Making Delays Sound More Natural

Throughout the history of mixing, delay FXs have been used to fill up space in instruments and also give more depth to any instrument that is being mixed. However, with some more inexperienced engineers, when the delays are not mixed in well enough, the effect might stick out of the mix like a sore thumb.

A trick to counteracting this, is actually to eq out the low end of the delays, preventing it from muddying the instrument the effect is being applied to. Rolling off the high frequencies can also help set a clear separate tone between the original instrument and the delay. This will help clearly distinguish and make the delays in the mix hidden with only a subtle presence to it; just enough to fill up space and give more energy to a mix.

Another trick to mixing delays are to mixing it into a subtly applied reverb. This gives the delay a more “spacey” feel, and if done correctly, the delay will sound as if it came from the same room that the main vocals came from.