Rock

Mix character

Acoustic drums, electric bass, guitars (often doubled) and vocal. The sound comes from the recording and the arrangement: in the mix you look for the energy of a band playing in a room, with powerful drums, wide guitars and a vocal that is present but sits inside the band. Classic rock (1970s) is more natural and dynamic; modern rock has drums reinforced with samples, layered guitars and higher loudness.

Typical balance

Element	Level relative to the mix
Vocal	−5/−7 LU
Guitars (together)	−4/−5 LU
Snare	−7/−9 LU
Kick	−9/−11 LU
Bass	−8/−10 LU
Overheads and room	−10/−13 LU

EQ

Kick: 60–80 Hz (or 80–100 if the bass sits below), beater 3–5 kHz; cut 300–500 Hz.
Bass: 80–120 Hz, mids 700 Hz–1.5 kHz so it can be heard under the guitars.
Snare: body 180–250 Hz, crack 3–5 kHz; control the ring with narrow cuts.
Guitars: HP 80–120 Hz, LP 10–12 kHz, cut 300–500 Hz, scoop 1–3 dB at 2–4 kHz (also dynamically from the vocal).
Vocal: HP 80–100 Hz, presence 2–5 kHz, saturation.

Dynamics

Drum bus: parallel compression with 10–15 dB of reduction blended in at 20–40% + glue 2–4 dB.
Room: FET with all ratio buttons pressed ("all buttons") in parallel for explosiveness.
Bass: 4–6 dB (opto + FET).
Vocal: FET + opto, 6–10 dB.
Mix bus: glue 2–3 dB.

Space

Doubled guitars panned 100% L/R; vocal, bass, kick, snare in the center.
Stereo drums with a consistent perspective (drummer or audience).
Vocal with plate or slapback (80–140 ms); short reverbs on the drums in addition to the room mics.

Layering

Guitars: 2–4 rhythm takes with different amps; solos in the center or slightly off-center.
Kick and snare: mics + samples aligned in phase.
Kick in/out aligned (see "Phase and polarity alignment").

Reference loudness

Modern rock −10/−8 LUFS; remastered classic rock −12/−10 LUFS. True peak −1 dBTP, crest factor 7–10 dB.

Reference tracks

AC/DC "Back in Black", Foo Fighters "Everlong", Queens of the Stone Age "No One Knows", Arctic Monkeys "R U Mine?", Royal Blood "Figure It Out".

Compare at matched volume: how loud the snare is relative to the vocal, how wide the guitars are, how much room you hear.

Common mistakes

Raising the vocal instead of carving space in the guitars.
Guitars with too much low end: bass and kick get lost.
Drums limited too much: they lose punch.
Inconsistent drum perspective between overheads and toms.

Starting settings

Parameter	Value	Why
Guitars	Doubled 100% L/R, HP 80–120 Hz	Wall of sound and room for the bass.
Drum bus	Parallel 10–15 dB at 20–40% + glue 2–4 dB	Power and body.
Room	FET all buttons in parallel	Energy and explosiveness.
Vocal	6–10 dB, plate or slapback	Present within the band.
Master loudness	−10/−8 LUFS	Impact without losing transients.

Frequencies to watch

Range	What to do
60–120 Hz	Kick and bass: separation by frequency and alignment.
200–400 Hz	Mud from guitars, toms and room: broad cut of 2–3 dB.
700 Hz–1.5 kHz	Bass audibility under the guitars.
2–5 kHz	Guitars and vocal compete: scoop the guitars.
8–12 kHz	Cymbals and air: bright but not harsh.

Example chain

Step	Tool	Settings	Why
Drums	Alignment → EQ → bus → compressed parallel + room	2–4 dB + parallel	Power.
Bass	DI + amp aligned → opto → FET	4–6 dB	Consistent notes.
Guitars	Bus → EQ → dynamic EQ sidechained from the vocal	−1/−3 dB at 2–4 kHz	Wall with room for the vocal.
Vocal	EQ → FET → opto → saturation → plate/slapback	6–10 dB	Present vocal.
Master	Glue → limiter	−10/−8 LUFS	Level.

How to check the result

Mix correlation +0.2/+0.6 (wide guitars); above +0.9 below 150 Hz.
Master crest factor 7–10 dB: below 6 dB the drums lose punch.
High-mid band (2–4 kHz): the vocal must stand out in the sung moments.
Low-mid band (250–500 Hz) no higher than the Bass band.