Mute tracks when send to aux?

[boybooe]

Hi Bretheren and Sistheren,
Trying to learning how to mix and my work arounds are letting me down. Here's a basic question of technique: when sending, say, two vocal tracks (same track doubled) to aux send with reverb, compression and eq, should I mute the original tracks and record only the aux send? It seems to sound better that way.
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Many thanks!
Martin

[albee1952]

While there are "technically" no wrong ways to do this, I think you are doing it....er....wrong Assuming the vocal tracks are feeding the main outputs(which I WOULD do) and you are using a send to feed an AUX track with reverb(I would insert any EQ and compression on the audio tracks), then you adjust your wet/dry balance by bringing up the AUX track's fader(with nothing but reverb at a 100% wet mix). This is how its done on any console, and me being an old-school guy, prefer to work as if I have a console(even though I work ITB).

[DC-Choppah]

Since you doubled up the track, you are now treating the two as one new musical voice. So by sending the two tracks to a new aux channel and putting all of your serial plugins there makes sense. Otherwise you would have to double the number of plugins by putting them on both of the original audio tracks.

I would not like to work that way though as it would become confusing later. Say I want to add some parallel effects to that track too, like a reverb used for gluing the whole mix together. Now I need to start inserting sends on that aux track and that is where your way gets confusing perhaps.

Rather than going that deep, I would always bounce the doubled vocal track to a new track first and hide/make inactive the original tracks. If the vocal is only doubled in the chorus, I would bounce it that way. Make the key decision and move on.

Once you have the multi-tracks bounced into one, you can proceed as albee suggests in old school analog console fashion.

Your way can work exactly the same. It is just more confusing down the road IMHO.

[Mr. Kelly]

You know... I never learned to mix on a board, or by theoretical means... I simply purchased PT, nearly 15 years ago, and began learning it.

Until just recently, I ALWAYS put plug ins like reverb on Aux tracks, when summing other tracks to it.

What is the theory on why it is "better" to send individual tracks to mains? Is it a summing issue with bussing to Auxes?

[Craig F]

blending a mix of the source tracks into a reverb helps with the illusion that all the instruments were in the same space for the rerecording

[Mr. Kelly]

Thanks for your response, Craig.

But... I'm still not sure I understand.

If you have 2x tracks blended together, does it matter whether they're blended together by means of busing them to an Aux track, or busing them as sends to a track with a reverb on it? Not sure I understand the difference... AAAAAAUUUGHGHGHGH!~!