None of my tracks go over the white line in waveform, why do my mixdowns clip?

[FattMusiek]

After adding effects (eq, compression) I check to see if anything has gone over the white waveform line by selecting part of the track and mixing it down. If anything DOES go over the white line, I lower the effect or make it so it's safe. After I mixdown everything, the mixdown shows clipping. It isn't noticable, but it is pretty far over the white line. Why is this?? It's discouraging!

Help!!

[M.Brane]

The math that's required to accurately represent many complex sounds mixed together is not as easy as many DAW software vendors would like you to believe.

Leave yourself some room to work in your mix. The commercial stuff you hear that's really loud is a lot of high-dollar dynamics processing formerly known as mastering.

Use your ears to mix, and if you want something to be louder use the volume control.

[FattMusiek]

"The math that's required to accurately represent many complex sounds mixed together is not as easy as many DAW software vendors would like you to believe."

What do you mean by "summing" and how can I understand it?

[M.Brane]

This would be a good place to start.

If you find someone who does have all the answers, and can back'em up please let me know.

[dobro]

Fatt: two things. First, you say the mixdown shows clipping. Is it the meter or the sound that clips? The sound's more important than the meter.

Second, if you work a track at a time, you don't get an accurate picture of levels. What I mean is this: each track in Multitrack can be okay and not clip, but when you add them all together, the mixdown will clip because of the summing effect. Is that what's happening in your case?

[Houndog]

Great,
I now know the word for combined multitrack peaking...which can sometimes happen or not...grrrr.It is good to know dobro that it isn't just me .

What really gives me gyp is that it is not always volume that peaks on summed tracks but the combination of midtones.

adios,
Lovat

[FattMusiek]

Yeah, that's what is happening...

[dobro]

In that case, things are nomral. Just turn down the master volume on the whole session before you do the final mixdown.