In case you missed them here is a roundup of the latest advice, tips, and tutorials on Production Expert from the last month.
Highlights include how to use Toontrack Superior Drummer 3, how to fix your production bad habits, and 12 macOS tips to make your day easier.
We are seeing loudness normalisation in more workflows, not just broadcast audio but music streaming services, too. There is a wide range of Loudness meters out there now, and we thought it would be helpful to provide a round-up of the different options that are now available. We know it is not completely exhaustive, but it covers the main players in the loudness meter plug-in sector.
Spectral or frequency based panning is a technique which varies stereo placement with frequency content. In this article, Ufuk Onen explains what spectral panning is, the benefits and how to use it using a free plugin.
In part four of a free six-part tutorial series, Mike Thornton shares some tips and tricks for mixing to the loudness standards, explains the importance of ‘loudness planning’ before ending with some specific tips and tricks for mixing short form content like adverts and promos. Mike goes on to look at the changes needed to mix content for Netflix.
The Avid S1 opened up the Eucon ecosystem at an accessible price point. If you’ve never tried one, check out these two videos which illustrate some of the most attractive features of the way these surfaces work together with Pro Tools.
In part three of a free tutorial series, Mike Thornton covers how to calibrate your monitors. We look at how monitoring should be configured and provide an explanation of bass management and what your sub should be doing before moving on to a practical demonstration of how to calibrate your monitoring with a sound pressure meter.
This article from Universal Audio’s Daniel Keller contains many great tips on fixing common mix problems with EQ. With permission we just had to re-publish in full for our community.
There’s only one pro-audio tip worth knowing and Russ Hughes tells you what it is!
Earlier this year, Avid added a function to Pro Tools which allows rulers to be optionally included with edit groups. Paul Maunder takes a closer look at this easily overlooked feature which can actually be extremely useful.
With a more natural snare drum sound to be had in the overhead mics, trying to bring it forward from cymbals and other elements in the mics can be a challenge. Here we share three ways to get away from close mic boredom.
In this article, inspired by a free video from PureMix, Julian considers virtual tape plugins. How the reality of using them compares to a real tape machine and however much we might wish we had the real thing, in some, less obvious ways, virtual tape can be better.
Lavalier microphones clipped to T-Shirts look awful on screen, it’s bad enough for corporate work, but they must be hidden for TV and movies. Here’s how to hide one.
Gain Staging was originally meant to work around limitations in the analogue hardware, but are there are still benefits in the digital realm? In this article, Steve Demott shows how good old fashioned gain staging still has a place in modern digital audio recording and mixing workflow.
Pro Tools is often considered a creative slouch when it comes to MIDI, but Real-Time Properties proves that you can make powerful MIDI decisions in a moment, without worrying about the future implications. We explain.
There have been a number of people concerned that with the release of Waves Creative Access, it is no longer possible to upgrade your Waves plugins to the latest version. It is possible, and in this article, we show you how.
If you’ve ever had a pesky unwanted Apple Mac audio device that inhabits your audio device list in your DAW but can’t seem to remove it, we tell you how.
Clip gain is a powerful tool found in some DAWs, including Pro Tools and Studio One. It’s a powerful tool that has many uses, on some cases doing the job of a costly plugin to fix a problem. Read on to find out more.
There are a number of things to think about when endeavouring to simulate the infinite complexities of a live drum kit performance via MIDI. Here are some of the most important…
Add rhythmic interest to sustained sounds using the intriguingly named ‘Phantom Trigger Sidechain Technique"‘ Ufuk Onen explains how to add movement and interest with just the tools in your DAW and a little know-how.