Why do I have to mix on monitors?

  • Thread starter Thread starter ScooterMcTiny
  • Start date Start date
This is a pretty basic answer. If you mix on monitors which are flat, you are hearing what the audio really sounds like. If you choose monitors(or computer speakers for that matter) which have a high end lift, you will want to compensate for it in your mix by taking down the highs, when in fact they are at the right level, but you cannot tell because of the lift.

The reason you want to mix on studio monitors vs computer speakers is because if you mixon something flat, and then after the mix it is played on something with certain frequency notches, the flatness of the speaker you mixed on will have compensated already. Of course Ethan Winer mentioned an important factor regarding the room dymanics, as with bass you can definitely be hearing incorrect things if your room isnt treated... and we arent talking one or two dB we are talking ten to fifteen. My reccommendation? If you are serious in any way about mixing get a pair of monitors(m-audio studiophile), or a passive pair of tannoy's with a decent alesis amp or something. And if you want to get a better idea of your actual mix, go to Ethan Winer's site and read about using sine waves and an omnidirectional mic to test your rooms bass response. There are a few programs out there which will also calculate frequency nodes in your room where there is a severe drop in dB... just make sure they dont exist where you are mixing... but in all of this, if you want good solid advice ask Ethan Winer.

www.ethanwiner.com

use the search feature on there
 
Ok so what about this ....... I'm what you call a broke ass bitch therfore I can't afford monitors at this time. But I have some really sweet Pioneers and a nice graphic eq is it possible to use the equalizer to flatten them to a truer sound and thus have me some makeshift monitors???? I know this is not the Ideal way to go but I need some thing that can tide me over till the recording fairy pulls all my teeth and leaves me some money. :D
 
Dioxide said:
Ok so what about this ....... I'm what you call a broke ass bitch therfore I can't afford monitors at this time. But I have some really sweet Pioneers and a nice graphic eq is it possible to use the equalizer to flatten them to a truer sound and thus have me some makeshift monitors????
No... not really.......
 
OK I think I'm able to talk my wife into letting me get a set of monitors using this thread so What I would like to know is what is the difference between active and a passive. I mean I know what active and passive are but what is the difference in the monitor world. The best thing I can find on my budget are a a pair of Samson Resolv 65a's the actives are 299 and the passive are 199. :confused:
 
Actives are self powered. With the passives you would have to shell out some extra bucks for a power amp........Go with the actives.

I have a pair of resolv 65a's and I like them. You should also consider the Maudio BX5's..
 
PASSIVE needs external amplification. ACTIVE have internal, built-in amplification.
 
I have used headphones for mixing for a while simply for the fact that i dont have decent monitors or any monitors in fact! I tried my 3 different sets of stereo speakers, but it didnt work. One set were too bassy, one set were crisp but not truelly representitive of the actuall sound, and the other were just plain sh*t! So i used headphones to mix with even though after reading many an article on why not to use headphones for mixing. Some of the points are valid, but some are also invalid in my opinion. For the panning thingy, it is true that it sounds totally different on headphones from speakers. But i am just used to it now and can tell how much to pan things. Usually as little as needed so as to split up the sound a little without ripping it into 2 seperate ugly chunks of sound. But that is just the way i look at panning. So using headphones can be good at night times and save a HECK of a lot of money (around £300-£15,000)!!! i got my sennheiser hd200 for £50. these are just below the midrange market maybe. They are really good, but mine are starting to show signs of wear and tear after about 1 and a half years.
 
Back
Top