How to Mixdown Music With Digital Editing Software

Digital sound mixing methods essentially work the same no matter what platform and software you use. The menu names, commands and interfaces may differ slightly. In the end, however, you have to make a good recording or the best software in the world can't save your sound.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

1. Use the best microphones and mixer available. Record each track in mono. This will allow for a better mix and require less EQ fiddling. You want to record the instruments into their own channels in the editing program, not edit a two-channel stereo feed.
2. Decide on a recording strategy by asking yourself if you want to lay down one track at a time or record the instruments together. Recording instruments together creates a raw live sound but the instrument sounds may bleed through instrument tracks and editing individual instruments will be more difficult. Recording separate tracks may make editing easier, but you may have to tweak synchronizing and the overall sound may be more sterile than you would like.
3. Control as much of the sound as possible in the recording process, not with the software. You want the best sound possible. Work with the boost, frequency masking, EQ and volume at the source. Make sure to label each instrument track in the editing software.
4. Tweak the tracks in the software's editing window. You can adjust the timing by dragging or adding silence. Make sure every track plays in sync before you add any effects to individual tracks.
5. Mix the tracks to stereo. Make sure to save the original file with all tracks intact in case you don't get the mix you want. Listen carefully to the playback before you export the finished file.

Tips & Warnings

• If you must record in stereo, capture the right and left separately with mono channels.
• If you can only record one or two channels at a time into your editing software, you will have to record tracks separately. Make sure to test your sound input each time you record, and play back the other tracks through a headphone while you play.
• Don't try to record and mix your song in one sitting. You will only make mistakes. Pace yourself and take breaks. Take a day off between recording and editing. You'd be surprised the mistakes you pick up when you aren't rushed.

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