Your Top Automation Questions for Metal Production, Answered

Let’s get one thing straight: in modern metal production, automation isn’t just a “nice to have” tool for fixing a few loud notes. It’s the goddamn secret weapon. It’s the critical link between a static, lifeless demo and a polished, professional track that punches you in the face.

The bar for metal production is higher than ever. Listeners expect every kick drum to hit like a sledgehammer, every riff to be surgically tight, and every vocal to slice through a wall of sound. Automation is how you achieve that inhuman level of precision and impact. It’s not just about turning things up and down; it’s about creating movement, adding excitement, and making every part of your mix serve the song.

Got questions? We’ve got answers. Here are some of the most common automation FAQs for metal producers.

What is automation and why is it so critical for modern metal?

At its core, automation is simply telling your DAW to change a parameter over time without you physically touching it. This could be anything: volume, panning, EQ bands, compressor thresholds, the wet/dry knob on a reverb—you name it.

But for us, it’s way more than that. Modern metal is dense. You’ve got eight-string guitars fighting for space with a five-string bass, kick drums firing like machine guns, and layers of synths and samples creating atmosphere. A “set it and forget it” mix just won’t cut it.

Automation is critical because it allows you to:

• Create Dynamics: Make a chorus explode by pushing up the drum room mics and guitar volume, then suck it all back in for a tight, punchy verse.
• Ensure Clarity: Make sure the vocals are always audible by riding the volume fader, ducking guitars out of the way of a fill, or automating an EQ to cut mud from the bass only when the palm mutes hit.
• Add “Ear Candy”: Create exciting moments like delay throws on the last word of a chorus, filter sweeps leading into a breakdown, or stutter effects that make a transition hit harder.

It’s the tool that lets you micromanage your mix on a note-by-note basis to achieve that hyper-polished sound that Separates the pros from the amateurs.

What are the most important things to automate in a metal mix?

You can automate literally anything, but if you’re just getting started, focus your energy on the elements that deliver the most impact.

H3: Vocals: The Non-Negotiable

If you only automate one thing, make it the lead vocal. A metal vocal performance is incredibly dynamic, with guttural lows, piercing highs, and everything in between. A single compressor setting won’t tame it effectively without squashing the life out of it.

• Volume Automation: This is your primary tool. Go through the vocal track phrase by phrase, or even word by word, and manually draw in volume automation to even out the performance. This ensures every word is intelligible without sounding overly compressed. You can use a plugin like Waves Vocal Rider to get a starting point, but the final, detailed work should be done by hand.
• FX Sends: Don’t leave your delays and reverbs static. Automate the send level to a big reverb (like a Valhalla VintageVerb) to make the end of a line trail off into space, or send a single word to a ping-pong delay (like Soundtoys EchoBoy) for emphasis.
• Distortion/Saturation: Automate the drive on a saturation plugin like FabFilter Saturn 2 or Decapitator to add more grit and aggression to the screams in a heavy chorus, then dial it back for cleaner sections.

H3: Guitars: Making Riffs Breathe

Static guitar tones are boring. Automation brings them to life and helps them sit in a busy mix.

• Rhythm Guitar Volume: A classic trick is to automate the volume of your main rhythm guitars up by 1-2 dB during the chorus to give it more impact. You can also automate them down slightly during intricate drum fills or vocal phrases to create space.
• Lead Guitar Presence: Make a solo soar by automating its volume and also automating a high-shelf EQ boost to help it cut through. Add excitement by automating the feedback parameter on a delay plugin during a held note.
• Tonal Changes: Automate the gain on your amp sim (like a Neural DSP Archetype or STL Tones) to go from a tight rhythm chunk to a screaming, high-gain lead tone. For more advanced moves, check out our guide on EQing modern metal guitars for ideas on what frequencies to automate for maximum impact.

H3: Bass: The Anchor of the Low End

The relationship between the bass and kick drum is sacred in metal. Automation helps lock them together.

• Volume Consistency: Ride the bass volume to ensure it’s perfectly locked in with the kick and rhythm guitars. This is especially important when dealing with low-tuned, 8-string riffs where the guitar and bass frequencies overlap.
• Distortion Automation: Use a plugin with separate distortion bands, like the Darkglass Ultra or Parallax. Automate the mid-range grit to increase during heavy sections, giving the bass more perceived loudness and aggression without actually cluttering the low end.

H4: Drums: From Punchy to Massive

Even with sample-replaced and programmed drums, automation adds that final layer of human feel and dynamics.

• Room/Overhead Mics: This is a huge one. Keep the overheads and room mics tight and controlled during fast verses or blast beats to maintain clarity. Then, automate them way up for slow, heavy breakdowns or big choruses to create a massive sense of space and power.
• Reverb Sends: Automate a send to a massive plate or hall reverb on your snare track. Hit the last snare of a fill before the chorus with a huge reverb tail that cuts off right as the riff kicks back in.
• Parallel Compression: Send your entire drum bus to a heavily crushed compressor (think an 1176 “all buttons in” mode). Automate the level of this parallel bus, pushing it up in choruses to add insane punch and dialing it back in verses. For more on this, dive into our guide on parallel compression.

Should I automate before or after compression?

This is the eternal question, and the answer is: it depends on what you’re trying to achieve.

• Automating before compression (pre-compressor) means you’re changing the level of the signal that is hitting the compressor. This is great for controlling how hard the compressor works. If one word is way too loud, you can automate it down before it hits the compressor, preventing it from over-compressing and sounding choked. This results in a more consistent and natural-sounding compression.
• Automating after compression (post-compressor) gives you direct control over the final output level you hear. The compressor has already evened out the signal, so any volume moves you make are precise adjustments to how it sits in the mix.

Pro-Tip: For modern metal vocals, do both. Use a compressor first to catch the main peaks and add some character. Then, do your detailed volume automation to get it sitting perfectly. Finally, you might add another light compressor or limiter at the end of the chain to catch any remaining stray peaks.

What are automation modes (Read, Write, Touch, Latch) and which should I use?

Understanding your DAW’s automation modes will save you a ton of headaches.

• Read: The default mode. It simply plays back any automation you’ve already written.
• Write: Destructive mode. As soon as you hit play, it starts overwriting any existing automation on that track. Use it with extreme caution, maybe just for the first pass.
• Latch: Starts writing automation as soon as you touch a fader or knob and continues writing that new value even after you let go. It only stops when you stop playback. Great for setting a level for an entire section.
• Touch: Only writes automation while you are physically moving the control. As soon as you let go, it snaps back to the previously written automation. This is perfect for making small, precise adjustments—like pushing up a single word in a vocal line—without messing up the rest of the track.

Our Recommendation: Use Latch for making broad-stroke changes across entire sections (e.g., “make the chorus guitars louder”). Use Touch for all your detailed, surgical fine-tuning.

How can I use automation to create awesome transitions?

Transitions are key to keeping a song engaging. Automation can turn a boring section change into a massive impact point.

• Master Filter Sweeps: A classic electronic music trick that works wonders in metal. Automate a high-pass filter on your master fader to sweep up right before a heavy drop, cutting out all the low end and making the impact feel even bigger when it all comes crashing back in. Any stock EQ with a filter can do this.
• Reverb & Delay Throws: We mentioned this for vocals, but it works on anything. Automate a huge reverb send on a final cymbal crash or guitar chug leading into a silent break.
• Stutter Edits: Use a plugin like iZotope Stutter Edit 2 or Glitch 2 on your drum bus or even the master fader. Automate it to create a quick 1/16th note stutter for the last beat before a chorus hits. It’s a great way to build tension and surprise the listener.

See How The Pros Do It

Talking about automation is one thing, but seeing it in action is another. It’s the key to unlocking that professional, polished sound that’s expected in modern metal.

Want to watch world-class producers like Will Putney, Joey Sturgis, and Nolly Getgood automate their mixes from start to finish? With Nail The Mix, you get to be a fly on the wall. Every month, you get the raw multi-tracks from a massive metal song and watch the original producer mix it from scratch, explaining every single move they make—including their go-to automation tricks.

Check out our full catalog of sessions and see for yourself how the best Nail The Mix instructors use these techniques to craft some of the biggest records in metal.