To give you an idea of how a track can benefit from mixing and mastering, check out this recent track by Odd One Out. The first section is a cut from the original premaster. The second section is my mixdown premaster. The third is the final master courtesy of mastering engineer, Rob Small.

For the purposes of this bounce, I've gain staged all three mixes to as close to 0db without clipping.

As premaster mixes go, this one was actually not too far from the mark and didn't require any drastic surgery. If you listen to the first section, you will notice the original sounds muddy. There is a lot of rumble in the low end, where there should be a clearly definable kick and bass and the vocals aren't coming through the way they should. This can lead to problems on loud systems as although the vocal is audible on headphones/monitors, it might disappear in a club or festival.

On my mixdown the most notable changes  you can hear are: 
 
- there is more separation  between the bass and kick after some EQ treatment and compression. 

- The hats in the original were overpowering the mix so these were brought down in volume and some harsh frequencies were tamed to allow them to sit better in the mix.

- The vocals were boosted and compressed to allow them to take centre stage in the track. 

- The drums were compressed and EQ'd to make them snap better in the mix. 

-  A couple of different parallel compression tricks were added to thicken up the mix and various saturation, harmonic exciter, overdrive and tape plug ins were were used to allow various elements to be better defined in the mix.

* please note no compression or limiting was added to the master channel of my mixdown. This is standard practice for the mix engineer as it is up to the mastering engineer to make the track sound appopriately loud.

As you can hear from the master, Rob Small has then compressed and limited the track and applied various mastering methods to ensure the final track sounds loud (but not excessively so) and bright with an appropriately strong low end and a balanced stereo image. 

As  you can hear from these examples, applying these various stages to your track can help give it the extra twenty per cent it needs to sound like a professionally recorded piece of music. 

Whether you're a novice or a veteran, handing your track over to a  mix engineer can allow someone with fresh ears to identify problems or mistakes that you might not be able to spot. As we work on our own music, our ears tend to shut off to problems that may be more easy to identify for a first time listener. If you're working in an untreated acoustic space or in headphones, your listening conditions may be confusing how you hear the different frequencies in your track leading  you to mix  and EQ certain elements inaccurately. 

A muddy low end is an extremely common mix issue that I frequently come across and is almost always a result of the producer's acoustic environment regardless of their experience.

If you'd like to know more about my mix or additional production services, contact me at info@herlingengineering.com

This track appears on this page with the permission of Nite Moves and the artist OddOneOut. Please see the buy link above if you'd like to get a copy. 

For info about Rob Small's mastering:  http://robsmallmastering.com/

3 Stages Of A Track: What Mixing and Mastering Can Do For Your Music

Gavin Herlihy - Reality Cheque (Leftroom)

Gavin Herlihy - Get Loose (Leftroom)

Karousel - Unstrung (Illusion Recordings)

VRSION - Vibration - (The Nothing Special)

Released as part of the Care4Life compilation in June 2020. 

An unprecedented array of electronic music artists came together to create a 45 track collection of exclusive music, donated 100% for free with all proceeds going to official fundraising partner, NHS Charities Together. 
In their next round of funding, they are currently working to provide,  additional support they feel is most urgently needed by NHS staff, volunteers and patients in their area, with a particular focus on support for people who are disproportionately affected by the Covid crisis, such as patients and staff from the BAME communities and other groups including those living with disabilities.

Thanks to Above Board distribution for putting this together and please support this excellent cause by  buying the music.

 #care4life2020 #NHScharitiestogether

Laura Jones & Karousel 'NO Borders'

Herling Engineering is a mixing and engineering service from Gavin Herlihy. As a producer and mix engineer with releases on some of the world's biggest house and techno labels, his discography includes EPs and singles on Cocoon, Crosstown Rebels, Infuse, Cadenza, Leftroom and Culprit. He has engineered Top 10 Beatport genre tracks (including a number one Deep House track) as well as written music for vinyl only labels. Today he works as a mix engineer, music producer and consultant, working across a range of styles, from hard techno to disco, tech house and electro to minimal house, to  help artists to get the best out of their productions. 

Info@herlingengineering.com

Herling Engineering

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