Acle Kahney’s TesseracT Mix Bus: Brightness, Width & Saturation

The mix bus. For many producers, it’s that final frontier, the place where a good mix can become great, or… well, let’s not talk about the other outcome. But when you hear the polished, expansive soundscapes of a band like TesseracT, you know there’s some serious magic happening on that master fader. We got a peek into how guitarist and producer Acle Kahney approaches his mix bus, and it’s all about subtle, smart moves that add up to that crucial final 5-10%.

Acle doesn’t just slap a preset on and call it a day. His method involves multiple stages of carefully chosen EQ and saturation, designed to inject brightness, width, and character into his already solid mixes. If you’re looking to get that pro-level sheen on your own tracks, learning from how pros like Acle work is invaluable – something we dive deep into at Nail The Mix.

When Does the Mix Bus Chain Come On?

Ever find yourself chasing your tail early in a mix, wondering why it doesn’t sound “finished”? Acle has an interesting take. He doesn’t typically engage his full mix bus chain right from the get-go. Instead, he gets the core elements gelling and then, often “halfway through the mix,” he’ll start building up his mix bus processing. Why? To make it sound “bigger” and more exciting, giving him that inspirational push to take it over the finish line. It’s less about fixing problems and more about enhancing what’s already working.

Layering for Impact: Acle’s Multi-Stage Approach

The core of Acle’s mix bus technique isn’t about one magic plugin. It’s about layering several subtle processes, each contributing a small part to the overall improvement. He’s aiming for increased brightness and width, using multiple tools to achieve this without making any single processor work too hard.

Stage 1: Strategic EQ for Brightness and Air

Acle often finds himself wanting to add a bit of overall brightness and push to his mixes. This isn’t a sledgehammer approach; it’s a gentle lift.

Neve-Style High-End Boost:
He mentions using a Neve-emulation EQ (like the classic 1073 or 1081 sound) to boost everything above 400Hz. This is a broad, musical lift that can open up the top end and add clarity. It’s not about surgical cuts here, but a gentle push that makes the entire mix feel a bit more alive. This kind of broad shaping is a common tactic in professional mixes. If you want to explore more EQ strategies for mixing modern metal, check out our EQ hub page.

This mix bus EQ move often complements similar brightening he might be doing on individual busses, like a “spread shred” type of effect he mentions using on his guitar group to widen and brighten them. The mix bus EQ then enhances this overall sense of air.

Stage 2: Harmonic Enrichment with Saturation

Saturation is where Acle really starts to add character and density to his mix bus. He uses a few different tools, each with a specific purpose.

General Mix Bus Saturation:
Acle uses a versatile saturation plugin, often starting with a preset like one he calls “Mixed Bus One.” Key moves here include:

• Turning down the “high end” or “air” amount slightly within the plugin. This prevents the saturation from making the top end overly harsh or fizzy, especially after the initial EQ boost.
• Cranking up the Pentode/Triode saturation. These tube characteristics add rich harmonics and a touch of pleasing compression, contributing to the perceived loudness and “glue.”
• Adjusting the output level of the plugin to ensure it’s roughly at unity gain, or perhaps just a touch louder. This helps in making objective decisions about whether the saturation is truly improving the sound, not just making it louder.

This kind of saturation can subtly compress the signal too, helping to gel everything together. Mastering the nuances of how saturation interacts with dynamics is key, much like understanding metal compression secrets beyond just making it loud.

Targeted Top-End Sheen with Kush Audio Clariphonic DSP mkII:
For that extra bit of high-frequency magic, Acle turns to the Clariphonic. He uses it specifically for the “top end and the silk.” The Clariphonic is renowned for its ability to add smooth, airy high frequencies without harshness. It’s a parallel EQ, meaning it blends the processed signal with the dry, allowing for very natural-sounding enhancements. This is all about that expensive-sounding polish.

Mid/Side Mojo with Vertigo Sound VSM-3:
Here’s where things get really interesting. Acle uses the Vertigo VSM-3, a powerful harmonic generator, but in a very specific way on his mix bus:

• Focusing on the Low-Mids: He primarily uses one section of the VSM-3 to distort and enhance the low-mid frequencies.
• Center Channel Processing: Crucially, he sets the VSM-3 to M/S (Mid/Side) mode and applies this distortion only to the Mid (center) channel.
• The Goal: This targeted distortion is aimed at giving elements like the snare drum “a bit more oomph” and body in the low-mids, right in the center of the mix where they live.
• Subtle Blending: He blends this effect in subtly. It’s not about obvious distortion, but a nuanced thickening and harmonic enrichment.

He mentions that he sometimes uses the other side of the VSM-3 for high-mids, similar to what he does with the Neve EQ, but in the specific mix shown in the video, that section was off. This highlights the flexibility of his approach – use what the mix needs.

Keeping it Tamed: The Final Limiter

With all this boosting and saturation, levels can start to creep up. Acle is mindful of his gain staging into the final limiter on his mix bus. In the video, he notes that the signal was hitting the limiter “way too much” and adjusts the input or threshold accordingly. This is a crucial step. A limiter is there to catch stray peaks and bring up the overall level, but slamming it too hard will squash the life out of your mix.

The Sum of Small Moves: Why This Works

Individually, each of Acle Kahney’s mix bus moves is quite subtle. A little EQ lift here, a touch of pentode saturation there, some centered low-mid distortion… but when you bypass the entire chain, the difference is significant. As he puts it, “it does start to add up.”

The overall effect is a mix that sounds “louder by making it brighter more than anything and adding a bit of width.” It’s that final 5-10% that elevates a good mix to a professional-sounding master. And for Acle, engaging this chain mid-mix helps keep things sounding exciting, providing inspiration to push through the final stages.

Take Your Mixes to TesseracT’s Level

Want to see exactly how Acle Kahney dials in these sounds for TesseracT? At Nail The Mix, we give you a front-row seat. When Acle joined us, he didn’t just talk about his mix bus; he mixed a full TesseracT song from scratch, explaining every plugin, every setting, every decision. You get the raw multi-tracks from TesseracT to practice on, and you get to watch Acle himself craft that massive sound.

It’s one thing to read about these techniques; it’s another to see them applied in real-time by the pros who created these iconic sounds. If you’re serious about elevating your metal productions, discover how you can unlock your sound by mixing modern metal beyond presets. With Nail The Mix, you get access to monthly sessions with world-class producers, a massive library of tutorials, exclusive plugins, and a supportive community of fellow metalheads. Dive deeper into sessions like the TesseracT NTM feature and start transforming your mixes today!