Shape and mix

Every effect explained by ear, then the mixing moves that make a whole song sit together.

Effects

Change a sound’s character on purpose. Learn what each effect contributes and when it gets in the way.

  1. Signal flow and effect orderInserts, sends, wet/dry and why order changes everything
  2. EQShaping tone with bands, shelves and filters
  3. Filters as instrumentsResonance, sweeps, envelopes and auto-wah
  4. CompressionHow a compressor turns loud parts down, and why that can sound bigger
  5. Gates, sidechain and duckingRemoving noise, carving space and making things pump on purpose
  6. Limiting and loudnessCeilings, true peak and how far you can push before it hurts
  7. Distortion and saturationWhy drive adds harmonics, why it can sound harsh on high notes, and how to fix it
  8. Delay and echoSlapback to dub: time, feedback, filtering and sync
  9. ReverbRooms, halls and plates, and how size, decay and predelay place a sound
  10. Chorus, flanger and phaserThree effects built from tiny moving delays and filters
  11. Tremolo, vibrato and auto-panModulating level, pitch and position
  12. Pitch shifting and correctionHarmonizers, autotune and the artifacts of moving pitch
  13. Frequency shifting and ring modulationEffects that move every partial by the same amount, and why that sounds alien
  14. Vocoders and talking soundsMaking a synth speak with the shape of a voice
  15. Spectral effectsFreezing, blurring and painting the spectrum directly
  16. Stereo and spatial processingPanning, width, mid/side, and why some sounds disappear in mono
  17. Neural amps and captured gearLearning the sound of a pedal or amp from recordings

Mixing and finishing

Help the parts work together so the listener can follow the musical idea.

  1. What mixing is forBalance, clarity, depth and emotion, before any plugin
  2. Gain stagingKeeping levels healthy from source to master
  3. Making room with EQWhy every track sounds fine alone and muddy together
  4. Low endKick and bass that work together on big and small speakers
  5. Depth and space in a mixFront, back, wide and narrow with reverb, delay and level
  6. Finishing and referencesLoudness targets, reference tracks and knowing when to stop