Do you gain stage tracks before mixing? | FAQ Friday - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro

[@Producelikeapro]

Leave a question below for next week's FAQ Friday! I look forward to reading all of your questions & comments!

[@KoryWake]

Howdy, Warren! Before I get to my question, I'd like to thank you for the amazing content you release so consistently. I've learned so much from your channel and I always look forward to seeing the next Produce Like A Pro video show up in my feed! Now for the question: I'm looking at venturing into the world of outboard gear. 😬 With regards to preamps, certain types seem to be available with or without an EQ section. For example, many 1073 clones will feature the original EQ section, while some (like your UK Sound 1173) include only a HPF option, while others might remove the EQ altogether. When you're wanting to introduce the "color" of a particular preamp into your recordings, how much of that sound is due in part to the additional circuitry of the EQ shaping the source directly vs recording through a unit without the onboard EQ?

[@helgefaccini1488]

Speaking about reverb and the Abbey Road trick in this video...some people say use the eq after the reverb, and some say use it before the reverb. Any suggestions?

[@thecapsicumkid4740]

Oh I have a question! I am going to be recording a grand piano soon with Neumann u86 mics. Do you have any tips for mic positions?

[@zazandala]

What is your opinion about audio engineering degree? is it worth paying 25k+ euros?

[@mattiemclean9882]

I absolutely LOVE your channel and your knowledge and enthusiasm... Berlin was great content, "inside the song" is great too, especially the Soundgarden one.. One question ; I am a 48 year old drummer, worked as an audio engineer straight from leaving school, formed a band (in my younger years) and have been signed to a major label, worked with some great producers and have been writing/producing my own ambient music and doing sessions for the last ten years. I want to go to university this September to study music production. Have I left it too late in life to study modern production? (I am obsessed with 70s era production btw)

[@jacquelamontharenberg]

I usually record- print at around -10 db. Also will make gain staging adjustments if needed to get around -10 db.This is what works for me to allow plugins to work optimally and keep some headroom on my Master Buss (-6 to-4db) for mastering later on. Been in the music business for 50+ years and have managed to keep up with the technology due to access to the many avenues available on the internet. Warren, you are most definitely one of the best mixing educators out there. During the last 6 months as a subscriber, I have learned much from you and your guests. I am a smooth jazz and world music artist. I usually play or program all of the instruments and compose, record, mix and master all of my songs in my home studio. I am having the best time of my life. I cannot put into words the great feeling it is to play and record music.... As you often say.... "marvelous". Keep up the great work and thank you....

[@iamiupa]

I can't get enough of this feeling: I'm a huge noob, I would have asked all of these very same questions. And I just found out I'm doing almost everything right! I'm starting to get it!

[@keithschwartzmusic9461]

Thanks for putting the spotlight on SUCH an important step for a great sounding mix!

[@Metalbass10000]

In the question regarding EZDrummer, I've noticed that they have been getting better over the years, and that the "randomizing" is extremely helpful in getting a good drum sound and "performance." I'm a big fan of EZDrummer for what it is.

[@PaulBell88]

I find that if I leave my speakers off while gain staging, it goes much faster and I don't get sucked into altering the tone or sound before I am done. I can just look at the meter and shoot for -18, then when I turn on my monitor with all faders at 0, the song is almost mixed! At that point it is obvious what is too loud and instead of lowering the fader, I will use subtractive eq first, since this will lower the volume and the masking at the same time. It is amazing to me how much gain staging before has made mixing easier!

[@bjoernkmusic]

Re. first question: got scolded by a mastering engineer for mixing through a bus compressor and then taking it off when bouncing stereos for him. His tl;dr: if you mix through it, leave it on because it will have influenced all of you mixing decisions. On the other hand, Joey Sturgis says he always wants to put his own stereo compression on. So as usual in audio, there's as many opinions as there's engineers out there. Communication with the people you work with is KEY. This is how I learned to decide on a mastering engineer before I even start mixing and just have a quick convo with them about how they would like you to prepare tracks.

[@rolandwyss]

I have started watching Warren's videos just to hear the word shnizzle in all kinds of variations and contexts....😂😂 actually it's a huge load of knowledge.... so valuable, much appreciated!

[@colinm3130]

I used to cover the meter on the SSL buss compressor to force myself to use my ear. However later when stems became very important I stopped using mix buss compression on the analog side. It became too common for changes needing to be made and with the stems I was able to save people a lot of money by bringing up the stems and making the tweaks without having to re-book the studio. But I couldn't print with the SSL compressor to make that work. I remember once working on a project for American Idol where one of the engineers had printed stems through the buss compressor and they could not get the mix back from the stems for changes, thus requiring having to go back into the studio last minute. I had to calm the producer by showing him how the mixes we did would never have that problem, and I stopped my work to help the other engineer get his recall back up quickly. But it was a defining moment for me on buss compression which until then hadn't nesc saved my butt until then. And there are some great plugins for mix compression.

[@Beatledave7]

Love the FAQ Friday's... What a marvellous way to wrap up the week! 😎👍

[@sabrosapurr]

Just joined your Pro Mix Academy and bought four different courses and love them already. Keep up the good work man.

[@killergege]

The most recurrent issue I have with gain staging is setting the level of a guitar DI that will be fed into a hi gain amp simulation. Usually it is way too hot, and it feels hard to get the right volume to have a low noise & a nice sounding amp, but keeping a nice sustain.

[@luukmeijssen2515]

About the mix bus when bouncing: Personally, I actually never apply any EQ or Compression on my mix when printing. I honestly feel that that's something the mastering engineer should do. If I hear something adding up on my frequency spectrum, I try to fix it on my channels. Also dynamic wise, you know that the mastering engineer is going to compress the mix, so why do it yourself? Even if it's 2 or 3 dB, when the mastering engineer uses his compressor (or 2), it's not just "adding up the amount of compression", it's multiplying! How do you feel about that?

[@leearmitage]

Unfortunately I'm one of those bedroom artists/youtubers that have to use drum programs due to space etc, I like your comment about using saturation etc on ezdrummer to make it not sound perfect. I've recently come across a company that does drum samplers and they don't sound perfect it's a small company call Ugritone (formerly known as It might get loud productions) I've used their NY hardcore style kit on a couple of my tracks and I'm really happy with the results, they sound raw and unprocessed.

[@marksextonmarkeaux4181]

Thanks again for your fantastic advice. In reference to gain staging, After 10 years of learning to record I stumbled on a great lesson that made clear pre fader metering. OMG! that changed my life! I didn't realize how much I was slightly clipping individual tracks by not managing the signal between plug ins. It's not hard to do but I couldn't see that it was happening post fader metering. My mixes are significally better cleaner, bigger, more musical. I would love you to show others what Im talking about. Once you start looking at your tracks through both lenses( pre fader and post fader) You can actually see what is happing to your tracks and make sure they are at that sweet spot (DB wise) when they show up ganging together at the 2 bus. Changed my life! It was like I discovered the rosette stone! who knew?

[@corbyvinson1175]

I found that working on the same DAW is super helpful for making music, I have a friend of mine that uses the same DAW as me and it makes mixing and working seamless. My partner that I work with mainly uses pro tools in his studio but he also has almost every DAW and almost every plugin you can think of. That is a great advantage and great for learning as well.

[@curtis_chip]

Warren, your channel It's getting better and better .... really like it. thanks and cheers from berlin. sven

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Curtis Chip yanks ever so much my friend!!

[@marktaylor4615]

Great tips as ever, Warren. Think you and Rick Beato have the best 'behind the music' sites on the ''net! Always come away with some extra knowledge I can apply to my tracks.

[@AndiPicker]

Hey Warren - I just watched your video about adding a bass line played on a single D string through a wah to add some barritoney goodness to a guitar rhythm part. If you don't happen to have a bass to hand try it on the low string on a regular guitar and run the line through a pitch correct plugin - no pitch correct but with the formant adjusted down by a point or two - instant thicker strings! Take care and please continue to be marvelous.

[@MartinLuxen]

Thanks Warren! Have a great weekend. Regarding question 3.... as a salesman (in a totally different field) I would say: charge more for mixing 1 song only, and if they like it and want you to mix the rest of the album, just give'm a discount of the same amount that was charged extra on the first song. Works both ways... client is happy with the discount or can back down if they are not happy with your mix... And if they're happy you get to do a full album! And indeed, Berlin is a WONDERFUL city!

[@thefakeguitarplayer4124]

Totally agree with the drum plugins being randomized, it just sounds better.

[@Bring_MeSunshine]

Back again (excuse the pun) because I've been looking deeper in to gain staging this week. David at MixbusTV has some really good stuff on this, too. Hope you don't mind me name-checking another channel; I know you guys are friends & share a similar outlook. Between the topics of gain staging and level matching - finally understanding the topics and realising the benefits of, Doh! - I'm starting to get not only better results, but I'm listening more critically, applying more subtle changes, and if necessary using a meter (VUMT) When so many plugins, from the outset just boost the gain, giving the impression that it sounds 'better', when it's just louder. The penny dropped! I went from mixes that sounded brash and exciting, but were dense; cluttered with unwanted grit and artifacts, to mixes where I could here the space between sound sources, so could apply EQ and compression purposefully to the areas that I wanted, because I could 'hear' where they were. Also watched you video on referencing & level matching and downloaded AB-Level Match (your vid get's linked on tb-software's site, incidentally) All good stuff! More power to you elbow, mate

[@LohPro]

I record in so that the waveform size takes up about the middle 1/3 of the clip view for that track when set to 100% zoom (ie; meaning you could place roughly, 3x instances of the waveform within the clip view) so you can just eyeball it for anyone that wants to give it a go this always gives me a strong enough signal to work with, to accommodate any peaks & volume spikes, without worrying about any noise floor

[@bjornfleuren]

Hey I’m sure there are a ton of us submitting tracks for sound libraries/jingles and such.. for maximizing our hourly rate I chose to master the song myself. With that I do have all those plugins ready on my master output. So when bouncing the song it’s mastered already, I do turn it off and on the make sure the sounds good both ways.

[@LuenetonstudioLueneburg]

Another "Schnizzle Dizzle great" Video, very entertainy, thanks!

[@thecapsicumkid4740]

Great advice Warren! I used to put a tonne of plugins on the mixbus but now it's gentle compression and EQ. Maybe a little limiting. I like to apply small amounts of compression on each track (if needed), then a little on the buses, then that little bit on the mix bus. Sometimes there's a few parallel compressors on certain things like drums, guitars etc. Little bits of gain reduction gradually make for a nice big sound that's glued nicely!

[@michaeltablet8577]

Welcome back. Glad you had fun and thanks again for sharing your journey with us.

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi michael tablet thanks ever so much my friend!!

[@randybrown5899]

There is a gain-staging philosophy going around in which normalizing your multi-tracks to -18 dbFS (0 dB VU) will optimize the performance of analog modeled plugins. Your thoughts?

[@randybrown5899]

@@maddielee4eva123 Are you saying that you're turning up tracks to get to -18 dBFS? I find -18dBFS to be extremely low by most people's ITB standards and often receive multi-tracks as hot as -3 dB that need to be turned down to NOT overload the plugin

[@randybrown5899]

@@thrale I appreciate the information, but technically -3 dB "works" too. I'm more specifically asking if Warren thinks there is validity to the idea of an "analog modeling sweet spot"

[@randybrown5899]

Michael Matthews there’s more to this than THD. It would (if valid) affect the way the detection circuit operates, which would considerably impact the way the compressor moves

[@guitargod1882able]

LOOK UP THE K METER SYSTEM. IT REALLY TRULY WORKS GREAT NOW DAYS IN A DAW BECAUSE IT WAS BUILT TO WORK WITH THE CONSOLES AND RACK GEAR THAT ALL THE PLUG-INS EMULATE.

[@NoQualmsTheArtist]

@@maddielee4eva123 -18db digital is equal to 0db analog.

[@montgomeryhaines2087]

Thanks Warren, have a blessed and wonderful weekend.

[@Producelikeapro]

You're very welcome! Have a great weekend!

[@masque1313]

Your videos are so great! You have one of the best channels on KZbin. Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom with us.

[@JX3D]

One way to get around the different DAWs when sending a mix to a studio is to render each track two times. Once with effects on and once without. Then its possible to hear what the musician wants, and reproduce it with the studio plugins.

[@Nightwinflyer]

I've using a VU meter on my input channel when recording.

[@MySecretSpotrecording]

Yes. Gentle is the key. If you hear it, yes that might be to much. Great video

[@jurgenschuler8389]

Watching your videos is so relaxing, because your approach is so undogmatic. Thank you!

[@sacstudiosargentina]

Amazing answers as always... in Warren we trust.

[@Tomas-Waldo]

Important you bring up here. many thanks

[@Producelikeapro]

My pleasure!

[@riktascale4]

Hi Warren. Thanks for the video. Can you address the use of a subwoofer for mixing and tightening low end kick and bass? Please if talking about room sizes re the topic specify what small, medium or large is in meters or preferably. in feet

[@MartinWeeksmw]

Re: the whole debate on "Top Down" mixing? I kinda do a combination. 1. I work just with the mix until I reach a point where I think it's right (whatever that means...lol!) When satisfied that I've got everything balanced correctly, panned and EQ'd correctly and think it's turning into a solid mixed project... 2.) ...I create a submix bus and throw in Paul Frindle's amazing DSM-2 mastering plugin. I do that as a "Final Check" to make certain I am not having ear fatigue or I have missed some low end or high end frequency lurking in the background waiting to pounce and to help whatever mastering I do in the Mix bus to not have to work as hard at any of it. I firmly agree with Ian Shepherd's concept of Less is More when it comes to mastering... just add that last bit of polisha nd sparkle. Plus by doing it that way I can still control and play a bit with the loudness stuff in that submix bus so I don't have to re-do or re-work whatever the mastering in the Mix Bus is doing. If anyone is interested in finding out more about Paul Frindle's DSM-2 plugin you can go here.... kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3vFZYNqYpJ8h7s For those who are not familiar with Paul Frindle... he is one of the engineers team who actually designed, and built the SSL-E & G Consoles.

[@MartinWeeksmw]

And yes you can use the DSM as a mastering unit all by itself if you want.

[@MartinWeeksmw]

Other DAW's probably also do this, but Studio One allows for one to send stems WITH effects (aka plugins) included or dry. And can also include those other plugins and sounds separate too... but I usually send two folders. Stems with effects in and stems dry.

[@robertjohnleehorse]

Back with the "Boom n' Fizz" love that. You've just confirmed what I've instinctively doing, so thank you. I've been recording the demos for our band's next album. I don't have the luxury of much outboard gear. Would love a nice stereo compressor and a pair of Pultec style units one day, but for now the plugins are great. And yes, like you say I just like to tickle the master bus with a bit of compression or "glue." Then a touch of 60hz and 10k seem to really define the whole mix. Pultec style eq's seem perfect for this. Two questions about gain staging if I may? When recording I go through an analogue desk or individual preamps for overdubs. Then I try to get everything hitting my Focusrite Clarett interface and Pro Tools at around -20db so that it's just dancing around the bottom of the yellow. Would you say this is the right kind of level going in? Also, I've noticed that when I set up a Drum Bus, the Kick and Snare, etc will be going in at about -6db (once I've brought them up with a bit of compression and maybe the Massey Tape Head) but then the level at the master fader is much hotter. Like, up to around -3, -2db, which doesn't leave enough headroom for Master bus treatment! I realise I'm missing something here, probably a real doozy of a revelation, but shouldn't the Master meter be reading the same as the Drum Bus? This is with nothing else going to the Master btw, and also, without the Drum Bus, the Master will be reading around the same (-6db) as the Kick and Snare channels.

[@Bluelagoonstudios]

Wow, a great help this one, which I was struggling with the multi tracks you gave me. So I was more or less on the right track, trim the tracks? And using EQ when there are annoying parts, like too much ring. Still learning. Thank you very much.

[@emilybowie4592]

Great FAQ Friday as usual. I have a question about bit and sample rate. If I get multitraks at 32bit 44.1k, should I just mix as they are OR convert them to something else? If so, what should they be in, How should it be converted? What should they be sent to mastering as? Thanks, Warren!

[@emilybowie4592]

I guess I should be more specific. I have been getting multitracks from clients at 32bit, 44.1k a lot recently instead of the usual 24bit, 48k or even 44.1k. I have chosen to mix them at the rates they were sent to me but was wondering if I should convert them. And if so, what is the best process for that. Will this really effect anything on the mastering end?

[@adamkowalski6733]

One day I ended up with a bunch of violin tracks that turned out to be but a bunch of gritty, piercing high-end. No EQ or de-essing had helped whatsoever, still all that was audible was that now classic harshness. After hearing your opinion on using IRs, I thought to myself: "hmm, why not try applying a guitar cab impulse to a violin track?". It's still FAR from a good violin sound, but it's much less painful to listen to. If you guys ever end up in such situation when you're basically trying to save what's left, consider trying this out. Might help at least to some extent. Thanks for the idea, Warren! Cheers, all ;)

[@gaganbakana]

Hi, can you tell me how to opt subscription for nexus and waves or ssl plugins easily.. can't buy them but can look for subscription.thanks

[@DJActionVasquez]

Just a random comment. As a dj I love equipment, whether dj, studio or home stuff. And I have to say I really, REALLY love the tegeler creme. I like the look, the performance, and especially the price (hahaha, even though I still can't afford it).

[@PeyCa]

I love FAQ Friday! I'm learning so much.

[@Matt_Morgan]

About gain staging before mixing - I’ve seen pros that are guests on the UA channel talk about gain staging to -18dbfs to make the plug-ins that you put on those tracks work at their optimum level. What are your thoughts?

[@jb123abc]

Hey man I also have heard this from DJ Axwell usually kickdrums are set to -15db to -18db depends on the type of song

[@DamonC89]

Hello Warren, I'm sure you always see questions asking, How much comp, EQ, processing to use on a kick , guitars , vocals or what ever it may be, but of course there is no concrete rule on any of it... But I think the question is... What about the sound of a kick drum, or a snare, would influence how you mix it?

[@claudius3124]

Another great edition of FAQ Friday! Very good questions and, as usual, very appropriate, and clever, answers. Nothing to add but, again, thank you Warren, and the team of PLAP! Have all a wonderful time! ;-)

[@jasonsimmons7479]

Great video! When you master recordings what order do you put your plugins in? Recently we discovered that just by changing the order of 2 plugins when mastering it made an extremely noticeable difference,in a good way.

[@arshadeepsingh7280]

I try to go with 1.Span for analysing wave after mixing 2.EQ 3.compressor 4.Mulitband compressor 5.Ozone Elements

[@aqeiwwrgunaug4ne3]

theres no set way. A good understanding willhelp you know

[@simo21beatrice]

Hi, thanks for all the tips you're sharing with us. Hoping you keep an eye on comments on old video as well, I would like to ask you something about gain staging: using a virtual instrument, the gain plugin should stay before or after the amp & cab simulation? What should be your choice? Thanks for the interesting content, take care

[@MarcBecker_Music]

Thank you for this great FAQ, Warren. One thing about gain staiging. When you're mixing in a hybrid fashion, how hard do you hit your outboard gear and the SSL? Du you recommend a certain output level to start from? By the way, "Schnizzle Happens" would make a great sticker for my car ;-)

[@Eventual420]

EZDrummer is a complex piece of software. It does include a wonderful library of samples, nicely recorded drums. But there is great flexibility therein. The level meter within the plug-in will determine hit velocity. So if reduced, it will be as though the drummer is playing softly. The MIDI packs themselves are captures of a performance, so the velocities will reflect that performance, they will be varied. The plug-in when routed to a channel can allow the user to reduce the level, so a smashing performance can be mixed lower and vise versa. Soft performances can prominantly jump out of a mix. Further editing can be done traditionally via the Piano Roll, and this is one of the only ways to view velocity. EZD is a great time keeper, much better than playing to a click, and the performance can be built to the song afterwards, creating the diversity required. -James

[@wiklundvswiklund8770]

Maybe a video showcasing a before and after of a song you sent to a reputable mastering engineer? If possible letting us know what steps the M.E. has used to get to the final product? Do you mix with the intention that the M.E. will indeed make finite adjustments to your mix. Thanks Warren!

[@NacekO]

Hey Warren. I wish to hear your thoughts about using tape emulation on the master bus. Do you use it? And if so which ones would you recommend.

[@leearmitage]

I'm thinking of putting one of my songs online via Distrokid to see how it goes and then maybe do an EP. What are your thoughts on services like this for us smaller artists?

[@aleksanderdjuran8010]

Congrats again on 300k Warren! I'd love to hear back from you on this. I've a budget of 200$, and I'm going to buy some plugin. I know you're big on waves, so I'd like to hear what the best value of plugin variety - usability I could get for that money. Had my eyes on the CLA comps, but give me some suggestions please!

[@moelview]

Nice tip about high and low end in reverb. Thanks

[@allendean9807]

What is a good type of delay (and what are some good time,feedback, etc settings?) to use for hard rock vocals, like, say, Dream Theater, AlterBridge, and similar vocal styles?

[@allenlocke1935]

I totally enjoyed this one! I'm ready to track and mix!

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Allen Locke yanks ever so much my friend!!

[@splashesin8]

Thanks Warren. My brain is grappling with the IR acronym. It is just befuzzled from acronyms from five different fields at moment . My guess is "input recorder."

[@sunnibird]

Audrey Sims impulse response

[@splashesin8]

Thank you sunnibird! 😊

[@Producelikeapro]

Audrey Sims haha I hear you! Yes, Impulse Response!

[@armandodiaz3485]

Great video! Question; you say you use buss compression during printing and mixing. What about tracking? Do you have buss compression going during tracking? Thanks Warren!

[@OrangeMicMusic]

I believe, the gain staging deserves a bit more in depth explanation. Because if you're recording on analog gear, you'll be at around 0 dbBVu, which corresponds to -18 dBFS on any DAW. At +3 dbBVu (where it's already clipping in analog domain) you're at -15 dBFS in your DAW. In my opinion, anything above +3 dBVu (-15 dBFS) would have an inherent micro distortion embedded into the wav, which you won't quite hear it, but it's gonna build up on the Buses and the Master Bus. And if you'll use plugins modeled after analog gear, they are expecting to see at their input 0dBVu (this is stated on any user manual from reputable companies). And if you're mixing tracks already recorded, just lower them down with gain trimming plugins, before they hit any other plugin in the mix. So, I guess, just ballparking it visually, and actually be on -10-5 dbFS it's gonna fire back really badly later in the mix.....just my 2 cents :)

[@davidjackson8387]

Snizzle Creek! My man Warren I'm glad you're back!!!

[@MarkVanVasey]

haha. shnizzle happens

[@roncoleman5007]

Could you describe your process for gain staging during tracking vs with it already in the DAW as this video describes.

[@RosarioBellassai]

Thank you Warren! Very affirming indeed!

[@ralphwallen2678]

Not dealing with gain staging, but in your final mixdowns do you create a mix for a balance between sounding good on speakers and headphones or just speakers. I have noticed lately a lot of my final mixdowns only get listened to on headphone or worse yet just a phone, I try to add higher frequency sounds to make to lower end like kick stand out in headphone but does not always work.

[@Mohickano]

Someone of the most pro secrets about mix!!!

[@chrisibbetson]

Love the eyebrow at the intro ;-) loving your work Warren

[@mwintersteinsmith]

Question: I have a session coming soon recording Mandolin. How would you go about recording the Mandolin? And what microphones should I use? 😎🇬🇮

[@FakingANerve]

FWIW - I've had great luck with an omni condenser (tube) ~1' away from the neck joint, recorded in a decently treated room.

[@oldbluzguy]

All the videos are good, but this one was really helpful.

[@devinunderwood9039]

Controlling the bottom end of the reverb......that IS the reverb secret sauce!

[@Kevin-vq6rv]

Interesting... How do you do that? Do you insert a multiband compressor after the reverb or... ?

[@devinunderwood9039]

@@Kevin-vq6rv Well, one way would be to have the reverb on its own bus, that way you can treat it like a track with eq for example, you can high pass the low freq to your heart's desire.

[@roadsideturnout9287]

I record live jam sessions in my home studio. The drummer is great, but when he dose fast double kicking the kick drum drops down a lot. How does one make the fast double kicking more audible in the mix when performed like that? Just turning it up seems to just cause cymbal bleed issues and gating gets harder as the transients are much lower due to hitting the drum softer.

[@L.A.W.Studios]

OK, a question (hopefully) for an upcoming FAQ Friday: While mixing, if something doesn't sound quite right, but is something you can't pinpoint, to what extent do you solo? More importantly, how does one avoid the 'solo rabbit-hole'? ..and does avoiding it, hinge on the extent of time solo'd, or some other rule-of-thumb?

[@bsykesbeats]

2:15 I'm assuming you put the EQ after the compressor in the signal chain of the master bus? And I'm assuming notch EQ as opposed to shelf for the 1db of 60Hz and 10kHz? Are these correct assumptions??

[@jordancarbajal4615]

Wholesome. Keep up the good work.

[@rodrigofigueiredo4566]

Warrent, when you are mixing do Use external hardware for fx like reverb, delays or chorus ? Or do you use plugins To that? Thanks!

[@artist1303]

Hello Warren! My question is: I recently recorded my first band. All the gear was brand new and everything was ran into a Presonus 24r digital mixer. I created individual headphone mixes in studio one 4pro and tracked them live in one room playing all together signing as well. We did 12 songs and the only problem was we were getting pops while recording. What can we do or look at doing to stop these pops from occurring. It was altittle annoying but the band played through it and when it came time for the processing/mixing stage there was a lot of time spent on cutting them out of the tracks. Thanks again and keep up the GREAT work!

[@mcstink10000]

As usual, great content and advice. But I was wondering, in reference to the gain staging topic, I get what you’re saying about a good recorded signal to work with, but I ‘ve heard others mention how much more finesse the faders have at 0 setting. How much importance do you place on this as your starting point?

[@SeymourZenn]

Hey warren, when i mic my amp i use a sennheiser 609 and the emulated output since i have a blackstar. My question is my tone sounds really bright through my monitors but not before going in. Should i trust the sound from my monitors, or should i try to get the sound out of my monitors to more closely resemble my open tone? Also what do you think about hybrid recoding drums for example kick snare hat miced, and use steven slate for toms cymbals and overheads? Great stuff as always😎

[@ChromatixRecords]

Nice.. thank you for the lesson! 🙏🙏

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Chromatix Records you’re very welcome my friend!!

[@MartinLang1625]

As usual Warren , YOU ROCK!

[@lahattec]

Which limiting plugin do you think has the least coloration? Thanks!

[@randybrown5899]

For mixing, my vote is for the L1! For Mastering, I’ve heard good things about AOM Invisible Limiter. Haven’t tried AOM cuz Ozone is working for me

[@lahattec]

@@randybrown5899 Thanks. I have Ozone. I need to try it out.

[@nicholascowan1731]

Lives limiter is fucking amazing when it comes to not changing the sound at all other than limiting

[@smalltowninnewmexico]

snizzle....can i use that Warren? another rad vid.As a Studio One user I was happy hearing you say Studio One

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes! Use it! Thanks ever so much!!

[@SingleMaltIdiot]

Always love these FAQ Fridays! Such a great watch with consistently great advice, which is fantastic in that it's from someone with a very established career, and who's a delight to watch! Here's my question, which a friend and I were discussing recently: If you're hired on as an engineer and/or mixer, is it your responsibility to find and pay the mastering engineer, or is that something better left to the artist?

[@colinm3130]

Another fun story related to using the same DAW from when I was an assistant. We got a PT session in where instead of printing the tuned vocals, they used plugins and left the plugins on. For some reason the autotune plugin came up in the wrong key. It sounded a little odd, but also very cool at the same time. So we assumed it was a clever artistic trick. It wasn't until the mix engineer submitted the mix to the label that they pointed out autotune was in the wrong key. To this day I still think it worked better in the wrong key. I don't think the label would have agreed with me and the mix engineer.

[@larrytate1657]

Hey Warren how’s it going. I have a basic question I’ve never heard talked about yet. For my drum overheads and my two guitar amp mics should I pan them in my daw before recording or do it after it’s recorded? I’ve been doing it before recording.

[@Eventual420]

DAWs have what's called a 'Panning Law' which dictates the level of a hard panned channel. Circular Panning Law boosts the level of a hard panned channel, above it's maximum. Triangular Panning Law doesn't boost the level of a hard panned channel. The problem with Circular Panning Law is the compensation made for the boost involves reducing the input level, which can remove details. I record two different speakers each pass and can hard pan to select which one fits better, or center for both speakers. Dual pass recordings will have 4 different speakers, and this is panned to select it. DAWs can swap left/right as well, so in the event you want two left channels, one can be swapped to the right. -James

[@studiodebras]

Ooh, ooh.., did you get to visit Tegel and talk to Michael? Can't wait for that video. I love my VTRC! Pro tip; sound like a real Berliner and pronounce it like 'Tay-geler Ow-dee-oh Manoofacktoor'. ;-)

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Studio De Bras Yes we did! FYI Michael was very specific that it should be ‘Tee-guh-lah’ I’ll let him know he’s wrong! Haha I had previously pronounced it ‘Tay’ around him and he had corrected me!

[@johndugan1471]

Can you address frequency allocation for a final mix where various instruments are occupying a lot of the same frequencies.

[@williama-d6]

what's IRs also I have not tried it but should you put reverb on both acoustic guitar and vocals once you finish recording?

[@muphkam]

IR stands for Impulse Response. For instance, if you want your guitar to sound like it's coming out of a tweed deluxe cabinet, most probably someone has created an impulse response for it by now, you will load that impulse response into your IR utility of your DAW on the guitar channel, your guitar in this case is an input on your audio interface, and voila! you'll hear almost exactly the same thing as if you're hooked up to the cabinet.

[@williama-d6]

Mostafa K ok

[@Nickyrock1962]

what a wooly good FAQ friday!

[@Honzinus78]

I've been struggling with noise coming from my DX7 MkI (1983). Additional processing like EQ or compression can bring the noise up… I took my DX7 to Yamaha service center and they said it's fine, it's just 12 bit DA converter… yeah.. but it's almost impossible to do highshelving on my DX7 tracks.. :o/

[@tury55]

What’s IR? What’s it stand for

[@christophervaca7116]

Impulse response

[@SirEggbertfartalot]

lancasteraudio.com/what-is-an-impulse-response-ir/ And also en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_response Hope that helps ;0)

[@darrenross9168]

Hi Warren, as always very informative and helpful, glad you had a grand time in berlin, I sometimes record Synthesizer and vst instruments to another computer but I find that recording in stereo doesn't always work too well when I come to mix, I much prefer to get a great mono sound and then create my own stereo image, have you any tips when it comes to recording in stereo? Thanks for FAQ Friday, all the best, Darren.

[@raymondshue8045]

Hey PLAP-sters!! when using IRs or virtual amps and effects, would you recommend printing a guitar part when you have the sound you’re happy with to conserve CPU?

[@simonslee73]

Raymond Shue yes, it forces you to commit to a sound, and just as if you were recording a real amp, you can then get on with mixing the sound you have rather than endlessly tinkering with the sounds. If you really need to go back you can, and if you have Cubase you can even use direct offline processing

[@lilleeon]

What does "IRs" mean

[@gerrithaasler9980]

What order do you like your bus processing? EQ first?

[@AustenBallard]

"Somewhere in between not clipping and not visible on the screen"... I'm going to make a GIF of that. Can't even count how many times I've received "stems" (sigh) that, for whatever reason, had either been bounced at +6dB with waveforms that looked like Lego blocks or were indistinguishable from line noise on the graph... there are people out here who NEED your "common sense" tips

[@AustenBallard]

@Jean Dames if the audio's been completely ITB from the beginning yeah, but there's always that one (or two, or unfortunately many) engineer who doesn't quite understand the gain and trim controls on their preamps.

[@lilleeon]

@@AustenBallard what does "ITB" mean ?

[@AustenBallard]

@@lilleeon In The Box, i.e. all digital

[@lilleeon]

@@AustenBallard ahh thank you

[@joeeldred8304]

Just a suggestion. How would you mix James Taylor in 2020. Because the mixes are not as dense as other genre can you use more reverb on vocals? Generally do you use reverb on background vocals as in Motown?

[@yobhsiFehT]

I feel like gain staging is something I’m still pretty hopelessly inept at in a way. My “master fader” slider in GarageBand is essentially always in the red, and frankly, I can’t tell how much that matters - I don’t hear any real clipping, and the generic pseudo-/pre-mastering tips I’ve looked up and tried to apply don’t seem to really help, just kill dynamics and/or overall volume. What gives? 😝

[@ShiningHourPop]

Thanks for answering my question re EZDrummer! I thought that was the answer but good to hear confirmation from Lord Warren of Crookham! Have a great weekend.

[@timermens350]

I like to add something to it. Eq/Comp/anything on a track is not depending on the track itself, but is highly depending on the other instruments. F.e. boosting the high mids of your kick or changing the attack of the compressor are decisions made in the context of the whole mix. Ask yourself: Do I want to let the kick (or anything) poke through more or less? If the answer is more, than the high mids boost or/and longer attack are some of the options you have. However, consider to cut those frequencies on other tracks, maybe sidechain the bass instead or too. Same for the bass, instead of boosting the low mids of the bass, make some way for it by trying to cut in the 400Hz area on the drums (sure try it on the drumbus).

[@KaneTitus]

Thank you for this!