What are some common mistakes made by amateurs?

As a bedroom hobbyist, I can relate to everything in this thread as I have walked all those paths.

The most recent mistake I have fallen for and only realised today after researching it, is thinking Linear Phase EQ was superior to minimum phase EQ in preserving transients, and thus could sculpt any tone as radical and extreme as I wanted to and not suffer any consequences. I read up on the "pre-ringing" it can cause, and the diminishing of transients, and I can hear it in my mixes now.

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/10660709-post106.html
 
JasinElric said:
You never win, you just do a little better each time.
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But...my mix is almost perfect :(
Almost.


StateOfSerenity, you really seem to have hit a valid subject with the exercise thing. Good that it came up. Oftentimes just being reminded of it is enough to cause a reaction.
And I know exactly what you mean with the "I used to play guitar and do all kinds of things, but now audio engineering has consumed it all". It's strangely addicting, but luckily very rewarding imo!

And Ermz, the cabin fever and depression are all too familiar. Despite efforts, I have been becoming increasingly distanced from the outer world and am even starting to feel strong anxiety towards it. If things go on like this, I will end up living as a hermit with a good set of speakers...
 
JeffTD said:
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.
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I am victim.

My real job is a bit physical but most of the time I work maybe 6/12 months and make a pretty penny doing that so I can basically take off as much as I want and not get fired.

Sooooo I end up sitting in front of a computer most of the time at home, and yes - drinking on the job. When I track guitars I almost always have a few beers standing by. Might not be the best method but it seems to help me in my suffering.
 
Biggest mistakes I've noticed are having too much bass and it being uncontrolled. Not just the instrument, bass/low end in general. Knowing how to correct this is important, it's not just filtering out low end, it's surgical cuts to overly resonant low end across different instruments and getting your overall high end from your tracks balance. I used to have a terrible time with high end as I never used to have cymbals high enough.

It was explained to me before that a mix is like looking at a room. There's 3 dimensions. Low to high frequency, left to right stereo width and depth through use of space. Close your eyes when you listen to a mix and you can visualise what's missing and where's it's lacking.

Giving yourself too many options is a big one too. Learn to commit and get the sounds right at the tracking stage. Never settle for "fix it in the mix" if something sounds off, sort it.
 
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