Don't use the SSL Console as an excuse for not being able to mix 48 channels of analog. Even affordable analog consoles (e.g. Soundcraft Ghost) together with certain DAW plugins can achieve the same result nowadays. There are examples from Michael Wagener and Greg Wurth. I have also made this experience.
@@AudezeHQ it still seems like a major conflict of interest from the words coming out of his mouth as you see him sitting at a console with a computer monitor right between the playback monitors. Maybe could’ve picked a different studio? Or just temporarily moved the monitor for the shot. Just some thoughts.
Haha. This whole video is a contradiction. Funny. Personally, I like having it in front of me because of neck strain (I don't like looking left or right when I'm working). When I mix... I can close my eyes anyway... And the monitor (and everything else) disappears. But this guy has much more experience than I do, that's for sure.
I used to mix until I liked what I heard and then turn all the lights off, completely to that almost pitch black room and listen to the mix again. Always….ALWAYS… I’d discovered something new and interesting of my mix to polish or admire. It works when you limite your senses.
maybe when you would get up to turn off the lights you were giving some rest time to your ears. thats why you would catch different sounds after sitting down again and turning the mix back on. idk.
Except the screen flicker rate still messes with your eyes and the blue light from the screen makes your eyes tired. That's what bugs me about using the screen too much, i prefer not having to use it when it's not necessary. For me, i think it puts me in a different mind state and helps me focus more on the audio. Maybe it's just nostalgia but in the old days i used to wish i had everything on a computer screen i could control midi with, now i miss just using instruments and analog faders.
If I had a nice big analogue console and analogue outboard gear, I’d shove the monitor somewhere else too, but then my wallet gave me a reality check. Haha. But closing eyes is good advice.
Absolutely agree with this. It’s why I absolutely love when I can do all analog sessions. Which is how I do 90% of my own records. Of course, digital is a necessary component of all contracted sessions.
I agree with what Michael is saying. When you have your DAW open in front of you there is some portion of your brain that will inevitably be distracted with the visual components of your DAW. I find that when I need to do critical listening if I just minimize my DAW to where I'm only looking at a blank desktop my focus is shifted entirely to what I'm listening to.
The daw mixing makes any method of recording sound digital af anyways and as an outboard guy, I don’t like that. I love that thick analogy sound. Now making tracks with daws gives a a digital sound, but not mixing it leaves it wit somewhat of an analog sound as well so I like that.
This is so true, some times I see myself turning off my monitor screen and listening to the mix with my ears for a moment. This makes me feel like I'm inside the mix
Figured this out early as well. I often turn off my computer monitor (which is between reference monitors) during the mix process to just listen. You'll be surprised what you hear when you're not looking. Great advice!
thank you...I rollerskate for a living and pasttime,and long ago,I found a teacher who changed my whole perspective.One of the things he did was teach me something and then he would have me skate with my eye closed. Not around the rink,to do that movement,eyes closed. At first I thought he had lost his mind or was trying to make me injure myself,yet when I tried it,it was wonderful and so free.After that,I would DJ and turn the lights off,play the piano blind,and I found I connected. People have told me since then,when I was spinning vinyl, my mind left the room,like I was in a trance,and when skating I would not pay attention to anyone.So yes, when i am busy enjoying life,trying to express,trying to enjoy,trying to love,it's time to focus...
Each to their own! I come from the adage that tools change ! Some for the good some not so! Working out your own format and making things sound the way that you want is your call and your call alone! Ears are very very unique per person! Even in this digital age I still mix down onto 1/2 inch as well as other formats!
Exactly!!!! Same here. Lights off, eyes closed. It’s like you can see the soundscape when you close your eyes. It forces you to open your parts of the brain that are closed off when looking at the screen while mixing.
I learned to mix on a small analogue board, live, and always did micro-increments as the artists performed (and still do whenever I'm on FOH duty!). Transitioning to DAW mixing was 1000x easier after that. I now mix a whole show fore streaming within 2 days and the client's mind is blown at how fast I am. I only use Logic Pro native plug-ins and stay in the console view the vast majority of the time.
Watching the moving tracks in my DAW (with all the contents in it, like notes, effect curves, waveforms, etc.) while playing the song makes me feel (when hearing it in the monitors over and over) different again. It is different every time I play it and nothing seems to be right. The eye catches different parts of the project, jumping from left to right, and up-n-down, and the ear concentrates on different parts of the song (and different details which should be visually attached to it) every time, so it sounds different every time I play it. And the things which sounded fine before now seem to be "not quite all right"; and then again ... after a couple of minutes it somehow starts feeling right again (after double checking it with eyes closed), etc. So, yes, that's right. You cannot mix the entire thing with your eyes on the screen. The eye and the ear will keep distracting one another.
good idea! another one I wish to do more often is bounce out the mix. close the DAW and do a full listen. you can noodle around and visualy: turn off the sreen. experince the music, mix analysis or inspiration on what to do ? take notes. Or the classic: walk around the room, how amazing things pop up when you're "just linstening". cheers
I get what he's saying, and he makes a very good point. You just can't take it too literally. Maybe he would agree that it's best to use all your senses, eyes and ears individually and together.
This could be applicable to an old era engineer with high end analog gear. But even then I wonder how the massive console with its meters in front of you wasn't a distraction.
It easily could be. His opinion here is just bias. Every old school engineer has been complaining about needing to use computers and Pro Tools since that became the recording medium. Tape machines had all their own problems, mixing desks have their own problems. You just work with the tools you need and learn the benefits and costs. Nobody needs to mix without a monitor in front of them, they need to learn to do good mixes no matter what is happening around them.
@@mcoz747 He's right. In 1992, when I was setting up Southern Sky Recording Studio in Fort Oglethorpe, GA, we had ProTools version 1.0. I placed the computer and (huge CRT) monitor to the right, and below the plane of the speakers and my ears. I didn't do it to avoid distraction, I did it to avoid the disruption of the stereo image created by the speakers. And as for "old school engineers," do you mean those guys whose tools and techniques were so good that new engineers keep buying plugins that try to emulate them?
Some ppl lack in broad understanding. Of course he is talking about HIS experience with his console but this could apply to anyone. Even though Ive always been in the box, I now tend to start a mix eyes closed. Then, when I need to make changes, I open my eyes to do the editing, then listen again with eyes closed. When you’re engineering a mix, your ears are the main focus. In today’s age, it’s super easy to be distracted by everything. Even if you don’t have a mixing console, you can still apply the same techniques. Slow down, close your eyes & let your ears visualize it before your eyes examine it.
One could certainly put the monitor in a different location; and there are all kinds of different mounting brackets available, some that are even quite fancy, with boom arms that let you move the monitor out of the way with a light push, or that have ball joints that allow for a multitude of different viewing angles. They aren’t necessarily cheap, but they would work very well if you wanted to get rid of the monitor directly in front of you and between your speakers. Or (and I’m just throwing this possibility out there as another viable option), you could always just close your eyes while listening…
I also thought the same :)) In fact I was thinking proposing all DAW makers to include a function that makes the monitor totally dark what you re-listen to a mix.
A good option is to control the display brightness in the menu bar, turning it to zero when checking the mix. For some operating systems/screens this requires additional software.
@@a.t.hustle1583 Definitely, I adjust brightness to minimum frequently on phone - Should be implemented as an option for external monitors on desktops also.
He must be talking about when you have a mixing table, which is good, but for us mixing out of the box, the monitors are the core of what we do. We enjoy the visualization of sound.
Solid piece of advice! 👍 In addition to being a psychological distraction, a computer display also distorts the stereo image and frequency spectrum. I have set up my mixing display on an Ergotron arm, so it can be turned around and lowered behind the mixing desk if necessary. - Eero
Great suggestion, up to a point. If the video monitors are left or right, then you've some weird reflections on that side. How about if we just close our eyes when doing critical mixing. I spend a lot of time editing and setting up sessions/mixes and I want ergonomics!
yes the necessity of digital and recall for most of us working for hire means it's very hard to escape the screen, and let's be honest not many of us have the budget for a huge Avid controller to focus on instead! What I do fling the cursor into a corner that triggers the screensaver and that does the trick.
I agree with this philosophy but I find it a problem is since I'm working on the computer so much I'm getting all this audio in one ear. It's fine if you've got a huge desk in front of you and your using the computer as a tape machine but if your on it for long periods of time it doesn't work for me that I'm getting all the audio in one ear. Any obvious solutions?
I use the speaker switching on focusrite control to listen on monitors in my live room every so often while mixing. Gives me a chance to get up and stretch, grab a beer and hear it in another room away from my computer/monitor.
This is why I want to get a Faderport 16 channel mixer. Not completely the same as an analog mixer but at least I will have some tactile buttons/sliders to mess with rather than a mouse when mixing. I do miss having a physical mixer.
That’s his preference , personally I wouldn’t do this although I do have a few systems in my studio . I don’t have a massive console either mines 24channel . Because I mainly master these days I don’t need a console really buy it looks nice . Remembering when I worked on consoles and huge tape machines I am so grateful for the advances in daws and plugins , makes life easier . It’s your skillset that matters and experience working in other environments I was ex BBC so had a good grounding . If Michael likes to shut his eyes and listen thats cool personally I like to use all my senses in combination and sitting in front of my TWO monitors in my listening triangle is perfect for me . Peas and love people .
Hear hear! I've preached this for a decade - for composing. I think many get distracted from what their ears are telling them to change, even by a small screen on a synthesizer. You are supposed to turn away from the computer and turn to the instrument and focus on the instrument (or mixer, or looper, etc) and make the changes. It's much more fun and intimate to play the instrument rather than play some, look away, move the mouse, find the control, click and drag, yada yada, before you can play and adjust again just listening. Screens are a ball and chain on musical creativity...
I just set my speakers up 90 degrees to the right of my computer desk. So listening becomes a separate act where I'm spinning my chair to my right. Allows flexibility in room setup.
So get really expensive outboard gear and mix analog with analog faders so you aren’t on a screen as often instead of itb which is much more feasible. Got it 👍🏼
Well, that’s what I did, but I bought most of the outboard and even my tape machines broken so it wasn’t that expensive, a modest console (Soundcraft 2400) and I DIY’ed the rest. No computer monitor in my studio.
This is why we still cut many tracks to 2" Studer and use our SSL consoles for EVERY mix, no exceptions (not giving a **** whether they've gone out of style or not).
He didn’t mention how the video monitor can smear the phantom center at certain frequencies if placed in the wrong place centrally. But I certainly agree it’s best to not let your visual cortex interrupt the aural sense.
Exactly. We're all tempted to think with our eyes. Close your eyes and give them a rest, and your ears will guide you more correctly. We're already over-stimulated visually with screens and bad lighting :)
For all of you who didn’t listen to the whole thing he says “it’s [the monitor] to my left or to my right.” Just like this video! This was a test of your attention span, people!
I agree. I'm more paranoid about my mixes now I have a monitor than I ever did pre DAW days. I worry too much about what i SHOULD be doing rather than just listening to the actual mix...
things I’ve done instead: close your eyes, lower the laptop screen so you can’t see it, look at the floor or the wall, put headphones on and focus on an outboard unit, close all plugin windows while you’re not editing them, switch to a minimalist session view, don’t read the numbers on plugin settings while changing values, mix with 12db of headroom so you don’t have to stare at the meters
I have two big monitors, the waveforms on the left, and my mixer on the right one. So I kinda have to look at my mixer, because waveforms are way too far away, to look constant at those. and I play the mix always quiet and with my eyes closed, it's remarkable, what you hear with your eyes shut down, problems with instruments, and when I open my eyes, my mixer is there to adjust settings.
Say this to us who is creating EDM... 😄 Also when he said: "Monitor" i thought he was speaking of the studio loudspeaker behind him, as there were headphones layin' around as well. Would have made more sense. Im only mixing in phones: Sennheiser HD 660S. Removes most of the problems a "Monitor" can produce! 👍
@@Kevin_Carlson I record myself at home (use Reaper) and love Michael’s bus advice. Now I’ll double track guitar and bus the 4 tracks. Just doing that with no plugins sounds good to my ears.
I saw a video with Snoop Dog and he had his monitor on the desk in front of him slightly tilted up. It made sense to me as he could look up without distraction.
That's exactly my setup. 3 screens with the DAW to the left, my desk in the middle and two pairs of spreakers on a shelf right behind my desk. I whish I could mix like this. But!! ... I need at least 48 D/A converters for it to mix in analog. It's a money problem. This is so sad. Because mixing with real faders, turning the EQ knobs and just listen (not look) makes so much more fun.
I've encountered dozens of producers and sound engineers of today who say things like ''let me see the mix'' rather than let me hear it or ''you just have to see what's going on'' rather than hear what's going on. I agree, a monitor can distract you, so sometimes for me, I'll just close my eyes if I'm tweaking a few things and see if I'm really hearing any changes, as opposed to it just being a placebo effect.
I can accept that you have to turn it off sometimes in order to see if your eyes distract you during the visual thing of it, but people mostly listen to music with their eyes open so that is something I guess.
As soon as I get a 48 channel SSL console, I’m so going to do this 😂🤣
Don’t forget the zip up cardigan and I’d bet money he’s wearing brown shoes.
@@jeanmicheljarret6097 I’ll take any 48 channel console. I’m not fussy.
Don't use the SSL Console as an excuse for not being able to mix 48 channels of analog. Even affordable analog consoles (e.g. Soundcraft Ghost) together with certain DAW plugins can achieve the same result nowadays. There are examples from Michael Wagener and Greg Wurth. I have also made this experience.
@@NikolausBrocke not sure i actually said that 🤣
I want one of these old mainframe computers. Which could fill a whole building. I am oldskool like that. Ok, back to my mono tape recorder.
I guess that monitor in the video doesn’t count
This was not filmed in his studio, he was visiting NYC when we shot this interview.
Literally exactly what I was thinking.
@@AudezeHQ it still seems like a major conflict of interest from the words coming out of his mouth as you see him sitting at a console with a computer monitor right between the playback monitors. Maybe could’ve picked a different studio? Or just temporarily moved the monitor for the shot. Just some thoughts.
Haha. This whole video is a contradiction. Funny.
Personally, I like having it in front of me because of neck strain (I don't like looking left or right when I'm working). When I mix... I can close my eyes anyway... And the monitor (and everything else) disappears.
But this guy has much more experience than I do, that's for sure.
@@AudezeHQ yeah, I kept waiting for him to SHOW us the setup he uses. I guess we should close our eyes when we watch this vid, lol!
I used to mix until I liked what I heard and then turn all the lights off, completely to that almost pitch black room and listen to the mix again. Always….ALWAYS… I’d discovered something new and interesting of my mix to polish or admire. It works when you limite your senses.
Can I add this to my recipe?
or say limit your distractions ?
The senses you don’t use potent the one you have handy
I was just thinking the same the other day, there’s this guy who’s blind who produces and he’s good. All ear.
maybe when you would get up to turn off the lights you were giving some rest time to your ears. thats why you would catch different sounds after sitting down again and turning the mix back on. idk.
I agree. Music without visual can make a difference. A dark room is important in my opinion
Cmd + =
Switch to mixer view and we are back to the old school Michael!
Except the screen flicker rate still messes with your eyes and the blue light from the screen makes your eyes tired. That's what bugs me about using the screen too much, i prefer not having to use it when it's not necessary. For me, i think it puts me in a different mind state and helps me focus more on the audio. Maybe it's just nostalgia but in the old days i used to wish i had everything on a computer screen i could control midi with, now i miss just using instruments and analog faders.
If I had a nice big analogue console and analogue outboard gear, I’d shove the monitor somewhere else too, but then my wallet gave me a reality check. Haha.
But closing eyes is good advice.
Facts, closing eyes is something I do sometimes already but I need monitor lmao
Absolutely agree with this.
It’s why I absolutely love when I can do all analog sessions. Which is how I do 90% of my own records. Of course, digital is a necessary component of all contracted sessions.
I agree with what Michael is saying. When you have your DAW open in front of you there is some portion of your brain that will inevitably be distracted with the visual components of your DAW. I find that when I need to do critical listening if I just minimize my DAW to where I'm only looking at a blank desktop my focus is shifted entirely to what I'm listening to.
+ one!
Hate it when people say the mix doesn’t look right 😂😂😂
@@redtape2006 🤣🤣🤣 it's sounds great it just doesn't look right mmmkay
Usually, in the DAW i use at least, you have instrument or rack or mixer in front of you. So, no.
The daw mixing makes any method of recording sound digital af anyways and as an outboard guy, I don’t like that. I love that thick analogy sound. Now making tracks with daws gives a a digital sound, but not mixing it leaves it wit somewhat of an analog sound as well so I like that.
That’s why I mix blindfolded.
This is so true, some times I see myself turning off my monitor screen and listening to the mix with my ears for a moment. This makes me feel like I'm inside the mix
Cool. I dig the eyes closing thing. Makes your ears more sensitive. Thanks for posting this. You are a blessing
Best video I have seen on audio until now. It teaches you everything you need to know.
Great Brauer. Real pro
Figured this out early as well. I often turn off my computer monitor (which is between reference monitors) during the mix process to just listen. You'll be surprised what you hear when you're not looking. Great advice!
thank you...I rollerskate for a living and pasttime,and long ago,I found a teacher who changed my whole perspective.One of the things he did was teach me something and then he would have me skate with my eye closed. Not around the rink,to do that movement,eyes closed. At first I thought he had lost his mind or was trying to make me injure myself,yet when I tried it,it was wonderful and so free.After that,I would DJ and turn the lights off,play the piano blind,and I found I connected. People have told me since then,when I was spinning vinyl, my mind left the room,like I was in a trance,and when skating I would not pay attention to anyone.So yes, when i am busy enjoying life,trying to express,trying to enjoy,trying to love,it's time to focus...
Each to their own! I come from the adage that tools change ! Some for the good some not so! Working out your own format and making things sound the way that you want is your call and your call alone! Ears are very very unique per person! Even in this digital age I still mix down onto 1/2 inch as well as other formats!
Exactly!!!! Same here. Lights off, eyes closed. It’s like you can see the soundscape when you close your eyes. It forces you to open your parts of the brain that are closed off when looking at the screen while mixing.
One time, I closed my eyes and I could literally see the music as a 3D landscape flowing through me.
Loving this channel, found you from the Steven Wilson episodes! Going to come back for more of your videos now 👊
Truth. If I’m having trouble time aligning two parts I’ll close my eyes while listening. Helps a ton!
I learned to mix on a small analogue board, live, and always did micro-increments as the artists performed (and still do whenever I'm on FOH duty!).
Transitioning to DAW mixing was 1000x easier after that. I now mix a whole show fore streaming within 2 days and the client's mind is blown at how fast I am. I only use Logic Pro native plug-ins and stay in the console view the vast majority of the time.
Watching the moving tracks in my DAW (with all the contents in it, like notes, effect curves, waveforms, etc.) while playing the song makes me feel (when hearing it in the monitors over and over) different again. It is different every time I play it and nothing seems to be right. The eye catches different parts of the project, jumping from left to right, and up-n-down, and the ear concentrates on different parts of the song (and different details which should be visually attached to it) every time, so it sounds different every time I play it. And the things which sounded fine before now seem to be "not quite all right"; and then again ... after a couple of minutes it somehow starts feeling right again (after double checking it with eyes closed), etc. So, yes, that's right. You cannot mix the entire thing with your eyes on the screen. The eye and the ear will keep distracting one another.
yes. spot on. I just had a minor ephiphany reading through comments like this. Too many stimuli and too much psychology...you question every moment!
good idea! another one I wish to do more often is bounce out the mix. close the DAW and do a full listen. you can noodle around and visualy: turn off the sreen. experince the music, mix analysis or inspiration on what to do ? take notes. Or the classic: walk around the room, how amazing things pop up when you're "just linstening". cheers
That's a great looking monitor right there
I get what he's saying, and he makes a very good point. You just can't take it too literally. Maybe he would agree that it's best to use all your senses, eyes and ears individually and together.
Love the advice, thank you
I do this all the time…. I’m old…… started recording back in the days of analog tape before any computers were in the studio…..
This could be applicable to an old era engineer with high end analog gear. But even then I wonder how the massive console with its meters in front of you wasn't a distraction.
He said he mixes with his eyes closed, he's probably got the muscle memory to find his way around
It easily could be. His opinion here is just bias. Every old school engineer has been complaining about needing to use computers and Pro Tools since that became the recording medium. Tape machines had all their own problems, mixing desks have their own problems. You just work with the tools you need and learn the benefits and costs. Nobody needs to mix without a monitor in front of them, they need to learn to do good mixes no matter what is happening around them.
The blue light from the monitor does have an effect on you that could increase destructions.
@@mcoz747 He's right. In 1992, when I was setting up Southern Sky Recording Studio in Fort Oglethorpe, GA, we had ProTools version 1.0. I placed the computer and (huge CRT) monitor to the right, and below the plane of the speakers and my ears. I didn't do it to avoid distraction, I did it to avoid the disruption of the stereo image created by the speakers. And as for "old school engineers," do you mean those guys whose tools and techniques were so good that new engineers keep buying plugins that try to emulate them?
@sports fan Seems about right.
This was exactly what i was thinking today and yes somebody had said it in a video.🔥
Some ppl lack in broad understanding. Of course he is talking about HIS experience with his console but this could apply to anyone.
Even though Ive always been in the box, I now tend to start a mix eyes closed. Then, when I need to make changes, I open my eyes to do the editing, then listen again with eyes closed.
When you’re engineering a mix, your ears are the main focus. In today’s age, it’s super easy to be distracted by everything. Even if you don’t have a mixing console, you can still apply the same techniques. Slow down, close your eyes & let your ears visualize it before your eyes examine it.
Solid advice 👊
This is sooo true, esp looking at ParametricEQ or EQeight's frequencies instead of actually listening
i can feel that because when i off my screen it just feels way better and i dont get lost on some colours or anything .
One could certainly put the monitor in a different location; and there are all kinds of different mounting brackets available, some that are even quite fancy, with boom arms that let you move the monitor out of the way with a light push, or that have ball joints that allow for a multitude of different viewing angles.
They aren’t necessarily cheap, but they would work very well if you wanted to get rid of the monitor directly in front of you and between your speakers.
Or (and I’m just throwing this possibility out there as another viable option), you could always just close your eyes while listening…
Or y'know, just turn it off if people have zero ability to differentiate between stimuli.
I also thought the same :)) In fact I was thinking proposing all DAW makers to include a function that makes the monitor totally dark what you re-listen to a mix.
Wow this is so helpful Sir
thank u lots
Interesting viewpoint. Makes a lot of sense.
A good option is to control the display brightness in the menu bar, turning it to zero when checking the mix. For some operating systems/screens this requires additional software.
No doubt. My eyes were super trashed out last night and that's sittin at 5%. With blue blockers on my face.
@@a.t.hustle1583 Definitely, I adjust brightness to minimum frequently on phone - Should be implemented as an option for external monitors on desktops also.
Brilliant advice.
Eyelids, man. Best invention ever.
It’s a great point. Clear the periphery - or just turn the monitor off temporarily
Noted….Makes sense when you consider the focus should be on the ears not eyes…one less distraction😁💯
Exactly the reason I’m obsessed with finding the perfect crane laptop stand as opposed to a stationary one
I find this to help as well. Can even just use one monitor at times to get a good mono mix. One fat monitor with lots of frequency response.
He must be talking about when you have a mixing table, which is good, but for us mixing out of the box, the monitors are the core of what we do. We enjoy the visualization of sound.
Solid piece of advice! 👍 In addition to being a psychological distraction, a computer display also distorts the stereo image and frequency spectrum. I have set up my mixing display on an Ergotron arm, so it can be turned around and lowered behind the mixing desk if necessary.
- Eero
Great suggestion, up to a point. If the video monitors are left or right, then you've some weird reflections on that side. How about if we just close our eyes when doing critical mixing. I spend a lot of time editing and setting up sessions/mixes and I want ergonomics!
I plucked my eyes out for the last mix I did. I will never mix again but boy was it worth it. :)
yes the necessity of digital and recall for most of us working for hire means it's very hard to escape the screen, and let's be honest not many of us have the budget for a huge Avid controller to focus on instead! What I do fling the cursor into a corner that triggers the screensaver and that does the trick.
Makes a lot of sense. It’s all done for the ears anyway so put 100% into using the ears with no distractions.
I agree with this philosophy but I find it a problem is since I'm working on the computer so much I'm getting all this audio in one ear. It's fine if you've got a huge desk in front of you and your using the computer as a tape machine but if your on it for long periods of time it doesn't work for me that I'm getting all the audio in one ear. Any obvious solutions?
Very interesting !!
He's correct about it mostly because when you bounce your mix to aiff or mp3 you listen much diferently
Totally agree with you Michael
Thank you..
Thank you
True I just close my eyes for that effect
I agree. Computers are on one side of my office. Speakers plus mixer right behind me so "I can look at the sound through the speakers... "
Real interesting location for this interview
Good advice, that's why pros have support.
I use the speaker switching on focusrite control to listen on monitors in my live room every so often while mixing. Gives me a chance to get up and stretch, grab a beer and hear it in another room away from my computer/monitor.
I do the same thing!! You're the 1st person I've seen talk about this & it's vital
CLOSE YOUR EYES. GREAT ADVICE. WILL DO. THANK YOU
This is why I want to get a Faderport 16 channel mixer. Not completely the same as an analog mixer but at least I will have some tactile buttons/sliders to mess with rather than a mouse when mixing. I do miss having a physical mixer.
Closing your eyes when mixing 👌
Great advice. Trust your senses
I did what you said and now my neck is killing me! :)
That’s his preference , personally I wouldn’t do this although I do have a few systems in my studio . I don’t have a massive console either mines 24channel . Because I mainly master these days I don’t need a console really buy it looks nice . Remembering when I worked on consoles and huge tape machines I am so grateful for the advances in daws and plugins , makes life easier . It’s your skillset that matters and experience working in other environments I was ex BBC so had a good grounding . If Michael likes to shut his eyes and listen thats cool personally I like to use all my senses in combination and sitting in front of my TWO monitors in my listening triangle is perfect for me . Peas and love people .
Hear hear! I've preached this for a decade - for composing. I think many get distracted from what their ears are telling them to change, even by a small screen on a synthesizer. You are supposed to turn away from the computer and turn to the instrument and focus on the instrument (or mixer, or looper, etc) and make the changes. It's much more fun and intimate to play the instrument rather than play some, look away, move the mouse, find the control, click and drag, yada yada, before you can play and adjust again just listening. Screens are a ball and chain on musical creativity...
I have noticed this when doing my soundgym exercises. I knew i wasn't crazy lol
There’s always a compromise. Monitor on your side will reflect sound waves screwing the stereo image…
Because one size always fits all, 100% of the time. There is definitely a 100% best way to make music in all cases for all applications.
This is why film mixers and music mixers are from different planets. For film mixers, the screen in the center IS the focus.
Love his mixing on Dream Theater’s ‘The Score” live album. ❤
I just set my speakers up 90 degrees to the right of my computer desk. So listening becomes a separate act where I'm spinning my chair to my right. Allows flexibility in room setup.
So get really expensive outboard gear and mix analog with analog faders so you aren’t on a screen as often instead of itb which is much more feasible. Got it 👍🏼
Well, that’s what I did, but I bought most of the outboard and even my tape machines broken so it wasn’t that expensive, a modest console (Soundcraft 2400) and I DIY’ed the rest. No computer monitor in my studio.
This is why we still cut many tracks to 2" Studer and use our SSL consoles for EVERY mix, no exceptions (not giving a **** whether they've gone out of style or not).
He didn’t mention how the video monitor can smear the phantom center at certain frequencies if placed in the wrong place centrally. But I certainly agree it’s best to not let your visual cortex interrupt the aural sense.
Exactly. We're all tempted to think with our eyes. Close your eyes
and give them a rest, and your ears will guide you more correctly.
We're already over-stimulated visually with screens and bad lighting :)
For all of you who didn’t listen to the whole thing he says “it’s [the monitor] to my left or to my right.” Just like this video! This was a test of your attention span, people!
Great advice, if you want to keep production in the 80's.
It so funny, he tells you to get rid of your monitor while being right in front of his monitor. LOL
that was exactly what I was thinking about when I first watched the video lol
Clicked accidentally but this is solid advice. Thanks :)
I agree. I'm more paranoid about my mixes now I have a monitor than I ever did pre DAW days. I worry too much about what i SHOULD be doing rather than just listening to the actual mix...
things I’ve done instead: close your eyes, lower the laptop screen so you can’t see it, look at the floor or the wall, put headphones on and focus on an outboard unit, close all plugin windows while you’re not editing them, switch to a minimalist session view, don’t read the numbers on plugin settings while changing values, mix with 12db of headroom so you don’t have to stare at the meters
I always turn off my monitor and all lights and remain in darkness when I'm mixing. That changes everything to me
I have two big monitors, the waveforms on the left, and my mixer on the right one. So I kinda have to look at my mixer, because waveforms are way too far away, to look constant at those. and I play the mix always quiet and with my eyes closed, it's remarkable, what you hear with your eyes shut down, problems with instruments, and when I open my eyes, my mixer is there to adjust settings.
Say this to us who is creating EDM... 😄 Also when he said: "Monitor" i thought he was speaking of the studio loudspeaker behind him, as there were headphones layin' around as well. Would have made more sense. Im only mixing in phones: Sennheiser HD 660S. Removes most of the problems a "Monitor" can produce! 👍
You should be mixing using EarPods or a crappy cellphone speaker since that’s likely how your audience will be hearing your stuff.
I mix with earbuds and then switch to speakers 🔊 to hear the difference
Yet there you are with the monitor twix the speakers. Nice.
Oh, man! I just bought a new lava lamp 🤣
Kidding... Nice video. I need to test this out!
El gran Michael Brauer.
Put a painting between the 2 speakers. A huge one. Oil painting. 🖼️👨🏾🎨
This applies mostly when you’re mixing in a console
Love the monitor in front of Michael the entire time.
Technically, it was to his right the whole time.😊
@@Kevin_Carlson I record myself at home (use Reaper) and love Michael’s bus advice. Now I’ll double track guitar and bus the 4 tracks. Just doing that with no plugins sounds good to my ears.
I saw a video with Snoop Dog and he had his monitor on the desk in front of him slightly tilted up. It made sense to me as he could look up without distraction.
Saying that while in front of a monitor. Humm. What I say, "be unique and love what you do".
How does this work if the faders and knobs in the plugs are the only ones you have
Just wondering…what is that monitor doing in the center? Just wondering 💭
That's exactly my setup. 3 screens with the DAW to the left, my desk in the middle and two pairs of spreakers on a shelf right behind my desk. I whish I could mix like this. But!! ... I need at least 48 D/A converters for it to mix in analog. It's a money problem. This is so sad. Because mixing with real faders, turning the EQ knobs and just listen (not look) makes so much more fun.
I've encountered dozens of producers and sound engineers of today who say things like ''let me see the mix'' rather than let me hear it or ''you just have to see what's going on'' rather than hear what's going on. I agree, a monitor can distract you, so sometimes for me, I'll just close my eyes if I'm tweaking a few things and see if I'm really hearing any changes, as opposed to it just being a placebo effect.
"In front of YOU". agreed.
This good advice to me
I can accept that you have to turn it off sometimes in order to see if your eyes distract you during the visual thing of it, but people mostly listen to music with their eyes open so that is something I guess.