How Do I Go About Picking The Right Mix Engineer

 1. Your budget is important.

This is obvious but it will help you narrow down your choices of online mixing and mastering engineers to consider. Name brand mix engineers can charge up to 40k for a mix. However, there are also novices who will do the work at no cost. It all comes down to your ability to pay. This brings me to my next point.

2. You want someone who is able to do the job right the first time.

Sometimes, you get what your pay for. Your songs are a labor of love. You've spent hours writing them, recording great performances, and editing and overdubbing. You shouldn't cut corners in these last steps to get your song to your listeners. Although I don't recommend that you mortgage your home to get Fred Bloggs mixing your song, it is possible that a guy offers to do your mix for $100.00 or even free. But for very different reasons. You have nothing to lose if the mix is free. It's possible to give it a shot if you want, but you might soon be back looking for a professional mix engineer. This is where you can balance your return-on-investment.

3. Take a look at their past work.

You would prefer to have assembled your list from the credits of recordings you love or from recommendations from musicians and friends. They may be someone you have found online, or through a forum for musicians. But, no matter how you got to their name, it is important to see examples of their work. Although this may seem obvious, don't just base your decision solely on their reputation. It will be clear whether an engineer can deliver on your expectations by looking at their portfolio. They will likely have worked in many different fields and produced high quality results. Even if an engineer mixes hardcore punk records, that doesn't necessarily mean they can't mix jazz records. But, do you really want to put your career, money and time at risk if they've never tried it? Look through portfolios and look for someone who has worked on records you like.

4. Do not get too focused on gear. Instead, focus on the results.

It's true, we are all musicians. While it is fun to obsess over the latest and greatest gear, you shouldn't let this get in your way when choosing a mix engineer. The mix engineer's expertise and ears will give you the results that you want, not the flashy and shiny lights. If you find yourself looking at the gear list on engineer's websites, I recommend you to go back to number 3 on this list and reread it. Don't trust your eyes, but your ears.

5. Participate in sessions or work remotely

Are you able to work remotely or need to be present at some or all of the sessions? This question will help you narrow down your options or make it infinitely more. It is possible to communicate with a mix engineer from anywhere on the planet thanks to the internet and large file transfers. You can contact them via email or text to discuss any changes or suggestions. It is possible to attend all or part of the mix sessions, but it is extremely rare. This will limit your options for mix engineers. You will then need to determine your travel limits and search within this range.

6. Talk to the mix engineer

After narrowing down your candidate list, I recommend that you have a conversation about the remaining candidates. You can have a conversation with them in person, by phone, via email, Skype or any other method that works for you. You can tell them what motivated you to work with them. This is not flattery. It's just to give them an idea of what elements from their past work might be applicable to your project.

The first conversation should be a broad one.

A) Talk about your budget

B) Determine what format and files they need to begin working

C) What do they expect you to prepare for your session? (See 10 Tips to Prepare for Your Session as a Mix Engineer).

D) Tell them your timeline and ask if they can accommodate your project.

E) Find out what files they are likely to send at the end of a project.

F) Your style and your genre

Discuss the music you like and the direction you would like the mix to take. Talk about the albums that you love to mix and why. You can get a feel for their personality and how it will be to work with them. Your final mix will be influenced by how well you communicate with your engineer. You want to find someone with whom you can build a lasting and productive creative relationship. You can get a sense of their responsiveness and how they will work on your project if you correspond via email.