Understanding the Master Bus

So just quickly, maybe not everybody knows what the master bus is. It's basically just what all the sounds are routed to, the mix bus. This is the last channel before it gets recorded. Everything that's on the master bus will affect your entire mix.

Routing to the Mix Bus

As you can see, I've routed every single channel here to go to the mix bus. This setup results in all channels being sent to our mix or master bus, which then goes to our Outputs 1 and 2 on Pro Tools.

Technical Considerations

One more technical aspect to consider:

• Sample Rate: When you do your mix, you have to decide on the sample rate.
• Bit Depth: This is crucial too.

Recommended Settings

• Standard Settings: It all ends up in 44.1 kHz, which is the CD quality sample rate of 16-bit.
• Higher Sample Rates: The equipment we have can work at much higher sample rates, which makes it sound considerably better. It's always best to go for the highest sample rate.

Even if the material you've been sent is in 48 kHz or 44.1 kHz, consider upsampling it when you load it in. If your system is powerful enough, run it in 96 kHz because it's going to sound a lot better.

Once the mix is finished, even if you go back down to a lower sample rate, you will notice a significant difference.

Bit Depth Recommendations

• General Bit Depth: The bit depth usually goes back down to 16-bit.
• Most Systems: Most systems now work at least in 24-bit.
• Pro Tools and Logic: Both work in 32-bit float. You can set this in Settings > Session Setup. Look for 32-bit float to use the best possible settings.

You can always reduce it back down later, but you will hear a difference if you do that. So, always go for the best.

Creating a Mix Template

I would suggest that you make your own mix template. Here's how:

• Identify Your Favorites: Determine what your favorite effects are and what you always use.
• Create a Template: Some people like to route all their different groups of instruments to different buses, especially in Logic.

Creating a template will save you a lot of time when mixing because you only have to set it up once rather than having to create new channels each time.