Mixing Tips (As many programs you can think of!)

What's the main mixing program you currently use? [Max of top 2 ; can vote for 2 at once]

  • Audacity

    Votes: 18 40.9%
  • REAPER

    Votes: 9 20.5%
  • Garageband

    Votes: 2 4.5%
  • Mixcraft

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • FL Studio

    Votes: 11 25.0%
  • Other (Tell Panda what it is so she can add a section for tips! :\'>)

    Votes: 4 9.1%

  • Total voters
    44

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
...Because you know what? I think instead of us all complaining how lazy most people are with just slapping things onto Audacity and not EQing etc and stuff, maybe we should compile a handy list of basic tools for lots of different programs? Maybe experienced (or at least semi-!) users with those programs can give pro's and con's to each program, list how to do basic EQing, compressing etc, list some handy VSTs for certain effects, link some already made videos on YT so you won't have to scramble everywhere wondering "Is this tutorial going to teach me how to do blaah?", comparing programs and anything else you can think of. C8

I'm only familiar with Audacity, not so much REAPER and am beginning to use Mixcraft! Everyone please correct me for anything I might make a mistake on with any programs. ; A ;

Basic List of Programs (More to be added) and DL / Costs
• Audacity (Free) http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/
• Reaper (Trial lasts for 30 days I think?) http://www.reaper.fm/download.php (Cost:???)
• Garageband??? (Comes with all Macs?)
• Mixcraft (Trial for 15 days) (http://www.acoustica.com/mixcraft/download.htm) (Cost Information : http://www.acoustica.com/mixcraft/)
• FL Studio (Trial never-ending, but you can't save a project) (http://www.image-line.com/downloads/flstudiodownload.html) (Cost Information: http://www.image-line.com/documents/flstudio.html)
• Adobe Audition CS5.5 (I can't find any links at the moment though..; v ;'' Sorry!)

Adding more empty replies just so they can be filled up later~! :wink: I shall edit in everyone's comments towards any program into empty slots!
 

Raven-Raspera

Momo's Minion
Yes, please, I'd love to have some mixing tips if anyone has any to offer. I try but something always feels off and it really bugs me. A thread like this is a really good idea!
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Audacity (Please mention which version you have) [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
(PandaLolii)
It's not a as sucky as a program as many people think, with the right effects, VSTs and some patience you can...wait for it, whooosh not always make bad mixes!! It's not the best..no way, but if you can control vocals, it's not awful. = v =b++
Really easy to work with (in my opinion) and quick too, so slapping on the check USTs or timing in general and stuff?? Yeah, it's really nice for that

Basics
Timing vocals - You can probably pull this off if you refer to the original (like check the seconds for the general area), follow the beat or align things accordingly with both karaoke and original as tracks in Audacity! 1.3 beta has hand snap on tools but by zooming in, you can more accurately align everything up! *V*
(Refer to basic tools for the zooming) (- Panda)

Import and Exporting
Importing Audacity files can be done by going to File> OPEN (or CTRL + O ), going through your folders and finding the file, select it and hit okay! Not that hard. C8 To import raw files, go to FILE > IMPORT (pick the one which is most likely audio) and select from then on. It can also be done both by dragging files from your folder. = v =b

Exporting
Once you're satisfied with your project, go to FILE > Export (Or Export selection just to get the highlighted area)
After, just pick the place, file name and type you want and you should be good to go. :wink: (Ex. MP3 file on your desktop~!)
A popup may show with things like "Artist: blank" etc and feel free to fill it in as you please! <3

The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels :uhuhu:)

Tracks
TBA

Basic Vocal Editing Tips

Equalization & Compressing
Audacity Compressor and Equalization

I am also too lazy to write up my own...

• Amplify

Useful Effects

• Echo
• Gverb
• Limiters
• Panning (I do this by hand..soo...not a plugin unless someone wants to contribute with that ; A ; )
• The "Radio" Effects - Quick note~ Try the High Pass Filter to get a basic one. 1.3 now also has presettings in the EQ that can give okay effects.. :'DD

Plugins + Effects +DL place
• Charsiesis (Screamo)
• T-Pain Effect (Autotune Effect)


No Category

Silencing
Really helpful when you get rid of part but not delete it and have allll the vocals shift over. Highlight the area and either go to GENERATE > SILENCE, or simply use CTRL + L. :wink:

• Splitting

• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
Just quickly! Go to VIEW > Show clipping :wink:

• Duplicating → CTRL + D

Etc. E v E;; lol Panda is getting lazy..I'll write up everything later. ; >
PANDA IS STILL LAZY SOB SORRY.
 
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PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
REAPER [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
Empty Still

Basics
• Timing vocals → Reaper has snap-ons? Adjust tempo helps...uhh. lol idk much else after that.
• Import and Exporting
• The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels? :uhuhu:)
• Tracks

Basic Vocal Editing Tips
• Equalization
• Compressing

Useful Effects
• Echo
• Gverb? does that exist on REAPER or is called something else
• Limiters
• Panning
• The "Radio" Effects

Plugins + Effects +DL place



No Category
• Silencing
• Splitting
• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
• Duplicating

I really don't use this. I have no idea what to put..XD
 
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PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Garageband [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
Empty Still

Basics
• Timing vocals
• Import and Exporting
• The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels? :uhuhu:)
• Tracks

Basic Vocal Editing Tips
• Equalization
• Compressing


Useful Effects
• Echo
• Gverb Equivalent?
• Limiters
• Panning
• The "Radio" Effects

Plugins + Effects +DL place



No Category
• Silencing
• Splitting
• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
• Duplicating

Never used this ever in my life. I'm not even 100% if it's a mixing program../shot
 
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PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Mixcraft [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
Empty Still

Basics
• Timing vocals - Mixcraft has snap-ons based off of notes (like quarter notes) and tempo. But you can turn it off. :wink: I'll make a screenshot later.
• Import and Exporting
• The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels? :uhuhu:)
• Tracks

Basic Vocal Editing Tips
• Equalization (Classic, Sony etc)
• Compressing (Classic, Sony etc)


Useful Effects
• Chorus
• Flanger
• Limiters
• Panning
• The "Radio" Effects

Plugins + Effects +DL place



No Category
• Silencing
• Splitting
• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
• Duplicating

I think you can also make karaokes/own compositions with this too?
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
FL Studio [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
Empty Still

Basics
• Timing vocals
• Import and Exporting
• The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels? :uhuhu:)
• Tracks

Basic Vocal Editing Tips
• Equalization → http://utaforum.net/index.php?topic=1534.0 by Cdra
• Compressing

Useful Effects
• Echo
• Gverb Equivalent
• Limiters
• Panning
• The "Radio" Effects

Plugins + Effects +DL place
• T-Pain Effect (Autotune Effect)
Parametric Eq 2 is great because it shows the frequencies visually, so when you have a parametric eq 2 on every audio channel you can have two of them side-by-side and make visual comparisons when equalizing (for example, if you're trying to balance a bass instrument with a bass-drum or an instrument in the mid range frequencies with singing)
(From taikina)
TAL UltraSimpleEq(a free vst so not fl-studio exclusive) in the main channel sometimes to nudge the song into a more clear-sounding or damp-sounding direction and to bring out bass.
(From taikina)
[[I guess really..just play around with the effects though. Taikina gave more of a description.XD;; But that's in the process of improving! *V* Playing around with it yourself~ No DL included.]]

No Category
• Silencing
• Splitting
• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
• Duplicating

I think this can make instr's too. o 3 o''
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Comparing Results Between Programs Leave a LINK to soundcloud, tumblr or anything else with vocals you've mixed with different programs but using fairly similar (recommended but not mandated) effects~ :uhuhu:

Please include the unedited wav withing the combo, the programs you used, the order they appear in your comparison, UTAU (or Vocaloid) you used, song, and maybe the effects you included? ; ) Presets you picked for the effects don't need to be mentioned but would helpful if you did. u v ub+++

If you feel one of the comparisons don't work well with showing the difference, you're free to make another comparison between them. No worries~ The more, the better you can tell!

---

Basic Comparisons
PandaLolii (I'm gonna do a Mixcraft vs Audacity..even though I'm not so great with Mixcraft haha)

Effects Comparisons
 

shinami

Procrastination Queen
Tutor
Supporter
Defender of Defoko
Ah, I'll try to help bby with this in depth later.

Just real quick though, the REAPER trial technically lasts 30 days but it still works in full after that - it just bugs you every time you open it to buy a license for it. And you only need that if you're producing music you'll sell commercially. It's free and fine.

Though, I don't know about helping too much now that I think about it, because I still use REAPER 3.98 or so and the latest version is 4.15 or so and I refuse to upgrade to the new look. :'D
 

Mr. Dark

Momo's Minion
I use Adobe Audition CS5.5. I'm not great at mixing but through trial and error I am becoming better. I use both a mixture of presets and manual edits inside of the tools for my mixing so it is difficult to make a guide to how I mix at present. I work with more than six or seven UTAUloid voices with a variety of musical styles and though some of my mixing habits are uniform for all voices I always must use different methods built atop to achieve a nice sound.

The only tips I can offer for Audition CS5.5 users that tend to work for all voices are the following presets that come with the program. I find these to make nice effects without having to alter them manually as much.

Amplitude and Compression > Tube Model Compressor > Voice Leveler
There is a Voice Thickener option there too if you need to strengthen up your vocals.

Filter and EQ > 20 Bands > Vocal Magic
Filter and EQ > 30 Bands > Lead Vocal or Background Vocal

Special > Vocal Enhancer > Male, Female, Music

For mastering there are a few presets and I tend to work with these.

Special > Mastering > Default [Manually Edit], Subtle Clarity [With manual edit]
Amplitude and Compression > Multiband Compression > Classical Master
Reverb > Studio Reverb > Mastering Reverb

There are Delay and Echo and Chorus/Flanger effects you can put but I don't find any of the presets in them nice so I nearly always manually edit any effect like that.

More nice presets that I use in varying ways are the ones found in Amplitude and Compression > Dynamics Processing. You can sort through which ones work for your mix.

If anyone has any good tutorials please show them to me. They are scarce on Youtube [Good ones].
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Ohh, lots of Audacity users..but that's predictable! PANDA SHALL TRY HER BEST TO INFORM ACCURATELY. ;V;

Added some Audacity (basic) information. DEFINITELY check out the EQ and Compressing, that's probably the most helpful!


@Shinamibby - Oh yes, I'm aware~! But regardless, I don't think we should really promote not supporting the creators by just using the trial.. ;v;''
AHH THANK YOU AND THAT'S OKAY BBY. People might be using your version anyway~ And also, the functions probably haven't changed ..thaaat much. :wink:

@Mr.Dark - I shall be adding that to our whole list..and a blank reply very soon I'm just so tired atm...haha! ;v; Thanks for sharing us your knowledge regardless. T V T)9
 

Ciel Phantomhive

Teto's Territory
I also use Audition 5.5, and these are the settings I use for all my songs:

Multiband Compressor > Raise Vocals
Speech Volume Leveler > Medium
Hard Limiter > Light
Tube-modeled Compressor > Vocal Booster
Vocal Enhancer > Male or female, depending on whether it's a masculine or feminine voice. (If the voice has clarity issues, though, male usually clears it up a bit better than female does.)

And then Mastering.
Mastering is an absolute BAMF for boosting clarity if you know how to use it.
Most of the presets, however, won't do much for you.
Here's a comparison of a bit of a song using all the above effects plus Mastering > Subtle Clarity, which is what Mr. Dark suggested, and the same bit with a manually made curve.
http://www.4shared.com/music/b9G3PTlj/MASTERING.html

This is what my setting looks like, so y'all can use it and make your voices sound all pretty and clear~
http://i.imgur.com/EjuYa.png
 

taikina

Momo's Minion
• FL Studio (Trial never-ending, but I believe you can't render anything?)
A correction: actually, last i checked, fl-studio demo version is fully functional except you can't SAVE a project, you can render it to mp3/wav/ogg though. I used the demo for many years so i still sometimes do quick practice compositions from start to finish in one sitting, lel. :sing:

Anyway: mixing is basically the same with any tool, so my tip is to read about equalization, filters and what-such, how they exactly work and where they should be used etc. When you see a term that you don't understand, google/youtube it.

in fl-studio the Parametric Eq 2 is great because it shows the frequencies visually, so when you have a parametric eq 2 on every audio channel you can have two of them side-by-side and make visual comparisons when equalizing (for example, if you're trying to balance a bass instrument with a bassdrum or an instrument in the mid range frquencies with singing)
I also use TAL UltraSimpleEq(a free vst so not fl-studio exclusive) in the main channel sometimes to nudge the song into a more clear-sounding or damp-sounding direction and to bring out bass.
 

Dark3li

Teto's Territory
I use sony vegas 7 for mixing xDD you can add a lot of effects with it
I just use Audacity for recording my utau's voicebank
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
@taikina - Ahh, I was very close then. XD I'll change that now!
And thanks for sharing what you know! I'll be sure to add your notes~

@Dark3li - :uhm: Woaah, I didn't know you could add effects too. XD Do you mind showing a few screenshots? ;v;'

Updates → Added something for Audition..just..too lazy to organize unnfff. I hope people can just settle with reading others comments. 8'D I might add one for Sony too. :wink:
 

PandaLolii

Teto's Territory
Defender of Defoko
Thread starter
Adobe Audition [WIP] (Also explain some uses could be helpful instead of making a mini tutorial of it is helpful. :'D Please leave all pictures and videos as links so I can reapply them. u v u)

General Critique (I shall leave who wrote it's name or alias beside it~)
Empty Still

Basics
• Timing vocals
• Import and Exporting
• The Basic buttons (Screenshot with labels? :uhuhu:)
• Tracks

Basic Vocal Editing Tips
• Equalization
• Compressing


Useful Effects
• Echo
• Gverb Equivalent?
• Limiters
• Panning
• The "Radio" Effects

Plugins + Effects +DL place



No Category
• Silencing
• Splitting
• (Checking for and Fixing) Clipping
• Duplicating

Check Mr.Dark's and Ciel's replies for now..XDD;;;
 

Cdra

possibly dead
Global Mod
Supporter
Defender of Defoko
FL Studio is my primary mixing tool NOW, but I'm quite familiar with Audacity.  So... let's see what I can cover.  Parametric EQ 2 is definitely awesome, but you got that *w* (it's basically the best way to equalize in FL owo)

COMPRESSING:  There are like... a million ways to compress in FL.  I'll share mine.  I use Fruity Limiter's "compression" option (rather than "limit") and turn off the purple and green waveforms, then turn the "threshold" nob so that it's about halfway up the now-blue envelope waveform thing (while the track is playing).  Then I turn the ratio to somewhere between 2:1 and 6:1, depending on the voice.  Higher ratios mean the voice is more compressed, which may make it sound bad, but for vocalists will really inconsistent volume, it'll work magic.  Then I use the "gain" knob to get the volume where I want it.

EFFECTS:  Oh my, FL has some effects.  I'll just talk about some that I like.
-Maximus: I don't know exactly what to do to this, but good lord it makes voices sound so much clearer owo
-Fruity Reeverb: Adds reverb or echo effect.  A little of this is good for any song, but be gentle with it.  I usually turn the reverb down to more like 10-15% and the decay down a bit too, but play with the other settings if you feel like it.  I do~
-Fruity Chorus: Adds a chorus effect, so it sounds like multiple singers are going.  Be really careful with this effect; it's hard to get right, and doesn't sound good sometimes.  But, you can add it to get a more musical effect.  I usually keep the intensity of it really low when I use it.
-Blood Overdrive: A tiny dose of this makes the voice sound really cool, but only in certain songs.
-Fruity Flangus: Adds a real effect-y sound.  Honestly I have no idea how to describe what this does, or where to use it.  I abused it for HFAVHP...

Err, and FL has so many more effects and downloadable VSTs and such.  That's just a few of the more useful ones that I know of, I guess.


And now for some comparisons.  I have a ton because I recently started re-mixing things I had done with Audacity in FL when I learned to use it 8D;;

Audacity:
[UTAU] Hurting for a Very Hurtful Pain [Soledi Renje + Tanoru Hareto] + VOICEBANK
FL Studio:
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/cdra167/hurting-for-a-very-hurtful[/soundcloud]

Song: Hurting for a Very Hurtful Pain by EFZG
.ust: myst
UTAU: Halt Tanner VCV and Soledi Renje CV VC

I actually used a lot of the same effects for these (reverb, overdrive, compress+EQ, phaser), but FL has more and better ones (so you'll hear flangus, stereo enhancer, maximus, and fruity squeeze in it).  I'm going to change the phaser on that second one (in the intro and outro of the song), but the demo works the same.

Audacity:
http://www.box.com/s/e74qeiey9i1qkl8iqg80
FL Studio:
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/cdra167/kina-no-kaori-halt-tanner-and[/soundcloud]

Song: Chinchona's Fragrance ~Tribulations of Love!~
.ust: scarfu
UTAU: Halt Tanner VCV and Stacy CV

I didn't do a lot of effects, but man they make a difference.  Mostly better compress+EQ, but I think there's maximus, reeverb, and... maybe something else here.

Audacity:
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/cdra167/utau-english-halt-halt-super[/soundcloud]
FL Studio:
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/cdra167/halt-halt-super-fever-night[/soundcloud]

Song: Neko Neko Super Fever Night by Samfree
.ust: Sango312
UTAU: Halt Tanner VCVVC Confident

Again, very few effects, but...yeah.  A little reeverb, a little chorus, and way better EQ+compressor.

Audacity:
http://www.box.com/s/jc245o8sapdph6l7pmoj
FL Studio:
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/cdra167/him-hal-tanner-genderbend[/soundcloud]

Song: HIM by Cien
.vsq: Cien
UTAU: Hal Tanner CV VC English (genderbent from Halt)

I killed both of these with effects... but the superior mix is clear.  The FL one is just FULL OF CHORUS AND REEVERB xD and a few other things, I forget.
Audacity:
http://www.box.com/s/mzdg73bapmz2nffmg0gi
FL Studio:
http://www.box.com/s/t62zx7qc9dq0862m92op

Song: Fennec by Lauren (Utaureni)
.ust: Lauren
UTAU: Halt Tanner VCV

No effects on the audacity one.  The only effect on the FL one is a tiny reeverb.

Oh!  And here's a fun one for Audacity:
-Leveller:  This weird little effect usually makes voices sound stupid, but a little bit of it can make them sound intense and a little distorted.  It can be used to basically create an overdrive effect if you apply it with -50, heaviest and then -35, heaviest.  If you use something like -40, light on some voices, you'll get a little distortion but not too much.
(I used this on the Audacity mix of HFAVHP, with the light distortion on Soledi (high voice) and the heavy overdrive-distortion on the breakdown.)

8D;; I'm planning to make an actual tutorial about this sometime...
 

shinami

Procrastination Queen
Tutor
Supporter
Defender of Defoko
Cdra's efforts have inspired me. I think I might make a REAPER video tutorial myself. I'm not an expert but I know the basic essentials. And the layout of my older version is similar enough - it all functions the same, it's just organized differently.

With approval from UO, I'll try and do it this week, this weekend at the latest. ouo
 

Dark3li

Teto's Territory
yey!! :D it looks like this

sony.png

but I just use some of those effects lol

I have FL studio too but I don't know how to use it very well
 

stormylullaby

Always Watching You
Global Mod
Supporter
Defender of Defoko
I'd just like to add that if you're on a Mac, the Audacity for Macs has a LOT more useful features & effects that were designed by Apple themselves.

I'm still messing around with them, seeing how they work, so I'll update as I learn, for any tips :3

Also, I'm forcing myself to learn Garageband, because it really is a wonderful music program, but my knowledge is limited now. I'll add some tips & tricks when I've learned more ^^
 

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