XITEd Forum for Sonic Core XITE-1 and Scope

Heres a technique thats fun to try.
When mixing your song:
- Render all tracks to audio in the sequence
- Now copy all tracks and repeat the sequence after the first one (ie you now have two identiical sequences one after the other)
- Now reverse all tracks in the second sequence. Now you have one that plays forward and one that plays backwards.
- Play the reverse sequence and EQ each track and mix then the song
- Now go back to first sequence and listen to your mix playing forward.
Why would you do this?
The theory is that the 'Attack' of instruments can often mask that actual tone of the sound (especially short sounds like Kicks).
By EQing whilst playing backwards you hear the tone better as it swells and then suddenly ends (rather that Bursts and dies).
I have been playing with this technique and it actually works.
I tend to find I need to tweak a bit once I go back to forward sequence and of course it is then that I add FXs like reverb etc.
It is also useful if you are trying to sculpt out instruments in the mix (say getting a kick and bass to live together)
Its a bit of extra work but worth a go!

Yes, I've heard of this technique, which has some advantages, since the ear isn't doing millisecond reactive adjustments to all the attacks and transients in the overall soundfield.

I've heard of one renowned classical music mix engineer that does this a lot.

Thanks for the reminder!

Greg

Yep it was mentioned in some book. The point is that you are not distracted with your composition perception so you are more focused on mixing and balancing overall picture. However i never tried that. Will do at some point.

Sounds fun...
I always used to listen to the reversed music when I had 4 tracks and tapes in the old days.... (gave me twice the music for the same price )

I guess the only thing to avoid is the use of timed effects such as verbs and delays in this technic as the ones that are reversed could blur sounds and those which are not reversed (vst) would be, without the attack that is needed to use use them (reverbs especially) ? (EDIT: answer is in the first post ... ) .

if it is for attacks, you could use slow compression or an envelope follower or something like that (to blur out the attacks)...
(in FP mixers there is a level modulator that can do this with the "brush" setting that can remove attacks).