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Mix Trick or Trash Ep.4: Oak Felder Rates 19 Mix Tips

May 07, 2026 | 13,516 Views

Are your favorite mixing habits helping, or quietly ruining your workflow? In Episode 4 of Mix Trick or Trash, multi-platinum, Grammy-winning producer Oak Felder (Demi Lovato, Kehlani, John Legend) rates some of the internet's most viral mix tips. Coming from a producer's mindset, Oak reveals why he NEVER checks his mixes in the car, what volume automation really does for the music and why a Delay vs. Reverb debate almost made him walk out of the filming of this episode.

Video Chapters:

  • 0:00 - Introduction
  • 0:29 - Tracking vocals through real-time pitch correction plugins
  • 0:51 - High-pass everything except bass instruments
  • 1:13 - Always mix with reference tracks
  • 1:38 - Recording vocals in sections instead of full passes
  • 2:11 - Mixing in mono
  • 2:26 - Prioritizing creative performance over technical perfection
  • 2:56 - Checking your mix in the car
  • 3:28 - Mixing through your master chain as early as possible
  • 3:52 - Never boost EQ, only cut
  • 4:10 - If the mix sounds good on AirPods it’ll sound good on anything
  • 4:41 - Stereo widening plugins are essential
  • 5:17 - Parallel compression
  • 5:47 - Committing effects on the way in instead of keeping everything dry
  • 6:12 - Always mix at low volumes
  • 6:42 - How important is volume automation?
  • 7:02 - Starting a production with a drumbeat
  • 7:37 - Gain staging is essential
  • 8:22 - Color coding your session before starting a mix
  • 9:00 - Delay is more important than Reverb
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