Techniques and Gear Suggestions for Mixing Music for Use in Film/TV

[analogjeff]

Mixing music as score, for use in film and TV, is different than mixing music as a standalone product. There are many useful guidelines to at least consider in mixing music for film: e.g., pan lead and and other key elements out of the center in order to leave room for dialogue (dialogue is god!); tuck pointy elements and lead instruments into the mix a bit, as appropriate, so as to avoid conflict with dialogue...

So, I'm hoping this thread can become a useful collection of suggestions about mixing music for film that encompasses techniques and gear recommendations based on experience and preference... to address such questions as:

Lots of smaller projects just want "a good stereo mix," not stems. In the eyes of those who do this a lot, what are the characteristics of a good stereo mix that will serve the engineer of the full film mix that will follow?

Any guidelines or thoughts about the degree to which limiting and compression should be used on the two buss...??

How best to maintain drama while also tucking some dramatic instruments/ parts/elements into the mix to avoid conflict with dialogue...?

What's a great hi quality, clean, clear, smooth, plug-in limiter for use on the two buss...?

If doing some overall EQ, in order to achieve consistency of sound, to some degree, across a big project (60-120 minutes, a series, etc.), what's a good smooth, clear/clean plug-in EQ...??

What are recommended pieces of hardware that might provide clean, clear, smooth EQ, limiting, or other help in achieving overall consistency of sound across big projects...?

Etc...

We're becoming a lot more involved in this kind of work and welcome the exchange of ideas, info, preferences...

Thanks a lot!!

[analogjeff]

Another question...

good nearfield monitors that seem to translate well for film/tv??

thanks!

[Left Coast]

All good questions, sorry I don't have the answers. Anyone?

[Jesse Peterson]

Lots of smaller projects just want "a good stereo mix," not stems. In the eyes of those who do this a lot, what are the characteristics of a good stereo mix that will serve the engineer of the full film mix that will follow?

NONE, for a score that is intended to play along with dialog and sfx, I want stems.

Any guidelines or thoughts about the degree to which limiting and compression should be used on the two buss...??

NONE, just don't clip.. and send stems

How best to maintain drama while also tucking some dramatic instruments/ parts/elements into the mix to avoid conflict with dialogue...?

That is the Re-recording mixers job, send stems

What's a great hi quality, clean, clear, smooth, plug-in limiter for use on the two buss...?

L2, Massey, DSM

If doing some overall EQ, in order to achieve consistency of sound, to some degree, across a big project (60-120 minutes, a series, etc.), what's a good smooth, clear/clean plug-in EQ...??

EQuality

What are recommended pieces of hardware that might provide clean, clear, smooth EQ, limiting, or other help in achieving overall consistency of sound across big projects...?

Leave it to the Re-Recording mixer, deliver stems that when set to unity represent what your intentions are for the piece. I'm not a composer, but I would not worry as much about level around dialog and other elements, pay more attention to what the peice is actually doing at that moment. you don't want a huge drumfill under a whisper.


As for nearfields that translate. I like the JBL LSR stuff.. 6 or 8inch depending on how much air you want to move.

[analogjeff]

jesse... thanks a million! great specific replies... really helpful & appreciated!!

as for the stem vs. stereo thing... i totally agree, but we're often doing pretty major, nationally broadcast documentaries for PBS these days where they only want a stereo mix, so we're trying our best to hit that mark... :-)

i know, i know... :-)

[slipdiskdave]

Hey Jeff

As a full time post guy, here are my humble suggestions...

Lots of smaller projects just want "a good stereo mix," not stems. In the eyes of those who do this a lot, what are the characteristics of a good stereo mix that will serve the engineer of the full film mix that will follow?

Any guidelines or thoughts about the degree to which limiting and compression should be used on the two buss...??

If you're creating a stereo mix to deliver for the mixer, go easy on the 2-buss compression. I would always rather receive something that's dynamic with plenty of headroom, than something that's so squashed that I have no options. I received a stereo score for a film recently that peaked at 0 and looked like a square wave. I had no where to go with it, and had to ask for a less "aggressive" mix. Having said that, There's nothing wrong with a little "glue" on the master, and I'd also recommend the Massey limiter or the Waves L3. Just use in moderation. Don't mix it like its going on a pop album!

I also second the EQuality for a great post EQ. And I've never gone wrong with a Waves Q8 or the Digi 7-band EQ.

As for hardware limiting, that depends on what you're going for. Do you want color, or something to add a certain sound? Or do you want perfectly transparent processing? For color, use any one of the "standards"; Smart, SSL, API 2500, etc. (there's about a thousand threads on the topic) If you want to be truly transparent, then you may want to venture into the mastering level gear; Weiss, GML, Sontec, etc. Once again, there are endless options. This forum exists because of that!

Like Jesse said, keep your eye on the ball as far as emotion and setting around the dialogue. Don't worry so much about "mixing" your piece while writing it. Just make sure you're serving the picture and enhancing the experience. The mixer will decide when to ebb and flow.

For monitoring, I'm a big fan of Focals. But that's a personal call. As long as you know your monitors in your room, then you'll do great.

Best of luck! Hope I get to mix something with one of your tracks one day!

Dave

[analogjeff]

Excellent... thanks! We'll definitely check out EQuality... among other things recommended...

[paulo m]

Hi,

we are basically a music recording studio, but got our main room calibrated by Dolby., using our existing ITU speaker arrangement that was designed for "normal" music mixing. When mixing for theatrical releases, feature or just trailers and comms(which is what we are certified for), I find increasingly important to mix music while monitoring through the Dolby CP650. I have a better translation of what will be heard on the cinema, despite what the re recording mixers will do with it. One thing is the balance between all sound components, music, fx and dialogue, another thing is how you mix just the music, the balances between the diferent instruments. I prefer to compress or limit(rarely) individual instruments, stems are left untouched or with just a gentle threshold to tame the odd peak once in a while. Regarding speaker assignment of music tracks, I find far more creative possibilities of mixing in multichannel than in stereo, so knowing the script and having a close contact when possible with the other members of the sound team is important as music can be mixed in a way that not only eases the final film mixing but often positively complements the overall soundtrack. Regarding gear, we use what we normally use when mixing for CD release, DVD or BD, is just the monitoring and the mixing balance that changes.