HOW TO MIX REGGAE | Reggae Mixing Tutorial

Reggae is one of my absolute favorite Genres and my love for it helped me strive to be a better Mix Engineer and after years of trial & error/learning I can say confidently that my Mixes have certainly improved. In this video I wanted to show you guys how I roughly Mix Reggae with a rhythm that I put together in my home studio with Live Drums, Guitar, Bass and Piano/Organ VST's within Reason 12.
Big Up to @DmKahn for graciously making reggae mixing tutorials that played an integral part of my mixing and audio journey.
For Mixing, Production, Lessons and more check out my website
www.thirdislandproductions.com

[@qweshun1223]

Reggae done back in the day before all these technology. We used to have to go to a studio and do live recordings. Imagine drumming or bass playing and in one take it has to be perfect. Myself a keyboard player i remember money being tight so the older musicians would tell me. Boy you better do it in one take or you will have to deal with me once we leave here. Talk about pressure lol 😅😂 No deleting, no pre beats, keys, no fixed melodies, no fixing or clean up app or program just pure skills. I remember going to the studio with some big famous bands and musicians back in those days. Everyone smoking ganja, got a big sliff in their mouth, jamming and vibing in those days. In the islands not having to worry about being locked up for ganja. Late 70's and early 80''s. Nuts cause now today its all computerize and the advancement of technology. 😅😂 all the equipment was gigantic what we did have now you can fit everything in a bag or your pocket. Like the music you made.. 😅😂

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

It's wild. Recently recorded in a friends studio that does reggae and he records all instruments through out, not over dubs etc. just like you explained. . We built like 3 riddims doing everything like that. It was challenging but the music felt alive and breathing. It was eye opening and insanely fun to do. I try to implement that into my own stuff often.

[@qweshun1223]

@@thirdislandproductions9708 jah bless love that you experience that. But I am all for the technology also cause growth and development is good as long as it's all progressive, peaceful, learning and achieving great things for everyone. One love

[@qweshun1223]

@thirdislandproductions9708 yeah it sounds different when it done live and it's a different feeling also

[@AnnoyedAlligator-do1su]

Love it💯🔥🔥

[@arthurlorin7197]

instructive as hell

[@diamspro1636]

Wowooooo this is super god

[@ReggaeBeatsPROD]

Solid tutorial, great sound!

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thank you!

[@juiswhoiam1149]

simply amazing 👌

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks so much!

[@DMKahn]

Thanks for the shout out bro. Your tracking was great and you did a wonderful job showcasing each element in your mix. One thing I would have done differently is set that compressor to 100ms instead of auto, that’s my go to. Another cool thing to experiment with is the Nuke button at 5-7% wet. Immediately brings whatever you use it on to the fore front of the mix. Good tutorial bro, I was pleasantly surprised to find it pop into my KZbin recommendations. All the best and God bless.

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Yo! Thanks man. Means a lot! I’ll definitely try those settings out. Appreciate you and the advice big time.

[@tamentraki1323]

Thank you for your amazing video ♥️🙏

[@BeatsAndMelody]

Saw Reason and subbed immediately. That RV7000 spring reverb is niiiiice. Good vid.

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Yeah man I love reason! Thanks a bunch 🙏🏼

[@caribbguy7984]

❤❤❤

[@Andy-Wyze]

Thanks for this tutorial its really nice I love this genre and I want to learn more techniques in mixing reggae though I use logic pro in my home studio here in uganda.

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Of course! Thanks for the comment, check out DM Kahn on KZbin on KZbin. he has some great tutorials

[@ZiontheMessenger]

GREAT WORK

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

I appreciate it!

[@gravedubreggae]

reason love

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Underrated

[@marlifemusic]

Nice bro 👊🏽...

[@LloydMajor]

Thank you for the class!

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Yeah man🫡 no problem. Glad it helped !

[@LloydMajor]

The best tutorial i studied so far on "REGGAE MIXING"!@@thirdislandproductions9708

[@wa745]

Good stuff man!

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks so much!

[@rickybrenay6249]

Awesome tutorial. Any chance you’d do a recording tutorial. Like mic set up and your process to recording?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Most definitely! I’ll have it out in the near future.

[@qualitysoundenter10ment33]

Sir, good job. Is side chaining and parallel compressor really a must in mixing or music production?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

I think it's optional an fun to mess with to get to the sound you are looking for. I would say you can absolutely get fantastic mixes without any Paralell compression or side chaining. I wouldn't exclude it though. I usually only use Paralell compression with my drum bus. I never side chain. Less is more sometimes. It's really just putting in the hours and getting better. Tools help, but with experience, comes trust in your ears and decision making. Cheers

[@PBEATZZ-m5s]

love the tutorial, have also subscribed too.

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks so much! Glad it helped!

[@Joey2kooltv]

Very helpful

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Awesome. Glad it helped!

[@capoeiraguerreirosdapaz8024]

🙏👍💚💛❤️🍀 thanks !

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

Greetings I’ve checked around for the most affordable way to get great drums. I normally buy samples and loops from loop masters. Now that I’ve gotten familiar to DM khans channel I see that there’s much more I need. I recently did a reggae mix course and I can see where my mixes were lacking. Anyway what would you recommend to get a bottom snare to get a near as possible roots raddics sound and rolls and fills . For some reason Loopmasters don’t sell the track outs so I cannot treat individual elements. Any suggestions? Cheers

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks for commenting and watching the video. 🙏🏼 Rubadrum is a great program, khan’s sample pack, green lion crew just dropped a new sample pack. If you want the roots radics sound from a snare, usually a steel snare would work. Set up a mic on the snare top while you are tuning, open an EQ that displays the Frequency chart. After that, tune your snare top until it hits around 150Hz- 210Hz on the fundamental (peak or bell curve). After that, tune your bottom head super high and tighten the snare wires. Use a wallet, shirt, or cloth to dampen the top heads. Hope that helps

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

@@thirdislandproductions9708 thanks and keep up the great work. Blessings

[@grownprosper]

Thanks for the awesome tutorial! Are the tracks recorded though the pre-amps from Cranborne 500R8 and then mixed with plugins after?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks a Bunch! Yes Correct! I also have extra channels via ADAT that are going into outboard pre's (Sub Kick, Snare Bottom, and Hats)

[@damioncephase6843]

I like your music. I have a quick question. Which piano did you use in this song. I like the sound. I have been wanting my piano to sound that way for a long while.

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

It’s a preset in Reason Studios “Radical Piano”

[@coolmind2476]

Just came across this video, very nice 👍. Could you please let me know why you use the lindell 80 channel and not another one like a SSL? What does it do regarding reggae productions compared to other analog emulation plugins?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thank you! Yes I can explain. The Lindell 80 is modeled after a Neve 1084 channel strip from the original consoles the frequency parameters on the plug-in are tried and true frequencies that can be used for a wide array of instruments. An SSL emulated plug-in doesn’t limit you. You how ever many bands there are, you are free to use any frequency within that given band. You could just select the same frequencies on the SSL and it may sound the same but The Lindell 80 plug-is just what works great for me. It limits you to using tried and true frequencies. Basically saying, Less is more. Hope that helps!

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

It also highly depends on the quality of your recording/performance as well unless you are using sampled drums.

[@edprod3706]

GREAT JOB MAN , WICH VERSION OF REASON ARE YOU USING?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

Thanks! The most updated version Reason 12 I’m pretty sure

[@dxzebeats]

Why don’t you compress the drums on the preamp, so they don’t be too loud when recording?

[@thirdislandproductions9708]

My Pre amps don't have compressors. They are just regular mic pre's. the only one that does have a compressor is my OH's but it's mainly the kick and snare that are the hottest signal. I usually have to PAD them

[@dxzebeats]

@@thirdislandproductions9708oh ok, thanks!