A Simple Mistake That Will Ruin Your Mixdown

2 Minute Ableton Live Tip #37: Don't Forget Reverb Tails!

We used to joke in my last band, "It doesn't matter how the song goes, as long as it ends tight."  Obviously there's a lot more that goes into being a tight band, but a key ingredient was that we all ended the same way.  If one guy let his guitar ring out while another quickly silenced the final chord, it would sound like a clear mistake. The tightest bands can sound sloppy with a weak ending.

When you are mixing your songs, you want to make sure that your song ends properly.  If the instruments have a nice long decay at the end or the last notes ring out in a slowly fading ping pong delay, you want to make sure your mixdown captures that.  A beautifully produced track will sound like garbage if it ends with a sudden smack of silence.  At best, people will think something is wrong with their stereo, at worst they will think you are a terrible producer. Check out the Two Minute Ableton Live Tip below and never make this mistake again!