Mixing is the process of taking all the tracks and blend them in a way that is sounds good to your ears. Mixing is extremely time consuming. I usually do all of my mixing after all of my main tracks are recorded.

I go through each track and listen for any flaws, noises, bad notes, pitch problems. I clean up each track so that all of the tracks are cleaned of any unwanted stuff (noises, breathing, string scratch, etc). I then listen to the tracks as a whole and correct any other issues such as timing.

I then place all of the tracks in the soundfield taking into account position in the stereo field and overall volume level. I usually build my mix by starting with drums, bass and lead vocal. Then I try and fit all other tracks in to the soundfield, without sounding too crowded.

The next thing I focus on is EQ, tone and effects. One hundred people could mix the same song one hundred different ways. I mix it to what sounds good to my ears, and I make sure that my end results are songs that sound like they were meant to be together. I try to focus on hearing all of the instruments and make sure there is not too much bass or too much treble. I will also pay close attention that my effects are not too distracting.

The final process is getting all of my faders automated. I mix down to a CD and I listen to the songs on a variety of systems to ensure best possible sound. I usually will find things I need to fix when listening on several systems. I usually go back and fix what I don't like.

Repeat mixing, until you are happy.

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