Thanks so much your article is very very helpful because you went straight to the points by not beating around the bush

@Production Newbie Your DAW comes with every plugin you need to mix. Learn your DAW thoroughly. After that, you can decide where you need more control and better workflow, and get plugins to achieve those specific needs.

Oh, that’s a great tip! Thank you, Wing!

After comping my takes, I find using volume automation rather time consuming with occasionally unnatural results.
Instead, I render each vocal lines individually as Wav files and edit them externally with Wavosaur using VOLA2 by Sonic Anomaly.

Unlike volume automation VOLA2 compresses/expands the vocals with satisfying smooth results.

I’d start a fresh new project with these VOLA2 processed files normalized at -15 db (plenty of headroom for fx and peaks), the vocals will then be a breeze to mix.

These advice are pretty good on the technical side.
However, I think that what tutorial do not give enough emphasis on the artistic side of things : mixing is mostly choices and finding the best technic to achieve these choices. Too often, beginners focus too much on the technical aspect.
If vocals are important for instance, dark instuments with bright vocals is a choice, and bright instrument with dark vocals is another one, and both are perfectly valid.
On the other hands, you don’t always want vocals to separate from the other tracks.
These choices, dictates the moves you have to do more than anything else.
However, these advices gives great tools to achieve this

I’m glad to hear we nailed it, thank you!

Thank you! :)

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!