What do you recommend for mixing ?

**dangersgs** · 05-01-2012

I'm a beginner and I don't know what should I use for mixing my beats.Are the tools from FL studio good enough or should I get a plugin/plugins ? If so,which plugins should I get ?
If at least one tool in in FL studio is good,for example the parametric eq let me know,because I'm already familiar with FL studio plugins and would like to use them.But if there is something better please let me know.I'll just have to get out of my comfort zone.
Thanks !

**Yuno** · 05-01-2012

First, you need to start off with yourself. This includes having a good listening environment. Get studio quality headphones like Sennheiser or AKG. If you can afford it, I HIGHLY recommend getting a pair of studio monitors. I have KrK 6's which advertise a response of ~45-20,000htz. Get something that will give you a wide response without "enhancement." Get yourself a good area for mixing. Get a clean desk preferably sitting away from corners where bass frequencies build up.

As far as interface/DAW, I use FL and I love it. Some out there will tell you it's inferior but there's no solid reasons for anyone to say that. It's controls are very simple and give a quick workflow. Later on when you become more comfortable you might try demoing a different DAW but personally I own both FL and Ableton and I still like using FL for its workflow. As long as you can automate and export in 24 bit, 44.1khz your DAW will give you "professional/studio quality." I don't mind ParametricEQ2. The analyzer is useful when you're first mixing. Depending on the instrument, you might be more inclined to use an IIR or emulator type EQ. For the purposes of learning though, I'd just stick to ParaEQ2 for now.

---------- Post added at 04:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:53 PM ----------

But yeah, as a beginner, FL is good. No use in blowing money on another DAW right now.

**dangersgs** · 05-01-2012

Originally Posted by Yuno

First, you need to start off with yourself. This includes having a good listening environment. Get studio quality headphones like Sennheiser or AKG. If you can afford it, I HIGHLY recommend getting a pair of studio monitors. I have KrK 6's which advertise a response of ~45-20,000htz. Get something that will give you a wide response without "enhancement." Get yourself a good area for mixing. Get a clean desk preferably sitting away from corners where bass frequencies build up.

As far as interface/DAW, I use FL and I love it. Some out there will tell you it's inferior but there's no solid reasons for anyone to say that. It's controls are very simple and give a quick workflow. Later on when you become more comfortable you might try demoing a different DAW but personally I own both FL and Ableton and I still like using FL for its workflow. As long as you can automate and export in 24 bit, 44.1khz your DAW will give you "professional/studio quality." I don't mind ParametricEQ2. The analyzer is useful when you're first mixing. Depending on the instrument, you might be more inclined to use an IIR or emulator type EQ. For the purposes of learning though, I'd just stick to ParaEQ2 for now.

---------- Post added at 04:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:53 PM ----------

But yeah, as a beginner, FL is good. No use in blowing money on another DAW right now.

Thanks for the reply.I have Yamaha HS50M monitors and plan to use them for mixing. But I am not planning to change the DAW.I will use FL studio until the day I die.I used cubase LE 5 for a while but didn't like the interface.What I was asking is if it's worth getting some vst plugins like waves diamond or something .Is waves or any other plugin better than the plugins which are ALREADY included in FL studio?

**markrajcoomar** · 05-01-2012

I've heard a lot of really good mixes coming out of FL... It sounds cliche but it's really about practicing, learning frequencies and trying different things that are pleasing to your ear. Plug- ins can definitely help... I like a lot of the Waves stuff and see a lot of people that use Izotope Ozone with FL.

**Yuno** · 05-01-2012

Originally Posted by dangersgs

Thanks for the reply.I have Yamaha HS50M monitors and plan to use them for mixing. But I am not planning to change the DAW.I will use FL studio until the day I die.I used cubase LE 5 for a while but didn't like the interface.What I was asking is if it's worth getting some vst plugins like waves diamond or something .Is waves or any other plugin better than the plugins which are ALREADY included in FL studio?

I'll be honest, you shouldn't worry about waves right now and I don't mean that in a a condescending way at all. There's no sense in buying thousands of dollars of software before you have the basics down. Pretty much all you need are the FL compressor as a solid digital compressor, ParaEQ2 as an FIR EQ/analyzer, and Maximus for general mastering. Even Ozone is a bit pricey just to begin. If you were going to buy Ozone I'd say first demo it and play around with it. 90% of the people that complain about Waves being better than Ozone only use the factory presets inside of Ozone.

I definitely recommend the NS10's which are similar to the HS50M's. I own the KrK 6's and I love them myself.

**dangersgs** · 05-01-2012

Thanks for the help ! I'll work with just FL studio for now if you guys say that it's good enough.
I have another question if you know something about this:
Is my monitors position bad ?
If not,thanks anyway.

**BeatGenerals** · 05-02-2012

FL Studio gives you great tools actually to mix as long as you apply them right. Mixing overall is just about practice and the best thing i think you can do is, find a track you like the mix on, and compare the track you're mixing to that. It'll give you a nice reference point when mixing. Good luck!

**P. Casso** · 05-03-2012

Originally Posted by dangersgs

Thanks for the help ! I'll work with just FL studio for now if you guys say that it's good enough.
I have another question if you know something about this:
http://www.futureproducers.com/forum.../#post49372199
If not,thanks anyway.