Allegaeon’s Mix Bus: Dave Otero’s Processing Deep Dive

When you’re aiming for a polished, powerful metal mix, what happens on your mix bus can be the make-or-break final touch. We got a look inside a mix session with renowned producer Dave Otero (Flatline Audio) as he worked on a track for tech-death titans Allegaeon, specifically diving into his mix bus processing strategy. Unlike some engineers who mix into their bus processing from the start (top-down mixing), Dave prefers to get the core mix sounding solid and then strategically add his bus chain. He also emphasizes a crucial practice: constant referencing. Let’s break down his approach.

Want to see exactly how Dave Otero sculpted this Allegaeon mix from start to finish? You can grab the full session and multitracks on Nail The Mix: Allegaeon.

Laying the Groundwork: A Solid Mix First

Before even thinking about piling on global effects, Dave gets the fundamental elements of the Allegaeon track – drums, bass, guitars, vocals – gelling. At the point he starts his mix bus deep dive, his bus already has a touch of Slate Digital Virtual Mixbus (VMB) and his trusty G Comp (likely a SSL G-Series style compressor plugin). This foundation ensures that subsequent processing enhances an already good mix, rather than trying to fix fundamental problems.

If you’re looking to get your mixes to this stage, understanding how to balance and treat individual tracks is key. Dive deeper into building powerful metal mixes from the ground up with resources like Nail The Mix.

Adding Character and Taming Harshness with Softeq (Gofo)

With the basics in place, Dave reaches for the Softeq (which he calls “Gofo”) from URM. He has a default starting point saved in Cubase – a smart time-saving tip for any DAW user. If you find yourself using similar initial settings on a plugin, save it as your default!

Gofo Settings and Initial Impact

His Gofo settings are subtle:

• Recover and Tame: Pretty low amounts.
• Brighten: Turned down a bit.
• Low Pass Filter: Pulled down slightly.

The goal isn’t drastic reshaping but nuanced enhancement. This initial Gofo pass helps glue things together and adds a pleasing character.

Taming Lead Guitar Abrasiveness

A key benefit Dave notices is how the Gofo smooths out the lead guitar. He points out that without it, the lead can sound “atrocious” and “notty.” This highlights an important principle: while mix bus processing can help, if a bus plugin is doing too much heavy lifting to fix an element, it’s often better to revisit the individual track’s EQ. Dave himself makes a mental note to potentially revisit the lead guitar EQ to clean it up at the source. For more on surgical EQ moves, check out these EQ strategies for mixing modern metal.

Injecting Warmth and Weight with Virtual Tape Machine (VTM)

Next up is Slate Digital’s Virtual Tape Machine (VTM). Dave mentions this is something he might have added earlier but incorporates it now.

• Mode: He switches to the “two track” mode, which offers a distinct sonic character compared to the individual track modes.
• Gain Staging: He keeps an eye on the gain, noting he’s pushing the input gain on VTM “almost all the way.”

Despite some online chatter, Dave stands by VTM, stating it “does awesome shit.” He relies on saturation plugins like VTM to guide his low-end into the right spot, especially with his mixing style which might leave room for this kind of enhancement. The key is not to overdo it, though he admits he’s pushing it fairly hard here. This subtle harmonic distortion and gentle compression from tape emulation can add warmth, cohesion, and perceived loudness.

The Crucial Step: Referencing Your Mix

Throughout this process, Dave consistently A/B tests his mix against commercial reference tracks. As he adds plugins that affect the overall volume, he adjusts the level of his reference tracks to maintain a comparable listening level. This is vital for objective decision-making. Once limiting is introduced later, he’ll turn off this level adjustment to compare his final master volume directly.

Surgical Shaping: Pro-Q 3 on the Mix Bus

Dave then inserts a FabFilter Pro-Q 3 onto his mix bus. A common question with mix bus EQ is its placement relative to the main mix bus compressor.

Pre vs. Post Compression: A Key Decision

Dave experiments with placing the Pro-Q 3 both before and after his G Comp.

• After Comp: His initial placement, mainly due to an open slot.
• Before Comp: He moves it here and prefers the result. The logic is that if you’re doing cleanup EQ (like pulling out problematic low-mids), placing the EQ before the compressor means the compressor receives a more balanced signal. This can lead to the compressor reacting more appropriately and hitting the “right spots.”

He’s not making drastic EQ changes here, but the subtle shaping before compression yields a better outcome in this instance. The takeaway? Don’t be afraid to experiment with your plugin order!

The Final Polish: iZotope Ozone for Mastering Touches

To bring the mix closer to a finished level and add final sonic enhancements, Dave loads iZotope Ozone. This is where the CPU can take a hit, but the results are worth it.

Ozone Maximizer: Achieving Competitive Loudness

His Ozone chain starts with a Maximizer, with the Exciter and Imager initially bypassed.

• Algorithm: IRC III (Intelligent Release Control).
• Mode: Often sticks to “Balanced.”
• Stereo Independence: Brought down to 50% to allow more “sideways stereo movement.”
• Transient Emphasis: Around 50%.

He pulls down the threshold on the Maximizer to bring up the overall level, keeping an eye on loudness meters.

Fine-Tuning Gain Staging

After engaging the Maximizer, Dave notices his G Comp isn’t being hit as hard as he’d like. This is a critical check. He bypasses Ozone, goes back to his VMB instance before the G Comp, and increases the trim. This pushes more level into the G Comp, making it work a bit harder and achieve the desired character before the signal hits Ozone. After this adjustment, he re-engages Ozone and fine-tunes the Maximizer again. He’s careful not to push it too hard since not all mix elements (like solos and acoustics) are in yet.

Ozone Imager: Strategic Stereo Widening

Next, Dave activates the Ozone Imager, using a multi-band approach for precise stereo field control:

• Band 1 (Below ~80Hz): Width set to -100%. This effectively makes the lowest frequencies mono, which is a common practice for a tighter, more focused low-end and better compatibility on various playback systems.
• Band 2 (~80Hz – ~600Hz): He generally avoids stereo widening in this crucial low-mid range. Aggressive widening here can sometimes create phase issues, especially for vinyl pressing. Since much of his work ends up on vinyl, he plays it safe.
• Band 3 & 4 (Mids/Highs): He adds a subtle +10% width. This isn’t about creating an artificially wide or phasey mix but just a touch to open up the mix, pull out the guitars slightly, and give a sense of more space.

He A/Bs the Imager, noting how it subtly pulls the guitars out and opens up the overall mix.

Bringing It All Together

Dave Otero’s mix bus philosophy for Allegaeon revolves around building a strong core mix first, then enhancing it with carefully chosen processors, all while constantly referencing. His chain shows a methodical approach to achieving a powerful, polished metal sound. Each plugin has a specific job, from subtle character and glue to surgical EQ and final loudness.

If you’re serious about taking your metal productions to the next level, learning from the pros who mix these records day in and day out is invaluable. Nail The Mix offers you exactly that opportunity, with full multitrack sessions from bands like Allegaeon and in-depth tutorials from producers like Dave Otero. Check out how you can unlock your sound and mix modern metal beyond presets and see the full Allegaeon session with Dave Otero to witness these techniques in action.