Yep... don't mix using headphones.

They make studio reference monitors for a reason.

Most headphones and home stereo speakers are biased in some manner or another and add "color" of their own, by design, to the sound. Mostly mid bumps and low end. Mixing on them will make you unconsciously compensate and your music will come out with less low end and a hollowed out mid as a result most of the time.

I hear folks say they complete a mix and then "test it" on the car system, the home stereo, their ear buds, and their buddy's home stereo and it sounds different on each one. Yeah, the playback systems are different but the mix should sound good on every single one of them if it's a properly balanced mix. You should be able to do a mix on your studio rig that translates well across all playback platform respectably.

When mixing the music from our perspective, we want a clean, unbiased sound. In other words, we want to hear what's actually happening in the mix. We want the truth. Only by hearing the real mix, can we produce a mix that will translate well to other systems.

Also, in addition to that, we need to know what a mix is supposed to sound like and not mix according to what we think is ear candy.

And.... you need to mix, mix, mix, and mix some more and not just your stuff..... all sorts of stuff.

The end mix is a combination of knowing what needs to be at what levels and what EQ settings to use...... but it also requires quality tracks. If the tracks are poorly recorded to start with, no amount of EQ, technique, or luck, will salvage that mix and make it a good mix. You can't fix (easily) tracks that are out of tune or have poor timing or poor musicianship. Start with the best tracks possible.

There are a few websites that provide you with all the raw tracks to try your hand at mixing professionally recorded tracks. Getting a pro sounding mix takes practice and lots of hands on time. But start with a few things done right...... good tracks and a good monitoring system to actually hear the unbiased truth in the music.

Last edited by Guitarhacker; 05/04/17 01:00 AM.
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