Who mixes using their audio stems?

I do both but most of the time, I write in Cubase and mix in Pro Tools.

Jeremy Spencer said:

Not necessarily. You could just save them as MIDI and import them into Cubase. I’ve had to do this with old Sonar files.

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Thanks for the tip.
In fact, I did that with a few very important projects. But, just starting from scratch with a midi file is not what I expect from a backup...

Also... meanwhile, I had a few computers and Logic was no longer installed. As for the libraries, the old VSL VI players no longer exist, the samples and their licenses changed over the time and I had not the HD-space to keep those old sample versions as well, VSL's performance tool no longer exists, the reverb tool "Tascam Gigapulse" is no longer available, and so on. So it's not just Logic, but a whole range of missing or invalid software that makes the projects of that time unusable overall. I gess it will be the same with today's projects in 10-15 years.
In my opinion, those who also save huge templates in their project files are particularly at risk of no longer being able to open such projects one day - simply because of the extensive template.

So, if I had ever saved all the instruments as audio files (without effects) back then, I could easily make a new, even better mix today. This is the reason why I always back up today's (important) projects also as individual audio files.

Beat

Depends on context, but generally I mix as I'm writing and have basic FX included in the template. If I have time, once I'm done writing, I print stems (not multitracks) and bring them into a new session for a final polish.

Whether I'm in a "composing" or "mixing" session, I always have a mix bus (with little to no FX) that feeds into the master bus. I print both of these along with the group stems for general archival purposes.

When discussing stems, it's important to check that every track outputs to a group track rather than the main output (in a big session I mute the master bus and run through the session, checking if anything is audible).

Always bounce those stems out.

Beat Kaufmann said:

So, if I had ever saved all the instruments as audio files (without effects) back then, I could easily make a new, even better mix today. This is the reason why I always back up today's (important) projects also as individual audio files.

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Great point! I’m going to adapt this approach going forward.

Personal preference at this time is to compose in Cubase and Mix in Pro Tools. I like starting fresh for a mix after fine tuning the MIDI performance.

I also like keeping the sequence relatively clean and minimal. I put the reverb in Pro Tools (on a separate computer) and use it as a general verb while writing. Then start printing audio into Pro Tools (the audio is printed pre-reverb sends in PT) and you are building your mix session as you print.

I do understand the concerns voiced here about constant revisions, and the difficulty that can it can present if you are constantly printing to audio, mixing, then need revisions, back to MIDI, then print again, etc.... Especially when you want the demos to be top notch and fully mixed, but need to work quickly as well. A condensed STEM mix may help there; e.g. have a narrower set of STEMs that you export / print and mix from (rather than a full multi-track mix session). If a revision is needed, edit MIDI, export the same STEMs, put them on the same tracks in a new mix session and continue mixing from there.

As far as my personal backup process, every day I work on a piece I save...

1. New version of the .cpr or .ptx file with today's date
2. MIDI file with today's date
3. VEP .vesp64 file with today's date

So there's a series of backups for everything each day I work on a piece, and the mix session contains a backup of the audio.

In short, it is more convenient to do it all in one session (MIDI and mix), but I feel that my production always turns out better when I separate the two tasks.