Gain Staging Explained - 3 things you need to know - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro

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Gain Staging Explained - 3 things you need to know - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro

Рет қаралды 159,322

Produce Like A Pro

Күн бұрын

Пікірлер: 380

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Friends, Gain staging is a very hotly debated topic around the internet! When I first got started in music, gain staging meant something completely differently than it does now. In Ye Olden Days (only a few years ago!) we were concerned with signal to noise ratio and tape hiss. We were always trying to print a signal that was super hot so that we would be well above the noise floor of the console and the tape machine's hiss. Today in the Digital world we don't face those issues in the ways we used to! I hope you enjoy the video and thank you for the great discussion!!

@iwantappledumplings6187 6 жыл бұрын

Wonderful information Warren!!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Apple!! Have a marvellous New Year!

@LossLeadas 4 жыл бұрын

Exactly!!!

@GILLISH 3 жыл бұрын

i have a mixing Question when you gain stage are you turning you track faders down to lets say 10 1st the 2and turn your audio steams of those tracks down to -12db and your master fader at -6db before you put any plugins on? thank u and stay safe

@225maine 3 жыл бұрын

@@GILLISH don't ever touch the master fader..keep it at 0.

@HofTheStage 6 жыл бұрын

For some reason, even though I've been mixing for a few years, I always treat myself as a beginner and listen to diffrent pieces of advice. Gain staging is no exception! There's always room for improvement. Always like hearing what you have to say, thanks a lot Warren!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

That is amazing and means you will always learn something! I subscribe to exactly the same thing myself!! There's a lot of experts out there telling us we are wrong! I LOVE learning! You Rock my friend!

@101AOK 4 жыл бұрын

One thing I learned over the years is in the worst case scenario you can listen to an idiot teach you something and you at least learned what NOT to do! I agree..always listen to everyone and you will keep learning.

@patricklebreton728 6 жыл бұрын

This might be a concept that is a little beyond a beginners experience but should be discussed. Turning down the signal that is too hot is entirely right however the signal is best turned down pre fader via a gain plugin rather than the fader itself. Turning down a hot signal from the fader doesn't lower the signal strength, it lowers the output volume of the signal. For example if your fader is clipping and you turn the signal down at the fader you are still left with a clipping track, just quieter. This is something that cleaned up my mixes dramatically once I understood the concept and would love to hear thoughts on the tactic.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Patrick, thanks for the great comment! Yes if it signal is clipping at 0db then definitely turn it down! My advice is based on the fader sending heavily compressed signals to the master bus and distorting it there! But yes, I specifically remember that technique being used a lot by both Dave Jerden and Bryan Carlstrom before 32 bit floating, the sound going into the SSL was quite noticeably different when controlled as you suggested! Have a marvellous 2018!

@titofornasieropirazzoli8827 4 жыл бұрын

that is absolutely true.

@rogeralleyne9257 3 жыл бұрын

What has occurred to me about the knowledge you pass along; is that you have the advantage of doing it the old way & the new so it provides a unique perspective that cannot be gained by only mixing 1 way!!!🙏🙏🙏

@JerelNorthern 6 жыл бұрын

Love this Warren! Simple yet needed! Thanks for all you do!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Jerel!! Have a marvellous 2018!!

@mitdnights 4 жыл бұрын

Oh wow. Probably the best simplest video on gainstaging I’ve watched and it just came up as a suggestion after me watching loads of them two weeks ago and still being baffled. Feeling a lot more confident about this “when you’re recording just watch your master bus/give yourself loads of headroom” ...So simple, thank you mate you’ve unpickled my head

@utai4571 4 жыл бұрын

it sounds obvious but some of us, mainly me, take ten years more than others to understand basic stuff, and i'm thankfull i stumble upon this video, because i was making SO much mistakes and didn't even realize how simple the fix was! THANK YOU SO MUCH !!!

@andrewperez4810 6 жыл бұрын

Great stuff! I feel like this is usually the first thing you need to worry about but most people overlook it especially in live settings. Love the quick simple steps of getting a better sound! Excited for 2018! Thanks

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Andrew for your great comment! Have a marvellous 2018 Andrew!

@PeteCalandra 6 жыл бұрын

Great vid. Lots o useful info. I would consider using clip gain to reduce volume if things are too hot instead of faders so that you aren't slamming your plug ins causing them to distort.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Absolutely Peter! Great comment!! Have a marvellous 2018

@kindnick58 6 жыл бұрын

Your voice sounds more warm and transparent than usual .... Marv!

@heavymetalmixer91 6 жыл бұрын

It's actually more compressed.

@jjjuhg 6 жыл бұрын

Nicholas Dentato - i can hear the CLA 76 Blue on the voice. And the Scheps 73 eq boosted at 12 k

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Is it? I'm not sure! You might be right! Haha

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Haha nice!! You must have golden ears creative media!! Have a marvellous new year!

@kindnick58 6 жыл бұрын

Produce Like A Pro 😂 Marvelous indeed!

@rocamp56 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much Warren for the tip .Yes from the school of tape.All your videos very helpful .Have a great day. Cheers!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

You're very welcome!! Have a marvellous 2018

@dannymacnevin3939 6 жыл бұрын

Digging the new intro music Warren... If you ever want some SRV / Albert King style riffs over the top... drop me a line :-)... It's funny, I just saw a video in my feeds the other day from Graham on gain staging as well. I never realised it was that big of an issue for people. However, for anyone out there that doesn't already use it, waves came out with a really nice, extremely light weight VU meter that you can throw on each channel and your stereo buss etc... that will give you a much better visual reference. Leave the VU set to stock (-18dbfs) and then use 0db to +3db on your VU meter like we did back in the day of tape... that way you'll always be in the general area... and your vintage plug-ins will love you for it! Keep up the great work Warren! Cheers!!!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

HI Danny, thanks for the wonderful tip! Glad you name checked Stevie and Albert King! Great references!! Have a marvellous 2018 Danny!

@jsd1982 6 жыл бұрын

Not to imply that you've misspoken, but I just wanted to clarify the difference between 32-bit and 24-bit as they're colloquially referred to in the recording industry. "32-bit" is not technically any higher precision than "24-bit" with respect to sample resolution because there's a difference in how samples are represented between the two formats. A "32-bit" sample is represented as an IEEE floating point number whereas a "24-bit" (and "16-bit" and "8-bit") sample is represented as a signed integer. A 24-bit signed integer uses 23 bits to represent an integer value with an extra bit used to indicate sign, positive or negative. We treat this value as having the range -(2^23)..(2^23)-1. A 32-bit floating point number uses 23 bits to represent an integer value (multiplied by 2^-23) while 8 bits encode an exponent that the value is raised to and finally a sign bit for positive or negative (23+8+1=32). You still only get 23 bits of sample resolution; the other 8 bits are there to allow representation of samples outside of the -1..1 range so that they do not have to be digitally clipped as in the 24-bit signed integer case. The bottom line is that it's just a change in representation of samples and doesn't offer additional sample resolution. The benefit of 32-bit floating point is to allow the *representation* of samples outside of the normal -1..1 range. Representation space is increased, resolution is not.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much for that amazing insight and clarification! I really appreciate it! It's great to have wonderful people like you who can help educate us! Have a marvellous 2018 Jim!!

@forwardsrbdoo3718 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks. That was amazing.

@just_nate_a 3 ай бұрын

yep. still learning more here than I did in school. ty sir

@MrGuitarist9891 6 жыл бұрын

Great as usual. God bless you for all the free info you are giving.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Aw shucks thanks ever so much!! Have a marvellous 2018 MrGuitarist9891!

@_patrikjay_ 6 жыл бұрын

I sooo appreciate this subject.....I need to improve gain staging, pre mix on my songs...I will watch this 73!! times...:) :)

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Patrik!! You Rock!

@josephvalo 6 жыл бұрын

Great video!! Very informative! Being self taught, to me these videos are priceless! I'm learning something new with every video! My mixing has gone to a whole new level and much better! Thanks for doing these videos Warren. I hope you are having a marvellous day too!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Joseph!! Have a marvellous 2018!! You rock!!

@ostovari_swe 6 жыл бұрын

This is what i needed! Been watching several videos about this subject and they are all to long and complicated things! Thank you for sharing!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Amin Ostovari you’re very welcome my friend!!

@StinoKing 6 жыл бұрын

I asked you on facebook a few months ago to try to make a gain staging video, THANK YOU!! :D

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

You're quite welcome! I'm glad you found it helpful! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing!

@cdmaguire1 Жыл бұрын

OMG, this was so helpful! I too grew up long ago and had this signal-to-noise ratio hard-coded in my music DNA. I never even considered that this was due to tape hiss. Glad to stumble on this.

@MatthewDiamante 6 жыл бұрын

Wow! - This is great! I've been wondering about gain staging lately after watching a few videos! I like how you included the stats in the pop outs on the side!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

I'm glad you both liked it and found it helpful. We have a lot more content like this planned for this year! Thanks ever so much for your insight!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

What email address would it be from Rage By Nightfall? I get 400-500 emails a day! God bless it!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Ok, will do later! Thanks Rage By Nightfall!

@EricssonB 6 жыл бұрын

Been in an educational lull. This gets straight to the point: make full use of headroom and, my takeaway, save final levels for mastering.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much! Truly Marvellous!!

@cc11studio 5 жыл бұрын

I can't tell you how much I appreciate the work you do and the information you share.

@srjackson722 6 жыл бұрын

I've been really relying on my digital vu meter here lately and it has helped me out tremendously

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

That's great to hear!! Have a marvellous New Year!

@srjackson722 6 жыл бұрын

Produce Like A Pro Thanks man, you too!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Excellent thanks for being a great part of our community Ryan!

@blakecasimir 6 жыл бұрын

ITB gain staging in Ableton Live is remarkably easy. As long as a channel's plugin chain is not grouped, Live shows meters between plugs. This is invaluable IMHO, I don't like to clip anything at all if I can help it (save for colouration / effect within a plugin). I just wish Live would keep these inter-plugin meters with grouped plugins. Another superb video Warren, many thanks.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for watching, glad you found it superb! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing!

@blakecasimir 6 жыл бұрын

Honestly this is elementary stuff for me, but I feel it's wise for us to revisit the basics occasionally. :)

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Absolutely Blake! I love reminding myself of the basics! I don't believe their are real experts, just self appointed ones! Haha

@Eventual420 6 жыл бұрын

The 2017 uploads were all over the map. I tried them all. Learned that those hot ones clip on different playback situations. The -3s sound good, a bit raspy on cheaper TVs. The -6s can be cranked. I like -6 because you can push the playback most everywhere and it sounds better on the worst of situations. The second part of my learning's was low end information and how much of that disappears situationally. I had to adjust my ears to hear more mids and try to pronounce those specifically. Most of that, Warren was doing videos and I would listen deep to his words when he would be studio touring and discussing gear usage. I have yet to succeed, but I think I am better prepared to listen.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the sight! Yes, it remains to be seen where we end up! Speaking to Gavin Lurssen (who has been in many meetings regarding this) there doesn't seem to be an agreed upon standard! Let's hope the power that be come to healthy consensus!

@SnoopLazersnake 4 жыл бұрын

Many thanks for this! As someone who is hoping to get back into home recording for the first time in about 15 years, there were some seriously valuable information in here.

@heavymetalmixer91 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the tips Warren! Btw, nice to see that you're now compressing your voice, in the past it was hard to hear some words.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Ok great! Thanks! That's not my doing, that's Matt who edited this! I'll let him know! Have a marvellous New Year!

6 жыл бұрын

i love your channel :) it is simply helpful ... everytime

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you ever so much Lecker! I am so glad to be able to help!!

@noisesoundtonevibe 6 жыл бұрын

Gain staging is an essential concept to understand. With contemporary digital audio recording and mixing, it's fairly straightforward, and this video addresses it beautifully. Understanding gain staging in the analog world (say a guitar into a tube amp with a few gain pedals before that), can become more complex and I have a hard time explaining it to my fellow guitar players who struggle with their tone and their levels in a live context... Maybe a topic for another video? Anyway, great video. Thanks Warren!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi noisesoundtonevibe, thanks ever so much for your wonderful comment! I really appreciate you joining in with the conversation and adding great advice! Yes, getting great guitar tones is a wonderful subject! I hope you're having a marvellous New Year my friend!

@AMB666 6 жыл бұрын

Great content as usual...have a beautiful day!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Have a beautiful day as well, have a marvellous time recording and mixing!

@scottturek4655 6 жыл бұрын

Wow I love the new style of video editing! Great as always, Warren!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks so much Scott! We have a lot of great stuff planned for this new year! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing.

@fabellara01 4 жыл бұрын

best practical advice on gain staging

@AlanFasick 2 жыл бұрын

Lot's of great wisdom in Warren Huart's videos -- just found this little gem from a few years ago and it's spot on with what I needed to hear.

@batheavy2834 6 жыл бұрын

I think this is confirmation, I’m still learning loads, but I felt this is exactly what I needed to know 2 years ago when I started. I’m also wondering whether you’re gonna debunk some master bus plug-in overload habits in the near future?...

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks BAT HEAVY! Haha maybe?? Have a marvellous New Year!

@DavidSmith-ne1zp 4 жыл бұрын

Those “obvious” suggestions are all ones i am guilty of doing. Thanks so much for this explanation of process and intention! Big help.

@darlenesheffield9835 6 жыл бұрын

Extremely helpful info presented supremely well!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you ever so much Darlene!! Have a marvellous New Year!

@MB1z 6 жыл бұрын

This was needed info for me . Thanks.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Great! Thanks ever so much! So glad to be able to help!! Have a marvellous 2018!

@tisbonus 6 жыл бұрын

Excellent video! I believe we just talked about tape and noise floor. I remember recording to reel to reel four track tape in the early 80's. I've too have been guilty of cooking the master bus in the digital realm ALL thru the late 90's and some of the early 2000's. Thanks to you, and a few others, my mix game has really come up! Well past what I ever expected! Thank you very much Warren!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Tisbonus, agreed! I hear you loud and clear! There has to be common sense when applying a lot of these ideas! So glad your mixing has been improving!

@klaygustin9878 2 жыл бұрын

The most best explanation on the subject!

@henkdevries7336 6 жыл бұрын

Hey Warren! I’ve been busy the last couple of months (new place and stuff), so i haven’t seen much of your new videos lately. But may i say it is looking sleek, sir! :) Thank you so much for your awesome content and your sharing of experience! All the best and have a wonderful day! :) Greetings from Holland, Nick

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Henk, greetings in the Netherlands! I love it over there! I have family there, beautiful country fall of super smart people creating great music!! Thanks for the wonderful comment!

@worshipmusicwednesday4982 6 жыл бұрын

Great video! well presented and concise! I hope to see more of these quick informational videos from your channel.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you both Worship Music Wednesday! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Rage By Nightfall for the wonderful comment!! You Rock!

@JohnWayneBaileyonfire 4 жыл бұрын

As always Warren is the best at helping all levels understand the art of modern day recording techniques💯

@MichaelBLive 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Warren. My faders (Cubase) aren't linear, so I use the gain adjust to tame recorded levels to keep my fader where it has a finer resolution. Cheers. Michael

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much for the info on Cubase!! I'm sure it will help others!! Thanks for being a great part of our community! Have a marvellous New Year!

@Diegosaurio 6 жыл бұрын

Hey Mike, how do you make sure that the instrument hits the sweet spot? Let`s say -10 dbfs? do you load a plugin, thanks.

@zolmanmichael6244 5 жыл бұрын

Great vid... One of my my solution i used to get an a nice polish sound here at home. Is when i am happy with the song and the way it sounds , I will compressed to a wave as a finished product......... Then i reload it back into my daw and duplicate the track ....Locked them together and turn down to 20 and turn one to right side and one to left .... Then start compressing it up ...You be surprise how full and solid it will be.... And i accidentally discovered this and have been using this method ever since... Daws are all the same you just got to learn how to master the one u used .... Just wanted to share not saying this is right but I have come up with some awesome mixes doing this...Happy mixing its a learning process for sure takes time ...

@nv_music1987 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for making this. Watched alot of videos where people are trying to explain this like rocket science. Thanks for explaining it way simpler and better to understand.

@mytchel 6 жыл бұрын

Useful tip: send all your tracks to a mixbuss, and only then to the general masterbuss. That way, if you are using too high levels at the individual tracks, you can turn the whole mix down before it hits the masterbuss, allowing you to use your usual masterbuss plugins and control the level coming in. Of course, it also applies the other way around, using the mixbuss to turn up the whole mix volume to hit appropriately the masterbuss.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Great tip! Yes, many guys I know have a separate 'music bus' spirit from 'vocal bus' etc!. Have a marvellous New Year!

@benderbi 6 жыл бұрын

I needed this advice on my last project! Now to apply it on the next ones!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Edmi! So glad to be able to help!

@DaveKill3R27 6 жыл бұрын

I LOVE this new intro... It's so Pro!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Haha thanks ever so much Dave!!

@100chuckjones 4 жыл бұрын

These are such basic principles, but so important. Great job Warren. some of your older videos are really great (new ones too). Thank you mate.

@RETCHED-METAL 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome stuff yes sir I've been doing that my fist mix was a disaster because I did everything I wasn't supposed to do lol. Cheers mate

@Producelikeapro 2 жыл бұрын

We’ve all been there!

@elblopex 2 жыл бұрын

This is great practical advice, but I think it shouldn't be taken as a fact within the digital audio world. S/N ratio is what it is. So, in theory, the hotter the signal, the better. As long as your highest sample value is 0 dBFS, you're fine. After recording you can even clip every damn track inside your daw. As long you don't clip your bounce, you're safe. DAWs work in 64 bit float. DAWs don't ever clip. I know this is another topic, but still good to know (seeing red lights all around your DAW doesn't mean anything). Thanks for making excellent content!!

@HaharuRecords 6 жыл бұрын

I believe in you because you've lived 80's and have much experience.. Glad you are still doin the thang.. 😳✌

@captainblackmouth 6 жыл бұрын

I am going to make the best album ever recorded using the information you provide in your channel. And I will credit you when it is done. THANK YOU for sharing your knowledge. You have truly helped me.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much! That's marvellous to hear!

@bubbanose9580 4 жыл бұрын

You and Rick are the best : ) Thank you for super advice : )

@JimijaymesProductions 6 жыл бұрын

The best thing about 32bit floating and even more with 48bit mix consoles (like pro tools have) is you can use digital gain (either clip gain or with a plugin like bluecat gain). In the analog domain (before you hit your converters) make sure you have decent signal from your source so that you dont need to push your mic gain and add hiss but because digital has so much headroom you don't need to crank your preamps that high. Basically in the analog world try and stay around 0dbvu, in the digital stay around - 12-18dbfs (total on the output) to give you headroom. If you feel you need to put your faders in stupid positions to get the volume (too loud or too quiet) use clip gain or a plugin like I mention to get it sitting right. A good way too start a mix is go through and get the mix roughly where it makes sense with the faders at 0 and leaves you with headroom on the master bus before you add plugins this way itll be easier to gain stage compressor and emulating plugins and till have unity afterwards.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Hi JimijaymesGuitarist thanks very much for your great insight! I really appreciate it the additional information! It really helps everyone here in the community! You Rock! Great points and very well explained

@pronavsandhu 5 жыл бұрын

legend. subscribed for sure . always great to hear from a professional who has worked with 90s tape recorders. thank you for information

@splashesin8 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Warren!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you Audrey!! Have a marvellous New Year!

@AntonioMeres 2 жыл бұрын

This is gold. Thank you!

@Producelikeapro 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much

@bobtee7899 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Warren, i heard so much crazy stuff about something so straight foward...

@deesee2008 2 жыл бұрын

You really are great, Warren.Thank you for your time and talent !

@Producelikeapro 2 жыл бұрын

Wow! Thanks ever so much

@Producelikeapro 2 жыл бұрын

Wow! Thanks ever so much

@Syklonus 4 жыл бұрын

3:49 Thank you for saying this. A lot of the gatekeeping elitists out there will vehemently berate digital at every turn and say that it isn't "real" unless it's all vintage and all analogue.I have one bit of outboard gear, but apart from that I mix in the box, so it's refreshing to hear someone who worked in the vintage era praise digital.

@halseyballistic 6 жыл бұрын

Great information! As always it's a pleasure watching and listening to your advice. You are so passionate with lots of energy which makes learning from you a blast. Thank you for your time to post this video

@LAstudio8 6 жыл бұрын

Great! Love your videos!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you ever so much!!

@allusaarivirta 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks again Warren for a brilliant video! I really appreciate you giving so much info for free on youtube, it's more than some of the paid courses i've bought... Now to wait until I can afford your premium stuff aswell!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Allu!! Have a marvellous New Year! So glad to be able to help!!

@kraussinator 3 жыл бұрын

I was hoping to hear a little about if you use any meters before your plugins to see how hot you are going into them. I’ve read a lot about how -18 is the sweet spot for most plugins to “behave” as designed. Thanks for all the great vids. I finally finished my first mix of an original and used many of the things I’ve learned from you. It sounds great.

@the-matrix-has-you 6 жыл бұрын

Warren. you definetely remember Rosetta 800 right? it had a soft clip button.If that button was engaged.Then your theory about sound degradation is true so you had to print hot to get a good signal but soft clipping is not an issue anymore.Lots of interfaces now can go up to even -12dbfs without single distortion.The most important thing is to know your equipment well I believe so please read your audio interface's manuals to find out your interface's head room folks

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Yes indeed, knowing your equipment well is very important. Thank you ever so much for your insight!

@Capkirk19 6 жыл бұрын

I Looooooooove that intro tune! Please release the track online! As always good stuff in the video as well ;)

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

You're too kind, I wrote and recorded that song, I'm glad that you liked it. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing.

@Capkirk19 6 жыл бұрын

I know ;) I've asked you about releasing it before :) I just love good music - Can't help it :) Bought this super piece by Dweezil Zappa (Zappa's son) earlier today and there is this great video about the track (cover version of Bowie's "I'm Afraid Of Americans" coming alive in the sunset studio) - You should go and check it out - Its super cool !!! www.dweezilzappa.com/products/20450-afraid-of-americans/options/20451-afraid-of-americans

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Great! I'm glad you enjoyed the intro music! It was a lot of fun to do!! Have a marvellous 2018! P.S I;m a huge Zappa fan!

@ellisaudio9727 6 жыл бұрын

Nice intro and outro music Warren!!!!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much!! Have a marvellous New Year!

@emiel333 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Warren, I'm doing marvelous, thank you! First of all: great and useful video about gain staging. You make these video's very understandable and simple. That's the way it should be. And second: I have great respect for your skills about music producing. I've signed up to your site a while ago. And I follow this KZfaq channel. I'm looking forward to see a new and great video from you! Have a fantastic day! Friendly regards, Emiel

@TheBelse 6 жыл бұрын

Never disappoints...I like the way Warren delivers the info. I've been a clip gain guy since it was implemented in Logic. I leave the faders set at unity as long as I can...for last minute finer level tuning...is it micro mixing? ..I'm pretty loose with the terminology...anyway it's another great video.

@davejohnsonmusic 6 жыл бұрын

I always make sure I have my master hitting an average of -10db when I first put up my static rough mix. Once I add plugins to the tracks, I should be around -5db on the master. Now I've got 5db of headroom left for any processing I want on the master fader for mastering and I can push the level up a little into the maximizer and adjust to taste. I generally mix and record at 96KHz/24 bit.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much Dave for your insight! Truly marvellous!!

@anthonyhorton5884 4 жыл бұрын

I am learning now that the master fader is not for volume control. now i don't touch faders but i use my daws pregain for everything -18 db -12db for kick and snare and turn up volume with audio interface hardware knob.

@felipesazo9970 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks so much, you are like yoda, a real master of this art

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Wow thanks Felipe! That is very kind of you my friend!!

@iwantappledumplings6187 6 жыл бұрын

amazing video warren !!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Apple! You Rock! Have a marvellous New Year!

@slaneprod5011 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the video Warren! Love

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Marvellous!! Thank you ever so much Siane!!

@nersonangelo 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you much God bless your work

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks very much!

@micheemubi 2 жыл бұрын

Great Video thank you ... I like your monitoring system

@Prismfold 6 жыл бұрын

Hello Warren thanks again for another awesome video! have you considered making a tutorial on how to use bus send returns for using external hardware like compressors?

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

That is a great suggestion, thanks for that! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing!

@khronscave 6 жыл бұрын

4:33 "Use logic" - kinda reminds me of that saying(?), "The problem with common-sense is that it's not so common anymore" :P

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Haha yes indeed! I'm certainly guilty of all of those issues!

@jdanimationcompany 5 жыл бұрын

Use logic x pro

@epic642 4 жыл бұрын

😂😂😂

@sK3LeTvM1 3 жыл бұрын

@@jdanimationcompany Simply the best DAW

@225maine 3 жыл бұрын

@@sK3LeTvM1 there is no best daw..they all do the exact same thing.

@epicfighter_playz 4 жыл бұрын

Lot of thanks, Mr. warren

@abundanciauniversal4298 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks Warren great advice.

@boredfish80 7 ай бұрын

4:32 “Use Logic” Great endorsement from the main man, there 😂😉

@admurf308 3 жыл бұрын

I get you, so rely on what you see in the masterbus? Then your songs will always have room for other instruments and sounds, whilst also having less distortion, and also hitting the DB standards that the industry recommends for song loudness

@ChrisWhittenMusic 3 жыл бұрын

Great explanation

@MrJETCITY 6 жыл бұрын

Have a marvelous time Gain Staging

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you I will! You Too!

@Nightwinflyer 6 жыл бұрын

It took me so long to get my head around this, but I see so many videos talking about leveling your tracks to -18 dBfs before you do anything. While this isn't 'wrong' it seems to be misleading at best. When the plug ins are listed as referenced to a 1 KHz sine wave for 0 on the vu meter, this in no way means your audio track will hit the meter, or the plug in the same at all. Depending on the source, the audio might need to be -7 or -8 dBfs to hit the vu meter at zero (like electric rhythm guitars). I now use a VU meter on the first insert and try to keep the meter between -5 and 0. For anything with a fast transient like a snare, I try to keep peaks on the VU meter at about -7 max. As I add each plugin I also have a meter at the end of the chain and look to keep both meters roughly the same. And of course, if you want to run the audio in a little hot that's what the input output gain is for on most plugins. But, I have done tracks all kinds of other ways and ended up with good results. I am just much happier with the sound using the VU meter as if I were working in an analog environment.

@RE-dn6py 6 жыл бұрын

Great intro, I suppose pre-fader is the way to go when mixing, and then insert a gain plug to control a to hot signal.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

HI Roger, thanks for the comment! Yes, if you're not suing 32 bit floating then that would definitely make a difference! I hope you're having a marvellous New Year!

@davidmeyer8756 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you. This was a good one!

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much David!!

@100chuckjones 4 жыл бұрын

I record vocals..i would say hot. keeping peaks under -2db but an average of -10RMS. Here's why, i find the built in preamps on most interfaces (for example a focusrite scarlett) sound very weak and feeble at lower levels, turning up the preamp (input signal) while recording opens up the preamp to let it do what is what built to do. Also a hotter signal tends to lend to a more intimate signal. especially in a vocal. With more plug ins having input controls (This isnt a 2006 plug in) and gain/trim controls you should never run out of headroom even if you have recorded hot. What is hot ? i explained below, stay away from 0db (be safe and stay under -2db for peaks. But an average of -10RMS is more than adequate.

@tanukibrahma 4 жыл бұрын

Here's a question: Is there any difference in the digital world between recording a track at -12dBFS as opposed to recording that same track at -3dBFS, then turning it down -9dB to -12dBFS with the track fader in the DAW after it's been recorded? Will one produce a better sounding track than the other, or would both do the same thing? Are there any advantages of doing one over the other?

@titofornasieropirazzoli8827 4 жыл бұрын

following !!

@wesleyleigh4063 4 жыл бұрын

Yeah I wondered what it was people were going on about. Turns out the idea is that some plugins are gain dependent, meaning that there effect differs depending on the level going in. the point of this is to emulate oldschool mixing on desks and with hardware gear. it also allows for certain distortion plugins to distort more on peaks then it does on trough, kind of like tube distortion occurring via analog circuitry or deliberately distorting analog gear like amps or pedals. I actually didn't realise how many plugins i have that are like this until i tested it. one example is the ableton built in saturator. Of course you can set the drive amount, but the plugin is gain dependent, so if you turn down the gain prior then it will distort the entire signal less than before. an example of an emulation plugin that is gain dependent is the waves J37 tape machine, but you can manually set the input on the plugin instead of worrying about what gain is going into it. I suppose the reasons this idea blew up was because people realised that there could be an ideal level when using these plugins that could be pawned as a holy grail or secret bullet, but in reality it is quite literally BS. The harmonic colouration emitted by emulations like the Waves Scheps 73 or NLS bus or channel is quite small and can be adjusted inside the plugin anyway. anyway not entirely sure if i'm 100% correct here so if anyone else has something to add please feel free.

@DivdHrt 4 жыл бұрын

The short answer is no, not with 24 but recording. The long answer... Back when recorders were 16 bit instead of 24, you had a theoretical dynamic range of -96dB (still a lot), but that's before background electronic noise from your mic, cables, preamp, your recording device and the natural background noise in the room. A silent room is about 30db and a mic next to the grille of a loud electric guitar, picks up maybe 120db+. That's a range of 90db, so you can see how noise levels could easily eat up your last 6 dB of headroom. With 24 bit recording, you have an extra 48dB dynamic range to play with. You would need the extra equivalent noise of a washing machine or a hoover to use that up. As Warren says, there's no benefit trying to get such a hot signal. The dynamic range of your source isn't going to be anywhere near 144dB so you might as well go for more headroom, you won't need to worry about clipping, and you'll still get the same signal to noise ratio.

@polyclot1976 3 жыл бұрын

Beginner here; thanks for the tip about turning up the monitors instead of turning up the master. I'm really guilty of that. I end up spending time messing with the levels of the mixer instead of walking across the room real quick and turning up the monitor controller.

@spaceorbison 6 жыл бұрын

You're my man Warren

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

SpaceOrbison thanks ever so much!!

@DamonZenDrummer Жыл бұрын

Great vid

@Producelikeapro Жыл бұрын

Thanks ever so much

@EdPettersen 6 жыл бұрын

The faders in Pro Tools are POST, not pre. If you're hitting your master bus too hard reduce the PRE GAIN input of your tracks in the edit window by selecting them and reducing them all with the little volume control to the far left on each track. This gives you better resolution with your effects on each track AND the master fader. Leave all post faders at zero.

@Producelikeapro 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the wonderful insight Ed!! I completely agree! Have a marvellous 2018!! I really appreciate your valuable input!!

@warthogstudios9784 5 жыл бұрын

Yeah Warren has some great ideas and understands the big picture!

@manesaamusic9927 5 жыл бұрын

SIMPLE AS abc turn your volume nobs low thanks a lot for this wonderful tutorial

@artist1303 6 жыл бұрын

Warren, when you say just to bring your faders down for head room but isn't that post fader signal when actually you need to bring down the individual stems them self via clip gain? If you pulled down the faders and put a VU meter on the first insert the level will be different then the fader level. I use Hornets mk3 VU meter that I put on all my inserts first leaving my faders at unity. Then I set the VU MK3 meter plugin at 0db fader unity = -12db fader level = -18db signal flow and then it sets all my tracks. So now the signal flow coming into my inserts is -18db then my faders are at unity gain which gives you better resolution moves to mix anyway plus the signal reading at fader level is at -12db giving me plenty of headroom for master bus. The best thing about doing it this way is the -18db level coming down the inserts is the optimal level for plugins to performe at there best performance which most say in there manuals.

@TheRafaBStudio 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for that.

@L.Scott_Music 6 жыл бұрын

In FL Studio (and in other DAWs I suspect) individual tracks will not digitally clip as they are 32 bit internally. Only the output of the master (or the output of an insert that is routed directly to a DAW output) will clip. So turning down the master fader (or whatever controls the final output) will do the same thing as turning down all faders equally. This is not to say this is a better way of doing it. There is all sorts of reasons I can think of for controlling the gain into the master, such as how the audio hits any FX on master (a limiter or mastering MB comp?).