Mixing With Mike Mixing Tip: Why Send-Return Effects Routing is Better Than Inserts

[@SHATAYAKAMILION]

Hey Michael, I just want to take the time to say thanks for these videos. I have the entire playlist saved. You touch on the DETAILS of mixing questions I've been having, but couldn't get answered. I watched SEVERAL videos and none go in depth like I needed them to do such as explaining the peaks, mids, lows of a compressor and how to tame each section and why. They all just explain the basics without giving rules of thumb or how to apply what they're saying in different situations and that sets you apart from ALL other videos. So I just want to say thanks again and keep them coming because you'll be seeing me soon in the music industry and you will be referenced. Peace!

[@mixingwithmike]

+SHATAYA KAMILION Cheers Sataya!

[@ninjafukwan7]

I'm a new subscriber !!! I will share these vids with friends...excellent Mike seriously !

[@treztracks]

ninjafukwan7 yes this was excellent

[@mixingwithmike]

ninjafukwan7 Cheers!

[@edwardlee6516]

mike your just to good what a great mix and song wished I had you in my studio very complex but the results just sing

[@logangaudreau2857]

Hey Michael, how do you decide between having the Effect Returns all feeding out to the main mix bus/stereo bus, or alternatively - feeding to the vocal mix bus? (IE, All Vocals).

[@logangaudreau2857]

Also, in this particular mix, are your return FX feeding to the stereo bus or vocal bus? I can't tell by looking at the screen ... resolution isn't clear enough.

[@Take-the-Ticket]

Good idea, I'm liking it. I will try this later...I hope that adding the separate bus for each effect doesn't eat up my RAM or CPU (I use Sonar X2.)

[@mixingwithmike]

+Grave Protocol Cheers!

[@smokey5100]

Great video. How did you get the other color options (i.e. grey) for the strips?

[@mixingwithmike]

smokey5100 Thanks Smokey! On the color palate select Track in the top left and None in the top right of the window. That easy! Mike

[@aPsi9990]

Hi, i ma having some throuble figuring out the difference betwin this technic and the parallel processing...are them the same thing? beacause they sound to like they are, but i am not sure, if someone can help me clarify ideas it will be great! Thank u for the answer!

[@henrypierrev2534]

Loving the song! Who is it and what's the name of the song?

[@mixingwithmike]

Henry Pierre V Hey Henry, Artist name is Stone Walters. www.stonewalters.com. Song title is Find You Again. As of this post it is not yet commercially available. Coming soon...

[@SHATAYAKAMILION]

One thing I'm trying to grasp is the summing of the sends, inserts, etc. So if I have 4 sends and each of them are going to reverb, delay, and two other FX seperately, are they layered on top of each other sound wise? How does this affect phasing? How does phase play a role in determining what send level to set each send at? How do I set up a "return"? Do I set the output back to the vocal or do I have the output going to the audio interface/master, which is the same as "returning" since it's mixed with everything else? So all in all, how to determine the level of the sends relative to each other and also relative to inserts? (In a nutshell, of course :-)

[@mixingwithmike]

+SHATAYA KAMILION Hi Shaytaya, Each send will feed a different effect assigned to an Aux Return or Effects Return depending on your DAW. The output feeds the stereo output or vocal mix stem. If the effects are set to 100% wet, then there should not be any phasing unless you have set up a phase effect :-) The amount of each entirely depends on the song and the sound you are going for. There is no one answer to that question. Cheers! Mike

[@SHATAYAKAMILION]

Thanks for getting back to me! I'm using pro tools 12. Just to clarify in pro tools, the aux channel is basically a send & return built into one and we just control the send level?

[@mixingwithmike]

Hey Shataya, The Aux track is a return channel that is fed by a bus that you assign. Once assigned any send assigned to the same bus can feed it.

[@briancouture6033]

U voice over Ernie from sesame st. ?

[@corbinjohnn]

Does anyone know if Ableton allows to cross-feed return tracks (sending one return to another return)?

[@mixingwithmike]

user6789 Not sure of that, I think there are limitations in that regard but I believe there is a workaround by using Buss tracks instead of return tracks. I'm not an Ableton guy so I wish I had a better answer for you. Thanks! MIKE

[@corbinjohnn]

Yeah you're right about it being possible if I create busses for them first and then send them to each other. Thanks Mike!

[@mixingwithmike]

Cheers!

[@blazeluminous5186]

+user6789 I'm going to give you a better technique for this in Ableton. The Audio Effects rack effectively acts as a parallel channel. But with the Ableton Audio Effects Rack you can essentially have Infinite faders within a single track of audio. WHich means when you create a new chain under a clean chain you can start adding effects. Just make you label it. You'll want a clean/dry channel with no effects on it. Then you create a chain under it and add whatever effect you're blending/adding under it and label it. This way you can add effects to your effects to help give character or make them work in the mix better. I do this for parallel compression. As an alternative to to reverb and delay sends. Blending distortion and amp simulation. Etc etc.

[@mixingwithmike]

Thanks for the great info in Ableton! Cheers! Mike

[@NathanBrown-dk5wh]

In this tutorial I was wondering why don't you just adjust on the send you're feeding in the aux channel rather then using the main aux fader? I don't get it!!!!!

[@mixingwithmike]

+Nathan Brown Hi Nathan, An interesting subtlety of send-return effects is that the input level has an impact on the sound and character of the effect, especially with reverb. This goes all the way back to early digital hardware effects. After getting the sound I want with the send level at zero, I will bring the aux return back in level so that I am sending a good signal strength to the effect processor. In other words, I'd rather bring the aux return down to -20 than set the send to -20. Once I have the sound and effect level set, the subtle adjustments in send levels will not impact the sound as dramatically. Sounds like a good Mix tip of the week! Cheers! Mike

[@The_Catalyzt]

+Michael White Indeed. This would be useful to see in action. I tend to stay away from send/return routing because of this little annoyance. It would be very helpful to see how a pro handles the gain staging. This can also potentially add a lot more complexity to a mix than I am used to.

[@mixingwithmike]

There is a way, in most DAWs, to set up a template for effect sends and returns to facilitate the process. If you are a composer and just need a quick sound, it may be easier to do it on the insert for a quick vibe. For a final mix it is too limiting to me.

[@jjjuhg]

Michael White, hi! does the order of sends count? I mean, should we put the early reflection and doubler before the delay and before the long reverb? thanks a lot!