With mixing credits on records by Toto, Shania Twain, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Celine Dion and Kelly Clarkson (the list goes on..) it’s no wonder that Steve MacMillan is one of LA’s busiest mix engineers.   He mixes entirely in ProTools, and uses Sony Oxford plug ins at the heart of his giant ProTools HD rig.

“I’ve just finished mixing the new Corrs album,” says Steve, “ there’s Oxford plug-ins all over that thing!”

So Steve, tell us why and how you use the individual Oxford plug-ins? ...

“The Oxford EQ is the corner stone of ProTools mixing. It’s one of those rare plug-ins that makes mixing in ProTools a satisfying experience. It does everything well. It sounds clean and accurate. Highs are smooth and extended, lows are solid. It will give you any curve you need, and it automates well. There is a depth and integrity to tracks that gets lost through many other EQ's.”

Steve likes to use multiple compressors when it comes to treating the main vocal –

 “The Oxford Dynamics plug-in is a great choice for the first compressor on a vocal chain. Mainly because it sounds so clean and transparent and it is so tweakable. You have enough EQ built in for fixing major problems prior to compression and the compression itself is smooth. This will pre-condition a signal to react more consistently with a vintage modelled compressor or multi-band that might follow. I also reach for the Oxford Dynamics for hi-fi sources like strings or piano because of transparency and accuracy.”

Steve has recently bought the new Transient Modulator plug-in, and is surprised at how much he’s using it. “The first thing I like about the TransMod, is how easy it is to add attack to kicks and snare drums. I've been using compressors to do this for years, but the TransMod is much easier to shape, and it tracks a much wider dynamic range. With a compression ’thwack’, you either have to over compress the entire drum, or by adding it to an additional track there is a problem of chatter when the input level falls to the threshold of the gate. The TransMod sounds better for attack enhancement than any compressor I've heard, and the results are much more consistent.  The second thing I like is adding a copy of a drum track to the original that has had the attack removed. This is a great way to mix the hard track with the body or ambient tail of the sound. Quite often  this sounds better than reverb!

I do seem to be using it in reverse a lot. For instance, it’s a very quick way to take the edge off a harsh sounding guitar, without having to go in and edit the front end.”

“I do also use the Inflator occasionally on individual instruments to make them sound bigger which helps them fit into the mix"

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