the art of creating depth “THE ART OF MIXING” SERIES – BOOK 3

Before We Begin

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As we dive into the pages of this book, I hope you will find it both informative and inspiring. The journey of mastering the art of mixing is ongoing, and I will be here to help you every step of the way.

The Art of Mixing Series

Explore the world of audio mixing with my series of eBooks, collectively known as "The Art of Mixing." Dive into the following four books to master the craft:

The Art of Compression: Learn the secrets of dynamic control and how to shape your sound with compression techniques.

The Art of EQ: Discover the art of equalization and how to sculpt audio frequencies for a polished and balanced mix.

The Art of Creating Depth: Uncover the techniques for adding depth and dimension to your mixes, creating a sonic landscape that captivates your audience.

Mixing Philosophy: Delve deeper into essential mindsets for creating truly great mixes and explore the importance of a well-oiled workflow.

about the author

I have worked as a Mixing and Mastering Engineer for the past 17 years. My career began at Mayfair Studios in London, and I later became the in-house Mix Engineer at Kensaltown Studios—home to producer Martin Terefe. During my seven-year period there, I mixed most of Martin's records, spending my days in front of a beautiful, old API console. During this time, I had the honor of working with renowned artists like Cat Stevens, Elton John, Jamie Cullum, Jason Mraz, Leslie Clio, and A-ha. My work with the Latin duo Jesse & Joy even earned me three Grammys. Since 2017, I have been based in Gothenburg, Sweden, where I continue to mix records on a freelance basis.

The purpose of this short book is twofold: first, to share the knowledge and insights I've gained over the past decade, and second, to inspire aspiring engineers. Inside, you'll discover a wealth of useful tips, as well as my personal perspectives on compression. Don't hesitate to reach out and share your thoughts and opinions. My hope is that you find this book both fruitful and enjoyable.

Thomas Juth – January 2021, Sweden

Introduction

In this eBook I will take a closer look at another of my favourite subjects: working with ambience and the art of creating depth in a mix. The concept of depth is very important when trying to create mixes which have a 3-dimensional feel (rather than flat mixes, which are just taking place between left and right).

This relates to moving sounds back and forward in the sound field and gives you the sensation that some sounds are further away, while others are closer to the listener. By achieving a great depth, you will therefore also create mixes that sound bigger, more exciting and more expensive.

When talking about creating depth, the first words that come to mind are probably “reverb” or “ambience”. However, as you will see in this book, there are many other ways of achieving similar results. Even when trying to create a dry and very intimate mix, it is important to make sure that it has some level of depth and spaciousness (even though this can be very subtle).

For the next seven chapters I will be discussing some of the techniques I use daily, in order to create depth and more three-dimensional sounding mixes.

Chapter 1:

The importance of contrasts

Before moving on to more specific tips, I think it’s important to underline that achieving good depth in a mix is all about creating contrasts.

Many mix engineers try to make every element in a mix as clear and bright as possible, and always “in your face”. But by doing that, everything will be competing for attention at the front of the mix, and the result will be a very two-dimensional sounding track. One can compare this to photography, where one of the most important aspects of a good picture is playing with focus. The best photographs often have a great balance between objects that are in focus and objects that are out of focus. This creates a three-dimensional feel and a sense of depth.

The most important thing to remember when mixing is to always aim to create contrast, by allowing some sounds to be less bright, less wet or dry, and less loud. At the end of the day, it is the contrast between bright and dark, wet and dry that creates the sense of depth and size. In the same way, one sound has to be quiet in order for another sound to be perceived as loud.

Some of my favorite mixes of all time are the ones that are completely dry (completely free from reverb), but with one or two elements in there which are extremely wet and placed at the back of the mix. So, when they do enter the mix the listener gets a sense of relief from the otherwise dry atmosphere. So, it makes both a very interesting mix creatively, as well as a very clear sense of space.

The same thing applies to EQ, and when adding a very bright element into an otherwise very dark mix. Therefore, an EQ can be just as useful as a reverb, when trying to achieve a sense of depth and space. As a rule, the less bright a sound is, the further back in the mix it will appear. Rolling off some low-end can move it even further back in the mix. I often do this with backing vocals when trying to make them appear as if the backing singers are behind the lead singer.

Keep this advice in mind the next time you are working on a mix, and you will start to see all the possibilities there are.

Chapter 2:

Having a vision and placing the sounds into an acoustic space

Just as I mentioned in my first book, “The Art of Compression”, before reaching for any piece of equipment or plugin one must always have a clear vision in mind. What is it you are trying to achieve? And (in relation to the subject of this book) in what type of acoustic space should this song take place?

When working with live instruments, and especially if the whole band were recorded together in a great space, this is a lot more straightforward. For example, listen to any early Beatles record, and you will hear a lot of (Abbey Road) Studio 2 in there. One could almost argue that without that room sound, those recordings would not have sounded as exciting or energetic. When mixing songs that were recorded this way there will already be a lot of natural ambience in the recording, and I often simply try to reinforce what is already in there. In this case it might be a question of how much of the original room acoustics should be featured in the mix. I will talk more about how to achieve this later in this eBook.

However, there are situations when one is given a song to mix that is supposed to sound atmospheric, but that was recorded in a very dry space. In those cases, as a mix engineer, one must design the space from scratch. The same relates to electronic/programmed music, which has no natural ambience to begin with.

There are other cases when the producer wants a song to sound very dry and intimate, but still have some depth and sense of space. In these situations, one needs to be more inventive, and to look for ways to create a subtler and “invisible” ambience. This is a situation when it’s useful to know alternative methods of how to create depth and space, to push sounds backwards and create a sense of spaciousness. I will talk more about this in chapter 5.

When mixing, I always try to figure out what the song, recording and production is about, and what kind of environment it should take place in (unless it’s already obvious from the recording). I always try to carefully place the song and its elements into a chosen space, one that suits and benefits the song. I might start by asking myself questions such as:

1. Should this song take place in a big or small room?

2. Is it a warm or cold room?

3. Should the mix be wet or is it calling for a dry sound?

4. Does the song require a natural sound or a more artificial or surreal ambience?

5. Which elements of the song should be at the back of the mix, and which do I want to be closer to the listener?

I then take notes of this and keep it in mind for the rest of the mix. It’s always important to be consistent, and not confuse the listener with too many different reverbs or approaches.

I also believe that ambience or depth is not just about placing the music into a specific space. The things I am discussing in this book are also important for adding excitement to a mix, and to glue all the elements together. “Glue” can be described as a sensation of electricity flowing into the gaps between each instrument, creating excitement and a sense of space. When you remove this “glue” or “hidden ambience”, the whole mix suddenly sounds lifeless and small. This brings us back to the example of The Beatles, where the natural ambience of Abbey Road Studio 2 (which naturally ended up getting into the microphones) helped to add extra “glue” to those recordings. Analogue tape had a similar effect on recordings and mixes, which is why digital recordings often sound flatter and more lifeless. Often, when mixing in ProTools, I end up adding tape noise or distortion to tracks just to bring them back to life. Just as we add filters to photos before uploading them to social media, to make the colours look deeper and livelier.

Chapter 3:

Working with Artificial Reverbs and Rooms

Using artificial reverbs or room simulations is probably the most obvious and common method for creating ambience and adding depth when mixing (from now on I’m only going to refer to both as ‘reverbs’).

A common mistake is to use too many different reverbs and placing each instrument in its own (and often random) space. This will result in a mix that sounds fragmented and confusing. Just as with any other piece of gear, it is important to have a clear vision of what you are trying to achieve, before reaching for any reverb, being hardware or plugin. I normally have two chosen reverbs set up for each mix, using auxiliary sends (though sometimes one reverb can consist of five different reverbs blended together).

Among my favourite reverbs are the EMT 140 (analogue plate) and EMT 250 (digital plate), as well as many old spring reverbs. I especially love the AKG BX15 spring reverb, though most of them sound cool in their own way. All of these exist in plugin form today, and I strongly recommend trying them out. Another favourite of mine is the Waves Abbey Road Echo Chamber plugin, which actually allows you to add more than just reverb to sound. It also features very cool and useful saturation and echo effects. By combining these together, it makes it a very creative and unique plugin with almost endless combinations of sounds.

Processing the signal before reaching the reverb

When using reverbs, as a rule, I never send the full frequency spectrum into the reverb. This is something I learned years ago when reading about how the engineers at Abbey Road achieved their reverbs in the 1960’s. Before sending the sound into their Echo Chamber (which was the main source of reverb in those days) they would always filter the signal. They would basically stop anything below 200Hz and above 10kHz from getting into the chamber. By doing this, the reverb sounds much cleaner and more controlled, blending into the mix more easily. Also, by filtering out the high and low frequencies before going into the reverb, the reverb will also sound more distant and further back in the mix. As I mentioned before all these things can be perfectly emulated in the Waves plugin.

Very bright reverbs will usually tend to sit closer to the front of the sound field, which puts more focus on them. This might be desirable when working on 80’s sounding mixes, for example. But most often, allowing very high frequencies to enter into a reverb, this just leads to a very unclear and messy sound. Low frequencies, on the other hand, will result in a mix that sounds very muddy and bass-heavy, but in the wrong way.

Of course, “EQ:ing” the reverb is very common these days too, and many reverb plugins even offer “EQ controls”. However, I have noticed that a lot of people add EQ to the reverb return, rather than the signal going into the reverb (like I described above). Even though this will give you similar effects, it is never as effective filtering the sound before it hits the reverb. If you think about it, it makes a huge difference if you allow unwanted frequencies into a reverb, and then filter the reverb, compared to if you never allow them to enter in the first place.

In addition to filtering the signal before entering the reverb, I also apply very drastic subtractive EQ to it. (For more information about Subtractive EQ, see my other eBook in the same series – The Art of Equalization.) This is a way to make sure that the reverb doesn’t receive any unwanted frequencies or harmonics. For example, I might sweep around with a very high Q setting, while feeding the sound into the reverb. When I find a frequency that makes the reverb overload or feedback, I cut that frequency by 3dB. And by doing this, the reverb will sound a lot cleaner and more balanced, and the overall mix will sound a lot clearer. People often only look for EQ problems in the dry tracks themselves and forget that the reverbs contribute just as much to the sound of a mix.

The importance of having the correct Pre-Delays times

Another important aspect of working with reverbs is choosing the correct ‘pre-delay time’. In fact, I believe that the length of the ‘pre-delay’ is just as important as the length of the actual reverb. If the reverb sits too close to the sound source. So, a longer ‘pre-delay time’ will create a greater sense of depth in your mix, giving the illusion that it was performed in a larger room. The reverb will also melt in better with the rest of the track. When mixing lead vocals, I normally use a delay-time of around 70-100ms, especially for lead vocals.

Another cool thing to try is to treat the ‘reverb send’ (the signal going into the reverb) in even more extreme ways. I sometimes distort the signal on the way in or add chorus to it. This can create weird and interesting reverb effects. I will talk more about unique and creative ways of treating reverbs in chapter 7.

Working with layers

Something that I often do when mixing is layering many reverbs or echoes together, by using several parallel auxiliaries. This is a great way to create unique and personal sounding reverbs and ambience, and to be creative. I often send the same signal into four different reverbs, a mixture of long/short and dark/bright reverbs, and then blend them together. I then blend them together and create a stereo bounce of the reverbs as soon as possible, in order to commit and move forward. Recently I have used the UAD EMT250, along with a Waves EMT140 and a Valhalla Reverb (Room setting), and I really love the combination. The key here is of course to find the perfect blend of the three, both volume-wise and EQ wise, so that the combined sound sounds balanced and right in the mix. As always, be creative!

As I will talk more about in my upcoming eBook “The Philosophy of Mixing” (which will be released on Amazon on November 1st, 2018), making bounces while mixing can be a great way to improve your mix-flow. It also reduces the size of your sessions and teaches you how to take decisions and quickly move forward. So, when working with reverbs, I always try to be as creative, bold, and brave as possible. Once I find a reverb that I like for a specific mix, I try to stick with it and commit to it.

Chapter 4:

Making use of Natural ambience

A Passion for natural ambience

I have always been a big fan of natural ambience and room acoustics. This is a passion I developed while working at Kensaltown Studios. The main live room at Kensaltown is a large wooden room with a beautiful natural ambience, which naturally adds a nice “air” and space around the sounds. For example, have a listen to Jason Mraz’s song “I’m Yours.” This song was recorded in this specific room, and you can really hear that natural room ambience on his vocal.

I believe that a big part of any sound is due to the reflections coming from the walls of the room, rather than just the instrument itself. Put a guitar amp in a completely dead room, and it will sound very different from if you recorded the same guitar and amp in a beautiful old wooden room. So, when mixing, one should try to make use of already existing ambience by simply reinforcing it and making it more audible. One of the albums that inspired me to start mixing in the first place was Radiohead’s album “Ok Computer.” There is a really interesting article online (Interview with the Producer Nigel Godrich) that talks about how they recorded most of the album in an old castle in England. Most reverbs and ambience on that record are actually the real and natural ambience from the rooms inside the castle. Reading about this kind of stuff really inspires me and makes me want to do the same, and always makes me think of new ways to spice up my mixes. I have even mixed electronic dance tracks in the past, where I added natural reverbs from staircases or empty corridors. So, this is something I really recommend trying.

Using Natural Ambience as "Glue" in a Mix

When recording in a great sounding room, and when soloing the individual microphones, one may not hear much difference (unless the microphones are very far away from the sound-source). But once you start adding the sounds together, one will notice a massive difference in size, clarity, and depth of the overall sound. I especially love vocals recorded in bigger rooms, such as the Jason Mraz song I mentioned before. Without having to add too much processing, they sound much richer, bigger, and more "airy" than vocals recorded in vocal booths. Having said that, if your studio sounds bad and causes lots of nasty reflections, you may not have a choice but to record in a “booth.” If I receive a recording that was recorded in a smaller room but needs a bit more size, excitement, and ambience, there are always ways to artificially "increase" the room size. When working with drums, for example, I would start off by looking at the 'room mics' and the 'overhead' (or 'overheads,' if you are using two of them). It's incredible how much you can change the size of the drums by simply compressing or distorting these in the right way. As I will talk about later in this book, distortion and saturation are great tools for creating an illusion of a bigger space. A distorted room microphone will also offer a large amount of the “glue factor” and make the drums sound more “together” and deep.

The Transient Designer (SPL)

Another great tool for playing with natural ambience and for reinforcing it is the SPL Transient Designer. The Transient Designer was originally a hardware unit designed by a company called SPL, but these days there are a few different plugins that emulate it. I use the UAD Transient Designer plugin in almost every mix I do, for different purposes. It’s a great tool for adding or removing attack or playing with the “sustain” of a sound. Add some sustain to handclaps (for example), and you’ll be surprised how much bigger they will appear. Check out UAD’s simulation of this tool, which I think sounds very similar to “the real thing.” As I’ve mentioned in “The Art of Compression,” the TG1 compressor is another amazing tool for this purpose as well. Put it across a sound that already contains some ambience, and it will automatically reinforce it in a very pleasing way.

Making Use of Natural Spaces While Mixing

As I mentioned before, another great and fun way to make use of natural ambience (for all types of music) is by making use of natural spaces around you. If you have access to a nice corridor, hall, or stairway, try sending elements of your mix into that space, and then picking the sound up with a microphone. All you need is a speaker, some long cables, and a microphone (which should be placed so that it faces away from the speaker).

One can also make use of natural ambience by simply placing the singer or musician directly into the desired acoustic space. When combined with location recording, this can open up a whole new world of possibilities. This is something my brother Fredrik and I have been experimenting with for our own musical project, JUTH. We once tried recording vocals inside an echoic room while recording it with an iPad (using its internal microphone). There was no other option at that moment, and sometimes one needs to make use of what is available. To our surprise, it ended up sounding great, and the “reverb” sounded truly unique. So, you can have a lot of fun with natural spaces and location recording.

I also worked a lot with natural ambience while mixing an album for the German artist Leslie Clio (Album: Gladys). While mixing it, I had access to the Funkhaus in Berlin, which is an old deserted building where studios now are moving in. When walking through one of the empty corridors there, I immediately knew that the reverb would be perfect for her vocal. So, keep your ears open from now on, and you might find cool ways to spice up your own music or mixes.

Chapter 5:

Creating "Invisible" Ambience

When mixing a song that aims to sound very dry but where one still wants to create a sensation of depth (without using a traditional reverb), here are three great tips:

Chorus

One of my favorite ways of treating keyboard pads or other instruments that are designed to sit behind everything else is by using chorus. However, not all chorus units or plugins will do the job, and you need to look for an effect that doesn't sound too obvious.

One of my favorites for this purpose is the Roland Dimension D (the UAD plugin sounds great). The Dimension D creates a unique type of chorus-like spatial diffusion and is also very easy to use. When using chorus on lead vocals, I usually duplicate the track and then create a stereo version of the sound (try using the Waves Doubler plugin), and then add chorus to this wide parallel track. It's amazing how wide and rich the lead vocal sounds and how much more extra depth it adds to the mix.

Tip: If you need to use chorus on a sound that's supposed to be at the front of the mix, as is sometimes the case with guitars, keeping the part sounding bright and free from excessive reverb usually does the trick.

Ping Pong Echoes

Just as with natural ambience or distortion, using longer "ping-pong echoes" can provide a great "glue factor" and "hidden ambience" to a mix. I rarely use echoes this way to achieve an audible effect, and the aim is always to make them appear "invisible" to the listener. I often tend to use a lot of different echoes in a mix, especially for lead and backing vocals. I normally make sure the echoes are quieter in the verses and then bring them up a few dBs during the choruses. This gives you the sensation that the vocals suddenly got wider and bigger without using a traditional reverb.

A great plugin for this is the Soundtoys "Echo Boy" (which I'm sure most people are familiar with) or Waves H-Delay. They have great presets for "ping-pong echoes," which I sometimes use as my starting point. The trick is to time both sides of the echo with the BPM of the song so that you have both 8ths and 4ths, which then "dance around" in the stereo field.

A great trick to make them appear even more "invisible" is to filter them by sending only midrange frequencies into the echo. In addition, try sending the echoes into a chorus effect or even a light room simulation. This will diffuse the repeats even further.

Distortion

Most people know that harmonics (or overtones) are very important to music and sound. However, not everyone might know how useful distortion/saturation can be for adding space, ambience and “glue” to a sound (or a group of sounds). When you saturate a sound it automatically becomes less defined, and it’s almost as if the contours of the sound get blurred out. This helps giving the listener the sensation of depth and spaciousness. For example, try distorting a snare drum slightly, and notice how much bigger the room around it appears to be.

Whenever I’m working on a mix, I often make duplicates of sounds, and then send them through different types of saturation/distortion. This was also discussed in more depth in “The Art of Compression”. I always make sure I have different types of distortion boxes/plugins at hand, each one with a different purpose. For example, by having a darker and grittier distortion, in combination with a brighter and crisper one, it allows you to create different types of textures and dimensions. When working with a live drum-kit (for example) making a copy of the overhead and treating it with both types of distortion (the bright and the dark one), one will suddenly have two new dimensions to add to the drums. The bright distortion will add excitement and top-end to the drums (it will act like an EQ), while the darker one will provide more size and grit to the sound. You can do the same thing with vocals (a great way to give them depth and edge at the same time), bass or even a piano. However, the trick is to add very little of both and to not over-do it (unless you are going for a super trashy sound.)

There are many different ways to achieve distortion or saturation. Some of my favorite methods include:

Tape saturation

A distortion box (either guitar pedals, more expensive studio alternatives, or a saturation plugin)

Overloading the input of random pieces of equipment

Playing with different ‘bit depths’ and ‘sample rates‘ (think the crushed sound of 8-bit Nintendo)

Chapter 6:

Working with Audible Echoes

When talking about “audible echoes” I am referring to any kind of echo that is supposed to be heard in the mix (contrary to “invisible” echoes/ambience). Audible echoes can add a lot of character to a mix, as well as lots of depth and size, depending on how you use them. However, echoes (at least some types of echoes) might also draw a lot more attention to a sound, compared to reverbs. And, of course, this might not always be what you are going for.

The only rule I have when working with echoes is to always make sure that the “wet” signal sounds different from the “dry” (original) signal. This puts the echo slightly behind the singer, and thus creates more depth. This can be achieved by simply filtering the echo, and by adding a slight chorus or pitch effect to the echo itself.

The types of audible echoes that I use the most can be divided into two categories:

1. Slap-back echoes

2. Feedback echoes

Slap-back echoes

A slap-back echo is a simple repeat, with a fairly fast delay time. It’s probably one of the most classic types of echoes, which can be heard on most old 50’s/60’s rock records (Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, etc).

Slap-back echoes tend to give lead vocals extra urgency and nerve (which is why they are so good for rock vocals), and they also draw a lot of attention to the singer. However, when used very subtly (with almost all high frequencies rolled off) a slap-back echo can act more like a subtle shadow behind the singer, adding great amounts of depth. It gives you the same effect as when you add a shadow behind a word or a letter, or any object. It all depends on how present the echo is, how loud you mix it, and the length of the delay time. In general, the closer the echo (delay time) is to the singer the more obvious it will be.

Feedback Echoes

A feedback echo is an echo with several repeats (rather than just one or two). Feedback echoes are great for creating more euphoric type of sounds, and often bring my thoughts to Coldplay (guitar sound), or even some elements from electronic dance music. It puts the sound source into a landscape of echoes. I often use these types of echoes if I am mixing a song that asks for a “larger than life” and euphoric sound. Feedback echoes sound great on vocals, synth-leads or guitars, and even pianos. It’s a great way to add extra emotion, or dreamy vibe to an already dreamy song.

To create a “feedback echo”, simply add an echo plugin and then play with the “feedback” or “repeat” knob. It’s important that you add a high and low-pass filter to the echo itself, to move it backwards in the mix. Apart from the “Echoboy” plugin (by Soundtoys), I also love the echoes one can get from Waves J37 tape plugin. It’s a tape machine simulation, which also offers an echo section. Both the slap-back and the feedback echoes sound amazing and give you very authentic tape-echo vibe.

Being creative with echoes

Just as with any other mixing tool or effect, I always tell my students to be creative and to not only use them in “the normal way”. And this is probably one of my main philosophies when mixing, to always be creative and always think outside the box. It doesn’t only make you stand out from the crowd, but it also makes the job so much more fun and exciting.

Try to think of ways that you can use echoes (for example) and echo plugins, and how you can combine them with other processors. You will be amazed about all the unique sounds and effects that you can create if you just think outside the box and challenge yourself. Of course, one doesn’t always have to aim to be unique, and a very simply echo/delay can often be perfect for the song you are mixing. But there are also times when a mix might ask for something more special and creative. I have for example tried feeding echoes into flanger, distortion boxes, compressors with side-chain, pitch shifters, and all kinds of crazy things. And once in a while you will find that magic sound that can really take a mix to a whole new level. That is the power of reverbs and echoes (and other ways of achieving depth). Once you get it right, it can be that detail that puts you aside from other Mix Engineers. In the next chapter I will take a closer look at some other creative things you can try when trying to achieve depth in a mix.

CHAPTER 7:

Four Creative Tips For Working With Reverbs/Ambience

Automating the Ambience

A static depth or ambience (one which stays the same all through the song) can suit some songs. But a very powerful tool when mixing can sometimes be to automate the reverbs or ambience. This is a very effective way to underline a certain part of a song, to reinforce the production, or to momentarily get the listener's attention.

This can be done by suddenly bringing a sound (which previously was in the back of the mix) to the front, or vice versa. Or having a very wet vocal, which suddenly becomes dry for a section. This will catch the listener’s attention and be a very effective way to underline an emotional change in the song.

To hear an example of this, go back and listen to The Beatles' “A Day in The Life,” a song recorded and mixed by the late Geoff Emerick. This is a great example of when automating the vocal echo can help to reinforce the emotion of the song. For the biggest part of this song, the lead vocal is very “echoey” and dreamy, which fits the mood perfectly. However, when it reaches the ‘middle eight,’ the vocal suddenly becomes totally dry and a bit muffled. This engineering choice goes really well with the lyrics of the song, which (at that point) are about the sleepy feeling of waking up. After the line, “Somebody spoke, and I went into a dream,” and the song goes into the dreamy section, the echo suddenly comes back in. This is a way to, once again, change the mood of the song and to take the listener into a dream.

So, as you can see, automating your reverbs, echoes (or other effects) can have a huge impact on how the listener perceives a song and reacts to it emotionally. Automation can also be used to simply bring a very quiet sound to the front of the mix, just for a second, and then back again. Sometimes shocking or surprising the listener can help tell the story of the song and be used to grab someone’s attention.

When mixing, I often use two different reverbs and two different echoes, all coming in at different times and being at different levels at different points in the song. For example, for the beginning of the song, I might use a smaller reverb and no echoes, and then gradually make the song bigger and wetter. If the last chorus has to be “larger than life” and euphoric, I might suddenly add both reverbs, together with lots of echo. In this way, the ambience of the song becomes like another instrument, which can help tell the story of the song. Sometimes, it is these little details that get you a gig or that make people go “wow, that’s a great mix.”

Pitch Shifting a Reverb

When working with more experimental music, try pitch shifting the signal that you are sending into the reverb, an octave up (for example). When combining this reverb with the normal dry vocal, you can get really interesting textures. I used to play a lot with these sorts of effects when working with the band Apparatjik, where the vocals always called for more surreal treatments. One can even take it one step further and create a reverb which is fed by both a pitched-up and a pitched-down signal, though it’s important to filter out the lows from the vocals before reaching the reverb.

Panning Reverbs

Something that I often do when working with guitars and pianos, and when panning them left or right, is to put a reverb on the opposite side. So, for example, if you have an acoustic guitar on the right side, try adding a subtle reverb to the other side. This will make the guitar bigger but also more balanced in the mix. However, something even more creative (and one of my favorite effects) is to dynamically pan the reverb. By this I mean sending a sound to a reverb, and then let the reverb slowly move around from left to right. This is a great way of creating an invisible movement in the mix. The listener might feel that something is happening in the sound field but might not know exactly what it is. For this, I strongly recommend “Panman,” a great plugin by Soundtoys. It allows you to automatically pan a sound around, at different speeds and with different patterns.

Ducking a Reverb with a Side-Chain

It’s very common to side-chain sounds when mixing, especially when mixing electronic music. But adding side-chain to your reverbs can be equally as effective and cool. For example, when working with percussive sounds, which have a lot of reverb, try putting a compressor across the reverb track. Then send the percussive sound into the side-chain of this compressor. Every time the sound appears, the reverb will duck momentarily, making the original track appear dryer and adding an additional rhythmic element to it. It’s important, though, to make sure the tail of the reverb only lasts until the next hit. This can create a pumping and rhythmic sensation to your mix but also be good for creating space. As much as working with effects in this way can make a track move and groove better, it can also make a song appear messy and kill the groove.

If you enjoyed this book and the rest of the books in this series, you might also be interested in my brand-new book, 'Mixing Philosophy.' It delves deeper into essential mindsets for creating truly great mixes and discusses the importance of a well-oiled workflow.

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For those who want to continue learning with me, I am now offering a weekly newsletter called 'Studio Tea Break.'

This isn't your typical boring newsletter; it's packed with value. Every Wednesday, you'll receive three fresh mixing tips directly in your inbox. To sign up, simply visit thomasjuth.com and click on the Newsletter tab in the menu.

The Art of Mixing Series

Explore the world of audio mixing with my series of eBooks, collectively known as "The Art of Mixing." Dive into the following four books to master the craft:

The Art of Compression: Learn the secrets of dynamic control and how to shape your sound with compression techniques.

The Art of EQ: Discover the art of equalization and how to sculpt audio frequencies for a polished and balanced mix.

The Art of Creating Depth: Uncover the techniques for adding depth and dimension to your mixes, creating a sonic landscape that captivates your audience.

Mixing Philosophy: Delve deeper into essential mindsets for creating truly great mixes and explore the importance of a well-oiled workflow.

Thank You!

Before you go, I would like to say, “thank you” for purchasing this eBook, and for reading it all the way to the end. I hope you enjoyed it!

I would really appreciate if you could take a minute or two and leave a review for this book on Amazon. Your feedback is very important and will help me continue writing more books.

I would also like to thank my brother Fredrik Juth, for proofreading and for great teamwork.