What's your process for editing and mixing a live recording compared to a studio track?

A live recording can be more challenging because of the inherent bleed in the tracks. I always aim to create clarity and separation, but at the same time I still want to maintain the energy of the life performance without making it too overproduced and polished. Some of the best live records have a middle ground between high Fidelity and spontaneity, and that’s where I think the best compromise is at

Working on the mix of a song that has been recorded live is completely different than if it has been recorded in the studio. That's why the important thing is that in this case that it was live, my direction has to be to enhance that energy that was in the live audience and clean the microphones a lot but without losing important information from the recording. It requires a different challenge than if it was recorded in overdub in a studio.

Hello there!

Great question here, I hope this helps.

My process adjusts to bring out the best in the live performance while managing any limitations from the recording environment.

With live recordings, I focus on capturing the energy and authenticity of the performance. My editing process often involves more detailed noise reduction to minimize background sounds or bleed from other instruments. I’ll also work on aligning timing if needed, but I keep it subtle to maintain the natural feel of a live setting.

For mixing, I pay extra attention to the balance and spatial qualities, ensuring that the mix reflects the live atmosphere and feels immersive. Compression and EQ are carefully applied to give each instrument presence while keeping the crowd noise and ambiance in mind. I also use reverb and effects more conservatively, often preserving the original reverb of the space unless the recording calls for added depth.

Compared to a studio track, where I have more control over isolated elements, live mixing requires a more holistic approach. It’s all about enhancing the raw, spontaneous vibe without over-polishing, so the mix feels true to the performance.

Best regards,

Xavier

From my point of view, it's very different, not so much the process, but the approach and perspective from which you look or think during the mixing. The result is usually very different, live sessions tend to be more cohesive and a bit rougher, but more realistic, as if you were listening to a real show in front of you.

If we just want to talk about the process, there isn't a real workflow that works to me when mixing live recordings: you can have a perfectly recorded session with fantastic musicians and only have to do a couple of tweaks here and there, or it can be a bit messy and you will have problems. In these cases, you have to be careful especially with the equalization: bleed can be a problem if you over-equalize.
It's more a question of how you treat the tracks you have at that moment and how they interact with each other. You may have access to all the individual instruments, but they are in the same room, you don't have a studio recording where everything is REALLY separate or nearly so, a live recording most of the time gives you tracks that contain a bit of everything and one instrument is louder than the others. If you touch one instrument you still have its return somewhere else, so, again, you have to be careful. Sometimes it's much better to work on the master or on a group of instruments (when maybe in the performance you have instruments that are quite close together and have a lot of bleed between them) rather than going one by one like you would do in a studio mix

Differences between live recording and studio track are huge... mostly clearness of stems and energy...tools and processing may be similar (regarding the quality of material), but live recording may require the use of restoration or noise cancellation plugins and methods...

Mixing live recordings? Not gonna lie, not my favorite, but I’m all about capturing that live feel and emotion—it’s what makes the extra work worth it. In the studio, you can perfect everything, but with live stuff, it’s all about balancing the raw energy with the chaos of mic bleed, crowd noise, and unpredictable dynamics.

I’ll clean up the noise, then carefully work the EQ and compression to keep things clear without losing the vibe. Reverb’s key too, enhancing the space or dialing it back if it’s too messy. The goal is to keep those emotions front and center, making you feel like you’re in the room. It’s tricky, but that live energy is priceless!