Cakewalk by Bandlab: 5 Steps to a Better Mix 

Mike's self-deprecating manner may disguise what becomes apparent after a while: he is a very experienced, talented and capable musician, composer, engineer and teacher. Even though I've used Cakewalk for years, I've learned a lot from these tutorials.

Mike is like your favorite high school teacher who actually cares if you understand the material.

I am watching it a third time with pauses, while working on Cakewalk, and I am following this video LITERALLY step by step.

Notes for myself Name the tracks and the clips. 3:52 Add icons to the tracks, Right click the icon area > Load Track Icon. Have all tracks of a particular category next to eachother in the Console 4:39 Alt > click on track then drag it where you want. Output a whole category if tracks to one bus so you can control their collective level with one fader. 5:39 Shift-click to select a bunch of tracks, Master > (while holding Ctrl) New Stereo Bus. 6:53 Colour the busses and channels. 8:33 Also do it for things that don't belong to a group, so that you eventually end up with just a small number of busses - faders in one area to do mixing with. 9:46 Save your mix so far but abandon it because you've become very familiar with it and lost objectivity. 10:22 So zero the faders, Shift-select all tracks, then, holding Ctrl, select one fader and drag it to the bottom so all the faders do the same, then, holding Ctrl, double click a fader and it makes them all go to 0. 11:16 Do the same with panning. And delete all FX you have so far applied. Start afresh. 11:48 Exceptions. Keep stylised effects that created the sound of a particular instrument. Like a dry guitar with an overdriven sound by a amp sim. And delays on an instrument. But even get rid of reverbs on instruments, and EQing. Or at least disable things you've created so far. 14:30 Focus on RMS level being about -18 db and peak level being -12 to -6 db. 16:03 With drums, just focus on the peak level. Aim for about -12 db. 17:19 Static mix. 18:05 Before the static mix, do sub mixes. Mix the instruments one category at a time. You won't be listening to each category in the context of the song i.e. with the rest of the instruments, but just aim for the ball park. Mix when listening to the loudest part of the song. 19:41 You can then use the bus faders to do the mix. Now, VERY important, take a break (overnight or longer, or at least a few hours, listen to other music) to regain your objectivity. 20:35 Then do the static mix as quick as possible, 10-15 minutes, using your instincts. 21:05 Start with the loudest part of the song. 21:56 Start with the vocal and build everything else underneath. Then maybe the kick. Get the key components of the music in balance. Do it quickly because you'll lose objectivity quickly and get fatigued. 23:25 The Details Everything feels just about in balance. There are no real rules about plugins. Just go with what's needed for the song. And do everything with an intention. 25:00 3 key components to think about when doing a mix. First, tone and clarity. Tone - sound of the instrument e.g. too bassy?, too trebly? 25:56 Clarity - also use EQ for this. Enabling the instrument to shine, or subduing it. Like a bass guitar and kick drum can effectively cancel eachother out. So use EQ to carve out space for something else to shine through. EQ space. 27:00 Level. Compressors to tame particular levels. A compressor is an automated fader. But only compress something if it needs it. 28:38 Third thing is 2D space. Like panning left and right to make orchestra instruments sound like some are to the left and some to the right. In contemporary music, we don't tend to pan the lead vocal, the kick drum and the bass guitar. 29:25 Check your mix in mono often. Mix in stereo, then after panning changes, make sure the mix still translates. 29:49 Other type of 2D space is backward and forward. How up front or further away an instrument feels. For Mike, the main tool for that is reverb. Reverb can make something feel further away. To make an instrument feel like it's in a room, Mike will use delay. 30:57 Saturation can also affect the feeling, tone and colour of a sound. Saturation is often a by-product of plugins like tape emulators, compressors, channel strips, EQs. Not a primary part of the mixing process for Mike but he still thinks about it. 31:43 Remember your gain staging. After adding a plugin, check the gain, that it's still peaking at the same level. Often plugins have an output control you can do this with, or you'll need an output control plugin to do it with. Unfortunately, plugins tend to make things louder, and it has to sound good whether it's louder or not. 33:22 Automation, the final phase. Use it to adjust the balance of the other parts of the song (so far you've been adjusting the loudest part of the song). 34:13 The mechanics of automation on Cakewalk. Write-enable the channel for automation - W, then just play the song (no need to hit Record) and adjust the fader as you listen. Then turn Write-enable off and make sure it's Read-enabled. 35:32 Drawing in the automation. None > Automation > (choose the kind of automation you want to see) Bus Output Volume. Now you can draw automation. After using the fader to automate, he'll fine tune it by using the drawing method. 37:03 First he'd automate the level. He'd also do panning. You can use panning to create width. 37:55 Automation can also be used on FX. In some plugins there is the option to read and write-enable. 39:00 Occasionally a plugin won't have the write-enable option. On a reverb plugin track he's greatly automated the reverb level. Automation is the difference between a good mix and a great mix. 40:06 You might want to make whole sections of the song louder, but Mike doesn't use automation for that, he does that in the mastering phase, so he recommends holding off automating the track's overall sound until then. 40:46 Wrap up.

I don't know if you're going to read this, but, in case you do, I really want you to know how awesome your work is and how greatful I am. I'm starting a band with a friend of mine and we are looking for better recording, mixing, mastering and everithing related to music production. Since we found you, we have grown so much and so fast! We are now acheaving results we coudn't imagine a couple months ago. THANK YOU SO MUCH! KEEP TEACHING! Cheers from Brazil! :D

Something I haven't tried, but I think could work for anyone who comes across a plugin that doesn't have the write capability for automation is to create a separate bus for the effect, route your track to it, then automate using the level knob on the track that is to receive the effect. That way, you aren't automating the effect itself, but are instead automating the routing to the effect. On another note, this series needs to be a part of Skillshare or something like that. These videos are a godsend for learning this program.

I have a home studio and I've worked in cakewalk for over 25 years and I've come to realize that old dogs can learn new tricks. Thanks for taking the time to create these great tutorials.

you are the best teacher i've ever had! great job mr!

Where would I be without these vids?, probably still recording ideas with my phone on top of my amp and doing nothing with them

This is the content I wait for! Cakewalk guru!

They often say what you get easily you lose easily. Lol I've been watching your videos for months now, but tbh I couldn't really call myself a fan. However, I have found so much value in your videos throughout time that I couldn't resist the subscribe button anymore today. Lol!!! Now, I guess I can call Creative Sauce "Home". Thank you so much Mike for playing such a big role in the lives of the next generation of musicians. What you taught us for free about a free DAW called Cakewalk... I'm sure we would have paid a lot of money to get these done. And a lot of creatives like me wouldn't be able to afford it, and as a result, a lot of talents and creativity would have been wasted. Thanks for giving us a chance to realize🇭🇹🇭🇹🇭🇹 🇭🇹our dreams, thanks for giving us hope of a better future!!! Much love from Haiti 🇭🇹🇭🇹🇭🇹

This is just SO HELPFUL. thank you, seriously. I'm relatively new to mixing, just started a bigger project and this is making the whole process so much easier. Many thanks :)

I watch a ton of videos like these every day and yours tend to be the best by far! Thank you very much for all the hard work you put into getting information out there!

Once again, thank you for this terrific class, and as usual I've learned and re-learned many things.

This is gold! So happy to have found you here.

Excellent tutorial. Watched twice and took notes second time through. You’re doing great work.

Great content man, useful af. I switched to cakewalk after binge watching your cakewalk playlist. keep it up!

Happy doodly days, just like a complete refresher for these areas, few moments of clarity and some lightbulb moments........Cheers again Mike. Lovin the content....😎

This video was immeasurably helpful! Gainstaging was the last piece that was missing in my mixing puzzle. I fiddled and fiddled with mixes and they either came out with signals that were either too low or too high. I remixed a previous project using this technique. The result was night and day. Thanks a lot man!

This video has been a great help - thanks man! you explain things very well and simply, which is perfect for us beginners to pick up:)

Thank you again "Professor Mike". Many thanks for your in-depth explanations and details. I'm doing a final mixdown after scoring to picture and this was invaluable. Thanks again.

Yet another great video, thanks Mike!

Thanks - another useful video and reminder of some of the issues previously covered

Thank you! I've been a long time Sonar user that just recently switched over to Bandlab's Cakewalk. This is a great primer video that's really helpful. Many of the things talked about here, I've just intuitively done but I've also picked up a few great tips for saving time and headaches down the road. Many thanks again for your amazing content. Looking forward to seeing more of your videos!

I've been using cakewalk since home studio 9... In the last few days I've watched a few of your videos and wow thank you.....there was so much I was missing because I was never shown.... Thank you, the videos are very very helpful to a guy like me!

Mike, This video was so helpful to me on my education and understanding , thank you!!!

Thanks for another great video Mike!

Thanks Dude. Great info. Your videos have been really helpful. I appreciate you sharing them!

This is an awesome video. Thank you for taking the time to prepare this video.

Your videos are great and I feel like I've learnt a lot about Cakewalk..... Thankyou so much for creating these... Keep Rocking & Good Vibes Always

Wonderful Job...so knowledgeable and great articulation...AND a BIG help

Thank you, you have become my Cakewalk College. I teach singing and what I've realised is that you're a great TEACHER, amongst all the other attributes that I'm sure you have - including lack of ego. Very well paced with important detail included but not overblown.

Found this just recently. Truly fantastic appreciate this tremendously 🙏

Thanks Mike. Great tips from a legend!! very helpful. Its always a good morning with a nice cup of coffee and a creative sauce video. Coffee with Mike lol

For all of the mixing videos I have watched,this is the best mixing video so far..you improve my mixing knowledge. ..Great Content.Thank you very much!!!!!!

At Last! I can begin to get it. Thanks mate, hi from Tokyo. Been winging it so far LOL.

These videos are helping me a lot. Thanks!

Great video! I've been playing guitar for more than 50 years and have been learning more about recording in the last few years! I have learned more in these videos than anywhere else in RU-vid. Very informative and spot on! Lastly, and I think I may be speaking for many other watchers, I really want to hear that song! All 61 tracks of it. :-)

I'm here again master. I have done all ur previous tips. I'm now in mixing my first project in Cakewalk

couldnt find much help with cakewalk, but i found you. You have helped a lot. You have just earned a sub!

Thanks Mike for all your great tutorials! You helped me out so much with my Homerecording! Keep up the great work! You help a lot of musicians!

Great and non judgemental guidance. I am loving this Cakewalk series.

Best software explainer I’ve seen so far!!!!

Your videos are extremily informative and helpful, thanks! I love Cakewalk and I am very glad I have become profficient with it.

I've watched this video 2 times already. Man! So many things I did not know!!!

I never knew how to use the GAIN knobs, I always thought they were just for boosting the signal. Thanks for educating me Mike! 😃

Thanks again Big un...slowly but surely getting there for what I need out of it...hope you are keeping well.

This was very informative these steps can be used in other daws as well. Really great video. Thanks for being part of the Cakewalk community. Keep putting out great content.

thank you so much , you have cleared so many areas , that i only knew by name and used without really lnowing how things worked , thanks to you i m now starting like the faders at zero

Very useful and practical info for a better mix indeed ...thanks friend !

It was an amazing video, so much info. Thank you

Lots of good advice, thanks for the video.

First, a big Texas thank you for the great instructional lessons on Cakewalk. I haven't yet seen any discussion on the Process->ApplyEffect->Normalize (and/or Gain) procedures. It is something I have been forced to do prior to track gain staging. The musicians come in at odd times over the course of several weeks, adding a short guitar, bass or keyboard lick at a time. I put them into the proper tracks but due to instrument or recorder level changes the individual clips are slightly at different levels. I normalize each clip separately to a range of -8 to -12 dB.

Another great vid.. Thanks Mike

Thank you! The best mixing tips! ❤️

Love your videos! Thanks a bunch.

Great tutorial, thank you!

GREAT tutorial!... again! Thanks for all of your efforts and sharing your insight. Just a thought with this isolation period... perhaps a video on how you might manage various wav files being emailed to you with roughly the same tempo and how you might address this from that point. Warmest Regards, John

Mike,,love all ya do for the Cakewalk community .. Alot of people dont know it's old Studio One DAW stuff that Bandlab bought out awhile back to start up their FREE MUSICAL RECORDING COMMUNIYY@BANDLAB....(Its Great as well,awesome platform for musicians of ALL experience levels,genres,etc.. to work ,share,and collab on !!) This DAW IS AMAZING (Especially for free) LOL... Lots of powerful stuff,tools,tricks & tips,to learn and do with it !!!! So glad someone like you is doing these videos for people like me. I recently set up a home studio,and am just starting to finalize all the details & recieving my equipment I've ordered(along with new laptop).. AND THIS IS GOING 2 BE MY DAW of choice!!! Your doing a Great job,I've been watching all of em I can,to learn as much as possible about Cakewalk. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK MAN!!! We need ya!!!👍🎚🎚🎛🎛🎚🎚🎼🎵🎶🎼🎤🎙🎸🥁🥁🎷🎹 I'll keep ya posted...2 be continued.....👍👍👍👍👍

thanks for the great video , you need more views! TYour content is so educational and you have a great manner of teaching in a clear manner that makes sense. again , many many thanks. God bless you.

Excellent information, this is extremely usefull to me Mike, thanks

Mike. Amazing video. Learning so much, thank you.

Thank god I have you!!! Thank you so much for the video, it really helps!! I wish I knew about that video before I sent my music abroad, that would save the embarrassment lol. Thanks again!

I heard your opinion on starting a mix with the vocals. I used to do it that way, but I found for me I'd inadvertently loose the punch of my drums in the mix and mastering. Lately I've started with drums, (they tend to have the biggest transients to deal with, so get them controlled first) then I add the vocals. Then 1 by 1 the other tracks. And like you said at the loudest part of the song. Love cakewalk too. So glad it is still viable

Hi Mike, thaknks for this amazing video!

This is soo valuable. Thank you kind sir

Grate suggestions and advice thanks much appreciated

I first learned the craft of recording on two Teac 3340s four-track tape decks in the early '80s, and I am returning now (short version) to producing music in an entirely new world, a world where brilliant software like Cakewalk is free. Free?! And this video--free? Free! I am not sure how I feel about that, and yes I will be sending you some money next with the link above ("hint hint" to other readers) but I have to say thank you, thank you, thank you, Mike. Not just for the profound transmission of your music-making experience and insights, not just for the tips and tricks for making better music using these fascinating and hugely/dangerously powerful tools, but in the end for the overwhelming generosity, kindness, and (most of all) wisdom that you embody here. Your open heart is so palpable in these videos that it can be easily overlooked. It is why these videos are so informative, helpful and meaningful. You are an avatar of a "great teacher," and no teacher is great if they do not hold their profound love for their subject matter and for their students/recipients/viewers simultaneously (mixed into a single bus!), welding this blade like a scimitar, illuminating the secrets and disciplines of arguably the greatest artform--creating music. You do all that, and I am beyond grateful for it: I am inspired by it. And that is the greatest achievement any teacher can aspire to, no? Yes! THANKS MIKE! Which is all to say: You rock! ;-)

You're rediculously good at explaining things. You should have 3M views. Your subcription is my new addiction.

Your videos are perfect my friend. Great thanks and hello from France. Joseph

THANX BRO ! YOU MADE IT VERY SIMPLE TO UNDERSTAND AMD U GAVE ME INSPIRATION TO WORK HARDER ON MY MIXES ...I STILL DNT REALLY UNDERSTAND RATION AND THRESHHOLD WITH THE COMPRESSOR I WISH THERE WAS A EASY TO UNDERSTAND VID ON COMPRESSION OR AT LEAST A PERFECT SETTING FOR VOCAL AND DRUMS

Mike, hi love the channel and have learnt so much from watching you. My requirements are about as simple as it gets, mostly I record guitar instrumentals to pre-recorded backing tracks. (Ocaisonally I make my own BT's from scratch.) I wondered if you could consider a video giving some tips for recording instrumentals and also how to get the best from a simple two or three track mix like I describe. Ps I already follow your basic mastering video. Keep up the great work, Neville

This is the greatest channel on Planet Earth.

Truly awesome. Thank you!

Thanks. Lots of good info here.

You have a great job Mike in all your videos. May I ask if you will.... Can you also make a video just using the built-in plugins and pro channels of Cakewalk? I think this is better for us beginners to understand. Thanks.

Cool. Learned some useful shortcut keys.

honestly, i love the look of this software and its free? ahha am already downloading it now

Mike, another great video! I do the same as you, start with the vocal, and build under it. Always worked for me. I am wondering about how hot to make the final mix. Been using a brick wall to get as much as possible, but I am not sure that is the best thing to do. I was wondering about where you set your output. I had an analog studio for 30 years, and used to always try to not let it get above plus 1 on peaks. I think I may be making my mixes too hot now. Thanks again, for your attention to detail. Great job!

That's what i am takin about. Thank you.

God bless you and good work for you. Thank you.

This is very helpful. Thank you

That was huge!!

thanks Mike!

Within your static mix section you suggest starting with vocals instead of percussion. Your comment reminded me of a Hans Zimmer suggestion that relates to working up an orchestration. He suggests getting all sections arranged before ever introducing any percussion. He says to keep in mind what your expectations for percussion are but leave them to last. I've found this work habit has many benefits.

Thanks!!!

thank you thank you!!

Great video as always Mike! I am currently watching your tutorials and working on my largest mix ever with some 15 tracks containing guitars, piano, organ, and a brass section in Cakewalk. It's a fun project for my big band while we are under lock down. Most of them recorded their parts at home with their smart phones and I'm the one in charge of the mix. Would you have some tips to improve quality with such amateur recordings? I used high and low-pass filters to remove some room reverberations and added some compression.. I want to use a reverb on the brass section to make it feels as if they were in the same room, but at the same time most recordings already have too many early reflections...

Invaluable!

Thanks for this video 😊. I hope your doing well

Thankyou so much sir🙏

As usual, Mike, an excellent tutorial. I do, however, have one question that I'd hoped you would cover but you didn't. In a video I saw recently (not sure if it was yours) saving multiple mixes was mentioned but now to do it and how to use it wasn't explained. Do you have a video in which you discuss this or couple you at least tell me how to access it in Cakewalk so I can explore it myself Thanks again for all your great content.

You are a f**king genius!! Thank you!!

Thanks mate

Hey Mike, thank you very much. I learn a lot today. Awesome job and very inspiring!

WATCHING YOU MIKE NICE TUTS MATE

Great video. As a reference point, could you give us like a rule of thumb for various sounds. I heard you say drums should be at -8, guitar or piano at -12. What about lead vocals (-8? )and bass guitar?

Hi Mr.Mike, if you have time could you hit me back about this question..... I have Kontakt 6 , how do you create a second stereo output (st.2) with the same midi channel but for a second instance of the same instrument? ( in my case guitar vst Shreddage). You have a way of making the complex understandable. Amazing.

Hey Mike. Great vid as always! I've always wondered how your Cakewalk looks like it can fit so much more on the screen than mine! Are you using 4k definition or something, or is there a setting within Cakewalk to shrink it down to fit more in?

Hi Mike! Great video again! I'd like to ask you to do a short video about problem regarding Cakewalk and Kontakt instruments - I have problems with degrading volume/loudness during making the project. From Google I see this problem is known. So far I found as solution putting event CC1 to 127 and maybe CC7 to 127 in MIDI at the beginning of messages. But I'm not sure if it is right. And it sounds stupid to have to do it manually for every track. As an expienced user - do you have any solutions to this problem? Maybe it's not Cakewalk specific?