Dexter Inferno
Serious error
I agree that my studio monitors are worth their weight in gold...and they are pretty darned heavy.
That said, you're still not going to get the perfect mix on your first try every time. I said it in another thread, but I usually go through at least 3 or 4 mixes of everything I do. Then when I post it, I still have people hearing stuff that I hadn't noticed.
Like the Back In Black track I posted. I worked on that thing and thought I had the mix perfect, and both Mark and DenverDave listened to it once and said there was too much reverb on the guitars. I listened to it again and they were 100% correct.
Sometimes you just hear something so much that you stop listening to it and need to let it sit for a while, get some outside critiques, or both.
Oh, and another mixing tip.
NEVER MIX AFTER YOU'VE SPENT A COUPLE OF HOURS TRACKING SOMETHING THROUGH HEADPHONES. Your ears get tired from wearing the headphones and you'll end up with way too much treble in your mix because your ears aren't hearing right anymore. If possible, always do your final mixing at least the next day after you've finished tracking.
A few other good mixing tips:
TAKE FREQUENT BREAKS. At least 5 minutes each hour.
And increase the breaks for each hour. Helps minimise ear fatigue.
Also - monitor with really low levels. I Am not kidding.
Do not blast the speakers while mixing.
Loud monitoring is useless for getting levels/balance right.
One thing I often do when I get near to completing a mix is just grab a newspaper, a cup of coffee and a cigarette or two (not applicable for you non-smokers, obviously) - and just let the song run on repeat at very low volume, while generally not focusing on listening critically. If you notice something popping out of the mix while "half-listening" at low volumes, then it is too loud - turn it down
In addition, headphones are great for doublechecking fx levels.
I've learned that if I can hear the verbs clearly in the cans, they're a tad too loud. Back off a dB or so, and it should be just right.