Q: What is the best way to monitor when mixing?

A: Some people say you should always mix loud, so you hear everything. Others will tell you to always mix softly so as not to fatigue your ears. Another school of thought is that you have to mix on headphones, not studio monitors. So which is right?

Monitoring is as much an art as a science, which is why so much has been written about it, and so many different monitors exist in the market. But there are some general guidelines that will always apply.

Mixing too loudly might make your song sound more exciting, but it will fatigue your ears after a while, and everything will begin to smear together. So you definitely want to keep the level under control. You especially don’t want to mix too loudly with headphones on — you can do serious damage to yours hearing. Try listening at a variety of volume levels; soft, loud, medium. You’ll hear things differently at each level.

And yes, you should listen to your music on headphones, that’s a great way to hear sounds that get dispersed when you listen using studio monitors and to check out the fine details. However, it’s generally best if you don’t only rely on headphones, as you won’t hear the spatial relationships between tracks as well as you will on a full-range monitoring system.

Finally, be sure and listen to your song the way you expect your audience to hear it. Will it be played in a club? Then you’ll want to audition it at least once with a subwoofer. Is this something you are releasing digitally? Check it out on earbuds. Most pros listen to their mixes numerous ways before they release it into the world, and you should too.

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