Creating MP3s In Cubase
I often get asked about the best way to export an MP3 out of your DAW. In particular, Cubase. In this video I’ll show you how easy it is if your DAW supports it and what to do if it does not. …
Category Archives: Blog
Recording On A Budget
When it comes to recording, we can do a lot more with our money than we could in years past. Technological advances have put high quality tools in the hands of regular folk like you and I. However, an investment is still required and we don’t all have thousands of dollars of disposable income to ...…
Input Levels Revisited
This is a recap of a topic we’ve discussed in the past but it’s a question that comes up a lot. What is the correct way to set your input gain levels on the way into the computer? Well, most of the time people try to get the meters as close to zero as possible ...…
Music Production Courses
As fun as it is to buy a new piece of gear, don’t forget to invest some of your studio budget into your education. After all, it’s the skills of the engineer (not the gear) that makes for great records! In this video we discuss where to find some of the best music production courses ...…
Recording Drums In Your Home Studio
Recording drums in a home or project studio is one of the most challenging things we do as recording enthusiasts. There are so many things involved in getting a great sound. Because drums are loud, they tend to excite the room more than other instruments. This means that any room issues you may have become ...…
USB Midi Interfaces
Today we answer a simple question about USB MIDI interfaces. Will your new midi device play nicely with your audio hardware? Also, some awesome feedback from a MixLessons.com subscriber! …
Improve Your Workflow
In the beginning it can be very difficult to flow with your creativity in the studio. We get hung up on all of the technical details involved in “driving” our gear. Something that I’ve learned over the years is just how important it is to develop speed and proficiency with our tools. Think of your ...…
Mono Vs. Stereo Tracks in GarageBand
Learning to produce music with your computer is great fun! However, if you haven’t yet figured out how to get audio into the computer… No fun at all! Todays quick tip addresses an issue that a lot of folks who are new to the wonderful world of digital recording suffer from in the beginning. When ...…
What is Proximity Effect?
Proximity effect is a cool little phenomena that can be used to help you get the best tone from your recorded sources. It is just one aspect of mic technique that can be used to your advantage but can also hinder your efforts if you are unaware of it’s affect on your recordings. …
What is Mixing?
This is the simplest (while at the same time, most complex) question I’ve tried to answer so far! This question goes way beyond the scope of a quick tip but here we go… Remember to visit MixLessons.com for a more in-depth look at what mixing is. Take the free video training series today! …
What is Midi?
MIDI has been around for over 2 decades yet it still seems mysterious to a lot of people. This video quick tip describes what MIDI is and how it can be used to improve your home studio productions. Remember: MIDI is not sound! Leave a comment. …
Why I Mix In Mono
Todays quick tip is a discussion on the benefits of starting your mix in mono. Don’t touch a pan pot for as long as you can bear it! You’ll notice much more space in your mix as a result. Also, any phase issues will be much more apparent and easy to remedy. What do you ...…
Sample Rate and Bit Depth Explained
So, your brand new audio interface allows you to record audio at 24 bit 192 Khz! That’s fantastic! But, is it necessary? Will 192Khz audio get you more fans? Will it sell more records? Hmm… For what it’s worth, here’s my 2 cents. …
What is Side-Chaining?
What is side-chaining? How can it be used? I’m glad you asked! A side-chain is i tricky little feature that will allow you to do some pretty interesting things with your audio. In this quick tip, I explain some ways that I like to use side-chaining. Please feel free to add your techniques to the ...…
Multi-Band Compression
Multi-Band compression is a challenging topic for most of us. Compression alone is a subtle and learned perception. Now we make it Multi-Band! This is a tool I ignored for way too long simply because I didn’t understand it. That is, until I stopped thinking about compression and began to listen to it more as ...…
How To Choose An Audio Interface
Another question that I get almost daily is “How do I choose the best audio interface for my needs?” Well, there are really only a couple of things to consider (besides your budget) when faced with this decision. Allow me to explain… …
How To Start A Mix
I think it’s very helpful to have a streamlined and systematic workflow for the music production process. Todays quick tip was inspired by a question about when during the process the mixing stage actually begins. Although many people have different approaches and there is never just one right answer, I’d like to share my approach ...…
How To Properly Set Your Recording and Mixing Levels
I got a question from a MixLessons subscriber (Will McCollum) who was interested in my thoughts on setting levels in your recording and mixing process. Things have changed quite a bit since the days of tape and consequently, techniques have changed as well. How do you approach your levels? Leave a comment with your thoughts. ...…
Vocal Effects Chain
I get asked a lot about what vocal effects to use in your mixes. While there is no single correct answer, there are some general best practices that I think about when deciding how to process my vocals tracks. This quick tip was inspired by a question about where to put the de-esser in the ...…
Panning Stereo Tracks
Todays tip was inspired by a question from the GearSlutz forum. How should you treat your stereo tracks when thinking about panorama? Just because a track was recorded in stereo does not mean it has to be mixed in stereo. In fact, some tracks should not be stereo. Watch the video, leave a comment, and ...…
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