We all know how to hear, it's natural, but knowing how to listen is a learned skill. It takes practice and it takes thought. Knowing how to listen is the key to making better and faster decision during the process of recording music. In this video, Fab shows you how to focus your attention on parts of the signal, explains memorization process and habits and warns you aginst the most common bad habits.
Because a lot of the listening process is based on emotions, intuition and impressions this video uses psycho-acoustics to show you the most common pitfalls of focused listening.
Please resist the irresistible urge to spoil the process for other viewers by leaving hints in the comments. You punks know who you are, darn kids these days…
00:00:07 Good morning children! Today,
we're going to talk about how to listen.
00:00:11 I know what you're thinking:
you've got ears, you know how to listen.
00:00:15 But the reality is: you've got ears,
you know how to hear
but do you know how to listen?
Let me show you.
00:00:21 Think about Thriller,
by Michael Jackson.
00:00:24 If you've been alive on earth, for more
than 2 minutes, you've heard Thriller.
00:00:27 But have you listened to it?
Does it have real drums
or electronic drums?
Is it bright, is it dark?
Does it have a string section,
or a horn section?
Does anybody play some descending
major 7 arpeggio somewhere in there?
Ha! Have you listened to it?
If you have, you should know.
00:00:48 So today, we're going to listen
to music with a focus
Not Michael Jackson's Thriller,
he wouldn't let us
but some really great track nonetheless.
00:01:00 The first thing to be mindful of
is your aural memory.
00:01:03 Somebody please, write Aural Memory
on the screen
so that you know what I'm talking about
because I do have a slight...
00:01:08 but perceptible French accent.
So, Aural Memory.
00:01:12 I think there are 2 kinds
of aural memory: long term, short term.
00:01:16 The long term kind is your musical
and sonic culture...
00:01:20 something you develop over the years.
00:01:23 It's the reason why it takes a long time
to learn how to mix or produce a record
You are educating your brain
over the years
on what you like and don't like,
on what other people like or don't.
00:01:34 It's a lifelong process.
00:01:37 Say you live in New York City
and you don't use your car too much.
00:01:41 But it's still your reference
for your mixes.
00:01:43 Maybe you haven't been in your car
listening to music for 10 days.
00:01:46 But if you take that mix and go
in that car
you will know right away
if the mix is right or not.
00:01:53 That's your brain remembering how music
is supposed to sound in that environment
from 10 days ago.
00:01:59 But not just from 10 days ago,
from having been in that situation
many, many times over the years.
00:02:04 The problem with long term
aural memory is that it's fickle
and not super reliable, because
it's very environment-based.
00:02:11 Meaning the place you were in
when you built that memory
the mood you were in
when you built that memory
the devices you built that memory through
good or bad speakers, headphones,
old headphones...
00:02:21 a car that you liked,
a car that you didn't like.
00:02:24 All that taints the memory.
00:02:26 So it takes an averaging over the years
for you to be able to get a real idea
of what things actually sound like.
00:02:33 Fortunately, to compensate for the fickleness
of the long term aural memory
we have the short term aural memory.
00:02:40 Short term aural memory
is what you naturally use
when you're working on your production
and mixes.
00:02:45 As in: play something...
boom, boom, boom...
00:02:47 raise the vocal 1dB, play it again. boom,
boom, boom... Do you hear the difference?
You're removing the physical environment
from the variables
because you're playing everything
on the same set.
00:02:57 So now, you can focus on the difference
between the 2 different passes.
00:03:02 Unfortunately, even short term
aural memory
is not that easy to use.
It takes time and work to develop it.
00:03:09 Most people, even professionals,
listen to music the way their girlfriends do.
00:03:14 Meaning our girlfriends either like
the song or don't.
00:03:17 They couldn't care less about the sound
of the bass drum or if the vocal is bright.
00:03:21 Really, they don't care.
But we should care!
That's why we have to learn to develop
our listening skills
so we can pinpoint our attention
on one part of the mix
or the whole mix, or that other
part of the mix, at will.
00:03:33 Let me show you.
00:03:35 Listen to this track, I'll play it twice.
00:03:38 First, raw, and then
I'm gonna change something.
00:03:41 But you don't get to see what I change.
You just have to listen.
00:03:44 Check it out.
00:03:46 First pass.
00:04:05 Now, I change something.
Check it out!
Ah! Did you hear the difference?
Do you think you heard a difference?
Was there a difference?
Am I trying to trick you?
What's the difference?
Let's practice! I'm gonna go back
to no change, the original.
00:04:37 Now, focus on the bass drum and the bass.
00:04:41 Try and tune out the rest of the song
just focus all your attention
on the bass drum and the bass.
00:04:48 First pass.
00:05:07 With the change...
00:05:25 Ok, so you may have heard it,
or you may not.
00:05:28 But I do promise there's a difference.
00:05:30 If you haven't heard it
it means that your current ability
to retain the memory of the sound
is shorter than the length
of the sample I picked.
00:05:41 What if I pick a shorter sample
and I just alternate?
It's gonna be 2 bars, and you'll see
on the screen On and Off.
00:05:48 See if you can hear a difference now.
Still focus on the bass drum and the bass.
00:05:53 Check it out. First flat,
and then effect.
00:06:21 It's easier with a shorter sample, right?
Let me show you what I was doing.
00:06:25 Here's the EQ I'm using.
00:06:28 +1.98dBs at 145Hz, shelf.
00:06:32 So it definitely will affect
the bass drum and the bass.
00:06:35 Let me show you what's going on.
When there's bypass, nothing happens.
00:06:38 When I remove the bypass,
you hear the correction. Here we go.
00:06:58 Now you get it.
00:07:00 Let's go one step deeper in this spirit.
00:07:03 I'm gonna take the bass off...
00:07:06 select a longer period of time...
00:07:10 and then I'm gonna
first play the sample flat.
00:07:32 Now, I'm gonna turn on a shelf.
00:07:34 1.6dB at 3k shelf.
00:07:37 The whole high end
is gonna go up like this
Pay attention to the high end,
the hi-hats
and see the difference in shine.
00:07:45 Same length of sample.
00:08:06 Did you hear it? Yes? No? Maybe?
Were you focused?
Were you listening to the high end?
If you heard something in this
particular case, I tricked you.
00:08:17 I played the same thing twice,
but I changed something on the screen.
00:08:21 If you heard something, it means that
your eyes took over your ears
and fooled you.
It happens all the time.
00:08:27 We've all been caught playing with an EQ
for 15 minutes and then realized it's off.
00:08:31 But for those 15 minutes,
we actually heard something.
00:08:34 We are kidding ourselves
into hearing things.
00:08:37 If you didn' hear it, but were kind of like
wondering... should I be hearing it?
It means you're still not quite sure
what you're hearing...
00:08:45 your brain is taking over your ears
and standing in the way of the perception.
00:08:50 The key is to really focus on listening
and forget about the thinking
and especially turn off your eyes.
00:08:58 So, I'd like to recommend...
00:09:01 to always remember to turn the screen off.
00:09:04 Turn the light off
Or, just look the other way
when you're listening for something
very important.
00:09:11 I always look down, or to the side.
I never look at the screen
when I want to make a critical assessment,
and I definitely don't look at the plug-in UI
because that is guarantee to fool you.
00:09:23 Another advantage of closing your eyes
is that once they're closed
and you 're listening to music
you can start assigning
virtual, visual positions
to every instrument in the mix
in kind of a virtual space or canvas
if you will.
00:09:37 Some people call it visual mixing.
00:09:39 Dimensions you should consider
are top to bottom
which is bass at he bottom,
mids in the middle, hence their name
and then highs, well... up high!
Then, there's left to right,
that's also easy, right?
Left. Right. We know that one.
00:09:54 More complicated: the z plane,
the front to back, the 3D thing.
00:09:58 You know, here, here, and here.
00:10:01 And there's also dynamic.
00:10:03 Dynamic is kind of like the 4th dimension
because we're used to think of it
as a vertical thing
because we're used to looking at faders.
00:10:10 Less fader is quieter, and more fader
is louder, so we think of it this way
But the reality is that if you close
your eyes and listen to music
if something gets louder,
it's gonna feel closer.
00:10:21 That, combined with other tricks,
lets you do the z plane.
00:10:24 But it's kind of different.
00:10:25 We're not gonna get into
how to achieve that right now
I just wanna get into listening to it
and trying to see if you can feel that,
if you can get that feeling.
00:10:33 because if can you get the feeling,
then you can recreate it when you're mixing.
00:10:37 I'm gonna give you some example.
00:10:38 In this track, the first thing
to listen to is the z plane.
00:10:43 How far up is the bass drum?
Where's the snare drum? Behind it?
At the same level?
Where is the vocal? Behind it further?
Now, if you compare bass drum
and snare drum
are they at the same frequency height,
or a little higher?
Do they really feel like that?
And then, guitars.
00:11:01 The guitars are left and right.
But there's a guitar in the middle too.
00:11:04 So, how does that feel?
Can you close your eyes, and actually
visualize that stuff? Try it!
Close your eyes.
00:11:48 I'm not gonna get into
how to achieve this right now.
00:11:52 What's important is you should
at least have that on your mind
when you listen to music.
Because if you can feel that
then you can recreate that feeling
and apply those principles
and create that environment
in your own mixes.
00:12:05 In the spirit of trying to achieve
what you hear is what you get
here's an interesting exercise.
00:12:10 I'm gonna play you 2 examples
back to back.
00:12:13 Example A, and example B.
00:12:16 Which one do you like best?
Which one sounds better?
Which one's more your bag?
Check it out! Here's A.
00:12:23 Close your eyes.
00:12:41 B.
00:13:00 B's more exciting, right? It's more
in your face, more aggressive.
00:13:04 Right?
Now, let's do something else.
Let's go back to A
play that for a few bars, and then
I'm gonna play a new example called C.
00:13:13 First, A, then C. Here we go.
00:13:32 C.
00:13:50 Just for good measure, I'm gonna
do that again.
00:13:52 I'm gonna play A from where the synth
comes in.
00:13:55 Listen to how it sounds.
00:13:57 And then I'm gonna play C
at the same spot.
00:14:00 Listen to the drums
bass drum and the bass
and listen to the overall tone
of the song. Here's A.
00:14:16 C.
00:14:27 Isn't that interesting?
Obviously, C is crunchy, the bass goes away
the bass drum is pushed back,
it doesn't sound so good.
00:14:33 The fun thing is that B,
which we liked a lot
and C, which we do not, is exactly
the same thing played at different levels.
00:14:42 If I play A and then B, being
the crushed mix but loud, I like B.
00:14:48 If I play A and C, which is the exact
same crushed mix
but at the same level, I like A better.
00:14:54 The moral of this story...
00:14:57 is that before doing anything,
you've got to match your levels.
00:15:00 If you don't match your levels,
you're fooling yourself.
00:15:03 Same thing as you're fooling yourself
with your eyes.
00:15:05 Level will fool you into thinking
that things are better.
00:15:08 The louder, the better.
00:15:10 That's a big lesson.
So whenever you do compression
whenever you do drastic EQ,
make sure that you listen
pre and post at the same level.
00:15:20 Otherwise, you're lying to yourself.
00:15:23 Let's go deeper into the tricks
your mind can play on yourself.
00:15:27 Here's an interesting thing:
first example, second example...
00:15:30 Try and feel the difference.
00:15:32 Number 1.
00:16:09 The second example sounds
so dark and dull, right?
The problem in this case is that
it is actually our base mix
which has been sounding great to us since the very beginning,
it's always been our pick.
00:16:21 It's not dull, it's just right.
00:16:23 Listening to a bright version of it
for 20 seconds
makes it feel dull,
but in reality, it's not.
00:16:30 What you hear is not always
what you get.
00:16:33 You have to be very careful
when you work to not fool yourself
into wanting more high end
and being stucked with it.
00:16:39 For example, say you're EQ'ing a vocal
and you're doing that trick
when you jack up the frequency
and you're looking for what
you're looking for. Fine. You find it.
00:16:47 If you do that for too long...
00:16:49 say you have 5dBs at 10k,
and looking for the exact right spot
when you're gonna bring it back down
it's gonna feel dull.
00:16:55 So what are you gonna do?
Jack it back up!
And what that's gonna do?
Ruin your mix.
00:16:59 You've gotta be really careful
about that stuff.
00:17:02 It's all about intent listening
and being careful about what you do
and being mindful of what you do.
00:17:09 Here's another one.
00:17:11 Tonight, when you're done working
on your music
don't touch anything,
especially not the volume knob.
00:17:15 Leave it as is. Then come back
in the morning and press Play.
00:17:18 Just how loud is it?
Insanely loud?
Was that you listening at that level
last night? No way!
Yes way, it was you! Are you crazy?
No! Why is it so loud?
Because throughout the day,
while you were working
levels crept up. Why?
For the same reason we just saw.
Maybe you played it loud a little bit
then you don't really want to bring it
back down, plus louder feels better.
00:17:39 Louder always feels better.
It's not better, but it feels that way.
00:17:43 So be careful.
00:17:44 As I said at the very beginning...
00:17:46 the environment taints
the perception of the music.
00:17:49 It gets in the way,
you are fooling yourself.
00:17:52 Make sure you keep your levels
in check.
00:17:53 We'll do a whole video
on monitoring techniques.
00:17:56 But for now, leave
that volume knob alone.
00:18:01 Last, but not least in the art of listening
here's an interesting way to regain
perspective when you've lost it...
00:18:07 the perspective...
00:18:09 Say you're mixing, and you're done...
it's the best thing you've ever done.
00:18:14 Call someone to come listen with you.
Just to see how that feels.
00:18:18 I guarantee you it will be
a completely different experience.
00:18:21 It needs to be a human being...
the cat, or the dog won't do.
00:18:24 Now, they don't have to be professionals,
but it's fun with professionals
especially if you have access
to two kinds of professionals.
00:18:31 Some whose opinion you respect
and people whose opinion you do not respect
like the drummer in the band for example.
00:18:37 Check this out.
00:18:38 If you listen to the same mix
with somebody whose opinion you respect
and two minutes later with somebody
whose opinion you don't respect
it's gonna feel completely different.
00:18:47 It's fun to try, and it gives you
a good insight
on how much your mind is playing
tricks on you at all times.
00:18:54 As twisted as it sounds, the first step
to not be lying to yourself
is to know that you are lying
to yourself, at all times.
00:19:01 Critical listening is an active experience.
00:19:03 You need to practice and get better at it.
00:19:05 You need to build your short term
aural memory
and your long term aural memory.
00:19:09 You need to remember, just remember,
to get rid of the distractions
as much as possible.
00:19:15 Turn the screen off. Close your eyes.
00:19:17 Look elsewhere.
Don't let your eyes kill you.
00:19:20 Don't let the levels kill you.
Don't let the brightness kill you.
00:19:23 But more importantly
make sure you always have
our girlfriend around
to listen to the final mix
before you deliver it.
00:19:28 Et voilà!
Once logged in, you will be able to read all the transcripts jump around in the video.
Fab Dupont is an award-winning NYC based record producer, mixing/mastering engineer and co-founder of pureMix.net.
Fab has been playing, writing, producing and mixing music both live and in studios all over the world. He's worked in cities like Paris, Boston, Brussels, Stockholm, London and New York just to name a few.
He has his own studio called FLUX Studios in the East Village of New York City.
Fab has received many accolades around the world, including wins at the Victoires de la Musique, South African Music awards, Pan African Music Awards, US independent music awards. He also has received Latin Grammy nominations and has worked on many Latin Grammy and Grammy-nominated albums.
Parts of this site and some files are only accessible to pureMix Pro Members or available to purchase. Please see below our membership plans or add this video to your shopping cart.
Thanks a lot. It helped me to see things from a different perspective
Grabuster
2022 Apr 22
Fab! you are my hero! :)
Nicorissi
2022 Mar 06
Muy b uen punto de vista, quiza cuando se empieza a aprender sea por este lado. Como escuchar y como entrenar la escucha. no?
Romowings90
2022 Feb 01
Words of wisdom! Thank you for your help Fab!
bassetla
2021 Dec 28
Wartościowe!
g.tingley
2021 Oct 10
Superb in every way.
delfarorecord
2021 Oct 03
soy un rehen de las altas frecuencias y mi mala habitacion
allen.g
2021 Sep 18
I was left with a sense of being inspired that I actually CAN train my ears to listen for these subtle things. Thank you! I also went and got the book by Jason Corey Audio Production and Critical Listening because...well I need to. As a hobbyist recordist and musician it is my goal to bring my skills to a place that I am happy with. I happen to trust my own taste, and as soon as I figure out what that is, exactly, I'll be on my way to making tracks I can be proud of. Until then...et Voila!
spectrum.p
2021 Sep 06
Tremendo aporte Fab!!! Consejos que sin duda, servirán demasiado. A practicar se ah dicho!!
diogo.fe
2021 Aug 19
Fantastic!
ncs1534
2021 May 31
Vidéo incroyable!
Merci ! Fab!
James Cartwright
2021 Mar 27
I have a confession.
I love Fabs content.
Puremix is my chosen authority for learning.
Naptuning
2021 Mar 21
Yeah, def starting to see the fabulous in this cat. Such an excellent check he just hit me with. Much gratitude, my man.
Edgardo
2021 Mar 13
"Every time I watch this video, my knowledge on how to listen grows deeper". Not the funnest video to watch but definitely the most important. I hope the next how-to-listen video is on how to listen to FOCAL's.
Todd Mavis
2021 Mar 10
Excellent introduction to what PureMix has to offer! Thank you very much for your insights!
plutocohn
2021 Jan 01
Please link to the previous and next chapters on the page of each lesson. Each time I finish a video I have to hunt around to go find the next one. ??
tyler.se
2020 Dec 26
Great advice! I truly enjoyed this experience
eric zehendner
2020 Dec 15
just getting started on the lessons, this couldn't be a better intro for me. very intuitive, looking forward to this.
Dvir
2020 Oct 06
Great video, great teacher.
thanks.
rumblemakerzz
2020 May 08
Bonjour Fabien, bravo pour votre philosophie et approche très professionnel du son !! Je pratique cette technique d'écouter la musique dans le noir après production et même en plus allongé à chaque fois mais quelques bonnes infos en plus !! Merci infiniment
JorgeZM
2020 May 05
Muy buen video, gracia Fab
Saludos desde Peru
Moll!d
2020 Mar 31
I cannot believe how useful this video is! Thanks so much!
464566574@qq.com
2020 Feb 02
You are magic, sir.
donzell.d
2019 Jan 06
It is so easy for me to understand where you're coming from. Keep it up my friend.
carlosferamirez
2018 Dec 04
I've been dealing with this mind games, although I had noticed already, now I know I'm not crazy! I will start closing eyes and specially don't let brightness charms me.
Mattnastie
2018 Oct 26
I know I'm super late to the party, but I wonder if its tru when Dupont says that many people "don't care" if the kick drum sounds good, or if the vocal is bright. If that were the case, you could sell any kind of crap mix to anybody. It may be more accurate to say they do care, but they maybe don't understand exactly what they care about, and why.
studiogerk
2017 Dec 20
Very nice. Gives you a lot to think about -- or stop thinking about.
reimastro
2017 Dec 05
Drummer LOL!
Alex94120
2017 Apr 05
Eat Training is the key but do not close your eyes when you drive even if your favorite listening environment is your car, merci Fab.
Marcos Rogerio
2017 Jan 25
why just drummer ?? LOL
Richard Boyer
2017 Jan 10
Je suis français( canada) le dernier commentaire est mal écrit sorry hihihi
Richard Boyer
2017 Jan 10
This is a lesson of life Our mind 0tricks us all the time Meditation or NOT THINKING is hard that's why silence will help you with our mixing
klaffoon
2017 Jan 01
So thorough...thanks for the help!
Steviem672
2016 Dec 14
Excellent
Kris_Heidt
2016 Dec 02
It's nice to see I'm not the only one in the world who has this "Aural Memory" issue. Great points throughout the video. Merci Fab.
Lgmab
2016 Nov 17
This Video, unlike any other I have seen or heard, is by far the most multi-dimensional. It explains the true pitfalls I fall into while staring endlessly at my screen for hours on end as I struggle with my mixes. Fab relays these "truths" in such a concise and easily digestible manner; a true testament to his mastery of the craft.
These concepts could easily form the thesis of a Neurological-Master's-degree as it alludes to the science of how we perceive, react to , and ultimately behave during a mix. This video, if understood, multi-dimensionally, should be the MIX 101 lesson for everyone.
steste50
2016 Oct 18
Most enlightning video in puremix.net to me (the other one is the one about recording levels)
Fergie77
2016 Jul 17
Great video! Excellent presentation!
rawcorex
2016 Jul 10
its fun and great!
Rocknisse
2016 Jun 12
WOAW!! This was interesting, fun, frustrating and very educational. I'm going to watch this one plenty of times more and hope that I will learn to listen in the right way. Thanks a lot to Fab for this fabulous video! I even closed my eyes :)
CCHorton
2016 May 09
This was GREAT! Where or when is the proper monitoring techniques video??
rus5
2016 Mar 14
Hey Fab, since this feels like "Introduction to Critical Listening" and having done the great job that you did, you've left many of us wanting "Part 2", "Part 3", etc. You mention you didn't have time to get into HOW to do the "Z" part of listening environment for example. SOOoooo, could you please do additional advanced videos on this subject? It might not be overstating it to say this subject is the most important on your site. At least, it is to me… And thanks for this!
miguelroja
2016 Feb 05
Greaattt!!
Joy
2015 Dec 28
Fab I worked with you with Reza back in those days. I came from Minnesota. You recommended Dangerous equipments. I been doing the recording live sounds for long time and doing the mixing and mastering. Finally I got an year subscription and this is my first video. I am really thrilled. There are so much to digest. Yes really you did an awesome job. I been doing recording for long time and this is one of the best video ever. I did mixing and mastering for http://melodicintersect.com. I am always following you. I am counting on this year to move up to the next level. Pray for me. Wa-la ;)
omer.k
2015 Dec 25
very nice explanations and examples.Thanks Fab
maurizioviera
2015 Oct 19
Great great video Fab, I really recommend watching this!
kafkons@hotmail.com
2015 Sep 26
Enormissime !!! Merci M Fab, U're the best
steste50
2015 May 23
This is definitely the best PureMix video
CCHorton
2015 Apr 05
Best. Tutorial. Ever. I wish I had heard/seen this seven years ago, when I first started. Looking forward to your video about proper monitoring.
Fabulous Fab
2015 Mar 01
@SGMarshall: It was Radio Shack item. I think they are out of business. but any spl meter that is accurate between 70 and 100 dB spl will do.
SGMarshall
2015 Feb 27
Fab, Where can we get the meter that you use in this video?
Thanks! learning a lot from these vids!
sonicdiscovery
2015 Jan 22
Very good video. I had a mentor who would play the final mix through different monitors and then through cheap TV speakers. Sometimes those cheap speakers would show some odd harmonics which we would then correct. That helped a lot, especially if the tune was for TV broadcast.
Was it just me but I would hear a lot of hissing on the "S's" in the vocal track. I gather that would be a separate issue to address down the road, or was that from the final mix? again, maybe it was just my bad ears...
Thanks!
NSpablo
2015 Jan 15
Hey fab just one question, how loud is it ideal to mix? Is it 90 dbs as the fletcher munson curve suggest? or you just go with a comfortable level?
phil_audioblend
2014 Dec 12
Very interesting video. Thanks Fab!
alftheway
2014 Nov 15
If only i've seen this video before my first mixing attempts,...
Now it's too late, i am married for too long to get any interest from her about my music stuff. Believe me I tried :)
Clear, really informative and in a sense the most important aspect for all you mixes, long before the number of plugins you use to achieve them.
Thank you very much Fab
For those complaining about the price, let's go back to youtube's video where "experts" will show you plugins "you need" and play with parameters they hardly manage to explain, if you get the quater of the quality of advices you'll get here.
rmoreno
2014 Oct 10
Nice, video maybe the most important video.
gilip
2014 Aug 20
Thank you! good thoughts! especially about the mind playing tricks on you. But don't forget, that it should not be called tricks - everyone has a mind. And everyone will hear your mix in a different situation or mood which tells your mind how to trick on your ears. Even if you are not an audio engineer. This means only that you should not mix up "good" and "not good" with the style and esthetics you choose or achieve.
Very nice introductional video!
purecountry70
2014 Aug 17
Fantastic Video , I Love how Fab explains things, every Video , everytime I hearn him speak twice at Gear fest, he always A & B's things. a few times . to make sure you understand, almost like he cares, ya think ? I sure think he does.
oz_golf
2014 Aug 09
This is just great !
davidsdp
2014 Jun 21
@Fabulous Fab Thanks for this great tutorial!!! It's helped me a lot. I've seen it 3 or 4 times. I want to ask you, When r u gonna release that monitoring techniques tutorial? I'm very interested in that topic. Thank you very much once again Fab!!! :D
kelvyn
2014 Mar 07
This is a very insightful tutorial... probably the most important for budding engineers and mixers as t's the first step on the ladder to understanding the art of manipulating sound. The way Fab imparts knowledge is really clever.... It's amusing, informative and succint.
My favourite tutorial so far:)
MastaMnd
2014 Feb 13
Very useful! I have about 8 years experience making beats, recording songs, and mixing. Making beats being the most time spent, followed by mixing and least of which recording vocals. I've been looking for a comprehensive tutorial site and I must say I think I've found it. I'm starting right from the very beginning with this tutorial because you all information is good information!
I like the way it was presented and I'm from experience I know that just buying one tutorial probably isn't the way to go here if you're serious about getting better at making music! Hint, hint.. Thanks!
knutrichard
2014 Jan 14
Hi Fab.
Thanks for the response to my questions. As I sead I'm having a wonderful time listening to your videos and are learning plenty.
I believe me hearing compression artifacts could be a combination of two things, bad room and the placebo effect :)
aramism
2014 Jan 09
this is the best and most useful video in history of mixing tutorials.
bolupona
2014 Jan 08
You mentioned doing a video on monitoring. Any idea when that would be available Fab? Thanks
kalbinsson
2013 Nov 26
I just love Fab's brilliant way of presenting. I purchased the one year pass only for his videos. I hope his colleagues are just as good. Will check their videos out as well.
g
2013 Nov 06
@michaelpitluk Hey! I do the exact same thing too!
michaelpitluk
2013 Nov 05
Wonderful video. I always close my eyes and click "bypass" a million times so I don't know whether I am listening to the bypassed version or the active version. Then, with my eyes still closed, I click "bypass" every 20 seconds or so until I can hear the difference and guess which is which, and more importantly, which I like better. Once I think I've identified which version is which and which I like better, I open my eyes to see if I'm right.
Fabulous Fab
2013 Nov 04
@knutrichard: Hi. There is no audio compression or limiting anywhere in the chain on pureMix videos. We spent a lot of time making sure that what the viewer hears is what we hear coming out of our DAW. Our player is custom coded to prioritize audio over video too. In listening tests we found that the codec related artifacts were completely acceptable and 100 times better than Youtube or Vimeo for example. So I'm not sure what you are hearing but I'm fairly certain that it is not coming from the content itself. I hope this helps.
knutrichard
2013 Nov 03
Sorry wrong word:
If the changes are sufficated in the compression.
knutrichard
2013 Nov 03
I really like all your courses, but I'm faced with a little dillemma. A lot of the times you mention changes I'm having problems hearing them, but I hear changes in the compression sound. So my question for you is, how much are these videos compressed, and the sound?
I feel a little frustrated trying to hear the changes (on my home studio speakers, headphones, normal speakers, not cheap ones) and then starting to think this is a waste of time because the changes aren't sufficated in compression.
So real question is, am I wrong in the compression assumption and the problem is on my end?
2bmusic
2013 Oct 09
This is the real deal. The way Fab explains goes directly into our unconscious mind so that we receive more that an intellectual understanding. It caused a change in by awareness. Thanks you very much! Also very entertaining.
RhythmDriver
2013 Aug 20
I agree with Hadon and Tyrobins. I definitely feel like I paid way too much for this. It was also my first purchase and I definitely feel like I paid too much for what I got. There enough websites that offer more tutorials - more in-depth tutorials for less than I paid for this. Probably going to be my last go on this site.
JELLi
2013 Aug 13
Awesome... I cannot wait to get through this entire series
esivertsen
2013 Aug 06
Interesting video, but I am having problems focusing to the contents - need to rewatch a couple of times back in my "studio". Depth an dplacing things in the Z-plane is a constant challenge for me. Everything seems to exist in the same XY-plane, with little or no depth. Actually, I frequently have the feeling that for example my kick is "too high" in the Y-plane, and I wonder how to lower it...and I do mean Y-plane, as if the kick was "painted" too high up in a plain 2D painting; if you catch my thought.
So; more on this please :-)
CHeers!
leshawn1977
2013 Jul 02
Really enjoy leaning new ways to critical listen to tracks theses video really helps the home engineer
victorsanti
2013 May 14
The most difficult part is knowing not only if you're lying to yourself, but knowing if YOUR girlfriend is lying too.
This videos are so worth the money.
dexter_quito
2013 May 01
Thank you sir!
Joshua
2013 Apr 22
So this seems like a question I didn't see while scrolling through the comments...
What's the Artist/Song name of this track?! :D
Great Info, I got friends who went to Sound School that don't know this stuff
Poor bastards :p
Thanks!
purecountry70
2013 Apr 22
Hello Fab, I was very inpressed,in my opion,besides Learning the Tools of the Trade and how to use them wisely. hearing is so so important.excuse me ! Listening !!! if I may say, this Video is just the beginning, I need to Listen ,to frequencys . thank you very Much for the Video.
ishagshafeeg
2013 Jan 23
I am going to bring my girl friend around to hear the final mix. Thanks for the lovely video, it is essential information.
Chris Zantioti
2013 Jan 06
Fab thank you a lot! It's the first video I watch after having the 3 month subscription, and you know..it's definitely worth it!!! Thank you a lot. It also feels more like having you here in the room as a teacher ,rather than watch the screen.
Edge985
2012 Dec 13
very well explained, as always. Helped me a lot to focus more on what i do when i mix and listen too.
pau
2012 Sep 24
close your eyes... :DDD made me laugh Fab! Classic, thanks for sharing!
gonx
2012 Sep 10
Great video, Fab. It´s the first i buy and it has changed my listening perspective. Having someone pointing out what to listen for is "ear-opening". Could you recommend some specific ways/exercises to develop my listening abilities? Excuse my english, and greetings from Latin America.
Il Pianista
2012 Sep 01
You are great at mixing, and great at teaching. I just subscribed because I couldn't stay without your teaching!
And.. at 11:11 i closed my eyes, then I reopened them and at 11:14.. I just laughed loud :D
juancopro-flow
2012 Aug 28
This is the type of info only Fab "The Master Mind" shares with you, not even schools teach this topic. Please do the video on how to achieve that Z plane and how to create height on a mix, Thanks
eterpr
2012 Aug 08
I guess this is the most important video of all this site. How can we mix if we are unable to listen?!?!
cporro
2012 Jul 12
i also knew much of what was in this video. it took years of reading and listening to figure it out. if you are new to listening and mixing this is $17 well spent. hell, i spent more then that on a 3' cable the other day!
spending some time with dave moulton's golden ears is helpful. so are reference mixes. mixing sure isn't as easy as i thought it would be.
i like fabs style...kinda philosophical.
www.blueduststudio.com
Becky Jo Benson
2012 Jun 29
Fab, This video is very interesting and pretty clever to simply close your eyes or look away from the screen so that you are not distracted. I have noticed that you always say to listen again the next day, step away from the projects and rest your ears and your mind. It might sound differently to you the next morning (but don't touch that volume knob!). Such good advice. Thank you! Becky Jo Benson
shotgunn
2012 Jun 01
Fab,
I can't even begin to describe how grateful I am for the information you provide here. I am going to be tracking some drums tomorrow and I cannot wait to try out your techniques. This video was a real ear opener for me. Keep up the good work!!!
Mike Dunn
josephbrooks7
2012 Mar 24
Refreshing and informative. I enjoyed this,...wish I could just keep the video...but yeah, still pretty good.
BobRogers
2012 Mar 08
These are very powerful demonstrations. I basically "knew" all of these things before watching the video, but it is startling how hard it is to shake the perceptions even when you can see what is coming (e.g. the bright/dark demonstration and the level demonstration.) I really liked the last comment about getting other people in the room and the difference in your perception depending on your level of trust.
OrrinPratt
2012 Feb 13
this video is clearly the work of people who are trying to help people see past the nose on their face. although this can seem simple and duh, important, this pointing out of obviousness seems to be the work of dedicated philosophers, monks, and wise folks throughout history.
thanks for the slap.
android
2012 Feb 12
I was skeptical that I would actually benefit from this video. However, I found it to be refreshing and I'm glad I rented it.
jerboythegreat
2012 Feb 02
Thoughtful, subtle and crucially important. Very happy with the production and content
G.Chad
2012 Jan 21
Yes I do!
The band is called: Plastic Days
Song is called: Periscope
Wablo
2012 Jan 20
Hello, anybody know the name of the band and the song used in this video?
dcherouny
2012 Jan 20
I never realized how easy it is to trick yourself. Thanks guys for a very helpful vid!!
PoPe
2012 Jan 18
golden nuggets in this video! I so recognize myself in all the bad habits... *sigh*
foul
2012 Jan 18
don't care what you guys say... I learned so much!
TaskUno
2012 Jan 17
Really hadon? I strongly disagree. I thought this was very helpful as well as informative.
Dave Zerio
2012 Jan 17
I don't know who's more psycho in this video. Fab, or the acoustics. best vid so far!
robrob
2012 Jan 17
ahah! true that. my girl friend thinks in binary. She like or she no like the song! nothing in between! made me laugh.
great vid. Funny too
claudine
2012 Jan 17
wouoooo... I m trying real hard not to spoil it for next guys :-)
i really liked it. I think I ll listen to things differently now. Hopefully i ll be able to get my mixes to sound better. And all the bad habits... maaaan. I thought we were talking directly to me!
hadon
2012 Jan 17
good man ...very good but not to much info for 17$..!the first video that I pay for and not sure if I would do it again...unless you drop the prices!
Honestly...way to much for that..!