Techniques and chains
Whole chains: vocal chains, drum buses, kick and bass, mastering.
How to build a vocal chain
Build a vocal chain one plug-in at a time: high-pass, EQ cut, compressor, de-esser, saturation and tone EQ, in a working lab you can hear with your own voice.
How to set up a drum bus
How to set up a drum bus: routing in your DAW, then EQ, glue compression, saturation and a clipper in order, with starting settings and a lab you can play with.
How to mix kick and bass
How to get a kick and bass to share the low end: pick who owns the sub, tune the kick, carve with EQ and duck the bass with a short sidechain, in a live lab.
How to build a mastering chain
How to build a mastering chain: EQ, gentle compression, soft clipping and a limiter, in order, with a working chain that measures LUFS and true peak as you go.
How to order effects in a chain
What order should effects go in? Hear EQ, compression, drive and reverb swapped in a live chain, with measured results and a common order that works.
Signal flow in a DAW mixer
Signal flow is the order a sound meets every control on its way to the speakers. Follow a DAW mixer from trim and inserts to fader, bus and master in a live lab.
How to use reference tracks
Learn how to use reference tracks: pick them, match their loudness in LUFS, and compare low end and brightness band by band in a free interactive lab.
Mixing vs mastering
Mixing balances every track of a song; mastering finishes the stereo mix for release. Hear one bass fix done both ways in a lab that measures what each costs.
EQ before or after compression?
Should EQ go before or after compression? Cuts before, boosts after. Hear why in a lab that runs one EQ before, after, split or in the sidechain of a compressor.
How to make drums hit harder
Make drums hit harder with a transient shaper, slow-attack compression, parallel compression and clipping, with a live lab that measures punch on every hit.