Mike Schuppan: Why Great Engineers Don't Chase Perfection

Mike Schuppan is a Los Angeles–based mix engineer, recording engineer, and producer with over 20 years of experience working across alternative, pop, electronic, and experimental music. Originally from Nashville, he developed his career through hands-on studio work and long-term collaborations with producer and multi-instrumentalist Justin Meldal-Johnsen, contributing to both recording sessions and live touring environments.

Over the years, Schuppan has built a diverse and high-level discography, working with artists such as Paramore, M83, Lady Gaga, Poppy, Jimmy Eat World, and Ziggy Marley. His credits span major-label releases, Grammy-winning projects, and records that have achieved gold and platinum status. His work on Paramore’s self-titled album and After Laughter, along with M83’s Fantasy, highlights his ability to navigate sonically dense, emotionally driven productions while maintaining clarity and musicality.

Schuppan is known for a mix style that emphasizes feel, depth, and translation—balancing modern polish with the integrity of the original performance. Whether working on layered pop productions or more organic alternative records, he focuses on preserving emotional intent while ensuring mixes translate across streaming platforms and playback systems.

In addition to music releases, he has also contributed to film and television projects as a score mixer and engineer, reflecting a broader technical range that extends beyond traditional record production. His career represents a hybrid of classic studio engineering and modern mixing workflows, making him especially relevant to today’s generation of producers working across both analog and in-the-box environments.

IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why Mike records way more microphones than he'll ever use (and how it saves his mixes later)
• The exact session layout he borrowed that he still uses on every project
• How he decides when to go minimal vs. using complex setups
• Why thinking about the mix during tracking is the only way to avoid "fix it later" disasters
• His approach to creating space and depth without losing clarity in dense productions
• Finding problematic, masking frequencies
• How he knows when a mix is actually done
• Why his goal is to never be "the best" at anything
• The one frequency range he's obsessed with on bass
• His go-to bass micing setup
• Working with artists like Paramore, Ziggy Marley, and M83
• Incorporating feedback into your process

To learn more about Mike Schuppan, visit: https://www.mikeschuppan.com/

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