For aspiring producers, achieving a polished, professional sound can feel overwhelming, especially when faced with a labyrinth of tools, techniques, and decisions. While mixing music can be a deeply personal art form, there are several universal pitfalls that will hinder your progress and compromise the final result. Join us as we highlight the most common mixing mistakes and offer practical solutions to help you achieve confidence behind the mixing boards and professional-sounding mixes every time.
1. Overloading the mix
One of the most common mistakes new producers make when mixing is overwhelming the track with too many instruments, layers, and plugins. It’s tempting to use all of your favorite VSTs and effects, but you’ll just end up with a mix that sounds cluttered and messy without any individual tracks shining through. A busy mix can lead to masking, a sonic stew where frequencies overlap and cancel each other out, muddying the overall sound.
We suggest focusing first on the core elements of your mix such as the vocals, melody, and rhythm, and then build and layer around them with intention. Throughout the mixing process you should be frequently asking yourself if what you’re adding enhances the song or simply fills space. Use subtractive EQ to carve out frequencies that clash and pan instruments strategically to create a sense of depth and separation. Regularly mute individual elements to assess whether they contribute meaningfully to the mix.
2. Ignoring proper gain staging
Even though it's a foundational principle of mixing, proper gain staging is often overlooked by beginning producers. Gain staging is the process of managing and setting the optimal volume levels of audio signals of every track in a mix. If you begin a session with tracks that are too loud, you’ll inevitably introduce unwanted distortion and clipping and will be forced to do some serious backtracking to fix the problem. Without proper gain staging, you may find yourself compensating with excessive EQ, compression, or volume automation, leading to a clunky and chaotic mix.
Our tip is to take the extra time in the early stages to set your input levels conservatively (around -6dBFS). Keeping your tracks relatively low will leave ample headroom for the effects, processing, and mastering components that will increase the volume of your tracks. Remember, gain staging isn’t just about avoiding distortion, it’s also about maintaining clarity and balance throughout your mix.
3. Too much reverb
Reverb is one of the most powerful and effective tools in a producer’s arsenal. But with great power comes great responsibility. When used thoughtfully, reverb can add depth and space to a mix, but when applied too liberally, it will wash it out making it sound distant and undefined. Nothing says beginner producer like a track drenched in reverb.
When using reverb, intentionality is the name of the game. If your default move is to immediately add reverb to a track, without even asking yourself if it's necessary, then you are definitely using too much. Instead, apply reverb sparingly and with purpose. Choose reverb types that suit the mood and style of your track—plate reverb for vocals, hall reverb for orchestral elements, and room reverb for a more intimate feel. When it comes to reverb, a little goes a long way so subtly is key to a great sounding mix.
4. Misusing EQ
EQ is another important tool for producers to use when mixing. However, without the right know-how, it can be a tool very easy to misuse. Beginners often use EQ to boost frequencies instead of to cut out unwanted ones. EQ is all about carving out space in a mix to let individual elements shine. Failing to give room for each instrument can result in frequency clashes and a lack of clarity.
We advise you to use EQ as a subtractive tool as opposed to an additive one. Low bass frequencies, for example, should be cut out of a mix to reduce muddiness and rumble. You can also use sweeping techniques to find and attenuate problem frequencies. And if you must boost, do so sparingly in an effort to enhance specific characteristics, like the boom of a snare drum or the airiness of a vocal line.
5. Too loud for too long
We’ve all been there - what was supposed to be a brief hour session somehow turned into a 5-plus-hour mixing marathon. Getting lost inside the mixing process is common, but the truth is, after spending more than 2 hours working on a song, you’ll only start seeing diminishing returns. Ear fatigue is very real, especially when listening at louder volumes, and it will impair even the most talented producer’s ability to make accurate judgments and notice imperfections.
Pro tip: mix at low to moderate levels and take frequent breaks. Giving your ears the time they need to rest will save you lots of wasted time and will pay dividends in the long run.
6. Overcompression
Compression is the process of controlling the dynamic range of an audio signal, making the quieter parts louder and the louder parts softer. This helps create a more balanced and consistent sound, ensuring elements like vocals or instruments sit evenly in the mix. When overused, however, compression can squash the life and vitality right out of a song. Beginner producers often lean too much into compression, flattening the dynamics and making the mix sound overly dense or robotic.
When using compression within a mix, we advise you start with subtle settings. Use a slow attack time to retain transients and a release time that complements the rhythm of the music. When using compression, you want the effect to enhance your song, not overpower it.
7. Mixing with your eyes
Modern DAWs like Logic Pro and Ableton Live boast an array of visual tools that allow producers to see waveforms, spectrum analyzers, and meters as they work. While helpful and at times visually mesmerizing, these features hold the potential of distracting producers from what really matters: how the mix sounds. No fancy visualization can compete with the power of your ears and intuition.
Visual tools can certainly provide guidance and support, but we recommend trusting your ears when mixing. Regularly listen to your mix at different volumes and on various playback systems to gain a better sense of how it translates.
8. Not listening to your mix on multiple systems
When mixing, it’s easy to forget that the people who will eventually hear your music probably won’t be listening on expensive studio monitors in a controlled studio space. More likely, they’ll be listening through inexpensive headphones, car speakers, or, their smartphones. That’s why it's crucial to play your mixes through multiple systems beyond your studio setting to make sure it’s balanced and dynamic. A great sounding mix in a studio might fall apart when played in other environments.
We suggest always referencing your mix on a variety of playback systems, including monitors, headphones, earbuds, and even your phone’s speaker. Each system reveals different aspects of your mix, helping you identify issues like boomy bass, harsh highs, or buried vocals.
9. Ignoring the low end
Mixing music is in some ways like building a house. And like a house, a mix needs a solid foundation. That’s why paying close attention to the low end of your mix - the bass, the kick drum, and any other low frequency elements - is crucial for success. Beginning producers sometimes neglect the low end because it's usually the hardest area in the mix to maintain. But without the proper care and attention, the low frequencies of a can result in a mix that feels boomy, muddy, or lacks impact.
We suggest you start by high-passing all non-bass elements in a song. By doing so, you remove lower frequencies that are adding no value to your mix. Also, use your EQ tools to carve out more space for the kick and the bass to ensure they are taking up distinct frequency ranges. Lastly, test your mix on smaller speakers or headphones often to ensure the low end is clear and well-balanced.
10. Not utilizing new technology like Moises
Some producers often get stuck in their old ways and patterns. While having your mixing go-tos is an essential part of being a producer, you’ll be doing yourself a huge disservice by not incorporating new technologies into your process. Seasoned and aspiring producers alike can take their mixing skills to the next level with tools like the Moises app.
With Moises, you can use Hi-Fi Stem Separation to break down your favorite professionally mixed songs into individualized stems. By doing so, you can study how each element of the mix is treated, from EQ to effects. Moises also has a built-in mixer allowing you to experiment with volume, EQ, and effects, sharpening your skills in a risk-free environment. You can also use Moises to sharpen your ear. By isolating frequencies or analyzing stereo imaging, you can begin training your ears and developing a deeper understanding of professional mixes.
Aspiring producers can also utilize Moises’ VST Plug-ins which integrate seamlessly into any DAW. These plugins allow for high quality sample creation, individual stem separation, vocal manipulation, and an incredible mastering feature. The AI Mastering feature takes the guesswork out of the final polish of a mix by offering adjustments based on the genre and desired tonal profile. Producers can choose from 3 mastering modes: Auto Mode, Reference Mode, and Advanced, ensuring their mixes meet industry standards with minimal effort.
●●●Written by Jesse Stanford, Company Cue
