Mastering

[chasin_insane]

I think we should get a topic started here on mastering techniques/software to achieve the best possible sound.......



I am still in the learning process myself and have noticed that my sound is kinda muddy a lot of the time and have tried EQing tracks individually as well as in the final mastering/mixing of the song....


Software like Reason uses just treble and bass whereas in my other software i use, Adobe Audition, you can use all stereo tracks as well as mono and all kinds of stuff....So I think this topic should consist of how others master their songs......


I use a Multi-Channel Compressor with a Studio Reverb and a 30 Channel Graphic EQ and a Stereo Expander in a mastering suite i have made for my own sound.....I did not do this until just recently while working on a song for Belizer and realized the difference it makes using all that stuff.....


What do others think are the best ways that work for them in how they do what they do so we all can share and maybe turn people on to better ways to mix and master our music....I think if we got our sound as good as they do in the studio by sharing our knowledge with each other Indie music will go even farther than it already is and sound quality will be awesome too...


Post your ideas here for what you think/how you mix and master and even record tracks......


I know I am curious as to how some folks on here achieve the sound they do....Blows me away sometimes....And it will be a big help to beginners also.....


It will make us all better musicians in the long run....


SO LET THE POSTS BEGIN!!!!!!!!

[Reconsiderate]

[chasin_insane]

Oh yes I know about that I run 3.0.....I was referring to EQ settings on the mixer(s)...And I pretty well know what most of those knobs do.....It's the programming the stuff thats a pain....

lata

[chasin_insane]

So no one wants to share their mastering secrets here huh?


I was looking at the template for the website on my page and it says "Music, Education, and Business"

I thought some folks would share some of their tips and tricks to achieve a killer sound in final master, but no one has shared and I am wondering why?

I know I would like to learn some new tips and tricks to master tunes and their are a lot of real good productions on this site and I am willing to bet those folks have a tip or two for the rest of us

Let the posts begin now folks.....Lets get ourselves off the ground and Educate so we can make indie home recording artists better at what they do....

If we can get a sound like the get doing major records then there will be no need for the major record label and indie artists will be more competitive in the market......


Or we can keep to ourselves......

[Reconsiderate]

[SamDrummerBoy]

[socialcrawl]

do you guys use protools?

[SamDrummerBoy]

I use Cubase. I haven't yet found a reason to look elsewhere. It does everything I need it too. Some day I'd like to check it out and see if it's any better though.

Why? what did you need? I'm sure someone here uses it.

Sam

[Greg]

If anyone's buying software, I hope you'll let me know. I should be able to save you up to 20% with free shipping. But if you can find it better somewhere else, by all means go for it.

[SamDrummerBoy]

http://remixmag.com/production/tips_techniques/remix_master_debate/


AWESOME article about mastering. If your wondering how it all works read it.

Thought this was a good addition.......

Sam

[1undread]

Using graphic eqs, and multilayer compression is a must I would say.
Nativ need and more, but recently I have gone back to using the plugins in my old Logic 5's set up.
Why?
Because I have rediscovered the "Adlimiter" plug in. So with the combination of eq compression and reverbs I can get incredibly loud mixes.

Now, all this is fine but the real key to mastering is listening to your favourite tracks (from artists other than youself playing simular music). This allows you to readjust your ears. If your like me you would have a tendencey to mix every thing bass heavy. When I listen to something else it helps me to put every thing at the correct level in the mix and compare loudness.

Some people think that loudness is a fad or not important but a DJ should be able to play your track after another track without making large alterations in eq and volume.

(never mind the spelling, having one of those days)

[GregK]

I agree on listening to other artists to get an idea of how they do it.
I was listening to Steve Vai's "Passion and Warfare" cd when I was mixing and mastering some of my own stuff. In that cd- there is a song where Steve quickly rattles off all of the mixing settings before he launches into the song. I have listened to him rattling off the levels for bass, guitar, drums etc- and then I set my stuff up as an exact match- then made slight alterations to change the sound to more "me".
(This was how I got some of the sound for "Dancing on the Edge")
Another thing that I have done is I throw tracks around repeatedly- so when I first recorded the lead guitar track in as tracks 3 and 4- I went back and copied them to tracks 5 and 6 as well- but added a little chorus on the recorded track. I found that this gives a nice "beefier" sound to the guitar in the final mix. I also don't believe in "scooping" out mids from the guitar..a lot of guitar players use a Mesa or Marshall type sound with the mid-range frequencies set very low (and then they boost the bass and/or treble up) I don't like this sound for my playing..so I turn back the treble a LOT- then turn back the bass a LITTLE and crank the mids higher..gives a much more balanced sound to the guitar.
Oh- another big PLUS- use top-quality cables..like Monster Cables and keep everything away from power sources as much as possible.
Hope my rants made sense to somebody!

[chasin_insane]

Here's another good site with some helpful tips on recording. Both analog and digital.


http://www.tweakheadz.com/perfect_mix.html

[Belizer]

Well i can't say I am pro, but anyway my sound does getting better (I hope soon i shall finish my songs and upload them).

So i'd like to post some tips

1 Panning - is as crucial as EQ or Compressing. Rule is simple if you hav etwo instruments with same frequwncy spectrum and do not want to change them - pan them from 30 to 60 degree. Also check mono compatibility. The best way for panning sometimes - pan in mono mode.

2 EQ - Cutting everything off below 30-40Hz is good idea and i alway do so. No notes are in range od 0-40 Hz, only artifacts. Other frequencies depend on instrument itself and on frequency distribution scheme you have in your song.

3 - Compression and maximising. Compression has several tasks - 1 reduce dynamics (short attack, medium release) 2 increase sustain (attack - up to you, high ratio and long release) 3 increase of transiant (actually i doubt that it really works) - Attack 10-12 mSec, short release, ratio as high as possible. I am using compression mainly for reduction of dynamics. Main trade off between - compressed sound and loud sound. Also I have notised that compression gives some "reverb effect" you can even notice "tail" when comparing compressed and not compressed wave pics in any audio editor. It is good for kick for sample.
For loudness i use maximising on track level (not group of tracks or submix bus) and submix busses. I always try to achieve maximum output whithout maximisation during mastering. But maximisation during mastering cannot be avoided.

4 - Depth. Mixing is putting things in space and therefore we have three dimantions horizontal - panning, vertical - EQ and COmpression and depth - REV and Delay. I mainly use reverb on "sends". If kick lets say is further than snare, for sample, hall preset for kick cutting of high freq and room preset for snare - cutting low freqs. Sometimes i use "overhead" - room preset with no low and mid.


One more - I always try to avoid multiband compression but i have feeling that it is bad idea.

Regarding mastering - I do no mastering excetp putting on main bus EQ for cutting everything below 30-40HZ and brickwall (-3Db, hard knee, short attack, medium release).

Regarding sequencers. Each of them has its own "coloration". Cubase/Nuendo for me is too sharp and muddy and lack of high freqs at mixing down, sonar is too soft but less muddy with good hi freqs, adobe audition is better, reason is the best for electronic music and has very good and warm sound but there is shortage on effects (if it would be possible to have reaon with vst plugins option it would be number one), protools is super but very unconvenient and too expencive. SO i stopped on samplitude. But I believe that anything can be done on any sequencer, it is matter of taste and convenience.

Well all of this is IMHO only and definately is not the rule. I just hope it will be of help.

[mstevenson]

We have a few tutorials on mastering and about seven on mixing!

Mastering:
http://www.waterfallrecordings.com/mastering1.html

Mixing:
http://www.waterfallrecordings.com/mixingtips.html

Musicianship:
http://www.waterfallrecordings.com/ssormusic.html


I hope these will be of some assistance.

Michael Stevenson