts because you have eq matched from a reference track then put it on your mix buss, its not teaching you properly, its not telling you to cut say 60hz of your bass guitar because there too much build up on the bottom end if you already have an eq on your mix buss with 60hz high passed, too me that's not learning properly, eqing the nix buss maybe quicker, but its not teaching people and as you could see from your video, the snare loses body. All you need on your mix buss channel folks is just a gentle compressor to glue the track together AND NOTHING ELSE!

[@synthzizer3324]

4k was sounding spitty in your test mix but you said 1k was boosted. Wasn't a great reference dude.

[@user-ev8xs2pj5t]

класс)

[@dennmillsch]

Mix in 4 dimensions. You give 3 of them, height, width and depth. You didn't say the 4th. Is that simply "TIME" ?

[@masteringcom]

Correct

[@johnbaprac]

Time. Sounds happen at a time, and what a sound is an issue at a particular millisecond, it might not 5ms later.

[@Anamoly_]

I guessed 800hz.

[@primee5730]

Shout out to the rerms and caws all over the world 😂

[@dafydhead]

I feel like I'm being sold an all electric vehicle. Application pending....

[@redredwin913]

👍🏻⭐🤗😍

[@palman215]

and i want learn more but if i hear you speak i dont have subbetitles

[@-Deena.]

The LCD-X headphones....£1,699. 😢

[@5hokk]

Nah cuz i guess the exact frequency💀

[@afrosheent3arcmichael69]

You know what else is demoralizing? Aggressive marketing strategies…

[@iamanzio]

Take it from someone who went to a full music production, mixing, and mastering school… it’s worth every penny. you can try and learn everything yourself through youtube videos, but going to a school will just expedite the process. Invest in your dreams

[@davidbabich806]

I found this to be great content. And free. And yes, becoming a pro at anything sometimes takes an investment. I appreciate people who sell good products because I’m always looking for ways to grow and it gives me a chance to find out what they are offering.

[@MISCELLANEOUSGOON]

@@iamanzioyet here you are watching the same tutorials everyone else is😂

[@kanyondickinson5574]

​@MISCELLANEOUSGOON This isn't a tutorial video bud. This is 21 mixing tips nobody told me. The power of content allows anybody to learn virtually anything whether beginner, intermediate or advanced

[@LeDemiChef]

​@@iamanzio graduated in audio production in the UK, biggest waste of Money of my Life. Every esperience is different but if you're not learning on your own, even from KZbin, you're missing out.

[@Miss.ChiefStudios]

haha i guessed 2 kHz :)

[@andrewboos4338]

your refrence song had a worse balance than your starting point song.

[@JayVucci]

These don’t sound like suggestions. No person needs to do anything.

[@mttlsa686]

I don't think that the radiohead reference is so appropriate to follow. The song you're mixing is not really close to the RH song and it's a different syle, moreover mixes of RH songs are not that "good" imho but t's an aesthetic choice to get their typical "shady" sound.

[@metzgerbeats]

I had a similar thought. "Somethings Are Better Left Unsaid" by Hall & Oates would've been a great reference

[@darerihter5685]

I will comment only the beginning of this video, because I think it can be major gamechanger with a good tools. Even a good room treatment shows almost non-solvable problems without any correction. I found Sonarworks SoundID as gamechanger, for headphones AND for studio monitors. You can learn everything on every gear You listen on, but at the end - no one isnt neutral and give non-flat sound characteristics. You can simulate average devices out there without even listen on them. The magic word is calibration. If You do not calibrate Your room and headphones, You'll never know, how music SHOULD sounds. Human ear can adapt on anything. In the past, low bass and highs level was characteristical, now exagregated both are obvious trend, practically in all genres. I'm not some Sanarworks salesperson, but tech freak, without compromises. Yes, some phase issues and latencies are introduced when calibrating shitty headphones and room + monitors (sum of both = common amount of badness). So solid headphones or good treated room + solid NFM is solution which works best for me now about 5+ years. And calibrating each of them separately, to different profiles. When You get flat characteristics, you can simulate other gear like NS10, different phones, typical cars, TVs, cinemas, etc inside Sonarworks with one click - You will never look back. I am following debates mostly high end gear users, spending a long years learning their ears on current gear they own and searching for issues of Sonarworks an other calibration tools. Silly, wasting time to learn on raw equipment, when a few hunreds of $ can save a lot of time. At the end, for final mix, or mastering, You can switch off calibration, if you trust Yourself, You are better than software, and I'm sure professionals will do that, but for middle experienced mixers and enthusiasts, no fastest way to avid a loooooooot of troubles is the way, I'm describing. They have free trial, believe, it's worth to know what You get. And freely buy me a coffee for this advice :) Just one more note: besides using references, try to overview your mix on Tonal Balance Control or something similar, to get the idea, where You are out of all standards. Yo can "reset" Your ears too, but to get close enough to final polish - use more equipment to calibrate Yourself to widely accepted standards, because You're not so special, when You come to the music market, to sell Your personalized non-standard ideas. And happy wasting of Your time for those with ideal hearing after listening to silence or background noise or whatever is adviced to rest Your ears :)

[@TNT-km2eg]

Am i supposed to read your rant ?

[@rayjackmusic]

Why you look like "Napom" 😅

[@oceanwavestudio7746]

Посмотрел половину. Уснул. Видео ни о чем. нет конкретики. Жалею потраченное время.

[@kudS212]

Nice

[@LifeLess1999]

HEADPHONES FOR MIXING CMON MAN