Mixing and Mastering Techniques you use

I'm sure this was asked before but I would like to create a new thread for this so that it also applies to the latest sonar programs.
 
I was just getting to a point where I need to add new techniques to what I currently know. It doesn't matter what kind of technique, just post it up! From basic gain staging to advanced fine tuning stages.
 
This will really help me out!

These days, with computers, given that you can do 10 trial run mixes a day if you want, one option is to just do it, reset all the knobs and do it again, and repeat, doing something different every time to see what works. Yeh, it's not exactly a short cut answer, but it does work.

One thing I'd recommend for mixing would be to get some good professional tracks to practice mixing, and where you can hear what others have done with those tracks. Then you know you'll be starting with quality stuff so you know any failure in the mix is your own, and you can see, once you get the mix done, what kind of source material (as recorded) it took to get that type of mix, so you can work backwards from there as well. Hearing the original tracks of songs you've heard mixed is very instructive, and often they may sound nothing like what you'd expect. It really helps you get it on disc/tape better to start with. If you are doing heroic mixes to get something sounding good, then it's already really a failure ultimately, IMO.

Search for Weathervane Stems and you'll find a good set of tracks to work with. They record stuff and throw it out there for folks to mix, and it's good stuff, original material with talented artists.