What are some common mistakes made by amateurs?

things I suck less at now then when I started:
gain staging- making all the tracks average level -18dbfs
HPLP everything that needs it.
understanding what your plugins do.
tune every few takes.
relaxing when tracking.
Mixing quietly, never too loud.

the things I still struggle with:

too much delay/verb not seated right
incorrect release setting on the compressor. something my ears still have trouble picking out. finally got attack, ratio and threshold down.
boosting in the same place twice when using eq.
general knowledge of what e.q frequencies affect what instrument.
 
Too much element masking.

This isn't only an 'amateur' problem, as it often plagues mixes shy of the very top level. Most people just don't play the game of sonic tetris well, and don't carve a unique and distinct space for each sonic element within the mix. Understandably so, as this is one of the hardest things to get right, and takes years of refining one's methodology and ability to hear.
 
Ermz said:
Too much element masking.

This isn't only an 'amateur' problem, as it often plagues mixes shy of the very top level. Most people just don't play the game of sonic tetris well, and don't carve a unique and distinct space for each sonic element within the mix. Understandably so, as this is one of the hardest things to get right, and takes years of refining one's methodology and ability to hear.
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My issue with this is that every time I think I've got it figured out, like "okay this snare is going to sit nicely at 200hz and 4k and leave some space for breathing." Then I move on, keeping everything in its snug little home. Then all of a sudden the guitar's pick attack wants the snare crack. So I do the douchebag shuffle till all the elements are like Peter Griffin's eye floater. The more your try to see it, the faster it moves somewhere else.

I used to be very addicted to MMORPGs, and this audio game isn't much different. It consumes you, it takes all your time and it's all you think about most of the time. You never win, you just do a little better each time.
 
Ermz said:
Too much element masking.

This isn't only an 'amateur' problem, as it often plagues mixes shy of the very top level. Most people just don't play the game of sonic tetris well, and don't carve a unique and distinct space for each sonic element within the mix. Understandably so, as this is one of the hardest things to get right, and takes years of refining one's methodology and ability to hear.
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On the other hand, getting obsessed about 'space' and 'tetris', and carving everything out and getting in the mind set, that you can only cut / boost some area once, is equally bad.. And to me, that seems to be way more prominent with guys doing metal, that aren't amateurs yet aren't 'quite there yet'.

Mixing is about uniformity, not separation.. As someone put it once.
 
Pirating every plugin and not actually learning what each thing does by spending time with it.

Too many options in general tends to ruin things. Reamping, sample replacement, MIDI converted everything, etc... Commit more.
 
1. Not being prepared
2. Lack of patience
3. Not committing and/or not knowing when to stop
4. Focusing on the production rather than the song
5. Misunderstanding the role of compression in modern recording
 
A slightly more humorous one that I think applies to a lot of people wherever they are in the production ladder is getting fat. There are so many fat/tubby engineers because all you do is sit down most of the day and stare at a screen, the only exercise might be setting up instruments and mics and that's it. I haven't fallen into this myself but over the past year I've gone from athletic build to kind to kind of average. The two local studios and their operators are tubby, and a couple of friends just getting into this are getting chubby. I need to move around more haha.
 
StateOfSerenity said:
A slightly more humorous one that I think applies to a lot of people wherever they are in the production ladder is getting fat. There are so many fat/tubby engineers because all you do is sit down most of the day and stare at a screen, the only exercise might be setting up instruments and mics and that's it. I haven't fallen into this myself but over the past year I've gone from athletic build to kind to kind of average. The two local studios and their operators are tubby, and a couple of friends just getting into this are getting chubby. I need to move around more haha.
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Heh, guilty as charged. I'm not fat, but my general condition has been getting worse FAST. I've started to run a bit to at least stay in an acceptable shape. It's easy to forget about things like the well-being of your body when a large part of your daily routine takes place in your head.
 
Erik Monsonis said:
Totally, then you use Ctrl + Z compulsively until DAW crashes or suddenly it starts re-loading VST libraries, and then it's ultimate FUUUUUUUUUUUUU
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Ahah! yeah the libraries shit is also very true. Makes me rage like a maniac!lol

Sloan said it well, the lack of patience, a lot of bad decisions comes due the lack of patience and very important, to know when to stop, sometimes after a lot of hours of mixing we are changing the snare again, the guitars again the voice because ear fatigue is taking over, so we change all shit again because all sounds like shit. To avoid this, I usually dont mix more than a couple of hours.
 
- Drum layers being too much and robotic especially snare

- lack of patience when riding automation

- LOVE over compression on outboard gear \m/
 
Nimvi said:
Heh, guilty as charged. I'm not fat, but my general condition has been getting worse FAST. I've started to run a bit to at least stay in an acceptable shape. It's easy to forget about things like the well-being of your body when a large part of your daily routine takes place in your head.
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Man, when I was in high school and college I did nearly every sport under the sun, Skating, Biking, Football, Rugby, Badminton, Squash, Tennis, Shortball, I've always played guitar obsessively along with that since I was 11, but I got into production in my last year of high school and everything but knowing more about mixing has gotten worse, in college I pretty much only played guitar 1 hour a day, and If you know me In person then practicing that little would be strange. Its only since going to uni I've started playing 3 and 4 hours a day again. And guitaring, theory, writing is supposed to be my main thing! Not audio production. But I think unlike anything else once you get into it you can't get out, how many audio engineers quit because they don't like it any more? Most because of money issues, but everyone that does it is because they either love the process or love the end result they've made, there is no way out! :eek:
 
StateOfSerenity said:
A slightly more humorous one that I think applies to a lot of people wherever they are in the production ladder is getting fat. There are so many fat/tubby engineers because all you do is sit down most of the day and stare at a screen, the only exercise might be setting up instruments and mics and that's it. I haven't fallen into this myself but over the past year I've gone from athletic build to kind to kind of average. The two local studios and their operators are tubby, and a couple of friends just getting into this are getting chubby. I need to move around more haha.
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This is a totally valid concern and I know quite a few engineers who've put on lots of weight while tracking. It's easy to put on weight when you sit down all day and can drink on the job.
 
It's important to keep an exercise routine not just for physical but also mental health as well. Doing a job like this for months on end, cabin fever can very easily set in and you can enter a process of cascading depression. Regular breaks, sustainable amount of sleep and regular exercise are absolutely crucial - not optional - for any kind of long term sustainability.
 
Ermz said:
It's important to keep an exercise routine not just for physical but also mental health as well. Doing a job like this for months on end, cabin fever can very easily set in and you can enter a process of cascading depression. Regular breaks, sustainable amount of sleep and regular exercise are absolutely crucial - not optional - for any kind of long term sustainability.
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absolutely! couldn't agree more. fallen victim to this myself.
 
Totally agreed. I'd be fucked if I didn't have some kind of regular eating/sleeping/exercising pattern, although more out of lack of nutrition than from weight gain. I'm already a (steadily shrinking) chubster but I frequently just forget to eat and then am too tired/exhausted to bother with food at the end of the day.
 
There are many reasons why many studios are at home but I think getting a spot offsite helps alot on the psychological health front too. This is a non-issue if you're just doing stuff occasionally but full-time can get hard IME and take away the sanctuary aspect of your house.
 
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