10 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR PRODUCTION

Becoming an accomplished music producer is a long process,

whether you're aspiring for the top notch studio or simply
wanting to get the best from your home studio setup. The
paths to becoming skilled at your craft are diverse, but there
are some common pitfalls to try and avoid. The following set of
music producer tips will look at 10 simple ways to improve
your music production and avoid sounding amateurish.

1. Learn About Compression Techniques

A common mistake that prevents amateurs from getting a full sound is not
filling the “box” that is volume, panning, and frequency. The typical dilemma
is this: as more sounds are layered together, the audio may start to clip.
And so you turn the gain down on the each channel of the mixer. But then it
sounds quiet. In order to fix this, you need to learn about compression and
mixing. If used properly, compression reduces the variations between one
audio channel’s highest and lowest gain levels throughout the track, which
allows you to turn the volume up without clipping. If you want to learn more
about compressors go here.

2. Reduce Muddy Sound With EQ

Removing the frequency below say 30-40Hz on your track's elements is a
good idea. This frequency range essentially offers nothing to your mix other
than a low end rumble which will quickly clog up your mix as you add more
and more elements within this frequency range. By using an EQ to "roll off"
this range on each element in your track you'll end up with much more
space and clarity.

When too many frequencies are overlapping in a mix, the result is also
“muddy”. To prevent mud, you must consciously keep in mind what range
of frequencies you are adding with each new part. Inevitably, frequencies
will overlap, no matter what instruments you choose. For example, two
bassy sounds on top of each other will interfere, resulting in weird phasing
issues. If you want to use two instruments that use up the same frequency
spectrum, you’ll want to carve out the highs on one and carve out the lows
on the other (through the use of EQ, you will eliminate too many
overlapping frequencies and clear up your mix). The end result should
consist of many different parts that all cover different ranges of frequencies,
which all add up to a full, clear sound.

Learning to "roll off" where necessary and "notch out" space in the mix for
each element is something that takes time, and it's a good idea to learn the
process with the help of a Spectrum Analyser. By adding one to each
channel of your mix, you'll see where things need to be rolled off, and
where that specific element is most prominent in the frequency spectrum.
Then you can EQ out the other elements in that range, allowing it to
breathe in the mix. By doing this for each mix element, you'll end up with a
cleaner mix.

Most DAWS come with adequate spectrum analysers, but many plugin
companies also make their own which often offer improved visual feedback
and other features. You can check out the range of free, value and
premium Spectral Analysers at Plugin Boutique.

3. Beware Of Stacking Big Phat Presets

Presets are a great place to start and some of them are ready to slot right
into a track with great results. However, many VST instrument plugins have
presets that are designed to sound fantastic on their own, but can create
problems when thrown together with other big phat sounding presets.
This is because many of these presets fill up much of the low and high end
as well as often unnaturally filling the stereo field (for example, big wide
bass sounds). Unless you carefully carve out the clashing frequencies in
these big phat sounds using EQ, you may get a muffled, muddy sound
when throwing these types of heavily processed presets together.
Alternatively, you may get an unnatural sounding stereo spread.
As a result it's also useful to learn to modify the presets by taking the time
to learn how to program a synth. I find myself dividing music-making time
into at least two different tasks: patch programming and sequencing.
Programming can consist of long hours in front of a synth, twisting knobs
(or virtual ones) and fine-tuning the sound to perfection. It may seem boring
to some people, but one of the keys to succeeding in your music is to be
original and find your own sound. Taking the time to create your sounds
from scratch (or at least modifying presets to suit your track) can make all
the difference.
4. Don't End Up Awash In Reverb
A common mistake amongst novice producers is to use too much
processing and overload on the effects. While this can yield creative results
when done methodically, slapping on the effects heavy-style can eventually
lead to a muddled and hectic sound.
Reverb is a very commonly abused effect. If you do use reverb, a good
general rule is to tone it down so you can’t really notice it’s there. The key
to knowing if you’ve got it right is when your average listener WILL notice
when you take the reverb away, but they won’t notice it's presence until you
do. Tracks that are drenched in cheap reverb almost always sound
amateurish.

5. Be Aware Of Over-Limiting
While limiting is a valuable tool, it's often something that the novice will
abuse. This has become even more of a problem with the "loudness wars",
where everyone is fighting to get the loudest track out there. The result of
over-limiting a track is that the bounce ends up in a file that looks like a
brick wall, with no peaks and troughs and very little dynamic range. It may
be loud, but to the brain it sounds unnatural. Learning to achieve a balance
between loudness and dynamic range is important.

6. Learn Home Mastering Basics

The opposite of over-limiting is a weak and low-volume track, another sign
that the track is not properly mastered. A weak sounding track is going to
struggle to excite the listener so it's important to get a grip on the basics of
making your track relatively loud and punchy.
These days, a lot of producers are mastering their own music with software
such as Wave Arts PowerSuite, izotope Ozone, PSP Vintage
Warmer, Waves MaxxVolume, Sony’s Wave Hammer, etc. These plugins
can really improve the overall loudness of your track and when used
properly can deliver professional sounding results.

7. Tighten Up Your Timing

If you aren't the tightest at banging out beats, basslines and the like, you'll
probably end up with slightly loose rhythm parts. This problem is amplified
if the latency on your audio interface adds a delay from when you hit a pad
or key to when the sound is generated. In this case, it's probably a good
idea to turn to your friend "Quantize" and also a good idea to look into the
best way to minimize and account for latency in your set-up. Each DAW will
have a section on this in your manual, and while it might be a little boring,
getting this sorted out in your auto-load template will save you plenty of
trouble down the line.
Regarding quantization - I’m not saying that you should quantize
everything, unless you are going for a mechanical, computerized drum
track. In order to retain the human feel, many people only quantize to 75%-
90% and you should be able to find how to set the quantize value fairly
quickly in your DAW's manual.

Also, sometimes you may need to quantize certain groups of midi notes on
their own, apart from the whole drum truck. You’ll need to do this when you
have triplet notes, for example. Some quantize menus will have “1/16 +
1/16 T”, which means it will quantize to the nearest 16th note or the nearest
16th triplet note. If you have this option, you can apply quantization to the
whole track.

8. Don't Get Stuck In The Loop

Loops have become an integral part of modern music, and there's no doubt
that some of the most memorable tracks in the past few decades have
been the result of that oh-so-addictive loop!
However, the repetitive overuse of loops in your tracks can lead to a stale,
uninteresting track if the loops aren't used properly. If you want to use the
same sample over and over, consider looking into ways to transform it,
modulate it or shape it somehow so to get some variation and keep things
interesting for the listener. Slice it, dice it, pitch it, reverse it, flange it, phase
it, you name it. Another creative way of getting more from your samples is
to create interesting variations of the same loop with follow actions.

9. Treat Your Room

One of the most common problems for bedroom producers is a room that
lacks any accoustic treatment and includes things like bass traps. It's
something we'll all deal with to some extent if you're making music out of
your home and not in a top end studio. However, there's plenty of
information online about how to improve the accoustics of your room with
simple and cost-effective accoustic treatment. You'd be surprised what a
few carefully placed rugs, hanging blankets etc. can do to help you get the
best mix out of your space.
10. Master What You Have First
We live in a world of abundance when it comes to audio production tools
and software, but sometimes the choice can be paralyzing. Part of
becoming a better producer is mastering your kit - and that's nearly
impossible to do if you are constantly moving on to the next big thing. Learn
to use your gear inside and out and when you do you'll realize what you
actually need to take it to the next level. Consider starting out with some of
the great free software out there to learn processes, and then as you
improve your knowledge consider moving on to more premium versions
with a strong foundation of knowledge.

This also includes styles of music. By all means experiment and keep an
open mind - but if you're making X this month because it's the next big
thing, by the time you figure out your own sound there, you'll likely be
compelled to move on the next trend. Be yourself

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