mixing gear? what's the tool you just can't live without?

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asw000

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rather than send a job out to be mixed like i usually do (i'm a producer), i thought i'd use my current project as a way to teach myself how to mix.

i wanted to get some feedback as to what gear i should get for my first mix. what is the most vaulable link in your mixing chain?
plugins? compressors? CD burner?

i think i can spend about $1000 on this gear.

(i'm running Digital Performer 4.6 on a PowerBook.)

any ideas?

-a-
 
If all you have is a computer with editing software, you have a long way to go with a short amount of cash. Forget about what link we think is vital, you have a whole chain to worry about.

For a thousand dollars, I'd spend $500 on a couple of servicable microphones, mic cables, and mic stands, $200 on stereo (or dual mono) preamps with a USB or FW interface into your Powerbook, and $300 for a servicable pair of bookshelf speakers or "studio monitors" with amplifier to be able to actually do your mixes on.

If you already have a basic chain, then I'd say concentrate on your mics and mic pres. Without quality analog tracking, no compressor, EQ or reverb in the world - analog or digital - is going to be able to give you the sound you want.

I'd also leave your ego at the door and drop the "producer" label until you actually learn your way around the recording studio. It comes off badly on you.

G.
 
Without a doubt, a compressor. Whether its individual tracks (to tame some peaks), or the whole stereo mix( to kind of bring it all together). Although Im not a huge fan of digital compression, a plug in would probably be easier(and cheaper) for you. Waves makes a nice one. If you do go the outboard route, try not to skimp too much on one, and get one thats stereo.With an outboard,(if you can, Im not familiar with Digital Performer), you can run the combined mix 2 track out of the computer into the compressor then into a some kind of monitoring system(to hear whats going on) then to an outboard cd burner or back into a stereo track in your computer. I find you get more headroom that way instead of keeping it all in the computer. You can also get FX bundles that have all your verb,chourus,delay and such at a fairly decent price. I liked the Timeworks plugins myself. Mostly their reverb. I think they have a bundle with verb eq and compression.
 
SouthSIDE Glen said:
I'd also leave your ego at the door and drop the "producer" label until you actually learn your way around the recording studio. It comes off badly on you.
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I believe he means in the hip-hop sense; that is, he makes beats.

In which case, asw, I presume you already have monitors. Are you going to record the vocal, or is that done elsewhere? If all you need to do is mix, and you already have monitors, I'd spend $650 on the UAD Flex Pak, and spend the rest on room treatment.

If you need to track the vocals, spend $300 on a Shure SM7, $300 on a LDC (KSM27, AT4040, something like that) $200 on that preamp, and the rest on room treatment, and go shopping for some good free plugs.
 
mshilarious said:
I believe he means in the hip-hop sense; that is, he makes beats.
Click to expand...
In that case, I'd reserve $10 for a dictionary too. :rolleyes:

G.
 
I think asw000 is talking about mixing, not tracking. So I don't think he needs mics and preamps.

I run DP 4.6 on my iBook, so I'll make some suggestions.

Max out the RAM in the PowerBook, if you haven't already done so.

If you don't have a pair of decent powered monitors, get some. These don't have to be top of the line, but you can easily find a decent pair in the $300-450 range.

The rest I would spend on plugins, and just mix the whole thing in the software. For $1,000 you can't really afford the kind of gear you'd need for mixing outside the box, so just stay in the software.

Some plugins that I can recommend are:

Sonalksis: SV-315 compressor and SV-317 EQ.

Elemental Audio: Anything they make, but in particular their Equim eq is very clean and flexible. They make a good brickwall limiter called Finis, and an unusual but useful compressor called Neodynium. The whole bundle including their mastering eq "Firium" sells for $349.

PSP Audioware: Vintage Warmer and MasterQ. I use MasterQ constantly, excellent plugin.

There are also some great freeware plugins for the Mac OS. Take a look at:

http://betabugsaudio.com/

http://destroyfx.smartelectronix.com/

http://apulsoft.ch/

Plus one of my all time favorites, King Dubby:

http://www.lowcoders.net/kd.html

I'm recommending these plugins for a couple reasons. One, they sound good. Two, they take a relatively light hit on your CPU. So you should be able to do a real mix with them on your Powerbook, assuming it's not a really old one.

Use the CD burner that's in your Powerbook. However, if you don't have burning software you'll need to get that. You may also need two track editing software for your final masters. So a really great option for cheap is a program called DSP-Quattro, which can be found at:

http://www.i3net.it/Products/dspQuattro/Asp/Index_EN.asp?Language=EN

This is a full featured editing and burning program, with tons of features and is completely professional. You can upsample, downsample, dither, etc., etc., etc. Great program for a great price, I own it and use it. I also own Peak, but do 99% of my work in DSP-Quattro now.

Hope some of these suggestions prove helpful to you.
 
hey guys,
thanks for the input.

to clarify: i'm not a hip-hop producer. i am a music producer. mainly working with singer/songwriters in new york city.

i have a small but good set up for myself, in a small but good studio. mics, pre's and montiors have been covered.

it's a really great thing to be able to track inexpensively and then bring it to a full studio for the mixing and mastering. however, because of the type of clients i'm dealing with, i'm looking for a cheaper alternative to the mixing costs. PLUS i'm constantly trying to improve my skills as a musician/engineer.

i had no intention of fluffing my ego by mentioning the "producer" label. i mearly wanted to explain my role in the project.

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that said...
the links posted are extremely helpful. thanks

CD Burner - i really was wondering about the benefits of an outboard professional burner. if you're using analog outboard gear for the final mix, i would imagine that routing the audio back INTO the computer is an added step; losing some of the benefits of the outboard gear in the first place. true?

thanks everyone.

-alex-

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PowerBook 1.25GHz
Mac OS 10.4.5
DP 4.6.1
MOTU Traveler

http://www.tengoodrecords.com

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Last edited:
asw000 said:
CD Burner - i really was wondering about the benefits of an outboard professional burner. if you're using analog outboard gear for the final mix, i would imagine that routing the audio back INTO the computer is an added step; losing some of the benefits of the outboard gear in the first place. true?
Click to expand...

So you are talking about an outboard burner like the Alesis Masterlink, or the Tascam or HHB units? Those can be convenient, as you just run the mix into them and burn your CD.

However, your audio is still going through an AD conversion when using those units. So rather than go from the mix to your computer soundcard AD, you are going from the mix to the CD burner AD's.

It's still the same step, just different converters.

In my opinion, if you have good enough converters you don't have to worry about that final conversion from the analog mix to the DAW.

I record tracks in the DAW, mix them analog, and then record the mix back into the DAW. My feeling is that the benefits of mixing in the analog domain far outweigh any possible negatives adding those DA and AD steps of conversion. But *not* if all you've got to spend on analog is $1,000. Then, in that scenario, the benefits of mixing in the box far outweigh going out through mediocre converters into cheap gear.

The converter I use for my final A to D conversion is the Universal Audio UA2192.
 
A good set of friendly speakers!













(At a not so friendly price)
 
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