Manny Marroquin is one of the most sought-after mixing engineers in the industry right now, and for a good reason. Manny Marroquin’s trained sense of mixing allows him to draw out every ounce of emotion, character, texture, and space in every record he works on.
And these records have some serious credit to them. He’s mixed songs for Kendrick Lamar, Post Malone, and many other top-level artists.
He recently debuted his signature line of headphones through Audeze, which matches his skillsets’ caliber. We had a chance to sit down with the accomplished engineer to pick his brain about many of the most common questions producers at every level ask.
But before we get into the details, let’s unpack a bit more about these headphones…
What Are The MM-500 Studio Headphones?
The MM-500 are carefully crafted line of headphones that are some of the best the industry has to offer at this moment. These are headphones geared towards audiophiles and mix engineers who simply demand the best possible results.
Sure, they may be an investment, but as Manny explains later in the interview, they are the best way to invest in yourself and your music to take both to the next level.
Learn More About These Amazing Headphones Here <<<
Scroll to Continue
Images Of Manny Marroquin In The Studio
How do you avoid panning elements too aggressively when mixing on headphones?
I like extreme panning. So I put heavy panning in anything I’m working on; I’m not shy about it. I always reference the sound to my speakers after mixing on the headphones because it’ll sound different coming out of those than directly through the headphones typically.
At the same time, the panning will be aggressive on the headphones, it blends more when played for a whole room.
How do you dial spatial effects like delays and reverbs to achieve a professional-sounding mix on headphones?
I go by ear, my gut is usually right. There’s no science to it, it’s more about the feeling and what I like to hear.
Share some ways professional mix engineers like yourself take full advantage of everything that headphones mixing has to offer.
When mixing on headphones, you hear all the subtleties in the music. You have a better chance of hearing delay tails and getting a better sense of frequencies.
It allows mixers to get into the micro details of the music they’re working on, which makes the difference between professional mix results and non. We train ourselves to listen to those subtleties and listen well.
What was the hardest lesson to teach yourself when learning to mix on headphones compared to monitors?
I just had to get used to mixing on headphones. It took me years to get used to the sound and the details I needed to focus on when listening through them.
Headphones are like any other speaker; once you learn them, you get more confident as time goes by. Confidence when listening through the headphones- was one of the hardest lessons.
What is a simple lesson about headphone mixing that you wished you had learned sooner?
The simplest thing is just to listen more. Listen to different music on the headphones, realize how different it sounds, and get comfortable hearing it that way.
Do more critical listening through the headphones.
Professional-grade mixing headphones can cost a pretty penny. What about them, in your opinion, warrants the sizable investment?
It’s just like any other tool in your studio. People have to buy monitors, and that’s a sizable investment too. It’s an expense but an investment to take your music to another level.
Comments