OK folks, I’m nearly finished a track and am thinking about mastering (I’ll put an unmastered version on soundcloud over the weekend to get some opinions).
I sent my first track off to some guy from a studio who was offering free mastering, the results were pretty good.
Can anyone give me a reason as to why I should try and master my tracks myself rather than pay about 20quid to get it done by somebody with better equipment (and skills) than me?
An obvious benefit to doing it yourself is that you can have more control over the final sound, how hard you drive it etc. But I think this is outweighed by having another ‘trained’ pair of eyes on my music in a better listening environment that could pick out things I’ve missed in my mixdowns at home.
I don’t master myself, I just use a nice compressor and limiter to boost volume so when labels here my stuff its at a good volume. I also EQ a little, cut everything below 35hz and cut above 18.5khz.
But I leave the real mastering for the labels to sort out.
[quote]onetwoseven (27/08/2010)[hr]I don’t master myself, I just use a nice compressor and limiter to boost volume so when labels here my stuff its at a good volume. I also EQ a little,
But I leave the real mastering for the labels to sort out.[/quote]
This +1
by the way onetwoseven, why do you cut above 18.5khz? Is it just because it’s inaudiable or is there more to it?
[quote]onetwoseven (27/08/2010)[hr] But I leave the real mastering for the labels to sort out[/quote]
I don’t have a label yet dude, it’s only my second finished track (third if you count a really bad remix I did for a competition last year)!
I really think this one might be good enough to send to labels and I wanted it to sound as good as possible.
I’ll try what you suggest re: limiting and EQ. Do you limit up to 0db when sending tracks out and then cut back to -6db for a version that is to go for mastering?
Keiren be careful when limiting, it’s easy to over do things and lose the dynamics of your track. It’s so aweful when you get an over limited track, i even get sent promos from Labels where the tracks been over compressed and it’s just one solid wall of audio, sounds nasty.
Also only gently use your compression , it only wants to lightly gel all your sounds together (although this depends on what kinda track you’re making lol).
I’d say a ratio of 1.51
Slow(ish) attack
Slow(ish) release… although i’d work it to see what works best.
I do a bit of mastering on my tracks just to get it to sound a bit better. I use the mastering chain in the mastering tut but obvisouly tweek the setting on the compresser, eqs etc etc to suit my track.
Defo sounds a bit better when done but up to you I guess. Do not go to far and put to much compression on as you’ll kill the sound, punch etc, be careful, use your ear.
When it comes to getting a release I would send an unmastered wav over to the label. But no harm in home mastering for demos or playing out yourself I think.
But as alway no amount of mastering will make the track sound good if the tracks are not up to standard so getting it sounding as good as you can before mastering or you’ll be disappointed.
[quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr][quote]onetwoseven (27/08/2010)[hr]I don’t master myself, I just use a nice compressor and limiter to boost volume so when labels here my stuff its at a good volume. I also EQ a little,
But I leave the real mastering for the labels to sort out.[/quote]
by the way onetwoseven, why do you cut above 18.5khz? Is it just because it’s inaudiable or is there more to it?
I gathered we could hear up to 20khz?[/quote]
I def can’t hear that high, I tested it when I was at uni for a project. Our tutor could only hear to 17 KHz and he was only in his 30’s. The 20khz thing is optimal human hearing, only kids can really hear that sorta frequency. Hence this invention
Really most people can’t hear up to 20KHZ as they go older. So theres no real need to have those frequencies in the mix so I cut them to get a little extra headroom.
[quote]Kieran Mach (27/08/2010)[hr][quote]
Do you limit up to 0db when sending tracks out and then cut back to -6db for a version that is to go for mastering?[/quote]
Yeah that what I do. Actually I send two versions to labels, one with my sorta mastering job, and the other without and -6db
I see… so should I be taking my master down to -6db ? I always thought you shouldn’t really have a limiter on your master if you’re sending it off? Or does it depend?
[quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]I see… so should I be taking my master down to -6db ? I always thought you shouldn’t really have a limiter on your master if you’re sending it off? Or does it depend?[/quote]
Yeah don’t have any compressors and that when your sending to a label and leave plenty of headroom for mastering.
Most labels will tell you what they want anyway. One label i’m with always asks for 16bit wav rather then 24bit, not sure why. If in doubt just ask them what they want.
[quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]I always thought you shouldn’t really have a limiter on your master if you’re sending it off? Or does it depend?[/quote]
If your sending your track off to be mastered with 6db of headroom then of course theres no need for any limiter. But if your doing a prospective promo yourself to send out to labels then put a limiter at the end of chain so you don’t get any clipping.
[quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]Keiren be careful when limiting, it’s easy to over do things and lose the dynamics of your track. It’s so aweful when you get an over limited track, i even get sent promos from Labels where the tracks been over compressed and it’s just one solid wall of audio, sounds nasty.
Also only gently use your compression , it only wants to lightly gel all your sounds together (although this depends on what kinda track you’re making lol).
I’d say a ratio of 1.51
Slow(ish) attack
Slow(ish) release… although i’d work it to see what works best.
RMS[/quote]
why? for what reason would you use these settings. its no help giving ideas about compression settings if you don’t tell him why he would need to use something similar at the mastering stage.
[quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]I see… so should I be taking my master down to -6db ? I always thought you shouldn’t really have a limiter on your master if you’re sending it off? Or does it depend?[/quote]
if you start with your kick set to -12db, by the time you have finished you should never have gone above -6db with the full mix.
[quote]jon_fisher (29/08/2010)[hr][quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]Keiren be careful when limiting, it’s easy to over do things and lose the dynamics of your track. It’s so aweful when you get an over limited track, i even get sent promos from Labels where the tracks been over compressed and it’s just one solid wall of audio, sounds nasty.
Also only gently use your compression , it only wants to lightly gel all your sounds together (although this depends on what kinda track you’re making lol).
I’d say a ratio of 1.51
Slow(ish) attack
Slow(ish) release… although i’d work it to see what works best.
RMS[/quote]
why? for what reason would you use these settings. its no help giving ideas about compression settings if you don’t tell him why he would need to use something similar at the mastering stage.[/quote]
ok i’ll bite.
I could explain, but whats the point when everything is explained in the Compression Tutorials on SA, i’m just telling him what I personally use.
[quote]jon_fisher (29/08/2010)[hr][quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]I see… so should I be taking my master down to -6db ? I always thought you shouldn’t really have a limiter on your master if you’re sending it off? Or does it depend?[/quote]
if you start with your kick set to -12db, by the time you have finished you should never have gone above -6db with the full mix.[/quote]
That’s interesting actually.
My kick usually goes around -9db but I do find that it’s not always fixed as I may move it when i’m mixing the whole track.
I’ll bear this in mind though for future productions, thanks.
[quote]roben (29/08/2010)[hr][quote]jon_fisher (29/08/2010)[hr][quote]roben (27/08/2010)[hr]Keiren be careful when limiting, it’s easy to over do things and lose the dynamics of your track. It’s so aweful when you get an over limited track, i even get sent promos from Labels where the tracks been over compressed and it’s just one solid wall of audio, sounds nasty.
Also only gently use your compression , it only wants to lightly gel all your sounds together (although this depends on what kinda track you’re making lol).
I’d say a ratio of 1.51
Slow(ish) attack
Slow(ish) release… although i’d work it to see what works best.
RMS[/quote]
why? for what reason would you use these settings. its no help giving ideas about compression settings if you don’t tell him why he would need to use something similar at the mastering stage.[/quote]
ok i’ll bite.
I could explain, but whats the point when everything is explained in the Compression Tutorials on SA, i’m just telling him what I personally use.