Why Does Your Mix Sound Bad In The Car and How To Fix It.

[@hlf_blnd9284]

0:06- 0:36 was the MOST relatable thing in the history of my existence

[@Josh.Bartel]

Hahah we’ve all been there!

[@kahraba1]

Number 2 is totally spot on! I totally tend to use my monitors just for mixing most of the time! :D

[@poindextertunes]

god dxmn son! This is exactly everything i needed to hear! no pun sugar bun!

[@Josh.Bartel]

That’s sooo good, glad I could help 🙏🏻

[@lorenzobreeze]

thanks a lot for the tips!!Very helpful, my issue is, the mix sounds super great in my home studio, spent a long time learning to understand mixing and even bought mastering presets then when I get into my Honda 2018, there's this super annoying hiss sound that really stands out especially on s words, (btw I definitely use a dessser) and it seems to only really stand out when I crank the volume in the car up to the max, which sucks because you want to crank the music all the way up!! what could be the problem???

[@Josh.Bartel]

That’s interesting, does it happen when you listen to other music in your car? Also, can you hear the hiss when you listen to it on other systems?

[@StickOnHair]

This is from Quora: 'Sounds interact differently between headphones and speakers. Headphones are right against your ears; the sound is binaural, there’s no crosstalk between the left and the right, and as such you get a different perception of frequency, phase, and stereo position. Speakers are in front of you, and they’re directional, but they’re not laser-like, so sound waves from the left interact with the right and vice versa. So some frequencies can cancel out, others can get boosted, and so forth. And then your head gets in the way. And the human brain isn’t very good at decoding positional cues in lower frequencies, so stereo fields in bass sound amorphous. In short, there’s a lot that happens in sound when the speakers aren’t pressed directly against your ear canals. And that can make a huge difference in how things end up sounding. If you mix on headphones, you may be trying to make a good “headphone mix” that won’t translate for the aforementioned reasons. On the other hand, “speaker mixes” usually translate better to headphones. Which is why most engineers mix primarily on speakers, using headphones for detail work. But not all is lost! There are a number of plugins, programs, and tools that can simulate speakers on headphones. dearVR, Slate VSX, Acustica Sierra, Waves NX, Sonarworks SoundID, and several others exist (many DAWs even come with a basic one) all do some form of “binarual correction” so you can minimize the binaural effects when mixing on headphones. None are perfect, so it’s still best to check on speakers when you have a chance, but it can at least get you part of the way there.'

[@ptbempire]

My mix and master sounds great but others are saying I'm screwing up :(. I use logitechs for headphone

[@danielalejandrosound]

Too bassy with my mixes, its frustrating

[@v5594]

Song sounds muffled, why ?

[@M-BLOC]

+1 subscription I’ve already released 2 albums and the final mix doesn’t sound as great in the car. I use LMMS. Every song has a limiter, declipper and maximizer on master track. Some mixes sound better and some don’t. I use Groove Music with the built-in Car EQ to simulate the effect.

[@lawrencerasmus]

Good mastering ?

[@fettuccinitortellini5830]

my mixes them selves always sound good in the car, but it’s always just really quiet. idk how to fix it

[@Josh.Bartel]

It’s hard to say without hearing it but I’d say that’s likely due to incorrect mastering technique. Izotope’s ‘Are You Listening’ series is a pretty detailed overview into the mastering process which might help.

[@Nazcabeats]

Same. I'll check the serie, Josh :)

[@bobbymarco274]

My mixing is to bassy

[@mblyarsmblyars6480]

Simply because The mix is not good

[@nickycigarella805]

whats the point in these "accurate listening environments" anyway. Nobody is listening to your mix in a million dollar studio. It sounds different on everything you play it on anyway

[@Josh.Bartel]

The point of using an accurate listening environment is to ensure the music will translate better to other systems. If you mix in an inaccurate environment, there will usually be more issues and likely sound worse on other systems due to making incorrect mixing choices that were influenced by the room.