The 12 Rules Of Mixing 1

Welcome To The 12 Rules

Of Mixing
I’ve distilled my years of mixing experience into 12 simple rules
that hopefully will immediately help your mixes.

Certainly everything you need to know isn’t covered in this ebook,

and even some of the following rules can be contradicted by a
particular situation, but I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with
the results if you give them a try.

Nothing replaces experience, of course, and it’s totally true that the
more you mix the better you’ll get at it. It also helps to know the
fundamentals and techniques that go beyond these 12 rules
before embarking on any mix (Hopefully you’re learning these
already at BobbyOwsinskiCourses.com or one of my webinars or
workshops).

Either way, follow the rules, take what works for you and leave the
rest (but I think you’ll find that all of them work).

Keep your ears open, listen to everything you can, and try every
trick you learn in a live mix.

So this and your journey to excellent mixes may be a lot shorter

than you expect.

Bobby Owsinski

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 2

 Rule #1
Tighten Up Your Listening Area

You Can’t Mix It If You Can’t Hear It!

Without having to acoustically treat your room (which should always come first
if you can), here are a few simple things that you can do to instantly improve
the performance of your playback system. Best of all, it won’t cost you a thing!

• Avoid placing the speakers up against a wall. This usually results in

some strong peaks in the low frequency response. The further away you
can get from the wall, the less it influences the frequency response of
your monitors and the smoother that response will be. Figure an
absolute minimum of twelve inches, although more is better.

• Avoid the corners of the room. Even more severe than the wall is a
corner, since it will reinforce the low end even more than when placed
against a wall. The worst is if only one speaker is in the corner, which
causes the response of your system to be lopsided on the low-end
towards the speaker located there.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 3

 • Avoid being closer to one wall of the room than the other. If one
speaker is closer to one side wall than the other, once again you’ll get a
totally different frequency response between the two because of phase
and reflection issues. It’s best to set up directly in the center of the room
if possible. Symmetry is essential to keep a balanced stereo image with
a stable frequency response in the room. That means that your sweet
spot will be in the exact center of the room if the speakers are exactly
the same distance from each side wall. While it may seem tempting to
set up some other way, acoustically you could be asking for trouble.

• Avoid different types of wall treatment. If one side of the room

contains a window and the other is drywall, carpet or acoustic foam,
once again you’ll have an unbalanced stereo image because one side
will be brighter sounding than the other. Try to make the walls on each
sides of the speakers the same material.

• Isolate the speakers. Speakers mounted directly on a desk or console

will defeat the purpose of much of the acoustic treatment. Mark the
position of the speakers with masking tape, and mark the position of one
inch increments up to
six inches either way Isolators to check out include:
from the wall so you
don’t have to remeasure • Pyle PS104
in the event that you
• Prime Acoustic RX-7 Recoil Stabilizers
have to move things.
Exact distances are • Auralex MOPADS, PROPADS
critical, so always use a
tape measure because • Iso-Acoustics Orea Isolations
even an inch can make
a big difference in the sound.

• Set up your monitors properly. That means that the tweeters should
be at ear level, and in most cases, facing to the outside if placed
horizontally. Also be sure that the parameter controls of each speaker
are set the same if the monitors are powered.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 4

 Rule #2
Refer To A Reference Mix

You Need Something

To Compare Your Mix
To As You Go Along

Why Use A Reference Track?

• You need a reference point for your
ears in terms of balance and timbre.

• You need something to compare

your mix to.

• Itcan reset your ears when you

become unsure of your mix direction.

• Not using a reference track usually

means a longer mix, and sometimes
having to do it over again.

Where To Fnd Hi-Res Tracks

• Qobuz The Ideal Reference
• HDTracks Track Is. . .
• ProStudioMasters •Something that you know
very well
• Acoustic Sounds
•Something that you can tell
Be sure to use a FLAC, AIFF, WAV, DSD, when the sound changes
ALAC or MQA file from speaker to speaker, or
it just doesn’t sound right

• Can either be one of your mixes or just a track that you love
• The higher the quality, the better

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 5

 How To Use A Reference Track
1. Choose something that you know extremely well.

2. Don’t use a track just because someone else uses it

3. Use several tracks with different characteristics

4. Listen to it before you begin to mix

5. Compare your mix to it during your mix

Use This Track Comparison App

• ADPTR Audio Metric AB app
• Compare mixes with 1 button click
• Have up to 16 ref tracks instantly available
• Set levels so mix and ref are the same
• Set look and cue points
• Analysis and metering modes

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 6

 Rule #3
Set The Proper Levels

Incorrect Gain Staging Can Make Your Mix

Muddy And Lose Power

Gain staging is more important than you think!

Get it wrong and your mix could lack clarity and power, and chances are you’ll
blame that on something else. Observe the following to stay out of trouble.

• No overloads! If there’s an overload indicator lit anywhere in the

signal path, back off the input of the stage, or output of the previous
stage until it’s no longer lit. This applies to the channel input, output,
and all plugins!

• Start with a 0dB setting. This includes fader, plugin, subgroup and
master. You can tweak as needed from there.

• Use 2 plugins instead of 1 that’s driven hard. For example, it will

sound better with 2 of the same plugins adding 3dB of compression
each than 1 adding 6dB (if clean is what you’re going for).

• Have As few faders above the master as possible. Always keep

the individual channel faders lower than the master or group fader to
maintain headroom. This will result in a cleaner sound and a more
powerful mix.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 7
 Rule #4
Listen At The Right Levels

Listen At 3 Levels For Best Balance

Select 3 and only 3 playback levels and always use them. Most speakers
don’t have a consistent frequency response at multiple levels so it’s best to
choose 3 levels, mark them on your controller, and always use them.

The 3 levels are loud, medium, and whisper level.

• The loudest level is for adjusting the low end balance. It’s only
needed for a few minutes at the beginning of the mix, and to check at the
end.

• Mid-level is a comfortable working level and is used for most of the

mix. If set too loud your ears will fatigue and the amount of time that you
can work will diminish.

• Whisper level is as quiet as you can listen. It will tell you the final
balance and reveal deficiencies in the mix. A normal conversation should
drown out this level.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 8
 Rule #5
Get The Vocal In The Mix As Soon As You Can

Build The Mix

Around The Rhythm
Section And Vocal
1. Work on the vocal or lead
instrument as soon as
possible. Make sure it has the
sound you want before you move
on to the other tracks in order to
make sure there’s space for it in
the mix.

2. Get the vocal or lead

instrument in the mix as soon
as possible. If you add it to the
mix right after the rhythm
section, the vocal will always
stay at the forefront of the mix and never be buried since you’re building the
mix around it.

3. Reference against the vocal or lead instrument with every change.

Every change to every track needs to have a listen against the vocal to be
sure it’s not masking it.

4. Make sure the vocal or lead instrument isn’t masked by another track.
See above.

5. The proper mix level for the vocal or lead instrument is different for
different genres of music. For example, pop music has the vocal very
forward in the mix while rock has it behind the rest of the band to help the mix
sound more powerful.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 9
 Rule #6
Make Your Compressors Breathe With
The Track

Your Mix Will Have More Power If All

Compressors Pump At The Same Time
General Tips
1. Place the compressor first in the signal chain. Any EQ or effects should
come after so that the compressor isn’t triggered by them.

2. The lower the compression ratio, the more punchy the sound. Ratios of
1:5:1 or 2:1 work best on drums and percussion.

3. A ratio of 10:1 or higher is considered

limiting. True limiting is usually used to
prevent overloads or to keep the signal
extremely steady, but it might not be the
sound that you want.

4. The higher the ratio setting, the more

likely you’ll hear the compression work.

5. Setting the attack and release is key.

Default settings can work, but setting the
attack and release to the track works best.

Setting Up The Compressor

1. Start by setting the attack time as slow as it will go and the release as fast
as it will go. This is the starting point.

2. Decrease the threshold until the meter shows compression, then increase the
attack time until the sound just begins to get dull. Back it off a little at that point.

3. Adjust the release time so that the volume goes back to about 90% after
the initial hit and before the next hit. Use the snare to determine this. The idea
is for the compressor to breathe with the track.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 10
 Rule #7
Use The High-Pass Filter

Your Mix Stays

Clean By Using
This Simple Tool

The more instruments in the mix, the smaller each one has to sound in
order to fit. There’s only so much room in the mix sonically speaking, and
making each track smaller means they’ll all fit. On the other hand, if there’s
only a few mix elements, then they have to sound larger to fill the mix space.

That’s one of the uses for the high-pass filter.

Remember that:

• Most tracks benefit from using a HPF.

• It eliminates rumble and noises that add nothing to the sound. These can
muddy the mix, especially with a lot of tracks combined.

• Set at 40Hz and below for bass, kick and floor tom.
• Set at 80 to 100Hz or even higher for other instruments (much higher for
high hat, tambourine and shakers, for instance).

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 11

 Rule #8
Solo At Least 2 Mix Elements Together
When EQing

You Can’t Be Sure A Mix Element Will Fit In

The Mix By EQing It On Its Own

EQing a mix when soloed will usually result in a mix element that sounds
good on its own, but doesn’t fit into the track.

The best way to overcome that is to do most of your EQing while listening to
another track that has a similar frequency response. That way you’ll be able
to tailor your EQ so they’ll both fit into the track and live happily together.

You’re not done yet though.. .

EQing requires an almost round-robin procedure when you’ll solo on track

against every other just to make sure that no frequencies are clashing. If you
find a clash, it’s time to fix it with some EQ.

PLEASE NOTE: Sometimes a track that fits perfectly in the mix will sound
horrible when it’s soloed.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 12

 Rule #9
Cut Before Boosting The EQ

You’ll Have Fewer Frequency Clashes And

The Mix Will Go Faster Too
General Tips
1. Use a narrow Q when cutting and a wide Q when boosting. Cutting is
usually more surgical, while a wide Q usually sounds better when boosting.

2. Roll off the bottom if you want a

sound to stick out. This could be any
frequency from 100Hz up to 500Hz.

3. Roll off the top if you want it to

blend in. This could mean anything
from 10kHz down to 4-5kHz.

4. The more instruments in the mix,

the smaller each one has to sound
in order to fit. There’s only so much
room in the mix sonically speaking,
and making each track smaller means
they’ll all fit. On the other hand, if there’s only a few mix elements, then they
have to sound larger to fill the mix space.

Differences Between Boost And Cut

1. Cut to make things sound better. Subtractive EQ is very powerful and
often overlooked.

2. No phase shift is introduced via cut. Phase shift makes things sound
unnatural. On most EQs, the more you boost, the more phase shift that’s
added (although sometimes that’s just the sound you want).

3. Boost to make things sound different.

4. Use a combination for definition.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 13
 Rule #10
Time Your Delays And Reverbs To The
Tempo Of The Track

You’ll Make Your

Effects Blend
Into The Track
Easier

Effects that don’t blend into your mix can be more than frustrating. You can
end up adding too much, which will wash everything out. Or not enough,
which will make things sound too dry or lack the glue you’re looking for.

These tips will definitely help.

General Effects Tips

1. Smaller reverbs and short delays make things sound bigger; long delays
and reverbs push things back in the mix. Reverbs under 1 second and delays
under 50ms make things sound bigger.

2. If delays are timed to the track, they’re not as noticeable. Timed delays
tend to blend in with the mix unless played at a loud level.

3. Reverb sounds smoother when timed to the track. That means both the
predelay and the decay settings.

4. Don’t be afraid to layer effects. Often the right sound comes from multiple
effects used simultaneously.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 14

 Timing Delays To The Track
1. Determine the song’s tempo. Most DAWs allow will allow you to tap in the
tempo if it’s not already known.

2. Set the delay for “synch.” This automatically syncs the tempo of the track to
the delay.

3. Use short delays for a bigger sound. Delays under 50ms can make the
track sound larger without hearing the
delay repeats.

4. Try triplet and dotted denominations. The Secret To Getting

These tend to add “glue” to the track
and won’t necessarily be heard if
synched to the tempo of the track.
5. Not too many repeats. 2 or 3 are
usually sufficient. Too many can make
the track muddy.
Timing Reverbs To The Track
1. For predelay: Find the tempo of the
track, then select a delay time less
than 100ms. If the lowest delay time is
more than 100ms, divide by 2 until you
get a predelay time below 100.
Effects To Fit
1. Place an EQ before the effect in the
signal path. This shapes the sound
before it enters the effect, which sounds
different than if placed after the effect.
2. Attenuate the low end. Cutting the
low end with a high-pass filter makes
the effect smaller so if doesn’t get in the
way of the main track. Cut at anywhere
from 100Hz to 600Hz.
3. Attenuate the high end. This makes
the effect less obtrusive. Use a low-
pass filter set anywhere from 10kHz
down to 2kHz.

2. Predelay times between 20 and 4. Cut as low as 2kHz if clashing with

40ms are the most common. When in the vocal or drums. You can add lots of
doubt, pick one in this area. effect if the high end is cut at this point.

3. To time the decay, solo the snare

and send to reverb.

4. Set the decay so it almost dies out on the next snare hit (or two). This point
may be different for each reverb type, so a decay time setting on one can’t be
applied to another.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 15

 Rule #11
Mix Into Your Mix Buss Compressor

Insert Any Master Buss

Processing Early In The Mix
Master buss processing is almost a fact of life these days
but be aware that a little goes a long way!

Also, don’t assume that adding buss processing is

mandatory. Try mixing without any processing. Sometimes it
sounds better.

1. Use a compressor for level and a limiter for overload

control. The compressor boosts your perceived level, while
the limiter stops it from overloading the mix buss. Set the
limiter to -0.1dBFS.

2. This should add “glue” to the track (make the tracks fit
together better). Be sure to listen with and without it at the
same level to be sure that it’s truly giving you what you
want.

3. Several compressors may be used to get the right

sound. Different compressors provide different sounds, so
don’t be afraid to use several.

4. The limiter is always last in the signal path. In order to

prevent overload, always place it last in the signal path after
any other processors.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 16

 Rule #12
In Mastering, Less Is More

If You Have To Add A Lot Of Processing You’re

Better Off Remixing

Mastering is the process of fine-tuning the level, frequency balance, and

metadata of a track in preparation for distribution.

The processing tools that are widely available to anyone today at a

reasonable price are so powerful that they may make your project sound
worse instead of better if used improperly.

Therefore, the less you use the more likely the better your project will sound!

This is what professional mastering engineers do, adding a surprising small

amount of processing to get big results. The trick, of course, is now when and
where to apply those amounts.

If you find yourself using more than 3dB of any processor, chances are you
need to go back and remix!
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 17
 Mastering Differences
A professional mastering engineer. . .
• has an excellent sounding precision listening environment
• has vast experience will all types of music both good and bad
• adds very little EQ and compression to the final master
Doing Your Own Mastering
Follow these 6 steps for self-mastering:

1. Choose a different set of monitors to master (or at least check

your master) on. If you use the same monitors as the mix, you might
be compounding a frequency response problems that you have.

2. Play some reference material first. Understand the sound of your room
and the way playback excites the room, then try to match the sound.

3. Choose 1 level only to

listen at. This should be a
moderate level where you can Be Sure To Include The Metadata
hear the details. One single If you want to get the credit you deserve
level will avoid any frequency and maybe more important, get paid, be
especially sure that it’s accurate and
response problems that your
spelled correctly. Metadata includes:
speakers may have at
different volume levels. • ISRC code (if you have one - go to
isrc.org for more info)
4. Process the first song, then • Album UPC code (go to barcode-
copy the same processing generator.org)
to any other songs in the
project and tweak. If all of
• Song title, album title, artist, label,
songwriter(s), publishers(s)
the mixes were done by the
same engineer, chances are
that the process can remain the same for all songs. They will probably
have to be tweaked as each mix is different. NOTE: This does not
apply to a compilation-type records with mixes from different engineers
where each will probably require its own processing.

5. Make all tracks the same relative level. Ignore the meters and listen.
Go back and forth between the loudest section of all songs to make
sure that the level is all the same to your ears.

✦
The 12 Rules Of Mixing 18
 Before You Go
We’re not done yet. . .

Please know that my goal is

to deliver exceptionally
good value that you can’t
find anywhere else.

You can find even more great

recording, mixing and music
business resources here.

Check out my courses and

offerings at BobbyOwsinskiCourses.com, or watch
the free training workshops that I give from time to
time.

An especially good deal is to join the Diamond Tier

of my Hit Makers Club where you’ll get access to 9
of my courses immediately.

Find out more about Hit Makers Club here.

And you also might like my Inner Circle podcast for

up-to-date music industry news and interviews with
music movers and shakers.

The 12 Rules Of Mixing 19

The 12 Rules Of Mixing
That Every Engineer Should Know
by Bobby Owsinski

Published by:
Bobby Owsinski Media Group
4109 West Burbank, Blvd.
Burbank, CA 91505
© Bobby Owsinski 2020

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The 12 Rules Of Mixing 20