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A typical house arrangement, complete with builds, drops and a breakdown.

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House music has been fuelling dancefloors across the world for around 25 years now. It might have gained a greater foothold in the public consciousness in some countries than others, but very few areas of the developed world have been left completely untouched, and its techniques have fuelled countless other genres thanks to the cross-pollination of sounds and methodology.

Below you'll find 14 tips that should help you to improve your house productions – they cover editing, processing, mixing and mastering. For a complete guide to creating house in 2009, check out the Autumn issue of Computer Music (CM144) which is on sale now.

1. Taking it old-skool

A good way to achieve a more old-school vibe is to use just one reverb on a bus, rather than putting a different one on each channel, as the former creates a more cohesive sound reminiscent of early house tracks, when there were less effects units available to the average producer.

2. Uncluttering

Always be sure to EQ as much bass off your parts as possible without affecting the sound of them within the context of the full mix, as this creates a lot more space for your all-important bassline and kick drum, keeping the overall groove clean, tidy and punchy. This will pay off as you incorporate more and more parts.

3. Know your limits

Most dance music producers today create and mix their tracks with a compressor or limiter placed on the master output. This helps gel the elements together and gives a better impression of how the track will sound when finished, particularly as many of the elements will be from disparate sources. We're talking 2-3dB of attenuation at most.

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