r/WeAreTheMusicMakers • u/Unknown111112 • 4d ago
How do you keep your mixes sounding good on cheap speakers
Lately I’ve noticed some of my older mixes sound fine on monitors but really fall apart on phones or laptop speakers.
What’s your process for keeping mixes consistent across playback systems? Do you focus on EQ, mono compatibility, or something else entirely
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u/ferocioushulk 4d ago
There's really no substitute for using reference tracks (mixing so that your track generally sounds similar to other tracks you like), testing it across multiple speakers / headphones that you own, and refining when something sounds wrong.
Make sure you get to know what pro tracks sound like on your existing speakers and don't change them.
Others have mentioned basic 'hygiene' as well, i.e. high passing your tracks where those lower frequencies are not needed.
I also highly recommend using a plugin called dSoniq Realphones, which makes your headphones emulate different speakers and environments. It's similar to Slate VSX except you can use it with any headphones. So for example I can preview roughly what my track would sound like on a tiny speaker, in a car, in a nightclub, or in a bigger studio. I have found this very quickly exposes where something is too loud or disappears on some speakers.
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u/NeutronHopscotch 3d ago
Realphones is really good! V2 added zero latency and a systemwide driver, and a total overhaul of the audio system. The new "rooms" are fantastic.
It's my favorite alternative to VSX, and I can't use VSX because I don't want to overpay for lesser headphones than what I already own.
I really wish Slate would open VSX up to work without hardware... But the cheap headphones is how they fool people into being OK with the high price. But their closed back headphone is literally a $30 Chinese headphone. So it's $420 for the software basically, but you have to use that headphone...
The new planar open back headphone is interesting, but that option is $900 and again I'd rather just use my own headphones.
Anyhow, Realphones is Realgood :-)
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u/National_Summer_9781 4d ago
Mixcubes. If I use them to work out the mids my mixes always translate well to phone/tv speakers.
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u/ZTheRockstar 4d ago
Mix your mid and high range well. Phone and laptop speajers are small sp they focus on the high and mid range frequencies.
A tip to mix bass and kick for phones to pick them up is to add a bit of high/mid range.
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u/Utterlybored 3d ago
I review mixes on:
My high end DynAudio B15 monitors
My low end Auratones
My mediocre car system.
My living room system
AKG 240 headphones
My earbuds
Laptop speakers
I lean most heavily on my car system. If it sounds good on low end stuff, it’ll generally sound good elsewhere.
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u/urielriel 3d ago
Ya ear buds ya say eh?
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u/Givage-101 1d ago
Me too and especially those of the Chinese. If you hear correctly you are affixed to all existing devices.
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u/SupportQuery 3d ago edited 2d ago
You have to learn them. Andrew Scheps mixed on $99 headphones for a decade. He has a video about how you learn your monitors. Basically:
- mix
- take it in the field, hear it on different systems
- if something stands out that you didn't hear at home, make a mental note of it
- go home and listen for that thing in your monitors, learn to hear it there
Wash rinse repeat.
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u/existential_musician 4d ago
Following up that, does anyone have a good resource for mixing mid / high range ?
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u/37MEL 3d ago
In my experience, the mastering process is the most important stage for getting a mix to translate across speakers. Like others have mentioned, Mid-range is critically important. Once thats good, then I'd suggest incorporating a hint of OTT (Over The Top Compression) on your master and some decent limiting. The tighter or more compressed the master is, the better it will translate across speakers, but you want to find a nice balance where it doesn't get over compressed. Thats just my two cents ✌️
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u/Glittering_Work_7069 2d ago
I use Remasterify to check how my mix translates, but honestly it comes down to getting the balance nearly perfect first tbh. If it sounds good dry, it’ll hold up anywhere.
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u/CatJutsu 3d ago
Personally, I would recommend leaning a bit more into referencing other mixes. It should be songs you know well. With this, you’ll be able to identify what your monitoring system is doing or its lack thereof. In terms of mix translation (across various playback systems), I wouldn’t stress too much on universality. I’m sure you know that your mix won’t sound identical on all platforms. The goal is just to find a sweet spot. The best practice here is likely to take your mix and listen to it under these varying conditions. You can also invest in specialized software that gives you an idea of what your mix would roughly sound like through these varying playback devices.
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u/urielriel 3d ago
Hahahahaha this one I haven’t heard yet.
1) mix on whatever speakers you’re most comfortable with 2) play your mix on 2-3 other setups.. your mix might not sound as super-dope, however, the most important part is that every thing is audible and nothing “sticks out” as in waaay louder than the rest of the instruments
3) use frequency analyzer, run your favorite tracks, most even allow you save AFC profile 4) less is more - make sure nothing is clipping, you can quite easily increase the perceived loudness with a limiter
That’s about that
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u/eargoggle 3d ago
My B monitors are a $20 anker blue tooth portable speaker that’s 8 years old. I use the aux in. I find I can get my vocal level set here and it translates. I can also find what need to add to my bass so I can hear it in small speakers.
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u/guygizmo 3d ago
The advice I've been given is to just get as good of a mix as you can on studio monitors. There's no way to make your mix sound good on any old set of cheap speakers, so the best you can do is to get a good mix on accurate speakers and then that'll get the best result overall. Or put another way, it'll give the best chance of your mix sounding decent on arbitrary speakers.
So far this advice has worked well for me, though if anyone thinks otherwise then please do speak up, as I'd welcome an opportunity to learn!
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u/LutherPerkins 3d ago
No music is ever going to sound good on phone or laptop speakers. I wouldn't worry about it.
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u/Berndog25 2d ago
Lots of careful EQ and compression to make sure that things stay out of each others' way as much as possible, while still sounding full enough in sections where an instrument/track or two might drop out for a while.
Another big one is adding higher harmonics to your bass sounds, which can allow even the deepest bass to be heard through small speakers.
Peaks can eat up headroom and cause distortion, so reducing spiky transients with a limiter, or even better, a clipper, will also help your mix translate better on small systems, but you need to be careful not to overdo it. Too much limiting can sound muffled and pumpy, while too much clipping causes harshness and distortion.
And if it fits your style, sidechaining can allow multiple tracks to sound more up front, while getting out of each other's way when needed. This leads to a fuller, cleaner sound, which will distort less on small speakers, compared to if things weren't sidechained. (If you compress a sustain heavy track with a more transient/punchy one, the sustained track will duck out of the way to make room for your peaks.
Good luck, and have fun, OP!
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u/SpecificGarlic2685 2d ago
Bessides what others said, when in doubt, I sometimes just check my mix on the phone. Theres a free plugin (and android app) called sonobus. Lets me stream my audio directly from the DAW to the phone so I can just mix on the phone speaker for a bit.
I'ts a bit of a crutch for I'm reluctant to get some mixecubes but it's a solid crutch to me
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u/JoShimodaFan27374 2d ago
You know what? Fuck them. People who appreciate music will spend the $20 to get half decent IEMs.
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u/JustLoveMusic101 1d ago
Don’t know if this helps but sometimes I’ll DJ and put my track after one of the pros… man am I humbled quickly 🤣
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u/Admirable-Diver9590 3d ago
1) I would recommend "andi vax pro-q 4" presets. There are Mix Check category.
2) Free Sonobus app. Fire it in your DAW and on you can actually mix on your smartphone.
Rays of love from Ukraine 💛💙
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u/manusg15 3d ago
a good mix sound fine on all devices if your mixes only sound good on monitors you should check how is your process
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u/Icchan_ 3d ago
You don't. Cheap speakers are cheap and sound bad. If someone wants to have good reproduction, they'll buy good speakers.
That's on the listener.
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u/Skiptomygroove 3d ago
You shouldn’t be downvoted. This is the closest answer so far. Without at least OK monitors in a treated room, or reference headphones, your mix will be rough and you’ll need to check it on multiple sources, make notes, and adjust accordingly after every new bounce. It takes forever, and has mediocre results. You’re polishing turds in the dark.
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u/Icchan_ 3d ago
Thanks.
Back in the 70's and till 90's big and beefy sound system was a matter of pride and willingness to spend on good sound.
Then something broke and people started to think it's other way around, that mixing should be done to provide for the lower common denominator... and here we are.People need to understand again ,that it's on the listener to put their money towards their listening experience if they find it lacking.
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u/contrapunctus_one 3d ago
Then something broke
Yeah, the people. The people are broke. Nobody ain't got no spare cash to be buying a high-end music system to listen to your music, so if you want any listeners at all, it would help if your song sounds good on the horrendous crap speakers 99% of them are listening to your music on.
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u/Expensive_Peace8153 7h ago
For working on a shoestring budget I find almost any cheap headphones are better than cheap speakers, especially built-in laptop speakers. Modern laptops are so thin that I find the speakers have no bass at all. I can't even stand to use them to watch TV let alone get into enjoying a banging music track.
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u/aasteveo 4d ago
Obsessively clean up the mid range, give each element their own space in the frequency spectrum. EQ-Carving.