Mixing Secrets For The Small Studio - Additional Resources

Workflow Demonstration Video

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Audio Files

(To download all WAV examples at once: 2MB ZIP)

• Editing Out Clutter: Here are a couple of examples of how a little editing can help improve the clarity of important elements of your mix. Here’s a short snippet from Mix Rescue December 2008 containing a characteristic double-hit snare fill Ex07.01: WAV/MP3play_arrow. Compare that with this version of the same section Ex07.02: WAV/MP3play_arrow, where I’ve edited out a moment of the fuzzy bass synth behind the snare fill, a simple measure which allows the snare fill to pop through the mix more clearly. In a similar vein, compare this file Ex07.03: WAV/MP3play_arrow with this file Ex07.04: WAV/MP3play_arrow. For the latter I’ve momentarily muted the background synth effect behind the word ‘suck’, which immediately makes that lyric demand greater attention from the listener – for more details, check out Mix Rescue February 2010.

Further Reading

• Arrangement In Practice: I frequently address arrangement issues during my Mix Rescue remixes, but there are some of those articles which focus particularly on the subject. Mix Rescue February 2010 and Mix Rescue December 2008 look at how to improve clarity by editing out audio clutter, while these four Mix Rescue June 2010, Mix Rescue November 2009, Mix Rescue March 2010, and Mix Rescue September 2007 focus on filling out instrumental textures, tightening arrangements, and introducing extra musical variation. All of these articles contain links to the ‘before’ and ‘after’ mixes for comparison purposes.