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How to Make an Electronic Mix Track

A mix track, also referred to as a sub mix, is a collection of separate audio tracks routed to a single track. When mixing, it's preferable to mix similar sounds together. Typically, this means routing drums to one mix track, vocals to a different mix track and guitars to yet another. Since electronic instruments share similar characteristics, it's good practice to create an electronic mix track when mixing your song. This way, you can control the level, compression and panning of all electronic tracks using a single control parameter.

Things You'll Need

  • Computer with minimum 2GB RAM
  • Digital audio workstation
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Instructions

    • 1

      Double-click the desktop to launch the workstation in which you created the electronic tracks.

    • 2

      Hit "Play" and click the "S" icon on each audio channel in turn. This solos the track, muting all other audio and letting you hear it in isolation. This permits you to determine which tracks should be sent to which mix track. For every electronic track, such as synthesizers, sequenced drums and electronic effects, double-click the channel name and add "Send" to the track name. For example, "808 Drums Send."

    • 3

      Click on the first of your "Send" tracks. This highlights the track and assigns subsequent commands to that track only, rather than the entire mix.

    • 4

      Click "Send To" and select "Bus 1." If "Bus 1" is grayed out, select the next available bus. In audio, a bus is a channel to which you route your mix track. Repeat this process for each "Send" track.

    • 5

      Double-click on the bus track and name it "Electronic Mix Track." Then, click it to highlight it.

    • 6

      Open the "File" menu and select "Export As." Select your preferred file type, such as MP3 or Wave Audio. By exporting the mix track, you can import into your preferred mastering software or use it as a single file in a remix track.

Recording Music

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