In this Ableton Mixing Tutorial I share with you how I use reference tracks to create a better mix.
Reference tracks are pieces of music that sound similar to the music we make and importantly we know sound great in the club.
You can use one of more reference tracks but make sure they are similar to each other and you have matched the volume. I do this by ear as we want to have the perception the tracks are the same volume. If you prefer you can use the new RMS meters in Ableton Live 9.5.
With the tracks level matched, it’s time to create various clips that play back useful parts of the tracks. For example you might want one clip playing bass and drums whilst another clip has some stabs and pad sounds added. These sections should be relevant to the track you are mixing down.
One thing to always watch out for is warping. If the reference tracks deviate a lot in speed from your own track be wary of using warping. Warping can add artefacts and degrade the quality of the music – not good when we are using these tracks as a comparison!
The final thing to tick off your checklist is the audio routing. Make sure the reference tracks are bypassing your master out or they will also be processed by any EQ’s, Compressors or Limiters you might be using.
As always I hope you found this useful – it really is a game changing tip and will help your mixdowns improve and your tracks translate on other systems.
The next Ableton Live tutorial will be posted at the same time next week.
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