19 Mixing Tips I Wish I Knew 20 Years Ago

Tip 1 - 0:40 - Listen to good mixes/music in your mixing position Tip 2 - 2:22 - Know your frequencies Tip 3 - 3:45 - Use the mute button to identify problems Tip 4 - 4:38 - Mind the goosebumps Tip 5 - 6:17 - Do a static mix Tip 6 - 7:57 - Aim for balance Tip 7 - 8:55 - Turn up your speakers Tip 8 - 10:08 - Know when to leave things alone Tip 9 - 10:45 - Use subtractive EQ Tip 10 - 11:37 - EQ your reverbs and delays Tip 11 - 12:40 - Don't be afraid to use compression Tip 12 - 13:12 - Don't compress everything Tip 13 - 13:33 - Mix the busses first Tip 14 - 14:55 - Get it right at the source Tip 15 - 15:25 - Mix fast and often Tip 16 - 16:18 - Mix in context Tip 17 - 17:55 - Save the vocal until the end Tip 18 - 18:33 - Bypass often Tip 19 - 19:18 - Get feedback from others I might wanna add Tip 20 which is bit of an extension to Tip 1 -> use a reference track to which you can compare your mix to.

If you made these tips into a poster I could hang directly in front of my mixing console, I would gladly buy one!!

The most underrated tip imo for producers who mix as well, STAY ORGANIZED, organize your samples, organize daw presets, organize your mixer, organize your playlist, hell even organize your plugin order. The amount of time saved from just sitting down for a few hours to organize your drives, folders and daw will quickly be worth it (if youve got a large multi tb library like me). Also, backup EVERYTHING. If your actually serious about music it cost like 200$ for a massive drive to backup your work and libraries so you wont be at square 1 in case of a failure or problem

"static mix" is so important...it's akin to getting the house solidly built and then applying the aesthetics (paint, trim, finishes) to get it ready for sale...

The One that really helped was using Static mix before deciding to add plugins for the clean-up and extra sauce.

Tip 1 is what I do to start every session. I usually spend 15-30 min listening to some songs I think I want mine to sound like to get my ears accustomed to the balance. Whenever I take a break, I'll put music back on

EQing your reverb, even with just a highpass worked so well it messed me up 😂. You get so used to the mud and you do all this other stuff to compensate so then you do that and it makes all the stuff you did to compensate an issue. 😂

You're an excellent speaker, you don't make things complicated.

I've been engineering for about 18 yrs now. I agree with all your tips & I too find myself doing all vocals last nowadays...great minds think alike, great vid you just got a new subscriber

The more I mix, the more I can tell that the "static mix trick" is everything. 😌Getting the more you can, just by balancing, ppanning and checking phase combinations on a great sounding multitrack is crucial to achieve the best mix at the end.

Having a solid understanding on your frequencies is a big one. That’s what I’ve been focusing on a lot lately.

DUDE - I just recently started turning my speakers up and WOW. Night and day.

The metaphor for subtractive eq when you referenced the marble being chopped away versus the clay being added on was really helpful for me to get my mind around the idea. Well done sir

The most helpful mix vid I’ve seen, Joe. It confirms a few clues I arrived at on my own and wondered “do other mixers do it this way?” But also provided many ideas I’d not arrived at.

As a composer who's more confident with my writing / arranging than with production, found this vid extremely useful. Great stuff. 👍

Currently doing Joe’s Mixing course. Really terrific- no matter your experience consider taking it!

Balancing prior to plugins was a huge deal for me. Also using the levels on the channel rack only and mixer levels if needed after plugins.

Joe, that was some of the best -- nah, THE best -- concise mixing advice I have ever heard. All common-sense, and instantly recognizable as truly useful. That was the best twenty minutes I ever spent watching a music production "tip list!" 💪🏽🙏👍👏🏽

RE: Tip #1. SonarWorks was a REVELATION for me. My mixes sounded amazing in my room but had absolutely no low mids anywhere else. Now that I can actually hear the low mids in my room I can mix them appropriately.

you're the best teacher ever