This is not a Mixing guide. The art of mixing is very complex and will take a long time to master. There is some great literature available on the subject. Try books by Paul White for a start or just Google 'mixing techniques'

What I will cover here is the options available in the MRS-8 and how to get to them, and I might chuck in a few suggestions here and there.

First, you need to be comfortable with the difference between a track and a channel (see the FAQ) and understand, most importantly, that mixing techniques will not cover up a bad recording. If the EQ on Track is bad, no amount of adjusting will improve it. Get it right when recording then use the EQ, pan, send/returns etc to embellish the important parts of a mix and separate the sounds to be pleasing to the ear.

Channel processors
Each Channel, including the Drum, Bass and Master, has it's own set of processors controlling Volume, Equalisation and Pan. They also have a send/return level each which we will cover later.

The simplest processor is the volume. This can be controlled simply by adjusting the faders on each channel. For more detailed control, the volume can be adjusted in the Track Parameters.

Track Parameters
A traditional Mixing desk would have a long line of dials in a line above the faders. Unfortunately, the MRS8 does not have these but they are there in a virtual sense. They are in the Track Parameter menus.

1. To open the menu, tap [TRACK PARAMETER].
2. Now tap the [STATUS KEY] for the channel you want to adjust. It will turn Orange.
3. "TRx" will be displayed, 'x' being the channel number, and below it the parameter that can be adjusted.

EQ
The first option to be displayed is "EQ HI G". Cursor down to the next Parameter "EQ HI F"
These are the controls for the HI end equalisation. The MRS uses a semi parametric equalizer. "G" stands for gain and "F" stands for Frequency.

I suggest you look in to Semi Parametric Equalisation a bit further (I hope to have a guide on this site soon) but basically if you want to reduce or increase the HI end Frequencies then use these to processors.

To adjust the setting, turn the main dial. To bypass the EQ all together, press the [ENTER] button.

• To increase the presence of the high parts of the sound in a track, increase the gain. Or decrease to lessen the impact.
• To make this gain change have a wider impact (affect a larger part of the sound spectrum) increase the Frequency.
• To make gain adjustments to just the very highest part of the sound, reduce the frequency.
• Don't boost the gain too much. In fact, some sound engineers say that you should NEVER increase the gain, but I'll leave that for you to discover for your selves.

The next 2 parameter options are "EQ LO G" and "EQ LO F". They are the same as above but affect the low parts of a sound.

Try to remember when adjusting EQ that sounds, especially musical instruments, have a huge range of frequency. Even a deep bass will have some HI frequencies.

The next option down is "EFX SEND". These will be covered in another article.

Panning
The next option is 'PAN'. This is an often over looked processor that can be used very effectly to add depth and interest to a mix.

The effect is probably familiar to everyone. It's the same as a 'balance' control on a cd player. (In fact, when you are adjusting the 'pan' on a stereo channel, you are adjusting the 'Balance', but for the sake of small LCD displays, it if still called 'PAN')
Turn it left and it is louder from the left speakers. Turn it right and it is loud from the right.

To adjust the Panning, use the main dial. You can range from L100 (all sound sent to the Left signal, through the default "0" (all sound centralized) to R100 (All sound sent to the Right signal)

Panning a track all the way might sound a bit odd (This might be what you want, of course!) but try panning by just a little to one side. say L5 or L10. This will give a sutle depth to your mix without sending the listener in a spin.

Another good use of Panning is for separatling two instruments that sound similar, say two lead guitars. Pan one slightly left and the other slightly right.

The next option is "TR x-y" where x is the track and y is the vTake. Skip this one for now as it is not a processor.

Fader
The next option is "FADER". As mentioned above, this is the option to fine tune the volume of a Track.