Subject:Mastering
Posted by: Paulie
Date:3/24/2003 1:54:39 PM
I have just completed 12 tracks ready for my first CD release. Now thoughts are turning to pre master mixes and mastering. I intend to have the tracks professionally mastered but i'm still unsure as to what the optimum point is to bring my pre masters to before moving into mastering in terms of overall Volume Compression / Limiting Use of Enhancers / Exciters / Warmers Reverbs At the moment. I simply set the master volume as high as possible without serious clipping. So I do find that the mix it is lower volume than commercial recordings and lacks that certain "sheen" that commercial recordings have mainly because I'm not using any mastering FX. Check out uk.artists.mp3s.com/artists/552/buzzbeach.html I am interested in hearing your own thoughts and opinions on where pre mastering finishing and where mastering starts. Paul |
Subject:RE: Mastering
Reply by: Rednroll
Date:3/24/2003 7:56:11 PM
"Volume" Leave headroom for the mastering engineer. Setting a level peaking between -6dB to -3dB is best. This gives the maximum bit resolution, yet still allows the mastering engineer headroom to do their job. "Compression / Limiting" Overall compression on the mix should be used sparingly. Usually a 2:1 compression ratio with a -3dB compression for controlling excessive peaks should be used. Compression can't be UNDONE, once it's added, but can always be added by the mastering engineer. If someone brings me something that is overcompressed, I usually ask them, "What do you want me to do with this now....you've basically tied my hands to what I can do." "Use of Enhancers / Exciters / Warmers" Leave all of this to the mastering process. It is better to use these techniques when All songs are finished, so you can better match the songs together. "Reverbs" Reverbs are hardly ever used on the entire Mix, again leave this to the mastering process and add it if it you think the track benefits from it. Having to add reverb to the entire mix is usually a good sign that you didn't mix it properly. Basic rule when mixing, is to do the least amount of processing on the master buss as possible. If you have to add effects/processes to the entire mix, you aren't mixing properly. This should all be handled on individual tracks and blended together properly. |
Subject:RE: Mastering
Reply by: kilroy
Date:3/25/2003 10:48:03 AM
Rednroll's advice is sound. One thing I can't stress enough is to back waaaay off on any use of so called exciters, enhancers and "tape" emulation\saturation devices...waaay off. We see lots of overuse of these kind of processes at our mastering labs, and most of it comes from home\budget studios. They just don't hear it on the monitoring systems they are using. It imparts that gee wow sound initially, but when we get it and really start bringing the levels up, like we are asked to do often against our better judgement, you clearly hear all this high frequency hash and distortion going on. It cannot be removed, and it is definately not musical. When we encounter this kind of situation we normally advise the client to consider remixing options. But, as you can imagine, when it concerns a whole album's worth of material and they have already busted their asses getting it this far...lets just say most of the time we end up dealing with it. And if you think that thousands of dollars in high end gear will fix this type of thing, don't be mistaken. It can't, it won't and it doesn't. One other thing. If you think you have just enough reverb you usually have too much. We see too much overuse of this as well. Folks think that reverb adds "space". What it usually adds is a veil over your sound, or as one of our more outspoken engineers enthuses, "...a dull roaring sound mucking about." This is another one of those thing that can really bite you when the level wars start heating up. Intelligent use of delays are a better first option. They are cleaner and they can be placed accurately in the stereo spectrum to create strong aural positioning cues that don't mess with the overall soundstage as much. Space, as our ear defines it, is not actually so much reverberation proper as it is the critical first reflection information we percieve from closer boundaries, which tend to be much stronger and therefore more space relevant cues for our brains to decode. Concerning the above, I have an acquaintance who is both a good mastering engineer and has an avid interest in his own home studio recordings. His achieves some astounding "reverberant" spaces in his recordings. He uses many carefully oriented delays of different strengths, positions and lengths, and feeds *those* to a reverb in very small amounts. Nothing hits the reverb in the first generation. The soundstage is remarkably enveloping, natural, and exceptionally tranparent. And he is doing it without fancy gear. The caveat is the time it takes. It is not a fast process. But then this is a guy that does long division in his head just to pass the time on the subway. |