Couldn’t agree with this more… sometimes I have to dig up Ableton session files from 5+ years ago, and when I see the substantial amount of finely dialled-in multi-chained FX devices on each track - using ONLY the stock devices - well, it’s like a magic trick Lol! I still don’t think there’s a stock DAW limiter that can cut professional mixes, but for everything else you’ll be way better off spending time experimenting creatively with ideas than spending money on more and more plug-ins.
@@tommyottobisdee same, I loaded up some old arrangements, sorted out the gain staging and applied a bit of newly learned knowledge and realised I don’t need half this equipment! Of course it’s horses for course and depends on budget but for the average producer learning the daw is so important and overlooked
David, I know you’re not big on mixing on headphones. But if you can, text out the Steven Slate VSX headphones and software. I have the JBL LSR308s. But I have no treatment in this room. And at this moment, can’t afford to treat it. And the VSX headphones have been my lifesaver. Now, fair enough, it’s probably working just for me. But love them.
I dont own much in the way of analog, just a set of Rokit 5 monitors, a mixer and headphones and a good pc of course, however I've learned to find a small group of High quality Vst's I love the most and learn them inside out to keep it simple and cheaper. I shudder to think how much one would spend on analog gear because of shiny thing syndrome only to find it was never necessary for achieving quality sound from their mixes.
A Cranborne Camden, SSL 611 EQ, and a Distressor, has to get pretty damn close to a “do it all” chain. It may not be able to do literally 100% of everything but it has to be pretty close
I couldn’t agree more! Great video. The monitor set up was a hard pill to swallow for me years ago, just like you said it’s not sexy. But when I got great monitoring, the difference is incredible . I have atc45s with a trinnov in a well treated room and I can hear 1/10th db increments on many things, when in the past on cheap monitors, I’d have to do 2-3 db movements before I began to hear what I was doing. It sucks, but it’s totally true. In hindsight I’d go in the box with great monitoring before I’d have mediocre monitors and outboard gear. Thanks again David!!!
You couldn't be more right with point no. 4. It's so important to look for unbiased reviews of affordable analog gear and check multiple times before deciding to buy something. And like you said, you'd be much better off using plugins than you would using anything made by Klark Teknik.
Klark stuff gets ragged on so bad by so many people, but there are enough demos out there to see how well it holds up vs the real deal (obviously not as good, but also a very long way from 'bad'), and it ALWAYS beats the plugin equivalents. I have 3 KT units and they are noticeably better than plug ins. I bought all of them second hand, which thanks to the stigma makes them cheap, and not only will I learn hybrid analogue workflow, and get better mixes, but I'll not lose a single penny if I need to move them on at a later date.
Very interesting to hear the way you describe your own (quite seasoned) expectations for how often one given piece of gear might apply usefully to your mixing and mastering purposes and needs. This kind of guidance is very useful for helping us noobs (or in my case a long-time amateur) regulate our own use and expectations for the gear. It's always good to be reminded of these established concepts and to hear your informed take on them. Thanks, man. Buy yourself (or Bella) an espresso! Cheers from San Diego.
I am ashamed to say I bought the Warm Audio preamp, EQ and LA2A compressor and couldn’t even record one song with them. Their quality was poorer than my plugins and I just can’t use them. They are now just decorations in my studio. 😢
The second-hand market sometimes gives you great stuff for an acceptable price. But I strongly recommend to go (or drive) to the seller personally...so that you can check the device before actually buying it.
I've been hearing many youtubers talk about side chain filters on compressors as if they let the low end through without being compressed and that's not how I understand it. I thought that the low end only bypasses the detector circuit but is still compressed. It just doesn't trigger the compressor. Can you clear that up for me?
I made a "share-able" video exactly on this, exactly for this reason (because TH-camrs aren't mix engineers) th-cam.com/video/nGJ6lw4UIXw/w-d-xo.html Here you go
I always have a problem following the content of your videos when Pinhead keeps staring at me from the background...😁 A great character, after Ash from "The Evil Dead" the coolest sock... So, and now I watch your video from start again....😆
Peace bro great information I have been watching your videos for some time and your knowledge and experience in the field is greatly appreciated. I’ve just laid the foundation to my home studio wit diy acoustic panels, Jbl mk ll,warm audio 2a mpx mic pre,wa 2a compressor and wa 76 looking to add an eq some time this year what are your thoughts and keep up the good content🫡✌🏽🫶🏽.
Another valuable vid! Oh and that throat edm remix sounds perfect over this iPhone 13 cranked all the way up. For real. Great translation. I’m sure u know that tho! 😉💥
Couldn't agree more! Fortunately I had the sense to find a couple of people who actually had documented work with known artists and stuck with them only. Not that I'm some brilliant mixer or anything, but I know it was the right choice. However, I didnt have the sense for rule #1 of the video 😂. I LOVE gear! But I could kick my own ass all the time for not investing in proper treatment sooner! Excellent advice as always David!
I'm glad you said monitoring first, because I sat poised lol I personally think the main emphasis should be on acoustics first as advice for beginners because it is so easy to spend an entire budget on speakers and then forget acoustics or get anything that says "acoustic treatment" and thing "£200" for a whole room set and think it's going to do the job... it is not. Research that part as well as you go looking at all reviews of speakers. Converters is a part of monitoring system in my opinion that then starts to bleed over into all the other areas... it's the gates to the hub of your studio which is you computer. So the monitoring output and how you route that in the DAW is part of the monitoring system also. The third has been my worse mistake, but also, that more the need to research when you haven't the means to do. What I learned from trying to have a chain that I could use for recording, mixing and mastering is they do not work well in tandem with each other. Adding the same colour or harmonic information in the same spots again and again goes very quickly from warm to cloudy. You have to look at how big money productions operate their recording, mixing and mastering system. When they record they are looking for all the vibe, all the colour to really get that sound right away and from that get good performances from the artist etc etc and will be using NEVE console, or API or many other even more colourful consoles... then mixing, SSL consoles became a common name in mixing rooms because they wouldn't be adding tons of more colour on top on what has already got loads of colour in it as the mixing process would be made even harder, plus, the mix engineers have been sent very high quality content to then mix, if it's not they have to re record bits again... then mastering, the chain has to compliment everything that has ben done up till then. The hardest part might be deciding what your studio is. David seems to do all sides, but his studio is mixing and mastering, when he does recording he goes to another studio... that can part of what to think about also. As for people talking a lot but with out the full experience, I been that massively and slightly less and slightly less over time... I personally have not ever spent any time in comments learning anything, my comments are always about what I have learned up till then from what I learn and only over time experience gets mixed in with that. I went through the cheeping out a few times myself, sometimes it was fun for just one thing, something mangled, but essentially disillusioned by analogue, like judging relationships based on bad ones... ideally, the best thing to do is find a retailer that will let you demo units in your studio and that become a on going relationship, otherwise there will be too many up and downs and it equipment will always be a roller coaster that you are stuck on and not be able to get off. I went to give advice about a suggestion of audio interface system used and realised I might mess up the gold mine I stumbled on... don't shoot yourself in your foot being too excited about helping people... a number of times I've seen David mention the odd thing that a little secret in mixing that he can not talk about, unfortunately, this is also important... the professional world is not your friend... but it also is not dog eat dog or every person for themselves, you can get stranded just as quickly being too selfish. Number 5 is another one I am, let's not say guilty of, but a victim. This also boils down to the part about people like to talk. Even if someone experienced in mixing or whatever area does a review on a new unit, there no way for them to have long term use to speak of it... at best you can see them speak well of it and two years down the line still doing it. Quite often there hype and very very rarely does something live up to it... but also, still might never fit anything you will do and you'll never know how to know without trying... so if you are making this a business, make sure you have a good relationship with a supplier for audio equipment. Only you can figure out what works for you, what works for your projects you get given... but first of all, start with acoustics and work your way down the chain of monitoring and complete that before going to infinity and beyond... the monitoring system will make all your other choices easier not just make you job easier.
The best monitoring system for a beginning home studio is a good pair of mixing headphones. Seriously, what beginner is going to acoustically treat their room?
b2 adc, elysia xpressor + xfilter have lasted me a long time. glad i didn't cheap out, almost a decade of smacking these things and they're still rocking
Eh. Do other people feel/think the same? I'll go on a wild guess and say probably not, because there would be absolutely no reason as to why this would be the case. I can only think about one reason as to why this would happen to you and it's not pretty: have you ever checked your hearing? Because I suspect you might have one of your ears compromised somehow. For example, a friend of mine walked in front of PA once and a feedback rang super loud and he lost a chuck of hearing capabilities in one of his ears, mostly in the midrange. Either an event similar to that or simply listening to loud music for a long time, not taking care of your ears, clubs, concerts etc.. can cause this.
Good video good tips. But what about all those experts in many instruction video's on youtube who use the sentence : "my advice is a subtle change and you might not even hear it".
1st comment 🍻 Allocate 50% of your initial budget toward improving the acoustics at your mixing location, as well as the area that you will be using microphones for tracking audio, especially vocals and acoustic guitar. You will capture better sounding tracks and be able hear them more accurately on playback, allowing you to spend more time mixing and less time fixing.
I have the IK iloud micro monitors the $300 per pair ones , are they good enough to learn on? or should I upgrade, what would recommend as an upgrade anyway? thanks!
It depends what you do. If you're serious about mixing, then you should probably upgrade, even tho' the IK are great little monitors. Look into Eve Audio and get whatever you can afford from them
It’s not just about the best monitors but the right monitors for your room (not too big!).Good headphones are good for beginners who don’t have the best treatment
Eh.. for you to have monitors "too big" for your room you have to have soffit mount main in a 4x4. Meaning, it's not really a thing. My friend Howie (Weinberg) room is smaller than mine and he has PMC floor to ceiling towers. That's just one. Most mastering studios have monitors that many people on internet would consider "too big". It's really not a thing unless like I said you're in a bathroom with soffit mount mains.
@@mixbustv I hear you. I think my comment is aimed at the average producer at home with a reasonably low budget. I think you are talking to someone at a slightly higher level with a decent budget and capacity to do such things. My experience was owning 3000 dollar 3 way speakers in a small flat at home. Now I have more knowledge and way less gear my mixes are much better. I do have some nice headphones though so I can hear detail..
Might be a good idea to discuss good converters or any other gear for different price brackets, for the home amateur to the serious enthusiast, right down to the developing pros.
Learn your DAW first! They can do most things very well.
Couldn’t agree with this more… sometimes I have to dig up Ableton session files from 5+ years ago, and when I see the substantial amount of finely dialled-in multi-chained FX devices on each track - using ONLY the stock devices - well, it’s like a magic trick Lol! I still don’t think there’s a stock DAW limiter that can cut professional mixes, but for everything else you’ll be way better off spending time experimenting creatively with ideas than spending money on more and more plug-ins.
@@tommyottobisdee same, I loaded up some old arrangements, sorted out the gain staging and applied a bit of newly learned knowledge and realised I don’t need half this equipment! Of course it’s horses for course and depends on budget but for the average producer learning the daw is so important and overlooked
I bought 2 Klark Technique EPQ emulation EQs and man they were a waste of money
Perfectly said as always, David!
Paint the walls, fix my car and make coffee LOL great video as always David
David, I know you’re not big on mixing on headphones. But if you can, text out the Steven Slate VSX headphones and software. I have the JBL LSR308s. But I have no treatment in this room. And at this moment, can’t afford to treat it. And the VSX headphones have been my lifesaver. Now, fair enough, it’s probably working just for me. But love them.
Whatever works! A lot of people like that software
I dont own much in the way of analog, just a set of Rokit 5 monitors, a mixer and headphones and a good pc of course, however I've learned to find a small group of High quality Vst's I love the most and learn them inside out to keep it simple and cheaper. I shudder to think how much one would spend on analog gear because of shiny thing syndrome only to find it was never necessary for achieving quality sound from their mixes.
How about a new video for affordable/decent gear for mid 2023? It could include 500 series units. 💪🔥
Nice one.
A Cranborne Camden, SSL 611 EQ, and a Distressor, has to get pretty damn close to a “do it all” chain. It may not be able to do literally 100% of everything but it has to be pretty close
For 1 channel recording that is
But I NEED my compressor to make my COFFEE!!?
I couldn’t agree more! Great video. The monitor set up was a hard pill to swallow for me years ago, just like you said it’s not sexy. But when I got great monitoring, the difference is incredible . I have atc45s with a trinnov in a well treated room and I can hear 1/10th db increments on many things, when in the past on cheap monitors, I’d have to do 2-3 db movements before I began to hear what I was doing. It sucks, but it’s totally true. In hindsight I’d go in the box with great monitoring before I’d have mediocre monitors and outboard gear. Thanks again David!!!
You couldn't be more right with point no. 4. It's so important to look for unbiased reviews of affordable analog gear and check multiple times before deciding to buy something. And like you said, you'd be much better off using plugins than you would using anything made by Klark Teknik.
Klark stuff gets ragged on so bad by so many people, but there are enough demos out there to see how well it holds up vs the real deal (obviously not as good, but also a very long way from 'bad'), and it ALWAYS beats the plugin equivalents.
I have 3 KT units and they are noticeably better than plug ins. I bought all of them second hand, which thanks to the stigma makes them cheap, and not only will I learn hybrid analogue workflow, and get better mixes, but I'll not lose a single penny if I need to move them on at a later date.
Very interesting to hear the way you describe your own (quite seasoned) expectations for how often one given piece of gear might apply usefully to your mixing and mastering purposes and needs. This kind of guidance is very useful for helping us noobs (or in my case a long-time amateur) regulate our own use and expectations for the gear. It's always good to be reminded of these established concepts and to hear your informed take on them. Thanks, man. Buy yourself (or Bella) an espresso! Cheers from San Diego.
Thank you my friend! Much appreciated!
I am ashamed to say I bought the Warm Audio preamp, EQ and LA2A compressor and couldn’t even record one song with them. Their quality was poorer than my plugins and I just can’t use them. They are now just decorations in my studio. 😢
The second-hand market sometimes gives you great stuff for an acceptable price. But I strongly recommend to go (or drive) to the seller personally...so that you can check the device before actually buying it.
You had me at home studio
I've been hearing many youtubers talk about side chain filters on compressors as if they let the low end through without being compressed and that's not how I understand it. I thought that the low end only bypasses the detector circuit but is still compressed. It just doesn't trigger the compressor. Can you clear that up for me?
I made a "share-able" video exactly on this, exactly for this reason (because TH-camrs aren't mix engineers) th-cam.com/video/nGJ6lw4UIXw/w-d-xo.html
Here you go
Paralysis by Analysis. -- i really needed to hear that rn
I always have a problem following the content of your videos when Pinhead keeps staring at me from the background...😁
A great character, after Ash from "The Evil Dead" the coolest sock...
So, and now I watch your video from start again....😆
See it's by design? Double the views lol
@@mixbustv 😅👍
Peace bro great information I have been watching your videos for some time and your knowledge and experience in the field is greatly appreciated. I’ve just laid the foundation to my home studio wit diy acoustic panels, Jbl mk ll,warm audio 2a mpx mic pre,wa 2a compressor and wa 76 looking to add an eq some time this year what are your thoughts and keep up the good content🫡✌🏽🫶🏽.
Ur the only persom on youtube that consoles me for spending alot of money on gear lol
Thank god i didnt cheap out😂
Another valuable vid!
Oh and that throat edm remix sounds perfect over this iPhone 13 cranked all the way up. For real. Great translation. I’m sure u know that tho! 😉💥
Thank you!
Great video, David 🫶
No 1 channel for music learning 🔥🔥🔥🔥 i can do long debate with anyone who don't agree with me👁️
Couldn't agree more! Fortunately I had the sense to find a couple of people who actually had documented work with known artists and stuck with them only. Not that I'm some brilliant mixer or anything, but I know it was the right choice. However, I didnt have the sense for rule #1 of the video 😂. I LOVE gear! But I could kick my own ass all the time for not investing in proper treatment sooner! Excellent advice as always David!
I trust David’s opinion/knowledge before anyone else 🙏
Thanks brother!
I'm glad you said monitoring first, because I sat poised lol
I personally think the main emphasis should be on acoustics first as advice for beginners because it is so easy to spend an entire budget on speakers and then forget acoustics or get anything that says "acoustic treatment" and thing "£200" for a whole room set and think it's going to do the job... it is not.
Research that part as well as you go looking at all reviews of speakers.
Converters is a part of monitoring system in my opinion that then starts to bleed over into all the other areas... it's the gates to the hub of your studio which is you computer.
So the monitoring output and how you route that in the DAW is part of the monitoring system also.
The third has been my worse mistake, but also, that more the need to research when you haven't the means to do.
What I learned from trying to have a chain that I could use for recording, mixing and mastering is they do not work well in tandem with each other.
Adding the same colour or harmonic information in the same spots again and again goes very quickly from warm to cloudy.
You have to look at how big money productions operate their recording, mixing and mastering system.
When they record they are looking for all the vibe, all the colour to really get that sound right away and from that get good performances from the artist etc etc and will be using NEVE console, or API or many other even more colourful consoles... then mixing, SSL consoles became a common name in mixing rooms because they wouldn't be adding tons of more colour on top on what has already got loads of colour in it as the mixing process would be made even harder, plus, the mix engineers have been sent very high quality content to then mix, if it's not they have to re record bits again... then mastering, the chain has to compliment everything that has ben done up till then.
The hardest part might be deciding what your studio is.
David seems to do all sides, but his studio is mixing and mastering, when he does recording he goes to another studio... that can part of what to think about also.
As for people talking a lot but with out the full experience, I been that massively and slightly less and slightly less over time... I personally have not ever spent any time in comments learning anything, my comments are always about what I have learned up till then from what I learn and only over time experience gets mixed in with that.
I went through the cheeping out a few times myself, sometimes it was fun for just one thing, something mangled, but essentially disillusioned by analogue, like judging relationships based on bad ones... ideally, the best thing to do is find a retailer that will let you demo units in your studio and that become a on going relationship, otherwise there will be too many up and downs and it equipment will always be a roller coaster that you are stuck on and not be able to get off.
I went to give advice about a suggestion of audio interface system used and realised I might mess up the gold mine I stumbled on... don't shoot yourself in your foot being too excited about helping people... a number of times I've seen David mention the odd thing that a little secret in mixing that he can not talk about, unfortunately, this is also important... the professional world is not your friend... but it also is not dog eat dog or every person for themselves, you can get stranded just as quickly being too selfish.
Number 5 is another one I am, let's not say guilty of, but a victim.
This also boils down to the part about people like to talk.
Even if someone experienced in mixing or whatever area does a review on a new unit, there no way for them to have long term use to speak of it... at best you can see them speak well of it and two years down the line still doing it.
Quite often there hype and very very rarely does something live up to it... but also, still might never fit anything you will do and you'll never know how to know without trying... so if you are making this a business, make sure you have a good relationship with a supplier for audio equipment.
Only you can figure out what works for you, what works for your projects you get given... but first of all, start with acoustics and work your way down the chain of monitoring and complete that before going to infinity and beyond... the monitoring system will make all your other choices easier not just make you job easier.
Funnily, making a TH-cam channel can be a great way test equipment also... just please don't become false information out of greed
The best monitoring system for a beginning home studio is a good pair of mixing headphones. Seriously, what beginner is going to acoustically treat their room?
No it's not. Refrain from spewing nonsense on the comment section. Thanks.
What are your thoughts about warm audio gear? Not the mics but the gear they have for mixing like the 1176 or la2a. Did you used their gear sometime?
Their MPX is really cool, in fact it sits right below my 670 now but i'm not a fan of their 2a and 76
Some of the best advice available online. Love your podcast and your honest, straight talking approach. Liked and subscribed!
Welcome to the channel!
👍🏻👍🏻
Do a video on diminishing returns.
#1.) Atmos.
Don't do it. You will destroy your life.
A new Drawmer preamp is out I see, the 1977... which you be taking a look at it?
They're suppose to send it for me to check out yes
@@mixbustv Cool brilliant
What do you think of slate vsx headphones for mix and master
I have no opinion, I've never tried it
@@mixbustv i would love your input everyone is sayin that is a game changer when it comes to mixing but i would like to hear your input on it
When David gives you hardware recommendations in compressor terms 😬 Thanks a lot for the vid 👍
Finding good, cheap gear is harder than saving up for the good, but expensive gear.
b2 adc, elysia xpressor + xfilter have lasted me a long time. glad i didn't cheap out, almost a decade of smacking these things and they're still rocking
Great video. The first two tips are gold.
Make sure your computer is powerful enough
Another must share! Thank you David
Don’t try to do mastering yourself
great video as always, love this type of vids!
Hi david can u tell me why when i swap channels in my mix its sound bad?,mostly on headphones(i mean put left on right ear and opposite)
Eh. Do other people feel/think the same? I'll go on a wild guess and say probably not, because there would be absolutely no reason as to why this would be the case. I can only think about one reason as to why this would happen to you and it's not pretty: have you ever checked your hearing? Because I suspect you might have one of your ears compromised somehow. For example, a friend of mine walked in front of PA once and a feedback rang super loud and he lost a chuck of hearing capabilities in one of his ears, mostly in the midrange. Either an event similar to that or simply listening to loud music for a long time, not taking care of your ears, clubs, concerts etc.. can cause this.
David your so right on❤
On Point as Usual D 🔥
Thank you David!
These videos are fire!! 🔥🔥
Good video good tips.
But what about all those experts in many instruction video's on youtube who use the sentence : "my advice is a subtle change and you might not even hear it".
I wouldn't know I don't watch youtube experts lol
Beware the "experts". They usually don't have your best interests in mind.
1st comment 🍻
Allocate 50% of your initial budget toward improving the acoustics at your mixing location, as well as the area that you will be using microphones for tracking audio, especially vocals and acoustic guitar. You will capture better sounding tracks and be able hear them more accurately on playback, allowing you to spend more time mixing and less time fixing.
I have the IK iloud micro monitors the $300 per pair ones , are they good enough to learn on? or should I upgrade, what would recommend as an upgrade anyway? thanks!
It depends what you do. If you're serious about mixing, then you should probably upgrade, even tho' the IK are great little monitors. Look into Eve Audio and get whatever you can afford from them
@@mixbustv Thank you!
Top list as always!
🤘🤘
It’s not just about the best monitors but the right monitors for your room (not too big!).Good headphones are good for beginners who don’t have the best treatment
Eh.. for you to have monitors "too big" for your room you have to have soffit mount main in a 4x4. Meaning, it's not really a thing. My friend Howie (Weinberg) room is smaller than mine and he has PMC floor to ceiling towers. That's just one. Most mastering studios have monitors that many people on internet would consider "too big". It's really not a thing unless like I said you're in a bathroom with soffit mount mains.
@@mixbustv ok fair enough, I had some fairly big 3 ways and found I was better served with smaller monitors, just my experience though
@@peppercrybeatz you'd need more treatment the bigger the speakers. But you'd have better results, even in a smaller room
@@mixbustv I hear you. I think my comment is aimed at the average producer at home with a reasonably low budget. I think you are talking to someone at a slightly higher level with a decent budget and capacity to do such things. My experience was owning 3000 dollar 3 way speakers in a small flat at home. Now I have more knowledge and way less gear my mixes are much better. I do have some nice headphones though so I can hear detail..
Might be a good idea to discuss good converters or any other gear for different price brackets, for the home amateur to the serious enthusiast, right down to the developing pros.
I mix with shitty speakers...if it sounds nice, it sounds nice everywhere..
yep...a man with no money has spoken...
I guess all you have to do now is let us hear those mixes that sound good everywhere
U ever try bouncing audio VHS player
I did try, and failed lol