Don't Use It If You Don't Understand It

Avoid doing things in your recording or your mix that you don’t understand. What I mean is, don’t feel compelled to fiddle with something just because you think you’re supposed to in order to be professional. You’ll likely do more harm than good and you won’t actually learn anything in the process.

Via David Goehring Flickr

You’re “Supposed To” Use Compression

So many of us get it in our little heads that we are “supposed to” use certain effects and plugins when mixing. A common example is the use of compression. We read about compression on blogs, in magazines, and on YouTube and we assume that because everyone is using it, we should too.

But it makes absolutely no sense to slap on a compressor when you don’t understand what it does or how to operate it. You’ll likely make your mix worse so you’d be better off mixing with no compression at all. (I’m just picking on compression, but this applies to almost any plugin, effect, or technique).
 

My Multi-Band Nightmare

A great example of how I fell into this trap is with the use of multi-band compression when mastering. I was a young mixer at the time and had just purchased a shiny new mastering plugin bundle. It had all the usual mastering effects (EQ, limiter, exciter), but what intrigued me the most was the multi-band compressor.

Somewhere along the line I had heard that multi-band compression was the key to getting a great master. So what did I do? I slapped that puppy on all my mixes and tweaked around. The result? My masters sounded weird, pumped a lot, and during fade outs they completely fell apart. I actually was making them worse by using something I didn’t understand, multi-band compression.

Get Educated, Please

Let me be clear: I am not advocating a fearful naivety in recording or mixing. I’m not saying you should never use compression or try anything new or complex. I am saying, however, that if you don’t understand something don’t use it just yet. You must educate yourself on the matter, and handle the the plugin or technique in question carefully.

Just because people use circular saws in construction doesn’t mean I should just operate one without fully understanding how to properfly wield such a powerful and dangerous tool. Yes you learn best by experience, but not without a little initial education first.

Be smart, be intentional, and continue to invest your time into edcuating yourself in the field of recording and mixing. I believe in you.