ABSTRACT
Mixing is a dynamic art. Mixing trends change through the years, and throughout past decades the extent to which and the way people use different tools has changed as well. A linear device is one that has perfect proportionality between input and output. The transfer curve of such a device is one straight line. Like total harmonic distortion, it can be measured and the specification given is simply called inter-modulation. Just like harmonic distortion, inter-modulation distortion involves additional frequencies, but unlike harmonic distortion these are not necessarily harmonically related to the sound. Often distortion produced within an analog system is more musical than that produced within a digital system. The reason for this originates from the fact that analog systems do not have a frequency limit like digital systems do. Just like the parallel compression technique, where a compressed version is layered underneath the original, signals are sometimes distorted and then layered below the original.
