Mix Engineer Shoot Outs!

[if6was9]

Something I've been thinking about lately and I haven't really seen discussed on here before.

Do many bands get mix engineers to perform shoot outs to see who's style they like best?

If you have been involved in one, did the band tell you? Would you prefer to be told there are other mix engineers working on it also? Would it affect the amount of effort you put into the "test" mix?

And the one that really has me thinking. Would it put you off working with a band to be told that someone else might end up getting to do the project.

A lot of the bands that I have worked with have talked about getting other engineers to mix but I've never had to compete against someone for a mix. They either went with me or didn't. I wouldn't have a problem doing one but I can see how "name" guys could find it insulting!

I'm talking paid mixing here also, not so much open for anyone to try. Like short-listing it to a few names and get them all to work on one track.

 

[Daybreak]

Well, I've never heard of anyone, but then I have done practically no paid work, haha..
I can imagine smaller bands with big wallets doing this on rare occasions, though.

 

[Melb_shredder]

I've been a part of such things. As far as I'm concerned, if they are happy to pay each engineer to do a test mix or whatever, then no harm done. It's our job to mix, whatever they choose to do with that information is their issue!
It's not the nicest feeling, but usually band is honest about what's going on, so I just do my best and my job, and that's it!

 

[greyskull]

On a big BIG scale , blink 182 did this with their self titled album, with a shoot out between Ryan Hewitt, tla, Andy Wallace and jerry Finn on the album! They all had different songs picked,mbut will all have been paid regardless

 

[Nuno Filipe]

That´s why I rarely pick a mix that someone puts here for everybody try their best for free. If want to work for free I´ll do it, but compete with a lot of people and work a lot of hours for free, automating everywhere to probably not get the job seems quite useless for me. But being paid to do mix tests, that´s another story.

 

[JeffTD]

As long as people are getting paid per song that's cool; it's when people want free work done from multiple guys that it starts to rub me the wrong way.

 

[if6was9]

Yeah I figure no one would be annoyed as long as everyone's up front about it and they are getting paid for their work.

 

[Ermz]

As long as people are getting paid per song that's cool; it's when people want free work done from multiple guys that it starts to rub me the wrong way.

This.

 

[shine]

As long as people are getting paid per song that's cool; it's when people want free work done from multiple guys that it starts to rub me the wrong way.

+1

 

[egan.]

As long as people are getting paid per song that's cool; it's when people want free work done from multiple guys that it starts to rub me the wrong way.

Yeah. this.

 

[Skinny Viking]

^ that

 

[Brett - K A L I S I A]

Nickelback does that, they get their songs mixed by several top guys and then chose for each song the version they like the most. But then again Chad is insanely rich...

 

[Max Morton]

I'm totally with Jeff on this. Never agreed with "you do 30 seconds of the song and then we choose between you and other guys, and if we choose you, then we pay". This strategy is wrong from the start and it's better to avoid it.

 

[mstone564]

As long as you ASK the engineer if they can do a test mix and let them know you had other guys in mind, I think it's okay.
It's up to the engineer to decide whether they care to do a test for free or to charge a little bit.

 

[Jaymz]

Been in 4 so far...two of them I wasn't told and 2 of them I offered.

Unpaid

 

[StoneLord]

Dave Pensado said on one of his shows that it happens often at his level too.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

I have yet to be involved in one.

 

[scorpio01169]

I was involved in a scheme by a band that went around town to different studios asking to record a song for free and if they like it they'll do the album with the studio. I gave them my mix with beeps in it so they couldnt use it in their cd

 

[if6was9]

Yeah I'm not talking free. The way I think of it is they are doing work regardless of which mix gets used in the end so they need to be paid. If someone was going to do a mix for free they most likely wouldn't put in the same effort anyway.