User guide

574 Chapter 25 Mixing
You will regularly find that the settings chosen for instruments and effects can be
improved by changing a few parameters, to “tighten up” parts, or provide a looser feel,
or perhaps to radically change the tonal color of the chorus, for example. You may
often completely swap one instrument sound for another, replace effects
configurations for tracks, or use tracks without effects (“dry”). You may also set up
complex routings to one or more auxiliary channels, or perhaps set up “mastering”
processors on output channels (see “Channel Strip Types” on page 590).
∏ Tip: Make use of the save facility often during mixing, to provide backups, should you
lose your way. Backups also provide a great comparison point, and are a good guide for
whether or not your mix is heading in the right direction.
In many situations, you will find mix automation of use. Logic Express provides a
flexible automation system that enables you to mute, bypass, solo, and alter all channel
parameters, including those of any inserted effects and software instruments. Use of
automation can provide motion to parts of the mix, and is very useful for “evening out”
overly dynamic performances, or making less dynamic performances more lively.
Automation can be viewed as someone “riding the faders” on a hardware mixing
console (and all effects units and synthesizers in the studio), albeit with many more
hands.
Automation should be considered an integral part of the mixing process, but if your
mix doesn’t need it, you can certainly “set and forget” your Mixer settings.
As you can see, the Logic Express Mixer can be used in a traditional way, but you will
probably find yourself accessing it (or the Arrange channel strips) throughout all
project phases.