That's some sound advice there Mooch......well, not "sound" as in dulcimer hammering, but you know what I mean. As much as I hate to say this to ya, this whole topic has been covered from end-to-no-end in the FSF.
In the medical field, what you've had done is a "digital rectal exam" and it's almost identical to what an Actual Digital Audio Engineer would do if you presented him with your track lanes (x2) to get the best take.
HTH