How I Write and Produce Songs with BAND-IN-A-BOX: PART 2 - BASIC MIXING

This is a new blog post on BASIC MIXING with Band-in-a-Box. This article was previously posted on the BIAB Fourms but not on my BLOGGER.COM page. If you have not read this article before or just need a refresher on getting started with mixing, please check it out. Questions and Comments welcomed.

Thanks,
Bob

Nice article. Enjoyed it and it has good information, especially for novice producers.


Charlie

Good to know I'm doing things right now. Having said that, I realised I need to be more disciplined. Sometimes I let my solo instruments go centre. :-) Do you sometimes mix in mono as well? I read a lot about that, I guess mixing in mono first to get a nice level before panning.

Thanks Bob, just a question about mono and mixing.
I am trying to produce backing tracks for a solo acoustic guitar/vocal.
I have a single JBL Eon powered speaker but sometimes use a Allen and Heath mixer. Should I be following your suggestions re panning even though my sound is coming through only one speaker which I would presume you would have to call mono??
Cheers

One speaker is always mono.

I never mix in mono. I mix in Sony headphones 99% of the time. Then when I think I have something I can live with I listen on a set of Mackie HR824s. I haven't found any benefit to mixing in mono but some folks claim it works for them. Whatever works for you, right? If you're listening through one speaker however it would seem your mix should be in mono also. Play with the panning while listening and move it from extreme left to right to see what difference it makes. It's all about listening and keeping what you like. It's a very subjective activity. Be sure to take good notes. Unless you're tracking and mixing every day you'll forget what you thought sounded good three months ago.

Also, don't "piddle" your song to death. If you keep screwing around with it you'll end up not knowing what sounded good. I know it's time consuming, but when you find a mix you like, live with it for a few days. Give your ears a break and listen afresh. I'm always amazed at how a mix sounds the next day. You can't get around this step. It's like baking a cake, it's takes as long as it takes. And no matter how good you think the final mix is, a year or two from now you'll be thinking "Wow, that guitar is just too hot!" Happens to me every day.

One more tip on mixing and listening. I learned from producer, Jim Mason (Poco, Firefall) to listen to your final mix on everything, car, TV, boombox, earbuds, etc. His favorite thing to do was go out into the hall outside the control room and walk around and listen from there. It's so weird sometimes what cuts through the walls and open doors. If you've ever been surprised to hear your song on something you didn't test it on, you know what I'm talking about. Sometimes I flinch when I hear a mix...usually after it's been made into a CD.

I agree.

My "down and dirty method" involves two devices:

1.) The car. Bass and drums right?

2.) The speaker of my phone. Can I hear the vocals loud and clear???

I have found that if it sounds right in these two places I am 90 percent there most of the time.

As a corollary I have found that if the only thing you use are headphones, God help you.

David, can't imagine you only using headphones. But apparently you did... once.

B

Man!!! Dang it!!

I have GOT to come back to Colorado and sit around that campfire with you Buford.

The medical straw you are burning out there gets stronger every day!!!

I can smell it from here.

Maybe for next year's song contest it should be "Songs I Wrote When I Didn't Have the Rocky Mountain Highs."

"What we're dealin' with here is a complete lack of respect for the law." ~Sheriff Buford

Thanks for sharing, Buford! A very informative article indeed. It's nice to see such a clear and concise explanation of headphone mixing. I use a very similar process myself

Like finest wines, this forum only improves with age!

So glad that Bob has joined us.

Donny

Good article.

While there are plenty of different ways to go about it, I like the way you present a simple framework and explain all your choices.

It's easy to get the reader lost in the woods with too much information and too many choices. You've managed in a very short space to get the first-time mixer on the right track.

"Be sure to take good notes. Unless you're tracking and mixing every day you'll forget what you thought sounded good three months ago."

"Also, don't "piddle" your song to death. If you keep screwing around with it you'll end up not knowing what sounded good."


Wise words! I've been guilty of both but I'm trying to do better....the piddling is the hardest to kick....