The importance of keeping FRESH EARS.....

We all wanna finish an album so we can start the next. I used to mix all day long and still can, as long as I allow my ears a break no matter how long 10-30 min. every hour or so. Ear fatigue (definition below) can cause you to make fatal mistakes when mixing for long periods of time, so a little advice after working on a song for a few hours especially when working on 30 track plus sessions... in stead of making level changes, eq, or plug-in adjustments... save your mix and WALK AWAY and if your gonna do anything save your session as before...(that saving your mix with a number behind the session name or atleast stating what you did different to it, to avoid ruining a perfect mix because your ears aren't hearing the same as they were earlier on in the day) before making your changes... and WALK AWAY. ' nothing like ruining a mix you were so proud of then trying to get it back to where you had it could be another task in it's self. When that happens call it a day go back to it with fresh ears and it'll most likely save you the hastle, frustration and in some cases your job...

Here's a definition I looked up after my writing my blog, Something I learned from numerous instructors @ CRAS and I live by my ear break rule because your ears are your investment, your cash cow, your glory!!, DON'T ABUSE THEM AND YOUR GREAT EAR(s) WILL LAST LONGER!!!

GOOD LUCK!

Ear Fatigue (www.sweetwater.com's definition
The literal translation is 'tired ears.' Ear Fatigue is not really a clinically recognized state, but audio professionals have been referring to it for years. It's caused by a combination of TTS (Temporary Threshold Shift) and general fatigue. The condition we call ear fatigue usually occurs after many hours of listening to or working with audio, especially when working at relatively high SPL's. It causes us to not hear the sound in the same way we do when we are fresh. Sometimes people report soreness of the ears associated with this, but not always. There are ongoing studies of this phenomenon, and the phenomenon of fatigue and how it affects performance in general, but much remains unknown. Suffice to say that making critical audio decisions while in a fatigued state is not advised and generally results in doing the work over again.

GBEATS
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