General question about mixdown

[hawk]

Should I apply changes like noise reduction, reverb, etc to each track before mixdown or should I mixdown then apply those changes? Thanks.

[lpdeluxe]

The way I do it is to tweak each track as needed, first. Generally, I start with noise reduction, then run the non-bass tracks through the highpass filter set at anywhere from 100-150Hz, depending on the instrument/voice to clean up the boominess that would otherwise build up from my room. If I use reverb, I generally apply it to individual tracks to start with. The reason for that is that reverb can make a track sound farther away. I also compress individual tracks -- I don't do overall compression until practically the last step before converting to 44.1/16 for CD burning.

Most singers think they sound awesome soaked with reverb, and pitiful without. This is not really a mixdown problem, but more of an interpersonal issue, when you are recording. Assuming you are adding reverb to vocals, you would want a light reverb on the lead, and heavier reverbs on the backing vocals. If you do it the other way around, the lead will sound like it's behind the backup. I have a room with a nice natural reverb, and I will occasionally add a little artificial reverb to backups or instruments in the background.

If you want an overall reverb to give a sense of a band playing in a room, then do the reverb on the mix. This can be done after you have added some to individual tracks, and will help everything "meld" together. Just keep a light touch. A little goes a long way.

Hope this helps.

[thajeremy]

In CEP/AA, where do you go to apply the highpass filter and what are some good starting points as far as the settings? This sounds like something I need to start working with some.

[lpdeluxe]

Hi, thajeremy. It's in Edit View/Effects/Filters/Scientific Filters; you can specify highpass or lowpass and tell it what the cutoff frequency is. I use it because my room (even with a bass trap) still adds low-frequency sound to a track. With one track, it's unnoticeable, but when you add together 10 or 15 it starts to muddy up the mix and to make the bass parts 'way less distinct. Someday I'll get my room treated (ha ha) to where that doesn't happen, but for now I "scrub" the lf out of the tracks with the filter.

As I mentioned, I use the cutoff of anywhere from 50-150Hz which depends on the instrument or voice. For example, a mandolin can be highpassed pretty far up without losing anything, but a strummed guitar with open chords will need a lower limit to avoid taking out some of the tone.

The way I look at it, it's like cleaning the toilet: you'll never get ALL of the crud out, but it sure looks better when the bowl's white.

[hawk]

Originally Posted by lpdeluxe

I don't do overall compression until practically the last step before converting to 44.1/16 for CD burning

If you convert to 44/16, what do you record in? Is it better to record in say, 96/32 then convert at mixdown?

[lpdeluxe]

My mixer is limited to 48KHz sampling rate, so I set it on 44.1KHz (I don't think it makes a difference, and it avoids resampling later on) but I record at 32 bit. Someday, when I upgrade the mixer, I'll be able to record at 96KHz, but, since I can't right now, I'd rather worry about optimizing other aspects of the recording chain. I am sure the sound will improve with 96KHz, but that's only one of many factors.