The First 5 Things You Should Do When Using REFERENCE 3

Struggling to get your mixes up to commercial standards? Wish you could make your mixes sound like professionally produced tracks?

Gaining an understanding of how to make your music sound like your favorite mixes is a challenging endeavour. That's where our REFERENCE 3 plug-in comes in.

REFERENCE 3 puts state-of-the-art tools and real-world insights right at your fingertips, enabling you to easily match the sound of your favorite music. With Smart Reference Tracks, auto-looping, automatic level matching, Mix Descriptors, Masterscope, Match %, Mix Instructor, and Mix Balance, it does the heavy lifting for you. In this blog post, we'll explore the first five things you should do when you start using REFERENCE 3.

1) Build Your Reference Library

REFERENCE 3 introduces a Library where you can store all of your favorite reference tracks in one place. Rather than re-loading references for every session, you build the Library once and REFERENCE 3 will surface the most relevant tracks automatically using Smart Reference Tracks.

So, which tracks should you add to your Library? Narrowing down your options is easier than you'd think.

The most obvious starting point is to choose tracks with a sound you'd like to emulate. These would typically be well-produced, well-mixed songs that have generated commercial success and/or critical acclaim within their genre.

Speaking of genres, your reference tracks will be more beneficial if they're within the same genre as the mix you're working on. Music with similar instrumentation to your mix will also be the most effective.

Moreover, use high-quality music files. The last thing you'd want to do is try to replicate the sound of a harsh-sounding, low-bitrate MP3.

Still not sure which tracks to use? Check out our blog post, Best Reference Track For All Genres.

2) Instantiate REFERENCE 3 on Your Master Bus

Once you've built your Library, you'll be ready to load up an instance of the REFERENCE 3 plug-in. Start by instantiating REFERENCE 3 on your project's master bus after any metering plug-ins, such as LEVELS, but before any headphone or speaker correction plug-ins you may be using.

Once loaded, REFERENCE 3's Smart Reference Tracks will analyze your mix and auto-suggest the best matching tracks from your Library. You can also drag and drop new audio files in at any time.

3) Let Auto-Looping Do the Work

In REFERENCE 3, you no longer need to manually carve out chorus sections to loop. Auto-looping automatically locks onto the loudest, most representative section of each reference track — typically the chorus — so you're always comparing the meatiest part of the song.

If you want more control, you can still create custom loops, or switch to MIRROR mode where the plug-in matches the playback location of your reference track to your DAW's transport. This is ideal for comparing different versions of the same track at the same point in the song.

4) Trust Automatic Level Matching

Because professional mixes have been subjected to the mastering process, they'll most likely sound louder than your unmastered mix. This is a problem, as louder is perceived by our ears as sounding better, with punchier low frequencies and clearer high frequencies.

REFERENCE 3 handles this automatically. Level matching is on by default, balancing your reference tracks and mix to the same perceived loudness so you can make informed decisions free from perception biases. No more toggling buttons or guessing — it's done for you.

This means every A/B comparison reveals genuine tonal and dynamic differences, not just volume differences.

5) Use Mix Descriptors, Masterscope, and the Match Score

The biggest leap in REFERENCE 3 is the new visual feedback system. Rather than reading a single Trinity Display, you now have several purpose-built views:

• Mix Descriptors show how your tonal balance, stereo width, dynamics, and loudness compare to professional releases.
• Masterscope shows the exact EQ and stereo width adjustments your mix needs, and flags phase issues and overcompression. The Level Line you'll see here is part of the Masterscope.
• Match % gives you a single score quantifying how close your mix is to your reference.
• Mix Instructor gives plain-text directions across three frequency bands so you know exactly what to do next.
• Mix Balance suggests gain adjustments for vocals, drums, music, and bass.

Take a few minutes on each session to scan these views. They turn referencing from a vague “does this sound right?” question into a clear, actionable workflow.

REFERENCE 3: The Missing Link Between Pro Mixes and Bedroom Productions

REFERENCE 3 is one of the easiest ways to elevate your mixes to professional standards. Keeping REFERENCE 3 open during your sessions is a surefire path to creating pro-sounding music.

REFERENCE 3's indispensable insights make matching the true peak, loudness, tonal balance, dynamics, and stereo width of your reference tracks a piece of cake.

With REFERENCE 3 in your plug-in arsenal, you'll no longer need to second-guess whether your vocals are too hot, whether your kick drum is too loud, or whether your bass is too quiet.

REFERENCE 3 takes all the guesswork out of getting the wet/dry mix of your reverb, delays, and other special effects right. It also provides an effective reality check, enabling you to achieve a tonal balance and stereo image comparable to commercially successful recordings within your genre.

REFERENCE 3 allows you to:

• Build a Library of reference tracks and let Smart Reference Tracks auto-suggest the best matches for any mix.
• Rely on auto-looping to lock onto the loudest section of each reference track, and automatic level matching for a true apples-to-apples comparison.
• Read Mix Descriptors, Masterscope, Match %, Mix Instructor, and Mix Balance to know exactly what your mix needs.
• Use the included REFSEND plug-in to make loudness-matched A/B comparisons by skipping entire FX chains.
• And a whole lot more!

Level Up Your Mixes and Masters with REFERENCE 3

Reference tracks aren't a crutch; they're used by producers and engineers of all levels of experience, from bedroom music makers to first-call pros in world-class production facilities. It's one of the few tried-and-true methods of ensuring that your projects can compete with professional commercial releases.

Keep in mind that reference tracks are meant to be used as guides, not as a hard-and-fast rule book. You should never feel pressured to make choices that you don't want to make.

While reference tracks are a useful tool for training — and retraining — your ears, your ears should always be the final decision-maker when mixing and mastering.

That said, reference tracks are by far the most trustworthy of advisers. So, when your ears aren't sure which direction you should go, fire up REFERENCE 3 for a reality check.

If you really want to level up your mixes, be sure to check out our entire stable of professional plug-ins and keep following our blog for expert, studio-tested production tips, tricks, and techniques.