Make Your Best Mix “A.P.P.E.A.R.”: How to Mix with Focus and Intent
Too many beginning and intermediate mixers get lost because they approach the mix without focus. This 6-step process has worked for many of the author’s students, and can change your work for the better too.
Recently, I went overseas to teach an intensive two-week mixing class in India, and it changed the way I think about teaching mixing.
I’ve taught many mixing classes before, and even covered the core concepts in workshops and seminars at one of the biggest audio schools in New York City. But never before did I have quite so much time to focus exclusively on the art of mixing with a small group like this.
With so much time in front of us, each student-engineer got a chance to flex their mixing muscle in front of the class. As is often the case, I was amazed and impressed with what some of the students came up with. It served as an excellent reminder about how each of us is unique, and how the way we each hear music is equally so.
I also noticed some recurring patterns and predicaments that nearly all of the students fell into again and again. Often this was a results of their mixing in reaction to their first impulses and using the tools they thought they were “supposed” to without first thinking about what needed to be done.
One’s gut instinct is vital, and can be honed over time to become quite useful. At advanced levels, one might make some quick and serious headway by simply rushing in, and it’s certainly exciting and satisfying to just grab knobs and start twisting right away. However, for newer engineers, this approach can often lead to mixing in a circle, and to a crippling sense of being lost. This leads to frustration and sometimes just “giving up” on a mix instead of ever really finishing.
So how do we move forward while still keeping some fun and instinct in the process? We need to move quickly, but we also want to process with a purpose. Not much seems linear when it comes to the labyrinthine process of mixing, but there are ways to add some structure to your approach and get better results every time.
What we need is a method to sort out issues, solve them, and then move on to the next. That kind of work isn’t random—it’s focused and full of intent. So I came up with a useful mnemonic (trigger warning: dorky acronyms ahead) to help guide us through the process and make your perfect mix magically “A.P.P.E.A.R.” in front of you.
ANALYZE: WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
The first and arguably most important step is to analyze the problem! We have to understand what the issue is if we want to solve it. And we shouldn’t go around looking to “fix” things that aren’t broken.
If that vocal were perfect, it would be sitting exactly where we want it to in the mix, and we wouldn’t have to touch it. But it isn’t. So the key question becomes: why? Are some phrases muddy and muted? Are some words or syllables louder than others? Is the vocal disconnected from the rest of the mix?
A key factor here is going to be to carefully listen. So for a minute—without grabbing or touching doing anything—just listen and try to analyze WHY that sound isn’t sitting right in the mix.
It may end up being that there is more than one issue that needs solving. But let’s go with what is most glaringly obvious first, and then move forward from there. You’ll be surprised at how often really addressing one problem will make others seem to nearly disappear. Try and be as specific as possible during this phase as it will shape where we go next.
PROJECT: WHAT TOOL WILL SOLVE IT?
Cool. Can I turn knobs now? Not yet. The next step is to figure out what tool will best fix this issue.
If the issue appears to be frequency-based, then we can attempt to solve it with filters or equalizers. If it happens to be a dynamic issue, then we can reach for compressors, gates, or limiters. Maybe the issue is spatial and a touch of reverb or delay will help that sound blend into, or rise above the rest of the mix. Sometimes the issue is simply level and the fader is the best tool for the job.
I often ask new students if they think it is better to EQ first or compress first. It’s a fun question and always starts arguments, which are fun to shake out. Everyone usually has an opinion, and a flurry of good-sounding reasons to back it up. But the truth is that these tools are problem solvers. Think of every tool we use in the studio as being a bit like a Band-Aid. No one (bar Nelly circa 2002) puts on a Band-Aid “just because”.
What’s important here isn’t which is supposed to come first. It’s that you have made a conscious choice based on the real-time sonic information in front of you. It is so very easy for us to fall into habit of reaching for the same tools on the same sounds again and again. But a good mix is entirely context-based, and has little to do with other fixes that may have worked in the past. Don’t ask what tools are best for a bass guitar. Ask what tool is going to be best in solving the specific problem you’ve identified in this bass guitar.
PICTURE: WHAT SHOULD IT SOUND LIKE?
Are you F*$#ing kidding, we still haven’t touched anything???
Nope, and we still have work to do before we get to touch all that shiny, shiny gear. Our next step is absolutely mandatory in becoming a better engineer over the long term. Right now, we have to dig deep and imagine what we want this instrument or voice to sound like.
Just like any other artist may create an image from nothing, we have to do the same. A sculptor who works in marble has to see the statue buried underneath all the layers of excess stone, and we are going to try to do the same.
This isn’t only useful for the current mix. In the long run, imagining a sound will help your ears and hands connect in a faster and more useful way.
Once again, specificity will reap benefits. If using a dynamics processor, are you just trying to shave off peaks from an acoustic guitar? Or maybe you trying to suppress the sustain of a close-mic’ed snare drum, while letting a strong attack through unscathed? Create a picture in your mind’s ear as to how the end result should sound.
EXECUTE: MAKE THE NEEDED CHANGE
Finally! Let the quest for early-onset carpal tunnel syndrome begin!
Now we get to make moves. This is your time to shine. Twist away with abandon. Don’t be afraid to go too far. Use every part of that tool to get this sound to sit comfortably within the mix. You will often unearth other issues, that require other tools to fix. Resist the urge! Take your time and push as far as you can with this one processor.
This kind of thinking will also come in very handy when you find yourself working a limited capacity all of a sudden. Maybe you find yourself engineering a live show, or working in an all-analog studio. In many of those scenarios, you won’t be able to just pile on the plugins until either the song or CPU gives up. Being able to do more with less is always a useful skill.
APPROVE: CONFIRM THAT YOUR CHANGES ACTUALLY MADE IT BETTER
Now that we’ve gently massaged (maybe mangled the hell out of) our sound, it’s time to ratify our decision.
Humans are terrible at comparing gradual changes, but excellent at comparing between two distinct, alternate states. So turn off your processor momentarily and re-acclimate to the original sound. Now turn your processor back on and honestly judge the changes made. Did we actually make it better, or just louder? Did we uncover gold, but also some trash in the process? The bypass feature is the most important control on any processor and you should use it extensively here to see if your mix issue has been solved.
This is almost never going to be a simple “yes” or “no” answer. And rarely will one step of processing solve all of our problems. (If it did, congratulations…soon you’ll have plugins named after you). Did our work get us most of the way there? Will it take just a bit more tweaking, or should you switch gears entirely?
Since mixes are all about context, another important question here is: Did we harm something else in the process? Who cares if the keys now sound amazing if they are covering the vocal? Does it really matter that your snare now sounds like it was forged in the fires of Mt. Doom if your processing makes it so that the hi-hat is now stepping all over your mix? When bypassing, consider how the pieces all fit together. That is way more important than any one sound. (Read those last two sentences again.)
REPEAT
Lastly, we get to do it all over again. Go back and analyze once again. We’ll use finer and finer steps, and smaller amounts of processing as we circle the goal of a balance that sounds amazing.
One last bit of clarification might be needed here. This is not an indictment of working fast, nor an endorsement for working slow. Quite the opposite, actually. As an engineer trying to keep up with all the new plugins, sounds, genres, and so on, you will likely have to work faster (and cheaper) than any of our forebears ever did.
Yes, you do need to work fast. But more importantly, you need to make active decisions, and not fall into passive habits. By following the method laid out above, you can learn to make fast, informed decisions that will ultimately improve not only the speed at which you work, but also the quality as well. Happy mixing!
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