If you’re a musician or producer looking to get your tracks professionally mixed, it’s important to prepare your tracks properly to ensure the best results. In this post, we’ll cover 5 steps to prepare your tracks for mixing.

Organize your files
Before sending your tracks to a mixer, it’s important to organize your files. This includes labeling each track with a clear and concise name, such as “lead vocals” or “bass guitar.” Make sure to also remove any unused tracks or files to avoid confusion and save space.

Clean up your tracks
Before sending your tracks for mixing, it’s important to clean them up. This means removing any unwanted noise or artifacts, such as clicks, pops, or background noise. You can do this by using noise reduction plugins or manually editing each track.

Check for phase issues
Phase issues occur when two or more tracks are out of phase with each other, resulting in a loss of clarity and definition. To avoid this, make sure to check each track for phase issues and adjust the phase or timing as needed. You can use a plugin or manually adjust the timing of each track to fix phase issues.

Normalize your tracks
Normalization is the process of adjusting the volume levels of each track to a consistent level. This helps to prevent clipping and ensures a consistent volume throughout the mix. You can normalize your tracks using a plugin or manually adjusting the volume levels.

Provide reference tracks
Providing reference tracks can be helpful for the mixer to understand the sound and style you’re going for. Choose a few songs that have a similar sound or vibe to your track and send them along with your files. This can help the mixer to understand your vision and produce a mix that meets your expectations.

In summary, preparing your tracks for mixing involves organizing your files, cleaning up your tracks, checking for phase issues, normalizing your tracks, and providing reference tracks. By following these steps, you’ll be able to ensure a smooth and successful mixing process and achieve the best possible results for your music.