50 Mixing Tips From Steven Slate

By Dan Comerchero on 07/22/2013

Steven Slate has been dropping knowledge on Twitter for a long time, so I thought Id round up all his
mixing tips and put them on one page for you to read.

Thank him by ReTweeting or checking out some of Slate Digitals awesome plugins.

Split ur Lead Vox into 3 Copies: 1 Natural, 1 Bright and Compressed, 1 Grainy..automate the 3
throughout the mix to make it POP #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 24, 2012

Chris Lord Alge: I always do an automation pass w my drum faders to keep them dynamic in the mix
#protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 25, 2012

The best mastering engineers know when to tweak a mix, & when to leave it alone. Listen before you
dive in with the EQ or Comp #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 25, 2012

Compressing your reverb returns a bit can thicken them up in a cool way, try it #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 25, 2012

Following your delay with a small reverb at 40% wet can mellow it out, and create even more depth
#protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 26, 2012

Digital Peak Limiters are effective for transparently taming overly dynamic acoustic guitars. Try it
#protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 29, 2012

Want a brighter snare? EQ some top into the overheads.. youll get there quicker than just eqing the
close mic alone #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 2, 2012

Dull Vocal Recording? Gently pull out the mud frequencies, compress hard, then add some upper mid
eq 4 clarity & air, then De-Ess #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 4, 2012

Dont be afraid to extend the bandwidth of the eq to its maximum width.. wider smaller boosts tend to
sound more musical #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 28, 2012

Carving off some top and bottom of background vox helps them blend in with the lead vox without
sounding too defined. Try it #protips

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 9, 2012

Wide Bass? Copy Bass to stereo track, hi pass till about 300Hz, distort a bit, send to wide chorus, mix
in SUBTLY with dry Bass #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 17, 2012

Ill say it again. Dont eq your close mic drums until youve checked their phase coherency with the
overhead mics #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 23, 2012

Before you touch the eq or compressor knob, make sure ur brain knows what you intend to do with it,
& how it may enhance the mix #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 25, 2012

Mellow out ur vocal delays: attenuate using a hi shelf eq at 8k by about 3db, then follow it into a
medium room verb at 20% wet #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 27, 2012

I always recommend eqing drum overheads and room mics WITHOUT soloing them since they really
impact the entire drum sound #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 29, 2012

Airy Pop Vox: Hi Pass till 100Hz, boost 12khz 5db, then compress hard @12db, then soak up the
sibilance with a strong de-esser #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 15, 2012

People like a dynamic song.. automate the master fader a db or so to enhance sections, especially the
hooks! #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) May 31, 2012

Over-sibilant vocals make music very harsh when played loud. De-essing properly ensures clarity
without being ear piercing! #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 18, 2012

Simple kick drum and bass guitar balancing act: cut a small notch of 80Hz in bass, boost a little 80Hz
in kick. It WORKS #protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 25, 2012

I almost always automate my master fader up 1.5db on the chorus of the song to help it really pop out
#protip

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 3, 2012

Rock Kick Trick: Copy kick, filter out deep lows and highs, crank wide bell at 2khz, compress 10db,
mix in subtly!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 21, 2012

Rock Snare Attitude: load a ringy snare sample, compress and distort mildly, send to stereo verb, add
lows, mix it in subtly to the kit!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 21, 2012

Vintage Vox: Attenuate top w/ 12k shelf, boost mids @ 3.5k, mix in parallel distorted vox subtly, use
long predelayd compressed verb

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 24, 2012

Ultimate AIRY Vox w/o being harsh: Copy vox, crank 10khz shelf, then follow with heavy de-essing,
heavy compression, mix in to get AIR!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 23, 2012

Vox Delay Tip: If you time out your delay to the tempo of the song, it can add depth without being
audible. Start with a quarter note!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 26, 2012

Dry Vox with life: Use a stereo pitch shifter, left side 9cents down 20ms, right side 9cents up 40ms,
mix in very subtly!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) July 25, 2012

No matter how much eq or compression you put on your snare.. if its not in phase with the overheads,
it wont get punchy!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) August 22, 2012

Vocal not POPPING out of the mix? Copy it, compress it hard, add some distortion, add some upper
mids, mix in SUBTLY with original vox!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) August 27, 2012

Fat Chorus Guitars: Send guitars to buss. Put compressor on it. During chorus, automate up 2db so that
compressor kicks in & fattens em!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) August 31, 2012

Explosive Poppy Snare: Copy snare, compress heavy with fast attack and release to bring up sustain,
gate the tail off, mix in subtly

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) October 22, 2012

Thick Vox: Use stereo pitch shifter 10ms delay and 10 cents up and down on each side, filter off top
end, mix in subtly!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) November 9, 2012

Bigger Chorus Vox: Copy vocal and compress and distort.. mix it in SUBTLY as the hook of the song
comes in!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) December 13, 2012

EZ Parallel Vox Compression: Copy vox, compress one heavy, and during mix, automate the dry vs
compressed faders so vox breathes!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) March 11, 2013

The Big THUMP Snare? Medium tuned Snare w/ big hitter..during mix copy it and crank Lo Shelf at
100Hz 10db! Now compress 5db & mix in!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) March 5, 2013

Make your vox pop out of the mix: Copy vox, push wide 4khz bell, compress extremely hard w/ fast
release, mix in subtly for extra POP!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 24, 2013

Drums need punch & sustain to be BIG in a mix. For punch, little bits of slow attack and medium
release compression & upper mid EQ

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 3, 2013

Use a compressor with your ears, not your eyes. Ill pin the meters on my DRAGON on vox to make
them really slam through the mix.

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 12, 2013

Super Bright Airy but not harsh POP VOCAL? Crank 10khz hi shelf, follow into compressor with high
gain reduction, into heavy de-esser!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 20, 2013

Dynamic & Deep VOX: Try a subtle 1/4 note delay on verse & then bring in a 1/2 note delay w/
feedback on hook. Mellow the delay w/ EQ!

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) June 6, 2013

The faster the song, the less sub lows youll want on the kick. Speed Metal? Ill hi pass up to 80Hz if
needed.

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 23, 2012

Sizzly Snare Verb: Copy bottom snare trk, filter out lows to 600Hz, crank high shelf at 10Khz, send to
nice verb. Nice on ballads.

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 19, 2012

Putting a rolled up tape at the VERY edge of the snare drum can dampen the ring slightly without
choking the hell out of it.

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 19, 2012

If you close your eyes & listen to the mix your brain forces your sense of hearing to heighten. Try it
every once and a while.

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) April 17, 2012

Sometimes its not about adding more eq or compression or trickery.. its just getting the right
instrument balance #simple&effective

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) March 28, 2012

Nothing wakes up a kick drum better than making sure its in phase with the overhead mics
#theresmylowend

Steven Slate (@Slateproaudio) March 7, 2012

https://theproaudiofiles.com/steven-slate-mixing-tips/
20 More Mixing Tips from Steven Slate
By Dan Comerchero on 04/30/2014
Due to the popularity of Steven Slates first fifty mixing tips, we decided to round up some of his latest
mixing tips from this past winter (frosted tips?). ReTweet your favorites or share this post if you find
them useful.

Transparent Back Vox that seamlessly blend into Lead Vox: Send BGV to
verb, cut some mids & highs, blend verb return only into mix
12:23 PM - 13 Feb 2014

Massive Kick Trick: Kicks tend to have a dominant sub resonance from 50-
100Hz. Sweep a tight bell filter to find it, then reduce & widen!
2:43 PM - 17 Apr 2014

InstaBig Snare: Send snare to hall verb, gate the verb tightly so decay cuts
off at .4ms, eq up the mids, mix in subtly with dry snare!
9:27 PM - 15 Apr 2014

When u try to get ur mix levels balanced, resonances in ur room can

confuse ur ears. Checking levels at quieter volumes is crucial.
5:18 PM - 11 Apr 2014

Kick drum mic too clicky & thin? Start out by low passing to remove that
thin top end junk, then add some mids and lows to fatten.
3:02 PM - 8 Apr 2014

MASSIVE Bass: Crank 8db @ 60Hz. Follow w/ 10db of medium speed

compression. Finalize by hipassing at 30Hz & dip 80hz to let kick breathe
5:21 PM - 24 Apr 2014

Help your low end breathe & be TIGHT: Hi Pass most non-bassy stuff at
100Hz.. there are exceptions, but it's a good general rule!
5:36 PM - 24 Apr 2014
Compression on a vocal is not a substitute for automation. Ride the vocal
fader to ensure each part is articulate in the mix! #ProTip
8:24 PM - 7 Apr 2014

Vox Mix Tip: EQing INTO the compressor allows you to push the upper
mids harder to make it cut through the mix without sounding harsh
5:39 PM - 21 Feb 2014

2 favorite bass guitar tricks: Copy, distort, crank mids, mix in subtly. Send to
stereo aux, hi pass @ 300Hz, wide chorus, mix in subtly
11:48 AM - 13 Feb 2014

How To Check Drum Phase: 1. Solo Overheads. 2. Solo each close mic. 3.
Hit phase button. 4. Whichever polarity has more lows, WINS.
1:04 PM - 7 Jan 2014

Try copying a vocal, adding some subtle distortion, & then SUBTLY
blending it back in to the dry vocal. It'll add fatness and warmth.
1:58 PM - 15 Nov 2013

Deep Breathing Vocal Effect: Copy Vox, crank 10khz shelf, Compress 20db,
De-ess, mix in subtly or even automate in as needed
4:48 PM - 4 Nov 2013

Fat Kick Drum Tip on Electronic or Rock: Use Stereo Pitch Shifter on aux, 10
cents down/up on each side w/ NO DELAY.. mix in very subtly
11:49 AM - 4 Nov 2013

MixTip Monday: Take time to IMAGINE the final mix's sound in your mind..
then TWEAK to get it there. Mix with purpose.
3:18 PM - 30 Sep 2013

MixTip Monday: Compressing drum room mics with fast release makes the
drums bigger w/ more sustain. Slow release makes them tighter.
8:01 PM - 16 Sep 2013
 Mixtip Monday: Extend ur snare sustain by multing it, compressing with
fast attack & fastest release, 6db gain reduction, mix in subtly
6:21 PM - 9 Sep 2013

If you add too much top end to your drums, they will lack body in the mix
and sound thin.. Beware of the deadly SOLO button!
6:28 PM - 13 Aug 2013

The best way to get midrange balances right (such as vocals to guitars).. is
at low listening volumes! Try it!
5:21 PM - 12 Aug 2013

https://theproaudiofiles.com/more-steven-slate-mixing-tips-tweets/