Does AI Make the Perfect Mix?
- nicolaslinnala
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Does AI Make the Perfect Mix?
The other day I was mixing a track and decided to take a short break. While I was away, an email popped up – from a colleague who reads my blog. Lots of nice compliments (thanks!) and one request: write a post titled “Does AI Make the Perfect Mix?”. He added that yes, there are tons of these on YouTube, but apparently it’s more fun to read my version.
So… do I have fans? I guess we’re about to find out.
Let me say this right away: this one’s a bit technical, so it might not be for everyone. But here we go.
I use iZotope’s AI plugins – now owned by Native Instruments – so this post focuses on those. I’m not going to turn this into a dry technical manual, but I’ll explain how they work and what I think of them.
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Neutron and Nectar – The “Sales Pitch” vs. Reality
Neutron listens through the song, identifies the instruments (or doesn’t always get it right), and sets basic EQ and dynamics – kind of like a good sound engineer who gets everything in place from the start. Nectar 4 does the same for vocals: smooths out dynamics, suggests effects, and even throws in background harmonies to make the vocal sit nicely in the mix.
Sounds great, but reality is different. These won’t finish the mix for you – they just give you a starting point to work from. A good servant, not a master.
Tests and Surprising Moments
I tested this by running an acoustic guitar that was already heavily compressed. Neutron still wanted to compress it more. Not sure why, but I would’ve loved to ask, “Why ruin the acoustics?” No answer, of course. Point for the human.
One feature I actually like is Neutron Unmask. It’s like a friendly intervention when a vocal and guitar fight for the same frequencies – it makes one step back just enough so both can breathe. Smarter than a regular sidechain compressor, which just drops the whole frequency range.But in a test with acoustic guitar and piano, the limit showed – high-frequency ringing went straight through, and AI didn’t react, only cutting mids. Old-school sidechain nailed it better.
Letting AI Do It All
I loaded Neutron on every track and let it set everything. It wasn’t terrible, but a few things bugged me.It didn’t account for how the track might sound on cheap earbuds or a phone. And worst of all – it didn’t use HI/LO filters at all. The result? Too much bass, and on boosted-bass headphones it was way too heavy.
Final Thoughts
Humans still make better mixes than machines. And maybe that’s the point – AI is a tool, not a replacement. But it’s still fun to experiment. Maybe one day AI will surprise me, but for now, it’s much less than the hype claims. At least in my opinion.
If you haven’t read the previous post yet, go check it out: Is AI- generated singing perfect?
PS. Check out my shop page – you'll find T-shirts and samples, straight from the studio.
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