F.A.Q.

What do I need to prepare for a Mixing session?



  • - Show up to your session with all the tracks on a data cd, dvd, or hard drive. Don't bring an audio cd to mix from, as that will diminish the quality and fidelity of those tracks. Be sure to include how many tracks there are, what is on each track, and any special requests regarding the mix of the song.

    • ***Make sure all of your tracks start at the same time!***


  • - If you have a rough mix or a version of the song that I can reference while mixing, bring that to the session, or include that when transferring the files. Label accordingly. This will help me ensure that all tracks are accounted for when I am mixing.

  • - If you have a two-track instrumental, it is best to get all the individual tracks for me to mix. I will work with whatever you have available, however, this will give me greater control over the presentation of the song. As a result, the various elements will sound more 'glued together'. If you cannot provide the individual tracks, resist the temptation to compress the mix to try to make it 'hotter'. At this early stage of audio production it is going to work against you in the long run.

  • - Clipping or any kind of digital distortion in your audio file is not a good thing. Distortion can occur at any point in your signal chain when recording, and there is no way to get rid of it once it enters your digital recording. When you are recording, it is best to leave plenty of headroom for the mix or mastering engineer.

    1. 1) Generally speaking, effects increase the gain of a track. If you are so close to 0dbfs that you are practically clipping, you are limiting how much effects you will be able to use on that track before seriously degrading the audio quality.

    3. 2) If you are tracking and setting levels, keep in mind most artists tend play louder once they start recording. Don't dance in the red, or you may find parts of your recording may become unusable. With the advent of 24-bit recording, letting your peaks hit around -9dbfs on the meters should give you more than enough signal-to-noise ratio for a clean recording.

  • - If exporting from another recording program, export audio as a *.wav file (not *.mp3). Be sure use the same bit depth and sample rate as when you recorded. If you have the option at recording, choose at least 24 bit (bit depth), 48 khz (sample rate). I can accept other formats, however it is best to preserve the highest audio quality (bit depth/sample rate) that you have available. If you are unsure about how to do this, I am available to answer your questions. It does not matter what program (i.e. Cubase, Logic, Pro Tools, etc.) you recorded in. Audio is audio.

  • - If you have the opportunity, take the time to name your files. Name them something meaningful that will make sorting through the tracks easier. It is good practice to indicate what instrument(s) are on the track (i.e. OHL.wav, LDGTR.wav, BASS.wav). If you wish to include alternate takes, you may want to name it something like GTRSOLO_Take2.WAV. By taking a little time to sort these out beforehand, I can dedicate more time to making your music sound the best it can.

    1. Tip: In many recording programs, if you name the track you are recording onto, every take you record from then on will include that in the audio's filename. It is much easier to know what is on a file named BASS.wav than a file named Audio3_01.wav

  • - If there are effects you have that you want to include, print the effects onto a *.wav file. In other words, give the effect on its own track.

    1. - If it is an insert effect, (compressor, eq, or anything that is not time-dependent) it is best to process that with the original signal.

    3. - If it is a send effect (reverb, delay, flanger, time dependent effects) it is best to process those separately. For send effects, you will have a *.wav file with 100% effect, and a *.wav file that is the original instrument, 100% dry. Be sure to label them accordingly (i.e. LdGtr_reverb.wav or LdGtr_dry.wav). If it does not work for the song, you are not committed to using that effect. The advantage is you can still recreate an effect from the dry signal.

    5. - There are typically two ways to accomplish this. Either use the audiosuite program within Pro Tools, Cubase, etc. (works well for insert effects) or you can perform an external bounce. If doing an external bounce, set your send to pre-fader, and mute everything but the aux tracks with the effect. Pre-fader means the effect will play independent of the channel's volume. For instance, if you turn the guitar track down completely, and you send guitar pre-fader to a reverb, you will still hear the reverb of the guitar, however, the original guitar signal will not be in the mix. You should be able to bounce the file down like you would the whole mix, but only the effect should be playing. If given the option choose a bit depth/sample rate that matches what was used for recording.