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Top Down Mixing: Completing The Mix

  • Top Down Mixing: Completing The Mix

    Top Down Mixing: Completing The Mix

    The final instalment of our Top Down Mixing series is now available inside Raven Studios.

    In this course, we complete the top-down mixing workflow by moving beyond the drums and applying the same professional approach across the rest of the production. Rather than becoming lost in individual channels, you’ll learn how to shape the mix from the top down, making only the adjustments that genuinely improve the overall sound.

    Throughout the course you’ll discover how to process your mix bus, synth bus, bass bus and vocal bus using EQ, compression, saturation, limiting and stereo processing to create a polished, cohesive and balanced mix.

    In this course you’ll learn:

    • How to shape your mix bus for tone, cohesion and loudness.
    • Professional processing techniques for synth groups.
    • How to control low-end energy and improve the relationship between bass and drums.
    • Creating consistent, polished vocals that sit naturally within the mix.
    • Why treating instruments as groups leads to faster, cleaner and more musical mixes.

    Whether you’re producing House, Tech House, Minimal or any style of electronic music, this course will help you build a more efficient mixing workflow while achieving professional results.

    Start the course: Top Down Mixing: Completing The Mix

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  • How To Use Reference Tracks Properly

    How To Use Reference Tracks Properly

    Reference tracks are one of the most powerful tools available to music producers, yet they’re often misunderstood and misused.

    Many producers either avoid using reference tracks altogether or use them in a way that leads to comparison, frustration and second-guessing. The reality is that professional producers use reference tracks to make faster, more confident decisions throughout the production process.

    Our latest Raven Studios course, How to Use Reference Tracks Properly, shows you exactly how to use references as a practical tool for both arrangement and mixing.

    In this course, you’ll learn how to use reference tracks to analyse structure, pacing and energy so you can build stronger arrangements and finish tracks faster. You’ll also discover how to compare your mixes objectively using Ableton and Voxengo SPAN, helping you make informed decisions about frequency balance, low-end energy and overall translation.

    Most importantly, this course isn’t about copying other tracks. It’s about developing a workflow that removes guesswork, improves confidence and helps you make better production decisions.

    Whether you’re struggling to finish tracks, unsure about your arrangements, or constantly questioning your mixes, this course will give you a clear framework for using reference tracks effectively.

    Check out the full course here: How To Use Reference Tracks Properly

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  • Understanding EQ – 5 Types & When to Use Them

    Understanding EQ – 5 Types & When to Use Them

    D. Ramirez just dropped his new course, designed to explain and demonstrate what each type of EQ does and how to use them. You may have caught a glimpse of this on YouTube or maybe you want to check it out there before you dive into the full course online. Here are the links for you to get started:

    Course

    YouTube

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  • How To Finish More Music (Check Out These 3 Courses)

    How To Finish More Music (Check Out These 3 Courses)

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    If you are struggling to finish more music or often feel overwhelmed when sitting down to start a track here’s three of D. Ramirez recent videos that may just help you (Click the links below to go straight to the courses)

     How to Finish More Music

    Limitation Series Part One – Why You’re Not Finishing Music

    Limitation Series Part Two – Build A Track Using Limitation (No-Friction Workflow)

  • D. Ramirez, Armand Van Helden & Mark Knight Collaboration

    D. Ramirez, Armand Van Helden & Mark Knight Collaboration

    Our very own D. Ramirez has just released a massive tune called “You” on Toolroom in collaboration with Armand Van Helden & Mark Knight. The track which was only released on Friday has already had global radio plays as well as features on Radio 1, Capital Dance, KISS & more. Click here to stream & download the tune: https://toolroom.lnk.to/YouAVHMKDRAS

  • Stereo Width – 5 Widening Techniques

    Stereo Width – 5 Widening Techniques

    Dean just dropped his brand new course on here about Stereo Width. He also dropped a short summary video over on YouTube. If you want a quick overview of what the course is about, head over to his channel and check it out:

  • Toolroom ‘Artist Breakthrough’ Podcast

    Toolroom ‘Artist Breakthrough’ Podcast

    D. Ramirez has lived through every era of dance music – from witnessing the birth of house in the UK to shaping sounds that defined entire movements. In this episode, he unpacks the real story behind his journey: early rave culture, underground clubs, Top of the Pops, career-defining remixes, industry mistakes, and the moments that almost broke him. This is a rare, honest conversation about longevity, reinvention, and what it actually takes to survive 30+ years in dance music – told by someone who was there when it all began.

  • Make Your Drops Hit Harder: Master the Buildup 🔥 (Exclusive Member Discount)

    Make Your Drops Hit Harder: Master the Buildup 🔥 (Exclusive Member Discount)

    Dean just dropped a fire video on YouTube to help your buildups hit just like the pro’s! As a member of Raven we are pleased to offer an exclusive discount on the ‘Calm Before’ plugin used in this video.

    Head to Big Daw Audio’s website and Enter code RAVEN55 to unlock an exclusive 55% discount on the plugin: https://www.bigdaw.audio/products/calmbefore

    Then make sure to head over to our brand new Free Downloads tab: https://theravenstudios.com/free-downloadswhere you can pick up your two free D.Ramirez presets.

  • This drum mixing trick changes everything!

    This drum mixing trick changes everything!

    In Dean’s latest YouTube video he gives a quick overview of what you can expect in part 3 of 4 of his Mini Series “Drums: Top-Down Mixing”

    Check out the YouTube video here or dive into the full course now on the site.

  • Classic House Bassline Design In Serum 2

    Classic House Bassline Design In Serum 2

    Check out Dean’s latest video on Classic House Bassline Design.This video accompanies “Mixing Series P.T.2: Mixing Bass That Works With The Kick