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When I get to the mix stage again I will check that every audio does not exceed -10dBFS, beyond this point begins to sound brittle and dry.
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Gain Staging Part II – Again it is important every instrument is recorded at a strong signal level to widen the gap in signal to noise ratio, I will want the signal to Pro-Tools averaging around -20dBFS (see Recording Techniques). I’ll further commit some of my settings to my audio tracks by recording internally in Pro-Tools or rendering in Audio-Suite option, so typically amp simulators will be printed onto tracks permanently as they require a lot of CPU and RAM, not without duplicating the track first of course! or I’ll just send all tracks to the same group channel if I don’t feel like making a decision. Short guide on Acoustic Treatment here: Routing & saving Processing power – To save as much CPU as possible I’ll send all audio tracks to a group aux as well as all effects, these then get routed to my Sub Master which goes into my Mix Bus, and finally into my Main Master Fader which I then hear through my monitors. I usually follow a certain workflow and mixing habits I’ll do for most mixes, the following is all done in the box without any help from external hardware.