Trailer
08 min

Part 1

Session layout and management, template overview, track grouping and colour, audio clip terminology
10 min

Part 2

Organising and editing drums, buss assignments, bass tracks, effects, arrangement and labelling
21 min

Part 3

Mix send and return, master buss compression, drums and bass EQ, compression, gate, reverb
07 min

Part 4

Using the ‘commit' feature, balancing keyboards, mix buss compressor swap, EQ refinement
16 min

Part 5

Discussing VCAs, sends and the mix buss, effects routing, plug-in choice, setting parameters
30 min

Part 6

Master gain reduction, limiters, guitar balance and processing, snare compression, drum panning
28 min

Part 7

Vocal compression, master EQ, VCA fader creation, level automation, frequent analog mix comparison
06 min

Part 8

Master compressor and EQ settings, making a digital mix sound more analog, challenges faced

Mixing

The Mountain

Three Days Grace

Chris Lord-Alge

Join

Song : The Mountain

Duration:00 min / 2h11 Subtitles: English, Spanish, Portuguese

Description

Join mixing star Chris Lord-Alge as he challenges himself to mix a track 100% ITB and have it compete with his own original analog version! At Studios La Fabrique, he takes you through the session of alternative rock song ‘The Mountain’ by Three Days Grace, revealing his methods for preparation, management and template usage within Pro Tools. Following this, CLA dives into the digital remix, while continuously reverting to the analog print for comparison. An up-close screen view of the session lets you witness every detail of Chris’ workflow as he reveals his favourite plug-ins, parameter settings, effects routing tricks, automation techniques, mix buss processing, and more.

Show more

Trailer
08 min

Part 1

Session layout and management, template overview, track grouping and colour, audio clip terminology
10 min

Part 2

Organising and editing drums, buss assignments, bass tracks, effects, arrangement and labelling
21 min

Part 3

Mix send and return, master buss compression, drums and bass EQ, compression, gate, reverb
07 min

Part 4

Using the ‘commit' feature, balancing keyboards, mix buss compressor swap, EQ refinement
16 min

Part 5

Discussing VCAs, sends and the mix buss, effects routing, plug-in choice, setting parameters
30 min

Part 6

Master gain reduction, limiters, guitar balance and processing, snare compression, drum panning
28 min

Part 7

Vocal compression, master EQ, VCA fader creation, level automation, frequent analog mix comparison
06 min

Part 8

Master compressor and EQ settings, making a digital mix sound more analog, challenges faced

Comments

(27)

Bernardo Diaz June 16, 2022 at 6:21 PM

Fantastic song and mix!!! I'd love to see CLA do a Halestorm or Badflower mix ITB.
Peter Vogl November 13, 2021 at 2:38 AM

The few ITB videos have been extremely helpful for me. Seeing how he manages the compression and eq differently has verified a lot of what I have found experimenting with his techniques using a console. I've seen him mix using the console enough times that I'm not sure I'm going to glean much more from them. I don't have a console...this is much more useful to me. I do wonder about him not using his secondary tracks when ITB. No parallel eq tracks for instruments or parallel compression tracks. Would love to hear him talk about that.
Jorge Zevallos June 23, 2021 at 9:48 AM
David Atamaniuk October 9, 2020 at 5:18 PM

MWTM, If it's possible please make a deconstruction of "jimmy eat world - let it happen" with CLA. It was an amazing mix and it will be nice if you show us how CLA did that. Thank you!
chazz Hill-Hayr January 30, 2020 at 9:22 PM

I still don't quite understand CLA's mix bus ITB. If I have a master bus in pro tools and I lower the volume of it, I'm pretty sure it doesn't lower the input to the compression on the bus. Maybe I'm wrong, but I have never noticed that at least. And I'm curious as to why he doesn't use a gain / trim plugin to control input level to the master bus?
Shane Grush February 1, 2020 at 1:32 AM

Hi Chazz, check out part #3 again. CLA is placing an AUX Send (Labeled Mix Send) before the Mix Buss (Labeled Mix Return). In Pro Tools, master fader inserts are post-fader (CLA just says "post"). By using an aux before the master, you can work around this. He mentions this, and how it doesn't make sense the way Avid has it -- @1:00 in part #3. I hope this helps!
Christopher Loy July 24, 2019 at 1:27 AM

Yeah, but I'm in the battlefield right now with a water pistol. I would like to see Bond use a water pistol. If I watch bond run around with a Walther PPK and then go out in the battlefield tomorrow with my water pistol I'm definitely fucked.
Gil Vicente Castillo February 15, 2019 at 12:10 PM

Excellent series. I don't understand people complaining about CLA not mixing in an SSL 4K desk. I would love to keep watching him mix ITB because that is the method I always use to work and most people use too, so it is actually more helpful to learn from my favorite mixing engineer working in the same environment as I do. I worked for 5 years in three of the biggest recording studios in my country with a 72-channel SSL 9K desk, a 48-channel Duality, a 16-channel Neve 1073 , tons of outboard gear, vintage microphones that are more expensive than my car and there is nothing more brilliant and helpful than watching my favorite mixing engineers and producers working completely ITB. The ears and brain is the most valuable tools we have at our disposal, not a half a million dollars desk.
Pat Mavromatis April 5, 2019 at 2:21 PM

You do have a point, everyone does actually, so no disrespect here at all, but for me watching CLA mix in the box is like James Bond shooting a water pistol, LeBron James playing ball in flip flops, Ayrton Senna driving a Yugo . . . I have more . . .

Adam Batruch October 11, 2019 at 11:28 AM

Thank you for this video. While before watching I was like - CLA will again do it fast and in His own way chaotic (if dont know how He works) and will be hard to see what His doin' exactly. And I open this tutorial and found Him doing in the box from scratch! It's really nice!!! I agree with GIL VICENTE CASTILLO, mixing is about brain and knowledge. It is equipment of course, but brain and knwoledge are the most important. Thank you !
Pat Mavromatis February 12, 2019 at 1:04 AM

Would love to see CLA do a console mix. I agree with Pau and Mark. This "In the Box" stuff is not very exciting . . .
Pau Paredes February 11, 2019 at 10:55 PM

I miss a desk mix from CLA where you can actually see his EQ moves. With a cam set in the ceiling where you can follow his moves. He is not comfortable ITB and he´s honest about it. Why not focus on what he is great?
Michael Bolewski February 12, 2019 at 2:59 AM

I'd love that too but they would have to put a camera above the desk instead of filming his moves from an indeterminable angle...
Michael Bolewski February 10, 2019 at 11:48 AM

Will stems or tracks from this session be released for self-practice?
João André February 2, 2019 at 7:18 PM

This guy is trully great. Loved watching him in the box ( without being tied to a brand) I'm curious to see how it would be with other ssl channel strip emulations and another limiter. The energy of his mixes is just second to none. One of the best shows for me.
Caesar James Augustus February 2, 2019 at 5:21 AM

CLA all the way. As much as I admire the plugin world’s continuously needed innovation there still are no tubes that can bend the sound to the desired outcome of analog. If one of the Masters has good contacts to UAD or Waves I’d highly recommend suggesting an idea of combining their plugins with an “all in one” piece of outboard gear equipped with a large variety of tubes that has an easy connect like thunderbolt. Their plugin would work in tandem with this one piece of outboard gear activating a variety of tubes mimicking a multitude of traditional pieces of outboard gear. This way a Waves or UAD Pultec, Fairchild, etc. plugin would achieve the tone through the software but also the desirable tube sounds through this all in one piece of outboard gear further tightening the gap between the analog & digital world.
Mark Saddlemire January 26, 2019 at 10:07 PM

Tony that's a good point. I guess good to see a few ITB tutorials for the comparison. But wouldn't to see a trend. Thanks MWTM!
Tony Eckenrode January 24, 2019 at 3:51 AM

Interesting perspective on console vs in the box. You could still hear the contrast between the two mixes near the end. It was refreshing to hear his honesty with the struggle of the in the box mix, especially with transients on drums. Great series altogether.
Mark Saddlemire January 22, 2019 at 11:58 PM

Why are all the latest CLA videos in-the-box? Personally i’d rather watch the masters work in the domain that they are most comfortable with. Plenty of youtube videos showing in-the-box techniques, and while they are not CLA, I still think watching him mix in a more professional domain is much more educational for me than inside a computer.
Pat Mavromatis April 5, 2019 at 1:55 PM

I will second that!!!

Pau Paredes April 12, 2019 at 1:32 PM

I agree

Chuck Swicegood June 6, 2019 at 1:08 AM

I HATE watching Chris mix in the box. I don"t thin he enjoys it either...#Fish out of water

Jozsef Fuzy October 15, 2020 at 3:10 PM

I respectfully but strongly disagree. The challenges of mixing ITB are completely different from the challenges of mixing on a console. They both can be overcome, but through drastically different means.

About Chris Lord-Alge

Chris Lord-Alge’s talent is exemplified by his AllMusic credit list containing an astonishing 1100 entries, with huge names such as Bruce Springsteen, Tina Turner, Avril Lavigne, Cher, Muse, Celine Dion, Michael Bublé, Aerosmith, Madonna, Green Day, Meat Loaf, U2, Snow Patrol, Sheryl Crow, Savage Garden, Bon Jovi, Fleetwood Mac, Black Eyed Peas, The Rolling Stones, Smashing Pumpkins, James Brown, Eric Clapton, Nine Inch Nails, Foo Fighters, My Chemical Romance and many more. He has won six Grammy...

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