I've been mixing and producing my own music for a while now but as is the same with all of us I wish to continually refine my approach. As a time saver I have been processing the summing stacks (vocal bus) for backing vocals rather than each individual track within that stack. I imagine this isn't the healthiest approach but I'm taking into account CPU and the fact that each of the vocals sound very similar. No one told me I should process every backing vocal on one bus, I just assumed that made the most sense. Obviously I will do edits on particular tracks if something stands out. I tend to split the vocals into different summing stacks based on whether they are high or low harmonies etc, but as I said all of the processing is on the bus. Is this a standard approach? Would I stand to benefit from processing all the tracks individually or is this just a matter of taste? Cheers all Ric (Echo Town)

My goals seem simple; make my yet to be published website a viable site for mixing and mastering music productions. The road getting there, not so simple. While being a perfectionist should not be an issue, minor rabbit holing might be. I will have to remain vigilant as I progress so I don’t get enamored with a new idea or technique that might lead me to push aside more critical items. Each Intensive, Mixing and Mastering, has showed me just how far I have to go. This is where imposter syndrome could raise its ugly head. But I constantly remind myself to look, listen and observe all media. And it’s evaluating what I observe that makes me believe there’s a place in the market for me. I just have to find my niche. And finding my niche is where this community plays such a vital role. To commit to study 4 days a week on this site with the plan to make it a daily habit is the starting point. Mentorship is another key factor I plan on utilizing along with leaning on many of you for help along the way. And I’m hopeful I can be helpful to all of you as well. I’m looking forward to the challenge.

I end up creating a quick mix of tracks for my students and often with headphones, but when I listen back in the car, it's just not the best. (sigh). Please give me any advice possible from the type of headphones I should use to any tricks with the volume balance. I have 3 different headphones, Sony MDR-7506, DT770pro80d7 and HD280Pro.