Ableton Live Mixing Lesson 3

3. USE TRACK GROUPS FOR STEREO BALANCE

Welcome to Lesson Three of "Make Space For Bass".

In Lesson One we did Gain Staging to clean up every sound in the mix and get the levels loud and clear.

In Lesson Two we built a simple bottom-up mix with the kick and sub set at the right levels for a solid foundation.

But there's a problem -- we didn't pay any attention to the stereo field, so the mix was not as wide as it should be.

We'll fix this in Lesson Three by using Track Groups.

ORGANIZE YOUR INSTRUMENTS AND DRUMS

Track Groups let you break down large mixes into easy pieces, so you can get the best of every sound, without taking forever.

They give you a simple process for mixing sounds that go together, like all your drums, instruments or vocals.

And they help you focus on the stereo field to keep everything balanced across all the layers.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

Here are a few take-aways from this Unit.

• What is a Submix?
• Rules For Submixes
• How Gain Staging applies within Track Groups
• FX processing for Stereo Submixes
• Creative Mixing vs. Technical Mixing
• Which Sounds Go In The Center?
• Which Sounds Should Get Panned?
• How To Mix Reverb Returns
• Checking The Mix In Mono
• How To Avoid Phase Problems
• Gain Staging At The Master Channel

HOW THIS HELPS

By the end of this lesson, you'll have a simple strategy for mixing large Projects when there are dozens of Tracks inside.

You'll know how to make stereo submixes and be 100% sure they're done.

You'll have a much better understanding of how to approach EQ and Compression with groups of sounds (like drums vs. synths).

You'll also directly see how Gain Staging applies straight through to the Main L/R mix, to help you make your tracks come out loud and clear.

Hop in and learn how to make stereo submixes with your Instruments and Drums, to get a wide stereo feel in your music.

GET THE FULL COURSE

This is part of a four-lesson course called Make Space For Bass.

You can buy this lesson by itself, but it's much better to get them all.

Sign up now and learn how to make your mixes sound crisp, wide, bass-heavy and deep!