Mix Separation Tips

General

• How to Create Space for All Instruments without Talking About Reverb / Delay etc.

• Remember, in Mastering there is Only 10% that can be Done to Make the Separation Sound Better, thus you Need to Address Instrument Separation in the Mix

Ideas

1) Set Priorities for Conflicting Passages

a) First Ask Yourself if Both Instruments are Needed at All at the Same Spot?

b) If Yes, Ask Yourself if Which Instrument is More Important at that Spot?

c) How Much the Less Important Instrument can be Attenuated in Terms of Frequencies and / or Level Automation in Order to Free Up Space for the More Important Instrument

2) Imagine a Stage that has Place for Only 4 People but you have 8 Instruments

• Bring More Clarity by Deciding Which People are Effectively Required on Stage Throughout the Song

• you can also Decide that the Main Vocalist is the Loudest on Stage and the Others Just Talk in the Background

3) Take Out Resonant Frequencies per Track, on Busses and in the Whole Mix with a Very Narrow EQ Band

• i.e. Heavy Resonant Frequencies (Especially in Higher Frequencies but also in the Low Bass Range) Cause Ear Fatigue Very Quickly and Occupy the Whole Mix

• These can also be Responsible for there Track to Rumble or Sound Ultra Harsh in a Club 

4) Layer Sounds Not Necessarily on 1

• i.e. if Possible Shift Layered Sounds Against Each Other so the Come at a Different Time

5) Compare Your Mix Against References and Listen Over Every Source you can

6) Use AI Capable Tools if You are Unsure Where a Problem Lies 

• i.e. Smart EQ / Gulfoss / Teote can Help You to Address Problem Frequencies

7) Listen to the Mix Very Quiet and You will Better Detect the Loudest Elements 

• then Turn Down the Level for Instruments that are Not Intended to be Heard that Much or Viceversa Bring Forth More Important Instruments in Volume

8) Do Proper Gain Staging

• Uncontrolled Pushes or Weak Gain Across Multiple Instruments will Lead to Problems

• Gain Compensate Changes (by EQ / Compression / Saturation etc.) in Order to have the Same Maximal Peak as Before the Module and for True A/B Comparison

9) Create Busses to Shape Groups of Instrument Further 

• i.e. Fine Tune Balance of Similar Instruments with EQ / Compression / Saturation etc.

• Glue Things Together

• Further Check and Correct Resonances Heard on Busses 

• you can also Add a Certain Flavour to a Group of Sounds, e.g. as if you Would Add a Special Filter to a Series of Images to Make Them Look Similar

10)  Proper Panning

a) Lower Frequencies Below 120Hz are Centred as Well as Lead Vocals

b) Risk Something in Panning Sounds, i.e. Do Not Just a Little but Start with Hard Left / Hard Right Positions and the Fill Gaps with 1 or 2 Parts on Each Side (But No More)

c) Especially if 2 Sounds Occupy the Same Frequency Spectrum Put 1 Left and 1 Right (while Instruments that Sit on Different Frequencies can be Panned Together)

d) Be Sure that the Energy Left vs Right is Well Balanced in Terms of Sounds that have Been Panned Left and Right (i.e. if Left has Far More Energy than Right it will Sound Strange)

e) Imagine Left and Right as 2 Parts you have to Tame and Balance Out Against Each Other

d) Do the Final Check of the Panning Result via Headphones and Actively Listen if Every Instrument of the Whole Song can be Heard Independently 

e) Experiment with Panning Automation Once Every Instrument has Enough Place, i.e. Move the Position of Elements in Time Especially for Background Stuff and / or Subtle Percussion Layers

11) Think in 3D, i.e. Sounds can be Placed:

Left to Right (Horizontal via Panning), i.e. 2D Panning

Front to Back (Ambience / Volume / Brightness), i.e. Ambience = Increase Pre Delay or Room Reflections and Make Instrument Sit in the Back, Brightness = Tricks Such as Higher = Closer

Bottom to Top (Vertical / Height) via Frequency Tricks, i.e. the Greater the Pitch of a Sound the Higher It Appears in Your Speakers, e.g. Piccolo and Bass can be Layered and Live at the Same Spot Without Obscuring Each Other that Much as the Piccolo Plays in the Higher Frequency Range and the Bass Plays in the Lower Frequency Range (i.e. the Bass Forms the Bottom and the Treble Forms the Height)

12) Reduce Width of Stereo Elements, i.e. the Narrower They are the Easier it will be to Find a Unique Place Where They Shine Trough, this will also Help to Maintain Mono Compatibility

13) Use Automation to Make Instrument(s) Pop Out at a Certain Spot

• i.e. at Different Points in the Song you will Want Different Parts to have Focus

14) Use Sidechain Compression to Unmask a Signal from Another

15) Avoid Reverb Tail Muddiness 

16) Try to Mix in Mono and Create Separation via Arrangement and EQ and then Panning 

17) Most Problems in Separation Appear in the Mid Range

• e.g. Fix the Mid Range Problems via Mixing Through a Single Avantone Speaker 

18) Free Up Space by Cutting Low End from Instruments that Surely Not Need Low End

• e.g. Start from 50Hz and Bring the Filter Up Until you Notice a Loss of Warmth, then Roll Back a Touch

19) Increase Clarity / Brightness for Instruments that are Effective Only in the Very High Frequency Spectrum but Reduce Clarity / Brightness on Supportive Tracks to Free Up Space