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Does anyone know of a course or playlist that shows someone how to get into the world of mixing, mastering. I'm a complete noob and would like to learn about that stuff but I don't know the first thing. Is there a course out there which takes someone through the beginner to expert faze of getting the maximum amount of sound out of your recordings? That would be incredible, if such a thing exists. So if someone does know of this kind of thing would they be so kind as to link me to it? A free course would be incredible but that may be asking for too much so don't hesitate if the course costs money, a redirection would just be awesome! It doesn't even need to be a course, even a book or DVD series would be better than nothing. Anything to get me off my feet really.

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  • Expect to take five to ten years of learning and practicing before your recordings really start to shine. It's like learning a musical instrument. It takes a lot practice time to become good at it. It is also fun and rewarding.
    – Todd Wilcox
    Commented Jan 23, 2016 at 19:15
  • Yes, it is not an overnight thing at all. But if you work hard and smart, you can get good results within a year and then build on that.
    – Simon White
    Commented Jan 25, 2016 at 2:27

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There are thousands of options. Here are some:

Books

Web Resources

Fora (Forums)

I highly recommend you start off by reading only and not posting on a forum you are new to.

Other

The number two thing to do to learn to record music

The second most important thing to do if you want to produce music is to learn to play a musical instrument. It doesn't matter if it's an accordion or a zither, a balalaika or a hurdy-gurdy. Learning to play any instrument (even just cowbell) will both give you an understanding of how music works and something to record when you are alone. Which brings us to...

The Number One Thing to Do to Learn to Record:

Record!

Do you have a smart phone? Then you can start recording today! Just start recording things. If you know a musician or band or you are a musician, start recording them or yourself. If you have a computer, get Audacity (free) or Reaper ($60) or Live Intro ($99) or anything and start playing around with it. Learning to record is like learning a musical instrument. Reading and research help, but...

The only way to really learn is to practice.

Most of the people who recorded your favorite albums started out with a cassette tape deck and a burning passion. Many of them never went to any kind of school for audio production. Some of them won Grammies before there was any such thing as schools for audio production. Stop reading this and go do it!

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  • Oh wow, now that is an impressive answer! Thanks a bunch! It's exactly what I was looking for.
    – Cuculoco
    Commented Jan 23, 2016 at 22:49
  • Yes, this is a great answer. The only thing I would take exception to is the recommendation to learn a musical instrument. There are already many people who can play musical instruments and don’t now how to record themselves and/or don’t have the money to pay someone else to record them. I recommend you consider the audio mixer to be your musical instrument and get enough skill and gear together so that you can record all of the indie bands in your area for free until you are good enough that somebody wants to pay you.
    – Simon White
    Commented Jan 25, 2016 at 2:14
  • @SimonWhite I can't find any references right now, but I've read several times that many engineers recommend learning some instrument and they use that knowledge frequently. I've learned several instruments and have used almost all of that knowledge. At least learning a lot of music theory is invaluable and the best way to learn theory is along with an instrument. Setting up click tracks and editing are two things that every engineer does that are made easier when you know an instrument and/or theory. Playing in a band helps a lot with understanding how everything should fit together.
    – Todd Wilcox
    Commented Jan 25, 2016 at 3:15
  • @SimonWhite As a recording engineer, you have to work with musicians and producers (who are usually also musicians). Being able to talk to both musicians and producers effectively is much easier to do when you know an instrument. Most people who are music production engineers got into it at least party because they love music. There's not better way to experience the full breadth of music than to learn an instrument. I stand by my recommendations.
    – Todd Wilcox
    Commented Jan 25, 2016 at 3:17
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To give one more addition to Todd's excellent answer. Video tutorials are even better suited to learning about audio recording over books or other written content IMO because you can hear the techniques they are teaching in action and how it affects the sound, which you simply cannot get from written text.

A youtube channel I highly recommend is The Recording Revolution. It covers an wide range of topics and techniques and is very beginner friendly. He even did a series where he recorded and mixed a song using only $300 worth of recording equipment in total (not including instruments) to show what you can do with very little money. It really is a fantastic resource.

https://www.youtube.com/user/recordingrevolution/videos

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  • Great recommendation and great website. You really have to remember that you want to be an audio engineer, not a gear collector. I highly recommend that beginners only rent gear for the first while (if you have a music store with rentals in your area) because so much gear is low-quality and/or not appropriate to your needs.
    – Simon White
    Commented Jan 25, 2016 at 2:24

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