

If musicians have their own personal headphone mix, this provides them with a good place to tweak their own mix. Only increase a level if a singer or musician asks for it, if you’re providing their mix through aux sends. Put all other instruments into the mix at a level slightly below the bass and drums.If necessary, just give them a mono instrument feed without the chorus. Make sure that you don’t add anything that’s modulated with a chorus or flanger, since that could cause the musician to search for the pitch.Once again, every musician needs to hear the other instruments to cue off of. Next, add the chordal instrument, like a guitar or piano, at a level that’s not quite as loud as the bass and drums.The singer also needs the fundamental key of the song provided by the bass to stay in pitch, while the drummer needs it for reference as well. This will ensure that the musicians can feel the rhythm of the song so they can stay in the pocket easier. Set the level of the kick drum, snare, and bass high in the mix.Nothing stops a session quicker than a player with a headphone problem. Make sure that you use the best headphones possible, and that they’re not broken or intermittent.So, here are a number of things to consider when creating your next headphone mix, especially as it pertains to singers.

Why? A happy musician or singer means a better performance. Do a session with one of the A-listers, and you’ll be surprised at just how much time is spent on the headphones, even if the musicians have the capability of setting their own mix up for themselves. One of the things that separate a good engineer from a great one is the quality of the headphone mix that he or she provides for their musicians.
