Liquid Studios

This is what mix bus compression is supposed to do. Same mix. Same tones. Same balance. But once the slow attack / fast release setting kicks in, the whole thing starts to feel more connected. The kick locks into the guitars. The snare has more weight. The mix feels like one powerful recording instead of a pile of stems. That’s the whole goal. Watch the full episode on YouTube. #metalmixing #mixbuscompression #buscompression #sslbuscompressor #metalproduction #mixingtips #homestudio #mixengineer #musicproduction #metalbands #heavymusic

Fast attack on your mix bus might feel like the “tight” move… But in a metal mix, it can absolutely destroy your punch. If the compressor grabs the kick and snare before the transients have a chance to cut through, you’re not making the mix tighter. You’re making it smaller. And if you pair that with a fast release, you can end up with weird pumping that makes the whole mix feel unstable. Watch the full episode on YouTube. #metalmixing #mixbuscompression #buscompression #sslbuscompressor #mixingtips #metalproduction #homestudio #musicproduction #mixengineer #metalbands #heavymusic

Your metal mix might not need better tones… It might need better bus compression. If the guitars, drums, and bass all sound solid on their own, but the full mix still feels disconnected, thin, or like it’s not hitting hard enough, your mix bus could be the problem. In this clip, I break down why attack and release settings can make or break the way your metal mix glues together. Watch the full episode on YouTube. #metalmixing #buscompression #mixbuscompression #sslbuscompressor #metalproduction #mixingtips #homestudio #diymusician #metalbands #musicproduction #mixengineer #heavymusic

Your metal mix might be almost there… The guitars are solid. The drums sound good. The bass is working. But when everything plays together, it still doesn’t hit the way it should. It feels disconnected. Thin. Like a bunch of individual tracks instead of one massive, aggressive band. A lot of the time, that comes down to what’s happening on your mix bus. More specifically… Your attack and release settings on your SSL style bus compressor. Set the attack too fast, and you can completely kill the punch of your kick and snare. Set the release wrong, and the whole mix can start pumping, dipping, or feeling like it can’t keep up with the arrangement. In this week’s video, I break down how I use SSL style bus compression for metal, including: ✅ Why fast attack can destroy your punch ✅ Why slow attack usually works better ✅ When to use fast release ✅ When auto release makes more sense ✅ How much gain reduction you actually need The goal isn’t to crush your mix. It’s to make it feel tighter, heavier, more glued together, and more like one powerful recording instead of a pile of stems. Watch the full episode now on YouTube 🤘 #metalproduction #metalmixing #mixbuscompression #sslbuscompressor #buscompression #mixingtips #homestudio #diymusician #metalbands #recordingengineer #mixengineer #musicproduction #metalcore #deathmetal #heavymusic

This is where a lot of mixers get reference tracks wrong. The goal is not to force your mix to match the reference. If a tweak makes your mix better, keep it. If the original version sounds better, undo it. Reference tracks are there to guide your decisions, not make them for you. Do you use reference tracks when mixing? #metalmixing #mixingtips #audioengineering #metalproduction #referencetracks #mixengineer #homestudio #diymusician #musicproduction #reaper #ozone

Your ears are the most important tool you have… But sometimes they need backup. That’s why I use a spectrum analyzer as a visual sanity check against my reference tracks. Not to blindly match another mix. But to quickly see if my mix has any major frequency issues that might hurt translation on cars, AirPods, Bluetooth speakers, laptops, and everything in between. Do you use reference tracks by ear only, or do you check them visually too? #metalmixing #mixingtips #audioengineering #reference tracks #ozone #reaper #metalproduction #homestudio #mixengineer #diymusician #musicproduction

Ever think your mix sounds amazing… then you hit play on a reference track and immediately question your entire existence? 😂 That’s the ear refresh in action. Your ears adapt fast, so checking a pro reference every 30–45 minutes can instantly reveal if your guitars got too dark, your cymbals are buried, or your mix started drifting into mud. What’s your go-to reference track for metal mixes? #metalmixing #mixingtips #audioengineering #metalproduction #homestudio #diymusician #mixengineer #recordingstudio #musicproduction #reference tracks

A lot of metal mixers are using reference tracks completely wrong… And it’s making their mixes worse. Reference tracks are supposed to be a reality check, not a rulebook. If you’re constantly pulling up a pro mix and second guessing every single decision… “Are my guitars too dark?” “Is my kick too clicky?” “Are my cymbals buried?” “Is my low end too much?” You’re probably not using references in a way that’s actually helping your mix. In my latest YouTube video, I break down the 3 ways I’ve used reference tracks over the years: - The instant ear refresh - Focused A/B listening - The spectrum analyzer method I actually use now The big takeaway? Use reference tracks to keep your ears honest… But don’t blindly chase someone else’s mix. Watch the full episode on YouTube now. What’s your go-to metal reference track? Drop it in the comments, I’m always looking for new ones to add to my library. #metalproduction #metalmixing #mixingtips #recordingstudio #homestudio #diymusician #metalband #audioengineering #mixengineer #reference tracks #reaper #ozone #musicproduction

Swapping amp sims gives you variations on a theme… but swapping IRs can completely change the neighborhood your tone lives in. 👀 That’s the big takeaway from this test, and it has huge implications for how you build your guitar tone at home. Full video is live now. Link in bio. 🤘 #metalproduction #metalmixing #guitartone #ampsim #impulseresponse #metalguitar #homerecording #audioengineering #diyrecording #homestudio

Most home metal producers have this backwards… They obsess over amp sims and treat IRs like an afterthought. But a great IR through a solid amp sim will usually get you closer to the tone you actually want than the other way around. 👀 Full video is live now. Link in bio. 🤘 #metalproduction #metalmixing #guitartone #ampsim #impulseresponse #homerecording #metalguitar #audioengineering #diyrecording #homestudio

Your IR is doing way more of the heavy lifting than most people think. 👀 If you’ve been obsessing over amp sims but still can’t get your guitars to sit right, this is probably why. Full video is up now at the link in bio. 🤘 #metalproduction #metalmixing #guitartone #ampsim #impulseresponse #homerecording #metalguitar #audioengineering #diyrecording #homestudio

If your guitar tone still isn’t hitting the way you want, there’s a good chance the problem isn’t your amp sim… In my latest video, I ran a controlled test: 3 amp sims through the same IR and then 1 amp sim through 3 different IRs The results made one thing very clear: your IR is probably shaping way more of your final tone than you think. If you’ve been chasing better metal guitar tones at home and wondering where to actually spend your money, this episode will help you cut through a lot of the noise. Watch now at the link in bio and let me know in the comments what amp sim + IR combo you’re using right now. 🤘 #metalproduction #metalmixing #homerecording #guitartone #ampsim #impulseresponse #metalguitar #diyrecording #audioengineering #homestudio