Reaper Tutorial: The Basics of Gain Staging

[@SaintKines]

Finally, after watching 11 different videos about gain staging, including ones called "gain staging explained", I found one that makes complete sense. Thanks man.

[@marvinbennett8384]

Facts 👏

[@drutgat2]

Still brilliant, all these years later. Many thanks.

[@michaelanderwald4179]

Just a quick tip for people who watch this in 2018: there's an SWS Extenstion action called "Normalize items to overall peak RMS" which will do this for you. I usually set the RMS time to 300ms and the target to -18 db. Then I select all tracks per track and execute the action. This doesn't work for VST instruments unless you're rendering them out, but in my experience it's a good idea to freeze those before starting mixing in serious anyway. Cheers

[@vincmasta]

Hi! Thanks for this amazing tip. My problem: When i set the time to 300ms, the peaks go to -5db or something, causing my master to clip. when all tracks are on. When is set it to 50ms, everything is perfect. Are you experiencing similar things or am i doing it wrong? Thanks!!

[@breakopen7514]

You have just saved me from a ton of hassle, and gained a new subscriber in the process. I'm still pretty new at all of this, so your clear, straightforward approach is much appreciated. Cheers, sir.

[@ReapertvUk]

+Blake Owens My pleasure and glad you found the info useful. I know when I was looking into this (and lots of other subjects) that I found it difficult to find a clear and concise tutorial on what Gain Staging was and how to actually do it. Cheers for subscribing and I hope you find plenty more useful info in the videos :)

[@louispeake521]

I'm new to Reaper and audio production in general and this was a really helpful video in particular, along with your other videos, thanks for the many hours that you've put in. It's an invaluable resource :)

[@ReapertvUk]

+Louis Peake Thanks :0) Glad you're finding the tutorials useful and there are plenty more to come ;)

[@frankthomas8782]

as always great tutorial! I I can already see how my mixes will be affected in a positive manor. I run into the "hot" signal issue myself and usually got for the channel fader rather than adjusting the input. Sometimes the simplest concepts can get over looked but they prove to be some of the most effective.

[@horatiohoohaa3479]

Really helpful! I've used ezdrummer for a while and always struggled with the loudness of the drums, they always seem way too hot and this seems like a good starting point for troubleshooting. thanks!

[@ReapertvUk]

Totally agree with you Chris, the EZ Drummer and SD signals are hot going into the DAW.

[@buira9482]

This tutorial explained EXACTLY what I was trying to learn. Thanks so much!

[@KINGJADEX]

What if your tracks have 4 or 5 plugins? Do you adjust the output of the first, the last, all equally or something else? I will generally have several instrument/effects plugins on a track, not just one.

[@dobby240]

Excellent video, learnt alot in the first 3 mins. Subbed and faved gona work through your other videos after this two parter

[@ReapertvUk]

Awesome! I hope you enjoy the channel :0)

[@thebootrex5609]

this made a world of difference for me, thank you! i was mixing everything coming in too hot and was losing a lot of fidelity and clarity.

[@abilashjayakumar4909]

Hey, I loved the video, however I am confused between the Volume (Pre-FX)" knob and the "Volume (Item)" knob. Which one of the two is used to do gain staging or considered as the gain knob on reaper? Which one should I use when it's a .wav file.

[@OtterLakeFlutes]

Very cool... glad I came... I was admittedly looking how to change gain on an audio track using only Reaper... again not volume slider or anything, but Ableton has a way to drag the gain up or down where you see the waves swell or shrink... without a plugin like EZMix just to do that if it's all I want. Hopefully Reaper does, too.

[@craigpaulson3503]

Might be a dumb question, but I'll ask anyway. What do you set the master fader at? Is that set to zero as well? Great video, lots of easy to understand information. I finally get it. Thanx!!!

[@marceloribeirosimoes8959]

Thank you! So, when you say "minus eighteen" you're saying "0dB", right?

[@MrEverson7]

Nice one, lad! You got yourself a new subscriber. Keep them videos coming, mate!

[@WindwalkerMultimedia]

Greetings from Detroit! Just subbed today, am enjoying your channel. Also really liking the way you have reaper theme set up. I don't much like the looks of the stock setups. Is that a skin? And if so,where can I get it? hahaha

[@WindwalkerMultimedia]

So yeah, the second video I watched answered everything....haha

[@Normandy_Mike]

Does anyone know why so many videos tell you to set the levels at -18 going into the fx first?

[@daddydanny5588]

gr8 vid ..what theme are u sing

[@FDimmick]

Very helpful video. The way in which gain staging is discussed is technical correct and the example illustrates the concept well. Thanks.

[@ZeroToneSongs]

Thank you i am going to try this on my old and new mixes

[@tidestheyturn9059]

Could you share what theme you are using in this video? It looks awesome, especially the colored track panels (Reaper's default coloring drives me crazy!).

[@tidestheyturn9059]

***** Thanks a lot! Your videos are very nicely done, and I look forward to more of them.

[@xRiseAgainstx]

What theme is it? I don’t see a comment from suicide evolution

[@JS-bo2xl]

I try to keep each track at around -18RMS but I have to lower the output of the plugins to ridiculously low levels. Is that normal?

[@johnysk2731]

Another great tutorial. In your view, if you have audio recorded at reasonable levels, is there still any point in normalising your recordings ?

[@TruckinBear1]

Great video. I've just started getting into recording/mixing/production (2 months). I tried your example and the tracks got very distorted at -18db. I adjusted to -10db and all cleared up. Why would that happen? Thanks again for the great video!

[@ReapertvUk]

+Epi Bear It can depend on how hot the signal is recorded and various other factors. -18db isn't arbitrary, so as long as you have headroom that's OK. :0)

[@caryheuchert]

Helpful video - and great channel!!! By the way, any new videos coming soon?

[@sidfinley6087]

Very helpful, thanks.

[@jonzucco3356]

How do you gang your channels together into a "master" fader? Like you're doing here with several drum tracks funneling into one drum master, same with guitar. Or maybe just point me to the video where you explain this? Thank you

[@aarongarlington8499]

This was really helpful!! I have one question though. I use Guitar Rig 5 as my fx for my guitars and bass. When I record, I have those added so if I were to do gain staging properly, would I turn off the effects after recording and then set the levels? Or would I set the levels with the fx added?

[@fencefirst2722]

Fx added

[@DjClimamusic]

Great information, thank you ReaperTV, thumbs up! :)

[@chrissaunders6085]

Wouldn't it be quicker just to go to trim/automation (either on the master buss or in each track), select VOLUME (PRE FX) and lower the output to -18dB there? Same result but quicker and easier than making adjustments to each VST's fader. more accurate too. Thoughts?

[@marvin469]

If I can find the trim/automation on my individual channels that would be the way to go because I send my tracks from Ableton so I won't have the vst volume control. Thanks. Thank goodness for the comments section lol

[@marvin469]

Chris - man u are a wizard. IT WORKS THATS EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED 🥲. THANKS U SIR

[@ahmadabuhamad7900]

Hey Paul, I have this weird problem: When I multi channel the ez drummer from the mixer like you did it works fine but when i close reaper (after saving of course) I come back to find out that its back to the one channel output and the drum kit is back to basic :/ Any Help would be appreciated

[@leeknivek]

this is perhaps one way to "fix" poor gain staging, but it doesn't really point out that you should have all your levels adjusted before recording

[@Lefevrepenboys]

When lowering guitar output level on a vst plugin, which one do you lower if you are running multiple vst's...my guitar chain looks like, Amplitube 4 > NadIR, then i have 2 FX sends which look like, SSL E-Channel and the other send has Valhalla delay.

[@lex1872]

I got a question? Is it better to do this after you put any effect on the recording? (also could this method be used for vocals as well?)

[@InXLsisDeo]

I think you need to start at -18dB peak before inserting fx so that when you increase volume, you still have enough headroom after the fx. Sometimes, ou will need to be careful that each of your fx don't get too hot themselves if they add gain. Vocals is no different than the rest in that regard.

[@JohnnoDorber]

Great tips, as usual. I made a start on my mix last night using the Reaper JS Channel mixer. After spending some time balancing the Gain on my tracks, it sounds better already so I'm about ready to go back to your mixing basics vid again and make a start on my guitar tracks equalisation. I wonder, though, if I would be better off using easymixer like you and if you can recommend a safe download link for it? With my current and second Reaper project, I want to go through several of your tutorial vids and see if I can't raise the bar a bit and really take my time and give some care and attention to making a really good mix. Thanks in advance.

[@ReapertvUk]

Hi Johnno, Good to hear you're already getting better results. Do you mean EZMix? If so, I would recommend using Audiodeluxe.com (either via their website or eBay). I've bought a fair bit of Toontrack software via them and never experienced any issues. It's not immediate, but it is legit and normally well priced.

[@JohnnoDorber]

Thank you. Yes I did mean EZMix and you probably saved me again lol. I saw an "Easy mix" download site and I didn't trust it. You often get more that you bargained for when not cautious with free download sites.

[@ReapertvUk]

To be honest, I'm a great believer in supporting the developers when a product is fairly priced and does what it says. I'd rather know that the money is going towards developing more great tools and not being wasted on stupid copy protection widgets and dongles that only go to annoy the legit owners of software. Toontrack are most definitely one of those great companies. I've had the opportunity to deal with a couple of the people working there in relation to this channel and website and can say they are genuinely helpful and passionate about the industry and their products and worth supporting. Lol, sorry for the rather long reply ;0)

[@JohnnoDorber]

It's been a little while, but I have been working through that series further for bass and found something for vocals too. Improves my humble song out of sight. On the subject of product supporting, you'll be happy to hear that I paid for my Reaper subscription earlier this week. Reaper is just so good and so reasonably priced that after nearly 100 days trial (I think), it seemed unreasonable not to pay for it. Still enjoying your videos.

[@ReapertvUk]

+Johnno Dorber good to hear you're getting better results and that you've opted to support Reaper is great news too. 😊

[@Akerfeldtfan]

This is super helpful, thank you. How did you get reaper to show the red and yellow bars when you are too hot and the numer ticks on the fader? My reaper doesn't show these for some reason.

[@ReapertvUk]

+Akerfeldtfan It's part the theme I used (Default Comalla) and part this technique - kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5zMnWmDjq6Am9k :0)

[@Akerfeldtfan]

Thank you for that information, it was driving me nuts having solid volume bars in reaper 5.

[@ReapertvUk]

Glad to help out :0)

[@Painkiller30]

How do you setup a master track for panned guitars only?

[@ellisaudio9727]

I use bias amps for my di... And if I lower the fader it makes my gain sound like I turned down my guitar... Is there a VST I can use in reaper to keep my gain/distortion from the amp sin sounding the same but reducing my output?

[@ryanschindler923]

How do you split the drum tracks into individual tracks like that? I can't figure that out

[@yantoaldama6813]

You have to set the output to MULTIPLE.... Check the setting in the mixer of the ez drummer.

[@bigbob4205]

Great information 💯

[@TheMetalmaniac68]

Is there a Reaper plugging we can use, and do you do it for each track that appears to go over -18db?

[@RobKingRC]

All you need to do is go to each track, click the trim button and a box will appear, click the Volume / pre fx box then adjust your track volume to negative 18db, and do this to all the tracks. No need to use a plugin for gain staging. 👍🎚️

[@carlosandchrlys7889]

Hi,what theme is that?

[@Philosufur]

I usually record my guitar DI and when do I like to keep roughly 6db of head room so i get a nice hot signal. what would be the best way to turn down the di without touching the fader? or should I just turn it down after it goes though whatever amp sim I'm using and then Also through my other effects after?

[@flos3328]

You could use a gain plugin in your FX chain to bring the level down. Bluecat Audio has plugins for free, which are just gain knobs.

[@NicholasJohnStevens]

Maybe they could setup the levels on that intro music. I keep blowing my ears out when I go to the next video.

[@stuartwrigglesworth9339]

Fantastic, I have just got the Demo of EZ mix . But how do I get it into Reaper vst

[@ReapertvUk]

Sometimes Reaper has a bit of a problem finding plugins. What I'd suggest is locating the EZMix DLL file and copying that into the default VST folder.

[@stuartwrigglesworth9339]

Thank you very much for your help.

[@theaceofspadesjl]

What if you don't have any studio effects? (ie no EZ Mix or EX Drummer) How would you solve this issue then?

[@ReapertvUk]

theaceofspadesjl if you are using any type of fx on the track that provide input / output control you can use that. Alternatively, if you're just recording a DI signal you'd still need to ensure you aren't clipping on input and you can use something like the JS Volume plugin to control volume to a certain extent.

[@ShadovvV]

Three questions not covered in your tutorial (but probably should have been).. First, did you start with your master fader at 0db? Secondly - if yes to my first question, when you mix down, do you still leave the master fader at 0db? Lastly, do you or have you ever simply just pulled the master fader down to -18db instead of jerking around with all the other volumes? Curious..

[@ShadovvV]

***** You master in your mixing program? That's a bit odd.

[@ShadovvV]

***** That's called mixing or remixing, not mastering. I also wouldn't call what you're doing "gain staging" either. Personally, I would think gain staging happens before even hitting the DAW.

[@ShadovvV]

***** To me, the same would basically be to first make sure everything that reaches the DAW is simply not clipping, but instead of messing with all the levels, I start with the master fader at around -15db. This way, I don't have to mess with anything and I'm still far below 0db. I then bounce (stream out through DAW and back in) the tracks individually to another audio editor, fix the panning, then mix down. *Some tracks at this mix stage are also recorded or imported (not bounced) from the first mix stage. Finally, I load the final mix into a mastering program (rack type). From there I can also run the master track back out of the DAW again into whatever rack hardware, but this isn't really necessary since plugins can do pretty much the same thing, if not better. My mastering plugin rack usually consists of only four or five plugins. The first controls the stereo field, the second adds compression, the third limiting and the fourth is an oscilloscope type analyzer to check the balance and phase. Sometimes I'll also throw in a Neve or ISA110 type EQ plugin to sweeten things a bit if everything sounds dull. I get 'okay' quality with this method, but it's not totally shiny. The end result sounds a bit more like older analog. What do you think? I'd like to hear your opinion.

[@vedasticks]

gain staging can happen at many stages. recording through to mastering.

[@nowaiting2072]

What videos do you recommend for someone just beginning? As in, if I was learning to drive and didn't know how to open the car door!

[@ReapertvUk]

+NoWaiting If you're happy to pay then I would highly recommend checking out Reaper4 Explained by Kenny Gioia at Groove 3 - www.groove3.com/reaper-training-video-tutorials/reaper-4-explained - It's $20 and is a great foundation in Reaper. Even though it's for version 4 of Reaper, there isn't any real difference in the basic functionality. I'll also be working on a series of beginners tutorials on the channel over the next few weeks that will show the fundamentals of recording instruments, midi, sequencing, editing, etc. Right the way up to the mixing stage. You could also check out the Reaper Blog, Jon has a lot of great content over there as well as tutorials for Reaper (although that hasn't been updated in a while). I hope that helps :0)

[@nilla003]

+ReaperTV Yes, it helps. I'm signed in on a different device, but yes, thanks.

[@ReapertvUk]

+nilla003 No problem and welcome to the wonderful world of Reaper ;0)

[@nowaiting2072]

+ReaperTV What if I just want to mic my instruments and not use plugins for the most part? I've got digital amps that are basically useless for live playing but I think great for recording.

[@ReapertvUk]

+NoWaiting Whether you opt for mic'd recording or using amp sims, I would always recommend recording a DI signal. You can re-amp (or record a wet and a dry (DI) signal) so you can change the sound at any point after recording it. This just gives you way more flexibility in the long run.

[@BlackWylde]

What theme are you using?

[@kaashekaamutenya8372]

Where can i get this theme?

[@dakotapetrie1517]

Just keep in mind he’s gain staging with a peak meter… it’s not going to give you as great a balance as a VU or RMS. Do the same thing he’s doing but use a VU or RMS

[@Weston_Guidero]

Thank you awesome video!

[@ReapertvUk]

My pleasure :0)

[@kingsantos142]

Thanks mate ^_^ it helped me a lot ^_^

[@ReapertvUk]

No problem and good to hear :)

[@kingsantos142]

do you have a mastering tutorial's mate ?? im new on these so im not really sure what im doing haha xD ... thanks for the tip's ^_^

[@ReapertvUk]

Mastering is something that is an art form in it's own right and something I'm still very much in the learning stages of. So, not yet but I'm sure they will be added in the future :0)

[@capancrunch2426]

Boss why not just adjust the faders??

[@chrissaunders6085]

Lowering the faders doesn't change the signal level going into your effects, busses or the mix buss. The reason you lower the input signal to -18dB is to ensure your inserted plugins a re being fed the optimal signal level (most plugins a re designed to work best at -18dB...especially those that emulate analogue gear).

[@zoeabigailescudero3130]

hola reazper muy buenos tus videos me encantaron nos estamos escribiendo 😘😘💝💝

[@klibstar8197]

20 second intro is way too long just FYI

[@craigburton4447]

Pee Smeg TV? 🤣