Mixing

How To Use Drum Samples In Your Mixes

October 30, 2020 Advice, Blog, Drums, Mixing, Tips, Video

You’ve likely heard it said many times before but…

If you want to achieve modern, pro-sounding mixes, you need to use drum samples.

The reason has nothing to do with whether you have a weak drummer, poor sounding room, or bad microphone positioning (although samples CAN help fix all three of those things).

Even the biggest and best engineers in the world still use samples. And it’s certainly not because they aren’t doing a good job during the tracking stage.

So why use them?

Samples allow you to add consistency, power, impact, and weight to your tracks.

They allow you to achieve a pro sound faster and without the need for spending hours trying to manipulate your source tones and fighting common issues such as bleed.

Some musicians have an irrational fear that using samples will result in lifeless, sterile, robotic tracks that sound unnatural; however, when added to a mix properly, this is the furthest thing from the truth.

In fact, if you listen to the top 100 songs on the radio now, I’ll guarantee you that 99% of them have samples blended into the mix and you’d likely never know.

So how do you use samples correctly and make them sound natural? Inside this video, I’ll show you how.

In this video, I’ll show you how to easily add samples to your mixes in a variety of ways (using free and paid options).

I’ll also show you how you can preserve the natural dynamics of your drummer’s performance so you don’t end up with tracks that don’t sound fake and robotic.

Mike

PS. Looking for samples to use in your mixes? Check out the MasterYourMix Drum sample collections

Home Recording Studio Equipment: 7 Essentials To Get Started

July 29, 2020 Advice, Blog, Mixing, Recording, Tips

Building a home recording studio can be an amazing experience. There’s nothing like having the ability to record your song ideas whenever you’re feeling creative. On the surface it might seem like a daunting task; however, the truth is that getting started with home recording doesn’t need to be so difficult or costly. When looking for home recording studio equipment there are 7 essentials that you need to get up and running. Inside of this article, I’ll outline exactly what you need and how to start without breaking the bank.

1. Computer

This may seem obvious to many, but long gone are the days of recording your songs to analog tape. Sure, analog studios do still exist; but these days, the majority of home recording studios are using computers.

Digital recording allows for a lot of flexibility in terms of inputs, outputs, and processing. Plus, it’s a heck of a lot cheaper!

That being said, the question becomes: “does it matter if you have a mac or pc?”

If you’re just getting started, it doesn’t matter. There are plenty of software options available for both.

2. Interface

An audio interface is a device that allows you to get the sound of your microphones and instruments into your computer and into the software – where you’re going to record it.

So how do you go about picking the right interface for you?

There are five main criteria that I recommend you consider before buying an interface:

How many instruments do you need to record at the same time? This will determine how many inputs you need on the interface.
How many outputs do you need? For the majority of home-studio owners, two outputs is usually enough (to connect your left and right speakers). If you plan on using any sort of outboard gear for mixing (which isn’t very necessary with the quality of today’s audio plugins), you may want additional outputs.
What are the inputs on your computer? Most audio interfaces come as either Thunderbolt, USB, or Firewire. Choose whichever will work with your system.
How powerful is your computer? As you start to use more plugins within your mix sessions, you’re going to start to use up more of your computer’s resources. Some audio interfaces allow you to offset some of the plugin processing by processing it within the interface. If you have an older/slower system, you can purchase an interface that will help free up some of your computer’s resources.
Do you need a special interface to run the plugins that you want to use? The majority of audio plugins don’t require a special device in order to use them. Instead, they rely on your computer’s power to handle the processing. That being said, there are some premium plugins that DO require specific interfaces in order to use them. A great example of this would be with Universal Audio plugins. In order to use these, they require you to have specific interfaces or satellite cards which handle the processing power outside of your computer. For the majority of new studio owners, these premium plugins will not be necessary to get started; however, it is something to consider for the future.

Most sub-$1000 interfaces are pretty similar in quality. It’s only as you spend more money that you will get a higher quality interface with premium features. That being said, for the majority of home studio musicians, the different will be negligible.

Often the improvements you’ll find in a higher quality (and more expensive) interface have to do with preamps, digital-to-audio conversion, and connectivity to outboard gear.

Some relatively inexpensive interfaces that I’d recommend are the Focusrite Scarlett, Presonus Audiobox, or the Universal Audio Apollo Twin.

Focusrite Scarlett

Presonus AudioBox

Universal Audio Apollo Twin

3. Software/DAW

So you have your computer and audio interface, but now what do you record into? This is where software comes in. When it comes to recording software, we refer to these programs as Digital Audio Workstations (DAW for short). These programs allow you to record audio into them, edit the audio, mix the files together, compose music, and so much more.

There are many different DAWs you can choose from. Some of the most popular include:

Pro Tools
Cubase
Sonar
Logic
Presonus Studio One
Ableton
Garageband
Reaper

Which DAW is the best to use?

Well, that’s a personal preference thing…On the surface they all allow you do perform the same basic functions. Where they differ is in things like visual layout, advanced editing functions, maximum track counts, stock plugin options, and a few other areas.

For the average home-studio musician who is just trying to quickly record ideas into their computer, programs like Garageband and Studio One are very intuitive and will definitely cover all of the basic necessities.

For more advanced mixing engineers, DAWs such as Pro Tools, Logic, and Cubase will offer more flexibility and editing features.

At the end of the day, there is no “best” DAW. It all comes down to your personal preference and the amount of advanced features you require for your workflow.

My advice is to choose one program and stick with it. The more you dive into learning the features of the software, the faster you will become with it. Many programs offer keyboard shortcuts (which allow you to perform certain tasks using a single key press on your keyboard). Once you learn and memorize these key commands, you will start to see massive improvements in the speed of your workflow within your DAW.

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4. Speakers/Headphones

In order to hear the music you’re creating, you need to use speakers or headphones. Since you’re creating music for others to enjoy, it is important that you monitor your songs using studio-quality speakers or headphones. The reason for this is because studio-grade equipment has been designed for critical listening. As a result, it typically plays back audio with a flat frequency response.

On the other hand, consumer-grade speakers are usually built to sound more pleasing to the ear. Because of this, they usually have a hyped low or high frequency response. This may sound great for listening to music; however, when you are trying to make critical mixing decisions (with the intention of your audience listening to the song on a variety of different speakers), this “hyped” sound can be misleading and cause you to make mix moves that might not actually need to be done. For example, if you were listening to a song on headphones with lots of low end, you might think that you have too much low end in your mix – causing you to remove it from your song. Although this may now sound better on your headphones, it may make your song sound really thin on other headphones that don’t normally have the extra bass boost.

Which studio monitors are the best to buy?

It really depends on your budget. Some things to keep in mind as you buy speakers is that you’ll want to find speakers that have the widest frequency spectrum. Generally, speakers that have a smaller woofer in them (6″ or smaller) will typically have less low frequency response. Whereas, bigger speakers (eg. 8″ and bigger) will allow you to hear more of the lower frequencies.

My advice to you is to visit your local music store and bring some music that you’re very familiar with. Listen to those songs on a variety of speakers and pay attention to how each of the different models sound. Pick your favorite that fits your budget and that sounds the most natural.

Personally, I’m a big fan of the KRK Rokit 8 and Yamaha HS8 speakers.

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yamaha hs8, speaker, studio monitor, recording studio equipment, home studio

5. Microphones

Whether you’re recording vocals, drums, guitar amps, or the majority of live instruments, you will need at least one microphone.

There are tons of microphone options available, ranging in price from $100 to $6000+. Is a $6000 mic always going to sound better? Nope. In fact, there are many classic, workhorse mics that can be found for under $300 (eg. Shure SM57, SM7B, Rode NT5).

There are many factors that can determine what sounds best:

Some microphones have a little more brightness to them
Some are a little warmer sounding.
Some are better at picking up transient material (eg. drums)

Ultimately, you want to find something that compliments the instrument you’re recording and the desired sound you’re after. For example, if you have a singer who has a very nasally voice or if they tend to pronounce “s” sounds pretty hard, you’d want to find a mic that doesn’t accentuate those unpleasant sounds.

When buying a microphone, it’s important to note that there are many different styles of microphones. Typically, the most common ones are dynamic microphones and condenser mics. The difference between different mic styles has to do with how sound passes through them (but that’s a whole other big article).

In general,

Condenser mics tend to be more sensitive and reveal a lot of the detail in a voice.
- They also require phantom power (so you need to make sure you have an interface that can provide that)
- Because of how sensitive they are, they aren’t always the best mic for recording lots of different instruments (especially loud ones like drums or guitars)
- Some great inexpensive mics to choose from: Rode NT1, Aston Origin, Apex 460

Dynamic mics tend to be a little darker sounding and not as detailed.
- They do not require phantom power
- Tend to be more affordable
- Can often be used to record multiple instruments
- Recommended Dynamic mic: Shure SM7B

If your goal is to primarily record vocals, I’d recommend starting off with a condenser mic.

If your plan is to record live instruments, dynamic mics are typically the best way to go.

Looking for one mic that can do both really well? The Shure SM7B is a great choice!

Shure SM57

Shure SM7B

6. Pop Filter

When recording vocals, there’s nothing worse than having a great take ruined by a loud burst of wind making its way into the mic. On words that start with “b”, “p” or “t”, it is very common for a fast burst of air from the singer’s breath to overload the microphone (these are called plosives). When this happens, it can become very distracting to listen to. The easiest way to prevent this is to use a pop filter.

Pop filters are typically made of mesh or metal. They are designed to attenuate the energy of the air hitting the microphone. A secondary purpose they serve is preventing spit from hitting the mic.

They are typically very affordable and can save you from hours of retakes.

7. Acoustic Treatment

Part of capturing a clean, dry recording requires that you are in a room that isn’t full of reflective surfaces. The more reflective a room is, the greater the chances are of echoes and reverberations making their way into the recording. It is far better to record a signal as dry as possible since you can always add reverb during the mixing stage to make a sound seem livelier. That being said, if the reflections are captured in the original recording, it can be near impossible to remove them.

In addition, when you are mixing, it is always best to work in an environment that isn’t very reflective, since those reflections can get in your way of hearing things accurately.

This is where acoustic treatment comes into play.

Acoustic treatment can come in a variety of forms. Some treatment is designed to absorb sound and some is meant to disperse it. The truth is that you don’t need a fancy looking home recording studio with an abundance of acoustic treatment. For most people starting, the most important areas to take care of are where there are reflections. This can be achieved with minimal treatment.

For a great resource on which acoustic treatment you should get and where to place it in your room, check out Episode 22 of the Master Your Mix Podcast

There are plenty of affordable options available for adding acoustic treatment to your home recording studio. Companies like Auralex or Primacoustic make pre-made kits of panels that can easily be mounted on your walls to reduce reflections.

auralex roominator, acoustic treatment, how to record music, how to build a studio

Alternatively, you can make your own acoustic panels for fairly cheap.

When recording vocals, in addition to having acoustic treatment on the walls of your room, it can be very beneficial to have a reflection filter (also frequently known as a portable vocal booth) located behind the microphone. These filters improve isolation and prevent excessive reflections from getting into the microphone. Some great examples of these are the Aston Halo and the Primacoustic VoxGuard.

Aston Halo

Primacoustic VoxGuard

Conclusion

So there you have it. Those are the 7 essential pieces of home recording studio equipment that you need to get started. It’s always best to start small and only add pieces as need be. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that owning more gear or more expensive equipment will get you a better quality sound. It won’t. Quality will come from the development of your audio skills.

Once you have the essentials, put your focus on understanding how to make the most of the equipment you already have. Work on capturing cleaner recordings, mic techniques, and learning how to put all of the recorded tracks together and mix them to perfection.

Looking for more tips on how to get your mixes to sound big and polished?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

Top 5 Reverb Mistakes To Avoid

July 22, 2020 Advice, Mixing, Video

One of the easiest ways to give your mixes some additional polish is to use reverb.

Reverb allows you to add depth to your tracks, make your drums sound bigger, and add fullness and sustain to your vocals.

The problem with reverb is that, although it can bring new life to your tracks, it is a tool that is very easy to overdo.

With the wrong settings, you can very easily end up with mixes that lack clarity or sound muddy and distracting.

If you’ve ever felt like your mixes sound like that, you might have been inclined to think that the solution was to fix it with EQ or compression – but the real issue could be your reverb settings.

In this video, I outline the top 3 mistakes I see people frequently making with reverb and how you can avoid them.

I’ll also walk you through how to dial in the right settings, so that instead, you can use reverb to make your tracks sound full, while maintaining clarity and polish.

Reverb is an essential part of every pro mix. By understanding how to use it properly, it will allow you to distinguish your tracks from countless amateur mixers. It’s time to start getting it right.

Hope you found that helpful.

Mike

Looking for more tips on how to get your mixes to sound big and polished?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

Understanding How To Use The 1176 Compressor To Create Great Mixes

May 11, 2020 Blog, Mixing, Tips, Video

If you’ve spent any time looking at pictures of pro studios, watching online mix tutorials, going through your plugin list, or following any plugin manufacturers, chances are very high that you’ll be familiar with the famous 1176 compressor (or some variation of it).

What’s the deal with these things?
Why are there SOOOO many different plugins modeled after this compressor?
Are they really that special?
Do they sound better than other compressors?
And what the heck do people mean when they talk about “all-buttons-in mode”?

If you’ve ever asked yourself any of these questions, I’m going to get you the answers you need.

Inside of this new video, I’m going to help you make sense of this famous compressor.

I’ll show exactly why so many engineers use this as their go-to piece of equipment.

The truth is that not all compressors are created equal. The 1176 has some special mojo. You’ll learn all about it inside of this video.

Want to learn more about using compression in your mixes?
Download your FREE copy of the MasterYourMix Compression Cheat Sheet by clicking here

Gain Staging: 4 Tips You Need To Know To Make Great Mixes

June 12, 2018 Advice, Mixing, Recording, Tips, Video

Have you ever experienced this before?

You start working on a mix, throw the faders up, add some eq and compression, you’ve got the track feeling good…

…But then you look at your master levels…

… You’re clipping the master buss.

…So you pull all of the channels down to prevent it from going in the red.

…But now everything just sounds… different. Your compressors aren’t quite reacting to the signal the same way, the mix feels different, your mind feels like it’s playing tricks with you, and it takes you some time to adjust to the new overall level.

Does this sound like something you’ve gone through? We’ve all been there at one point.

It’s frustrating and time consuming to have to reset your mix after putting in so much time.

But what if there was a simple way to prevent this from happening before starting the mix?

There is. And it all has to do with gain staging

I recently put together a video with 4 simple tips to help you with gain-staging so that you can get the best results out of your tracks and save you tons of time and frustrations as you work.

Check it out here….

Gain-staging doesn’t need to be a super technical, difficult process. A lot of people over-think it. If you follow these 4 tips as you work, you will eliminate a lot of back-and-forth in your workflow. They’ll also help you prevent clipping and ensure that you get the cleanest results out of your mix.

Mike

Looking for more tips on how to create better recordings and mixes from your home studio?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

Make Your Own DIY Acoustic Panels

April 6, 2018 Advice, Blog, Mixing, Tips, Video

Recently, I moved into a new condo.

As exciting as the move was, one thing that absolutely terrified me was how my new mix room was going to sound.

For years, I had been working out of a small bedroom to do the majority of my mixing and mastering work. Since I listened to/worked on so much music in there, I knew exactly how my mixes were supposed to sound in order to make them translate properly.

With moving all my gear into a new space, I had no idea whether it was going to be a smooth transition.

When I moved into my new condo, the first thing I did was set up my speakers in my new mix room and just listened to music.

(My girlfriend deserves a Girlfriend-Of-The-Year Award because she did the majority of the unpacking while I just listened to music for hours).

My new mix room SUCKED!!!

It sounded nothing like my old one. It was very boxy sounding and with the concrete ceilings, it was SUPER reflective. I felt like I was constantly hearing 30ms delay on everything. It was driving me crazy.

I knew that I needed to take control of the room and get some acoustic panels on the walls ASAP to fix this nightmare.

As I started to look into commercial acoustic products, I quickly realized it was going to cost me a small fortune to treat my room.

Luckily, I had some experience building my own panels in the past; so I decided to take matters into my own hands.

While I was at it, I decided to document the whole process so that you too can learn how easy it is to make your own acoustic panels.

Check out this video to learn how:

Building your own panels is very easy and can save you a ton of money. Rather than spending thousands of dollars to to get my room to sound good, it only cost me about $300 Canadian to build 10 panels.

After hanging them up on my walls, the results were phenomenal. I was able to get rid of the reflections that were driving me mad, and my room sounded so much more even and controlled.

Already, I’ve been making some of my favorite mixes I’ve ever done.

If your mix room is giving you problems, I HIGHLY recommend you look into building your own acoustic panels.

Mike

Looking for more tips on how to get better recordings and mixes from your home studio?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

Mixing Bass Guitar – Getting Balanced Low End

May 2, 2017 Bass, EQ, Mixing, Tips

Getting a balanced low end while mixing bass guitar is one of the biggest challenges most engineers face.

It can be extremely difficult to get your bass tracks to cut through your mix without overpowering everything else and making your mix sound really muddy.

EQ and compression can be your best friends for correcting this but sometimes you need to take some extra steps to get the results you need.

In this video, I’m going to show you a technique that I frequently use to really gain control of the low end so that you can get it consistent. I’ll show you how to find that sweet spot of having the bass sit right while keeping the dynamics and attitude of the mid-range.

Check it out:

Gaining control of your low end doesn’t need to be so difficult. Sometimes it just requires a little outside-of-the-box thinking.

What techniques do you frequently use when mixing bass guitar? I’d love to know. Make sure to leave a comment below.

Until next time,

Mike

Looking for more tips on how to get the low-end in your mixes sounding big and polished?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

How To EQ Vocals To Sit Right

February 28, 2017 EQ, Mixing, Vocals

Vocals are the most important element in your mix. They’re the thing that listeners will pay the closest attention to. Because of that, you need your vocals to be nice and present so that your listeners can learn every single word and sing along.

It’s very easy for vocals to get swallowed up amongst the other instruments in your mixes. Sometimes you may only have one vocal that is surrounded by 30 tracks of instruments.

In order to make your vocals stand above the rest, you need to pay special attention to how you EQ them.

So I’ve created a video to show you the 6 frequency ranges that you need to always pay attention to when mixing vocals.

Check it out here:

As always, I love learning what you found helpful in this video and what other topics you’d like me to cover next.

Do me a favour… Leave me a comment below

Thanks!

– Mike

Looking for more mixing tips on how to get your vocals to sound polished?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

Mixing Vocals: How To Add Energy To A Dull Performance

February 21, 2017 Mixing, Tips, Video, Vocals

Have you ever had to mix a vocal performance that just sounded dull?

Maybe the singer didn’t put enough energy or attitude into it and now you’re left with a mediocre take that doesn’t quite match the excitement of the music.

Ideally, you’d get the singer to redo the take; but sometimes, it’s too late and it’s up to you to figure out how to make it sound better in the mix.

Luckily, you’re not completely screwed and there are some techniques to use that can help.

I’ve made a video to show you one of my favourite tricks for adding some aggression and energy back into a poor performance. It’s something that every time I add into a session, my clients think I’m crazy for trying. But it really does work wonders…

Check it out:

Mixing Vocals – Why Reverb Is The Wrong Choice

February 7, 2017 Advice, Mixing, Tips, Video

Do you find that your vocals often sound buried in your tracks?

Do you have trouble getting them to stand out so that every word is heard?

Vocals are THE most important element of every mix. Every detail needs to be carefully considered so that they are heard clearly.

Most engineers will spend the bulk of their time carefully carving out EQ and dialling in compression settings; however, so many amateur engineers seem to rush through one last very important step:

Adding effects

For a lot amateur engineers, it seems like reverb is a default effect to put on vocals. Sure, it can sound nice and lush, and it can even be quick way to make vocals sound “better”; but while reverb has it’s place, it is often the wrong choice for vocals.

I’ve created a video to show you an alternative effect that can be much more efficient to use.

In this video, I’ll show you my go-to effects settings for vocals and how you can avoid creating muddy mixes simply by choosing not to use reverb

Are you mixing with too much reverb?

Looking for more mixing tips on how to get your vocals to sound polished?

Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.

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