Workflow Progression?: From Producing to Mixing and Mastering

Kapture Lab

Kapture Lab

New member
Hello,

I'm currently introducing myself to the idea of mixing and mastering for my projects. I'm producing some electronic music.

My question is in what order do you approach production?

For example, for two of my projects, I think the tracks are complete from a creative and structural standpoint. I've built them from start to finish but haven't touched EQing or compression. I haven't done anything to mix the tracks.

More specifically, my question is: Am I right by doing it this way? Should all EQing/compression/side-chaining be done as I go along or should it be in the final stages? When EQing, do I put EQ all the tracks at once or do I EQ individual sections (bass/mids/highs) then put that all through a final EQ?

Sorry if I'm not very clear. I would just like to understand a breakdown of the process in which other producers go through from the creative to the more mixing and mastering part. Having some sort of guideline would be really helpful as I find myself learning different elements but not having a clear focus of method or routine.

I've dabbled with music production for years but never took the mixing and mastering parts too seriously as I'm just a hobbyist. However now I'm taking my time making music and have great respect for the craft and the science of sound. Eventually I'll put some work out there but I'm really only going to take it more seriously this and not rush my progress.

Thanks in advance :)
 
Step 1. Insure that the proper input levels are obtained for each track.

Step 2. Normalize each track 3dbs lower then the platform you will be streaming from.

Step 3. Clean any background noise from each track.

Step 4. Add any Fx to each track you need. EQ, Compression, Reverb etc.

Step 5. Blend in all tracks to accomplish your desired outcome.

Step 6. NEVER master your own track unless you have years of experience! If you have to ask why, refer back to the first 5 words of this sentence.

If step 6 sounds sarcastic, I promise you it is not my intentions. When it comes to mastering, you are in a another world my friend. Forget everything you watched on YT concerning mastering, unless you just want to make music for your friends or family.
 
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Hi Mack,

Many thanks for your response. Much appreciated.

I'm with you on mastering. As I've never got past the mixing phase, I guess I was emphasizing or lumping that in with mixing as it's all relatively new territory for me. I'm grateful for your input. :)

I'm trying to figure out all this stuff for myself. I've recently come in to a lot of spare time so I've been spending a few hours every day looking at various sources, watching some lectures and basically trying to arm myself to the teeth before even attempting a mix. But your steps can give me a foundation to as least visualize where I'm heading with a project.

I've just noticed the "similar threads" option. I'll have a nosey at the other threads too.

Also happy to hear anyone else's approach too?
 
Coming at it from another angle --

1 - Learn to listen. Spend years on that. YEARS on that. Don't ever stop, as you'll never finish. Get the best monitoring and room situation you can and learn what "good" sounds like. Learn what "bad" sounds like. Learn the difference between the two.

2 - While learning to listen, learn your tools. Learn your EQ's -- Learn how cutting one frequency affects the others. Learn how pre-delay affects the reverb. Learn how EQ'ing the send to the verb is wholly different than EQ'ing the verb. Learn how EQ'ing before a compressor makes the compressor act totally differently than if the EQ is after the compressor. Learn the difference between *affecting* a signal with an insert and *adding* an effect to a signal using an auxiliary copy of that signal.

3 - I mean, there's SO much stuff to learn... You don't need to learn it all overnight and you'll never learn it all.

On to the -- well, I'm not sure of what some suggestions are suggesting part -- Most definitely, get reasonable input levels. That means reasonable voltage -- Not "as close to clipping as you can get" (Safe bet? Peak any individual input at -12dBFS or so).** Normalize nothing. Ever -- unless you have a very specific reason to do so.

I could go on for hours but it's late and I've got a crazy schedule at the moment.

** Proper Audio Recording Levels | Blog | The Rants and Ravings of an Audio Mastering Engineer -- If you're bored.
 
While modern technology has certainly blurred the steps in the process...I think there's still a lot to be said for doing in complete steps, rather than simultaneously creating, mixing, mastering.

IOW...work out the songs. Really work them out, not just bits-n-pieces.
Then spend some time on the per-production...consider the production ideas, maybe do some rehearsing and trying things out...and think about what you want from the production...from the overall finished product, the arrangements, the tones...etc...even if you don't use/do everything as planned, and least have some kind of plan to work off of and to work away from as the production evolves.
Then finally get to recording.

I think if you do all of the above...then when you start to mix, you will find that the questions about EQ and reverb and all that, will sorta start to answer themselves, and there won't be as much blind trial-n-error.
 
Massive Master and Miroslav, thank you so much.

I'm very overwhelmed by the willingness of others to share their knowledge on here.

Massive Master: Thanks again, you've given me so much to work with. Coming from a photography/filmmaking background, I'm very much a visual learner but you've given me plenty of food for thought and I think I'm going to find it useful for the learning process. I'm with you about point 3. It's the similar with light, photography and Photoshop. It's a never ending process and I never stop learning. It's also the beauty of it too because oftentimes you learn a new thing and it keeps the passion fueled. I'm particularly interested in the points you made in '2.' I've also taken a look at your website linked in your sig. I'll certainly give that read today. :thumbs up:

Miroslav: Thanks for your advice. I like what you said about thinking about ideas for pre-production and about rehearsing and trying things out. I think that's very important. About 70% of filmmaking is all in the pre-production and I guess I didn't think much about that in a audio/sound production sense apart from conceptually sticking to the concept I have for an album. As I'm producing electronic music the concept I'm working with guides me on a creative level in what is and what isn't conducive to the concept. But, thinking about pre-production on a technical level I imagine will give my work more value or at least the potential for more value.

On a rambling side note..

I've always had a desire to learn about production techniques from when I was teen reading about John Bonham's drums being mic'd up in in the stairwell of Headley Grange to the Beastie Boys talking about their sound engineer making a sophisticated method of recording vocoder through some wooden box thing for real reverb (IIRC). Anyway, I know recording techniques is different from mixing but I do find the whole process fascinating. I'm also under no illusion that I can learn something quickly and be great. Nor do I try to disrespect the engineers and producers that have spent a life-time learning their craft. Like I said I all ready have a creative discipline in photography. I guess I'm trying to apply what I would have told my 20 year old self as a photographer to the new producer in me. To not rush in to things so quick. Take time, learn. I don't have to put everything out there that I'm remotely proud of. Kill my babies etc etc. I'm still going to be optimistic and try do things "right." I've given myself a year or more to try compose and arrange this album concept. We'll see why I'm at then. I'll keep plugging away learning all I can in the meantime.
 
If you have already got a set of tracks recorded, the advice about recording levels is for future reference. So long as you stay away from red, these days it doesn't really matter much at what level you record.

Listening to understand is critical: if you are working within a particular genre, then you need to listen to material in that genre with a specify aim of figuring out how they do stuff to get a particular sound, and why they do stuff to get a particular sound. That means you have to penetrate someone else's mix to identify the elements within it and the techniques used.

And this can be difficult if you are new to this field and are not sure what tricks and techniques are available. One way in which you can build up your own arsenal is to play with plugins. For example, stick an EQ on a track then just mess around with it. And do this with the other modifiers: reverb, compression and so on. And do la lot of reading.

As for not mastering stuff yourself. That's the last stage, and like any other skill, requires knowledge and experience. Importantly, there are considerable benefits in getting a third (professional) person to do it: they can listen to it objectively and hear stuff that your brain has fooled you into not hearing. However, this has to be balanced with fitness-for-purpose. If only you, your dog and a few close friends are going to listen to it, you can do it yourself and subject a limited audience to the results.
 
I just wanted to echo something Miroslav suggested -- take your time, fine tune things until they're right [including performances]. It's digital data and as long as you're keeping a copy on another drive somewhere you have unlimited time to work on things. I've learned this over the years, wish I learned it sooner. Lots of older tracks that could have sounded a lot better if I wasn't always 'rushed' (self imposed most of the time).
 
Loaded question but here's what I've been doing. It all starts with arrangement. Of course the kick and bass will take Care of your low end, vocals and acoustic usually spread a wide range of the frequency spectrum but pick and choose instruments and sounds to sort if fill in spaces in the frequency spectrum. Like usually electric distorted guitar has a lot of mid range so if u have that already, instead of choosing a bunch of other mid range sounding samples or instruments, find warm or bright sounds to compliment the bass and midrange.
Eq, yea carve out space in your mix with eq and panning
Group similar instruments and sounds together and compress accordingly instead of compressing the crap out of every single thing.
Easy on the reverb and delay

Levels fluctuate for me, somethings I have to adjust things here and there a few times before it's perfect, but hey.
After arranging, carving, mixing, compressing and adding space, make sure u leave headroom for the mastering stage.

Always use reference tracks, during the whole process, check your work against pro mixes

Not rules or even guidelines, just what I've been doing and I wanted to contribute instead of asking questions all the time lol
 
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