Mixing & mastering

Mixing & mastering from SoundBoxTool

Most 5 Common Mixing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

The Equipment Guide.

more proffisionality = more fans

these are the best ways to promote your music. we hope this 10 ways helped you promoting your music in several aspects.

Mixing is a complex art, and it takes practice to learn how to do it well. But if you’re just starting out and don’t know where to begin, here are some common mistakes that mix engineers make that you can avoid by following these simple guidelines:

5. The Balance Between Mixing and Mastering

Mixing and mastering are two different processes, but they’re often confused. Mixing is the process of balancing the levels of all the individual tracks in a song. Mastering, on the other hand, is about making a song sound good on all types of speakers and devices–including when you listen to it through headphones or in your car!

The best way to understand this distinction is by thinking about what happens when you’re mixing: You’re creating an overall balance between instruments so that everything can be heard clearly without getting lost or drowned out by another part of your track. In contrast, mastering focuses on how each instrument interacts with others within its own frequency range (sound wave).

4. Too Much Compression

Compression is a powerful tool that can help to smooth out the dynamics of a track, making it sound more consistent and less like it was recorded in an echo chamber. However, too much compression will make your mix sound dull and squashed.

When you’re using compression, it’s important to keep your eyes on both the gain reduction meter (the green bar) and the output level meter (the blue line). If there is no gain reduction occurring but your track still sounds compressed or squashed, then you’re probably using too much compression!

3. Not Enough Headroom

  • While headroom is an important concept to understand, it’s not as relevant when mixing your songs. The main reason for this is because your aim as a mixer is to make sure that every element of your song sits comfortably in its own space without being too loud or too quiet. In other words, you want all the levels (and therefore dynamics) of each track under control so they don’t compete with one another during playback.

    If you have plenty of headroom and can still hear everything clearly at low volumes, then great! But if there aren’t enough decibels between the loudest parts and softest parts of a track–or worse yet if there isn’t any difference between them–then that could mean trouble down the road when someone listens on headphones or cranks up their speakers really loud (which happens).

2. Not Using Sufficiently High Quality Effects

The first step to avoiding this mistake is to make sure you’re using high-quality effects. If your effects are old, or if they were cheap when you bought them, it’s time to replace them with something better.

If you don’t have the budget for new equipment, there are still some things that can be done to improve the sound quality of your mixes:

  • Try adding an EQ plugin before any other processing (like compression) so that only frequencies that need treating get treated.

  • If possible, record at 24 bit resolution and 96 kHz sample rate (or higher). This will give more headroom for both yourself and plugins during mixing without sacrificing audio quality too much — especially if working with complex arrangements where dynamic range becomes an issue later on!

1. Poor Use of Vocal Plugins

  • Compressors are used to control dynamic range and make sounds more consistent. They’re great for making vocals punchier, or for smoothing out an instrument that’s too loud or quiet in the mix.

  • De-essers reduce sibilance (the “sss” sounds). If your singer has a tendency to overenunciate certain consonants, try using one of these plugins on their vocal track.

  • Gates are like compressors but instead of reducing dynamics, they only let through audio when it exceeds a certain level (the threshold), which is useful if you want to eliminate background noise while keeping vocals intact–or vice versa!

  • Delays can be added onto individual tracks or as part of an auxiliary send channel; they’re useful for adding depth and space without having to render out multiple versions of each track with different reverb settings applied separately before being combined into one master mixdown file later on down the line — saving time during production!

  • Reverbs provide ambience by adding echo effects around sounds within spaces such as rooms or halls; this helps create realism when mixing in order simulate different environments where music would usually be played out at events such as concerts etcetera…

Mixing is a complex art, and it takes practice to learn how to do it well.

Mixing is a complex art, and it takes practice to learn how to do it well.

Mixing is both an art and a science. The science comes from understanding how the different components of your mix work together, while the art comes from knowing how to use those components creatively. But even if you have a firm grasp on the technical side of mixing, there’s still plenty of room for error when applying those skills: You might be tempted by what sounds good in your head but doesn’t translate well into reality; or maybe your ears aren’t sensitive enough yet for picking out subtle details like distortion or clashing frequencies; or perhaps you get so wrapped up in trying to perfect every minute detail that you lose sight of why we listen through headphones instead of speakers anyway (because headphones isolate us from our surroundings).

To avoid these pitfalls–and others–you need practice! The more experience under your belt as both an engineer/producer/musician/etcetera AND listener (i.e., someone who appreciates good sound quality), the better chance at success when mixing down tracks yourself.”

Conclusion

In the end, mixing is a complex art that takes practice to learn. But if you can avoid these common mistakes, you’ll have much better luck with your mixes and they will sound more professional. If you have any other questions or comments about what we discussed here today, please leave them below in the comments section below!

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Music Production Techniques for Adding Professional Finishes to Your Tracks

The Equipment Guide.

simple & affective Techniques

these are the best ways to promote your music. we hope this 10 ways helped you promoting your music in several aspects.

The final stages of music production are arguably the most important. These steps involve adding professional finishes to your tracks and bringing them to life. The most basic way to do this is by using music production techniques like EQ, compression, reverb, delay and limiting.

- EQ

EQ is an abbreviation for equalizer. It’s a tool that allows you to boost or cut specific frequencies in your audio tracks. The ability to shape the tonal character of your sound is an essential part of mixing, and having a good multi-band EQ can make all the difference.

The EQ can be used on individual channels (like vocals), or for entire mixes—it’s up to you!

- Compression

Now that you have an understanding of the different types of effects, it’s time to move on to the next step: compression.

Compression is a bit of a misnomer—it doesn’t actually crush or compress your sound like it would in real life, but instead makes it louder and more consistent by eliminating any volume fluctuations from your track. This means that while using compression may seem counterintuitive at first (why make my track quieter?), it can actually go a long way toward making your mix more dynamic and cohesive.

You’ll find two types of compressors: dynamic and optical/digital. The main difference between these two is how they process audio signals before they reach their attenuation stages; dynamic compressors handle audio as its traveling through wires in real time, whereas optical/digital models process samples digitally before sending them through the rest of their circuitry. Both methods have pros and cons (for example, digital compressors are often easier to set up with fewer controls), but regardless which one you choose, the most important thing is that it’s properly set up so that both ends remain balanced when input levels increase or decrease dramatically (think about how loud sounds get at different moments during a song).

- Reverb

Reverb is a way of adding depth to your tracks. Reverb helps to create space in your mix, and can be used to add a sense of size and depth to your mix. If you have ever listened to an orchestra play live, you will notice that the sound fills the room – this is reverb at work!

Here are some examples of how you can use reverb in your track:

  • Add some subtle delay after each instrument layer (i.e., drums, guitar etc.) has been recorded. This gives each instrument its own space rather than having everything overlap with each other.

  • Use a reverse reverb effect so that it sounds like there are more speakers on stage than there actually are! This creates an artificial sense of size for any given arrangement as well as adds interest for listeners who might not realize there is limited physical space being used during recording/composition sessions.

- Delay

Delays are short reverb, with the length of time between each repeat being much shorter than that of traditional reverb. As a result, they have a similar effect to reverb but with some added benefits:

  • They can add space to your tracks by making them sound bigger and more expansive by creating an atmosphere around the instruments and vocals.

  • They can also be used to create movement within your track, much like how delays or reverbs were used in dubstep music production in the past. By using different types of delay effects on various instruments and sounds throughout your track, you can create melodies using only delays instead!

  • Finally—and perhaps most importantly—delays work wonders when it comes to adding interest to a song’s rhythm section because they give each instrument its own unique feel based on how long it takes for its repeat cycle (or “feedback loop”) to occur at regular intervals over time.”

- Limiting

  • Limiters are used to reduce the dynamic range of a track. This can bring out elements that were previously buried in the mix, and it also allows you to control the volume that your track is playing at.

    Limiters can add punch to your mix, helping you achieve a more polished sound without having to go through a lengthy process of editing and mastering. If you use too much limiting, however, it will introduce artifacts into your music and cause distortion (which is why it’s important not to over-limit).

    Limiters can help you achieve a consistent volume level on all tracks in your project—this way when one song fades into another or there’s crossfade between two songs, they don’t jump around in volume levels too much.

- Stereo Imaging

Stereo imaging is the ability to place sounds in a particular location, whether that means they appear to be coming from one side of the listener or another. Stereo imaging can be used with effects such as reverb so that your vocals sound like they’re being sung in front of you, and it can also be used to make your snare drum sound like someone’s hitting it with a stick.

You can do this by applying processing techniques such as EQ and compression, but there are also special plugins available for audio editing programs that specialize in stereo imaging. These include Logic Pro X’s Space Designer and iZotope Ozone 5’s Stereo Imager presets.

Music production techniques are used to add interest and depth to your tracks.

Music production techniques are used to add interest and depth to your tracks. They can help you to create professional sounding tracks, but they can also be overused if you don’t know what you’re doing.

A bad mix can sound lifeless and flat, with nothing really standing out. On the other hand, a good mix will have different elements at different levels of volume so that each element has space in the track. The overall sound of the song should be balanced between all instruments, but some instruments may be louder than others so that they stand out when necessary (e.g., a guitar solo).

Conclusion

Music production techniques are used to add interest and depth to your tracks. They can be applied in a number of ways, such as through effects or processing, but the most common way is by using EQ and compression. These are two classic tools that have been around for decades, but they’re still incredibly useful today because they allow us to shape our sounds and make them sound fuller or punchier when needed.

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The Ultimate Guide to Music Production for Metal and Rock Musicians

The Equipment Guide.

I’m a metal and rock musician, and I’ve recorded my own albums in the past. That’s why I decided to write this guide for other musicians like me who want to learn how to produce their own music. This guide will show you how to get started with your first metal album, from getting the right equipment to setting up your DAW (digital audio workstation) correctly.

- Where to start?

When you’re ready to start making music, it’s important to start small. Don’t try and make a full-length album from the get-go. Start with a single track or two that you can focus on without worrying about how it fits into the rest of your record.

Make sure you understand what kind of sound you want to achieve before you dive into production though! If all else fails, ask for help from someone who knows what they’re doing—you’d be surprised how willing people are when given an opportunity like that!

- What DAW should you use?

You’re looking at a list of six DAWs. Each has its pros and cons, but any one of them will be able to fulfill all your recording and production needs.

Let’s start with the most popular: Ableton Live. This platform is great because it can work directly with third-party plugins, but it also has some downsides. For one thing, if you use other tools like Max for Live or Push (a hardware controller), these aren’t natively supported in Ableton Live—meaning that you could end up getting stuck in an awkward situation where there are gaps between what you can do on different platforms.

If speed is more important than flexibility for your needs, then FL Studio should be your go-to DAW choice—it offers plenty of options without being too complicated. If money is an issue and time isn’t really an issue either, then Pro Tools might work well for you; this software was created by Avid specifically for music production so it tends to have some pretty cool features that would keep even hardcore musicians happy! If price is still a concern but stability isn’t as much just yet (and if speed isn’t as important), Cubase may be worth considering; unlike many other competing programs out there today which were created by companies who had no experience making professional audio software before starting their businesses back up again after years off making consumer versions instead.”

- How do you structure your mix?

As you know, the song is divided into sections. The verse is one section, the chorus is another, and so on. You can also divide your song into parts using transitions (the “chorus” transition) and loops (the “pre-chorus” loop).

The transition from one section to another should be smooth and natural sounding; this is called a segue or a lead-in. A segue will usually consist of two parts: an intro and an outro. Many times these are identical but sometimes they’re not—sometimes you want to use different effects when going from one part of your song to another vs staying in that part for an extended period of time. In metal music especially it’s common for players in the band to get very excited about certain moments during songs and play improvisations over top of them; this is often referred to as a fill

- What plugins do you need to start mixing metal or rock music?

You can get most of what you need right now.

If you have a good pair of studio monitors, like the Adam A7X or KRK Rokit 8 or 10 series monitors (or any other studio monitor), then you will be able to mix your music without needing additional plugins. You won’t need an EQ plugin because the EQ built in to your mixer or DAW is enough.

You don’t need a compressor either because if your mix already sounds like it has loads of bass and mids, then a compressor won’t do anything for you. What about reverb? If your mixes sound muddy, then maybe adding some longer reverbs could help them sound clearer; but this isn’t necessary if there’s nothing wrong with how they currently sound!

- A good compressor for drums and guitars.

  • Compressors are an essential tool you’ll use on almost every track, but they’re a little more complex than just putting one on your snare drum.

    A compressor works by taking the loudest peaks in your audio, and turning them down so that less space is taken up by those peaks. This gives you more headroom for the quieter parts of the song, which can make mixing easier later on.

    Compressors also have a threshold control, which determines how much compression is applied to the signal above this level (the threshold). It’s important not to set this too low or else it will distort your sound; however, there are some instances where distorting sounds good!

    If you have an instrument with lots of dynamics (like a guitar), then try setting it around 3-4dB of gain reduction when tracking – this should be enough for most situations depending on how hard you hit the strings!

- EQ that can tame harshness.

Frequencies directly above and below the fundamental frequency of your track can be used to improve its clarity. Remember, though: harshness is not always a bad thing! In heavy music like metal and rock, it’s important to have a certain degree of harshness in order to achieve the desired sound. But if you find that your music sounds too harsh, try adding some high-mids (around 2kHz) or high-end sheen with some gentle boosting around 8kHz.

If you’re looking for cleaner tone with less bass, then maximizing your low end will do wonders. Try rolling off unnecessary sub frequencies at 70Hz and below by 3dB and see how much smoother it sounds than before!

- Reverb and delay plugins.

Reverb and delay plugins are essential for metal and rock music. Reverb can help to create the sense of space in your mix, while delay can help to create the sense of space in your mix. Reverb and delay can be used to enhance the sense of space in your mix.

- More advanced plugins.

Now that you have a basic understanding of how to use plugins, let’s take a look at some more advanced ways in which you can use them. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are the most common plugins used by metal producers:

  • Stereo imaging: This tool allows you to adjust the width and depth of your mix as well as create an illusion of distance between instruments and sounds. In fact, stereo imaging is so important that it deserves its own section below!

  • Equalization (EQ): EQ is one of the most commonly used tools for shaping audio signals. Equalizers allow you to boost or cut specific frequencies in different parts of your music so that they sound better when played together. For instance, if there’s an instrument playing too loud in one part, cutting out some high end would help balance things out while still keeping its fullness intact.* Delay: A delay plugin gives musicians a chance to see what their masterpieces will sound like after they’ve been processed through delays.* Reverb: Reverb simulates acoustic space with digital signals; think concert halls and caves!* Dynamics processing: This type of plug-in lets musicians compress or expand audio signals dynamically so that everything stays balanced during playback—even when there’s sudden changes in volume.* Compression: Compression reduces dynamic range by lowering louder parts so they’re more similar with softer ones; this makes everything easier on listeners’ ears!

- Other equipment that you need when mixing metal music.

Other equipment that you need when mixing metal music.

  • A good pair of monitors.

  • A good pair of headphones.

  • A good microphone.

  • A good MIDI keyboard, preferably one with aftertouch capabilities, which allows the player to control the dynamics of their performance in real-time (for example, a piano player can press harder on keys and get a louder sound).

  • A high quality audio interface that can record up to 24-bit/96kHz resolution and/or support multiple inputs at once (for example, if you’re recording drums with microphones but also want to use your own electronic drum kit).

The following are optional but recommended:

  • A computer program called Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) such as Pro Tools or Ableton Live—these programs allow you to record all kinds of audio onto your computer so you can work with it later on; they also come with hundreds upon hundreds of plugins that give new effects for any instrument or voice part imaginable!

- Do I still need a master producer to fix problems in my mixes if I use these plugins?

Yes, you will still need a master producer to fix problems in your mixes.

Whether or not you are able to produce/mix/master your own music and make it sound really really good depends on many factors including:

  • The tools that you have at your disposal.

  • Your ability to learn about how these tools work (i.e. the theory).

  • Your own skills as a musician, songwriter and producer—your ear for detail and song structure; your ability to listen critically; your taste in music; etc..

- How long does it take to become a good DIY-mixer?

  • It depends on how much you practice. In the end, it comes down to this: Practice makes perfect. It takes a lot of time and experience to become a good DIY-mixer, so don’t expect to get it right on your first try or even your tenth. You’ll develop your own style over time as well as learn from other musicians and producers you listen to.

You can learn how to produce/mix/master your own music and make it sound really really good!

You can learn how to produce/mix/master your own music and make it sound really really good!

You don’t need a studio to do this. You don’t even need much gear (even if you have some). And heck, even if you’re a complete beginner, I’ll show you how easy it is. All the tools we use will be free or very cheap—like $5-$10 per month cheap—and they all run on computers that are already in your house. We’re going to use these tools together with some basic mixing principles and techniques from professional engineers to make sure that everything sounds great from start to finish, which means when you get done with this guide, people who listen will think “How did he do all of this? This sounds so professional!”

Conclusion

With all this information, you should be ready to start mixing your own metal music! Just remember that it takes time and practice. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different plugins and settings until you find what works best for your band’s sound. You might need to use different plugins or equipment depending on how advanced your equipment is; for example if you don’t have a good compressor plugin then try using an actual hardware one instead.

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How To Mix Vocals: 7 Easy Steps.

The Mixing Guide.

Mixing Vocals

Mixing Vocals can be very confusing and overwhelming, you keep coming back to the same point, your vocals don’t sound professional. it’s annoying , and strips away your inspiration. so I will take you through the most necessary steps in mixing vocals, steps you must take. to get that vocal mixing you looking for.

In This Article We’re Going To Learn How To Mix Vocals in 7 Easy Steps.

How To Mix Vocals

7 EASY STEPS

1. Recording

If you have a bad record, it’s bad record, no engineer in the world can change it. it’s 75% recording, 25% Mixing. and it will stay this way. So you have to get the best recording you can, quality wise and performance wise. the performance depends on your skills and abilities, in How To Mix Vocals, we focused on the quality side. so let’s see what do you need to get a great record.

Condenser mic recording in a treated studio

The Microphone:

studio recording require a good condenser microphone. check this post to see what’s the best mic for vocals. sas dasd always remember this, it’s not about the price, it’s about the quality and how  you use it. 

Noise

Noise is something to be aware of when recording, you need a quiet place to record in, turn of the fans, take the laptop’s fan in consideration too. get a wind-screen, or a sound shield.

Clipping

clipping can ruin the best takes, so be aware of how much air is coming out of your mouth, and how close to the mic you are. make some mic proximity tests, get a pop filter (it’s a must have). 

2. Ride The Vocals

This is the secret sauce in How To Mix Vocals guide. first you have to even out the levels with the mixing bus fader. When it comes to recording music, vocals are one of the most dynamic sources. They might be as subtle as a whisper or as loud as a shout, within the same track.

how to mix vocals

The Dynamic Range

this is on of the reasons why mixing vocals are difficult. dynamic rage means the difference between the quietest and the loudest sound in a single track, measured in a dB. so when you mix you have to deal with this wide dynamic range. and this’s where Riding the vocals comes in.

Riding The Vocal

to ride the track you have to automate the track’s volume (track’s volume not the mixer bus) and draw a parallel line to the lower track’s wave shape. By doing this your taking a lot pressure away from the compressing part, you even out the levels manually making the vocal smoother and easier to mix.

Don't Use The solo button!

level your vocal in context, other wise you’ll be like a blind man, painting in the darkness. mixing is about the track as whole. The goal is to sound good, no-one is going to listen to a solo track.

3. Compressoin

After riding the track, you’re ready for the compressing. the vocals should shine through the mix with every little detail, and this what compression does, it’s make the quiet sounds louder. and usually we use two stages of compression, at the top in the bus, and after the tonal EQ. so you will have two compression in the #1 and the #3 mixer bus order.

The First compression

the first compression is a hard compressor, even out the whole vocal, makes it louder, adds clarity and pop it out in the track. so it compresses and gains in the same time, after you hard compress your vocal you have to boost the gain.

how to mix vocals

The Second Compression

This one is soft, it’s set to make the vocal fit in the mix, adds presence and bring the vocal to the front of the mix, so it becomes the main element in the track. in other words, it make you vocal shine.

how to mix vocals

Be Aware Of The Breaths and Noise!

Compression can boost different distracting noises like breaths, clicks, pops, rumbles, and lip sounds. a good mixer knows how to mix vocals and taking care of the noise.

4. EQ

Here, where start shaping you vocal sound, you want a shiny vocal or a dark deep vocal. this step is essential in How To Mix Vocals. you have to be tasty and boost the best frequencies and attenuate the bad frequencies. and EQing always happens on two stages, one after the first compressor, and the second after the second compressor. so you will have two EQs in the #2 and the #4 mixer bus  order.

Tonal EQ

The first EQ is the tonal one, you change the sound tonality, adding high-end and taking off low-end, boosting the low-meds little bit maybe. so this EQ is subtle, it’s used to change the tone of the vocal.

how to mix vocals

Surgical EQ

This EQ is different than the first, it comes after the second compression, so after change the tonality, the compressor boost them, and the surgical EQ comes to clear the un-pleasant frequencies. it’s precise, you target a tight frequency range, boost it or lower it. it’s takes some time to be perfect, but remember 

Don't Over-EQ

over-EQ both EQs (surgical and tonal) will make the vocals sound un-natural. take our mixing vocals tips seriously please.

5. De-Essing

De-Essing is an important step of the How to mix vocals steps. To reduce sibilance, use a de-esser. Some flaws become more noticeable when you apply many stages of compression and EQ to your vocal track. It is controlled by de-esser plugins. A de-esser is a compressor that only impacts a specific frequency band where sibilance occurs.

how to mix vocals

Sibilance

Sibilance is a distracting effect that occurs when words with the ‘S’ sound pop out and sound extremely harsh. A poor match between the singer and the mic can cause sibilance.

wooshing

In the worst-case scenario, the many stages of compression and EQ creates a loud wooshing effect that overpowers the singer’s other syllables.

Find The Best De-Esser For You

You can de-ess with your DAW stock plugins, like maximus in FL, and any multi-band compressors can do the work. but getting a plugin specialized in de-essing is a game changer for your work flow.

6. Effects

The most fun step of how to mix vocals. Now you have a nice and clean vocal, it’s time to apply some effects to make your vocals stand out even more in the mix.

Reverb

reverb stimulate the space, a dry voice is near and a wet voice is far, creates reflected echo you can control. Reverb is the most common effects in mixing vocals.

how to mix vocals

Delay

short delays simulate double track effect, and long delays add a background rhythm to you mix. this effect needs to be automated, so the vocals stay clean.

How To Mix Vocals

Chorus

stereo chorus create width and depth in your vocals, flang in and give it an artistic vintage vibe. 

Don't Rush it

Take your time creating nice effects, that makes your mix stands out, and gives it that professional touch your looking for. patience is an important skill to mix vocals. mixing vocals takes time, and you should be willing to give it.

7. Automate The Effects

The final step of how to mix vocals. Only by adding effects your mix sounds professional, but taking this extra step will make a big gap between your mix and the one who don’t.

Precision

so by automating you’re effects, you take complete control, you boost an effect and turn the other, so no effects will conflict, like a reverbed delay!

Versatility

you’ll be increasing some effects values, and decreasing another, that will give the listener that extra feeling of joy.

This is the end of how to mix vocals, hope you learned something about vocal mixing today.

finally

after you red how to mix vocals you’ll be able to create a track that grabs the listener’s attention. A great vocal performance can make or break a song. Mixing is important because it creates the right conditions for the vocal to shine with our how to mix vocals. if you have any questions or comments don’t be shy to comment.

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