Advice for Creating a Professional Music Mix

When one piece of music seems outstanding next to the mediocrity of another it is commonly not because of the melodies involved. Instead, one track sounds better than another because it has a balanced and sweetened mix while the other has been patched together with in an amateur and guesswork fashion. The list below gives some tips to consider when mixing a piece of music that has professional aspirations.

1. Always use the very best and cleanest recordings or samples to create your music track. Terrible recordings will only muddy up the mix and make it sound amateur and dull.

2. Cut separate areas for each instrument within the audio spectrum by using EQ. For example, keep the bass drum and bass guitar from getting muddy by cutting out all frequencies below 80Hz on the bass drum track.

3. Create a nice stereo field by panning some instruments. While the bass drum and guitar should stay in the center to give the track stability, other elements such as cymbals and strings can be panned to add depth and sonic intrigue.

4. Give each instrument some power by learning and using compression. Without any compression, individual tracks feel limp and weak.

5. Compare the overall sound of your track next to favorite CDs in the same genre before you master. Make sure your track sounds as close to possible as the professionally made track and if it doesn’t, then figure out why and correct.

6. During final mixing, limit high peaks with a limiter which will let you increase the loudness of the entire track to its highest potential without distorting.

After you’ve mixed down to CD, play your fresh new track in a variety of speaker systems to make sure it holds up in all listening environments.