how do you go about normalizing the volume your tracks?

[chriSP404sx]

so usually i will just manually adjust the volume of each beat before i upload it to the computer. but i was curious if anyone used itunes or anything like that and how were the results? im looking for a faster way to normalize

[zenith]

yeah man i adjust on the sampler and then bounce to computer. then throw a compressor on the whole mix. then run it to a tape deck and then run it back to the computer, putting it on tape normalizes fantastically.

how would you do it with itunes? im confused.

edit: not faster, but sounds better imo.

[blavatsky]

anything like Audacity or Reaper or other audio software will have a normalize option - then toss a compressor on it, EQ etc for beefiness and punch.

[tape smoke]

tape is good but the more times you smash the mix, the more of the original dynamics you lose, for instance, I always side channel my sample now instead of compress the whole thing, before tape .