Suggestion - dealing with "audio placebo effect"

Cubase
,
1

Hello, my Friend in Steinberg,

I want to suggest 2 features regarding the problem every mixing engineer/audio producer is dealing with constantly :
the tendency to make decisions based on the visual information and what your logic thinks it’s better other than your ears.
we can call it the “audio placebo effect” and I’m sure everybody knows what I am talking about…

  1. A button or a mode that makes sure that the overall average volume of whatever you put a plugin on (channel, group, instrument, etc… )
    stays the same with and without the plugin, so that decisions won’t be affected by any volume changes that a plugin might cause, making you think
    something is better or worse just because it has more or less volume.

  2. A B blind test - when you need to decide between two presets or adjustments, you can make an A B blind test. the A and B settings will turn randomly to something else like a triangle and a square or black and white, and you can’t see the changes that each option causes, but you can switch between them back and forward to decide only by ear, in the end, you pick one and hit on apply button. Very helpful for situations when you make subtle changes and tweaking and you don’t know if really can hear the difference or it’s just
    that you think it’s different just because you pushed some buttons and play with some knobs.

Thanks a lot,
keep on with the great job.

2

Interesting

3

IMO training yourself to account for the ‘Audio Placebo Effect’ would be very beneficial. Without knowing it, I think I already have. When something get’s louder after throwing a switch, I know that it is just louder, not better. When I sweep through some highs looking for the right frequency, I am accounting for this effect probably hundreds of times. So training yourself to account for this will save you thousands of button presses and probably thousands of hours. :ugeek: