Taking notes is a very important step to get better mixes. Some of you may say “Are you serious? Why is that so important?” Let me tell you why.
First of all you have to know that after a specific time your ears are getting “tired” ,and this is where you have to take a break,or just stop and leave it for the next time you are going to work in your home studio.
So I suggest to do this: Take a blank piece of paper or a notepad ,whatever is convenient for you, and before you start doing anything with your song ,just listen the whole song from the start till the end. In the spots that you hear something unusual,something that is not so right to your ears ,take a note what you have to do and write in which bar you have to adjust something so you can get better results. This way you have better control of your project and you know exactly what to do the next time you are going to work on this project. When the song ends I suggest to hear it one more time so you can ensure that you have heard right and maybe there are more spots that you missed the first time.
Let me give you an example. Whenever you want to go to the super market ,the first thing you want to do is to make a shopping list.This way you know exactly what you want to buy and you are faster than the others. If you have no list ready ,then all you can do is to walk around the super market without knowing what you really need and trying to remember what you want to buy. This is exactly the same with you and your home studio. If you apply this method in every project that you are working on,I can ensure you that you will get much better results in your mix and you will be more productive. You are taking specific steps that will lead you faster to the desired result ,and you can delete also from your notepad each procedure that you have just completed.As I told you earlier mixing is a very creative procedure but your ears get tired after a specific time. If you have a list ready for the next time you will book a couple of hours in your home studio, you can work smarter and less.Take advantage of your time in your studio and be productive!