In this new age of mixing where plugins and software are replacing outboard gear it is more important then ever to at least understand the basics of proper gain staging. Although a very simple process it seems to get overlooked especially with less experienced mix engineers. Gain staging is the process of setting multiple gain controls in any signal path to get the cleanest possible signal.
Back in the day engineers used to have to be very careful. You’d be using all this outboard gear with each unit adding a tiny bit of noise. If your gain staging wasn’t done correctly you’d constantly be fighting the noise floor. These days when mixing in Pro Tools (or your DAW of choice) all you need to really be conscious of is making sure none of your plugins or faders are clipping. Sounds easy right? It is! You’d be amazed at how many people don’t pay any attention to this and then they wonder why their mixes sound small and wimpy. When working in the digital world you don’t need to be pushing the meters hard. There really is no noise floor anymore so keep your levels low. If your track was recorded pretty hot, take your first plugin in the chain and lower the input. You’ll notice my first plugin is usually a saturation plugin. These plugins always have input controls which is where I set my levels going into my plugin chain. You could also use a trim plugin as the first plugin to do this if your plugin doesn’t have an input control. Basically what you’re doing is creating headroom to work. This is so important in digital mixing I can’t even describe it. Now that you have a reasonable level going into your plugin chain keep checking each plugin to make sure the signal is entering and leaving at a good level. Don’t chance it! If you have an EQ plugin that you boosted a lot of low end with and you’re output meter is getting close to clipping, just turn down the output meter.
So just remember as long as you leave some headroom your mixes will start to breathe better. You’ll notice some depth and dimension that is missing when the levels are too hot. Don’t clip, keep the levels low, check your plugin meters after making changes and you’ll be in good shape!
