Mastering a Pop/Rock Song with Ian Shepherd - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro
Вставка
- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- Check out Ian's Home Mastering Masterclass: bit.ly/2f59pHn
Meterplugs - Mastering Plugins: bit.ly/2k8rgPG
Production Advice Blog (Multiband Compression): bit.ly/2kYICho
The Mastering Show Podcast: bit.ly/2kNhUWI
Production Advice UA-cam Channel: bit.ly/2k8sj2e
Today, we're moving into the final episode of our free mixing Pop/Rock series:
Mastering A Pop/Rock Song.
My good friend, mastering engineer and online mentor Ian Shepherd from productionadvice.com teaches you how to give your mix the final polish and make it sound great throughout all popular platforms: Itunes, UA-cam and the Radio. The best part? Ian shows you how to master a this song using plugins only, so you can achieve the same results in your home studio!
I hope this tutorial helps you take your mastering skills to the next level. Please leave a bunch of comments and questions below. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us Ian!
Produce Like A Pro is a website which features great tips to help the beginning recordist make incredible sounding home recordings on a budget.
Hi Friends, this is the final episode of our free mixing Pop/Rock series:
Mastering A Pop/Rock Song.
My good friend, mastering engineer and online mentor Ian Shepherd from productionadvice.com teaches you how to give your mix the final polish and make it sound great throughout all popular platforms: Itunes, UA-cam and the Radio.
The best part? Ian shows you how to master a this song using plugins only, so you can achieve the same results in your home studio!
Topics covered in this tutorial:
Plugin choices
How to prevent Inter-Sample-Clipping to avoid distortion when converting your master to mp3.
EQ/ Mid-side EQ to shape the tone of individual instruments on a stereo file.
Compression & Multiband Compression to achieve a tight and powerful low end.
Order of mastering stages (Using EQ and Compression in conjunction to achieve the desired result)
How to achieve maximum results with minimal processing
Ideal loudness to strive for when mastering for Itunes and UA-cam
Level Automation to increase the impact of your choruses.
I hope this tutorial helps you take your mastering skills to the next level. Please leave a bunch of comments and questions below. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us Ian!
Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Ian is a great talent he explains everything so well
Agreed 100% IWant Appledumplings!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Wow thanks very much for this really informative video Ian and Warren !!
Thank you ever so much Darlene! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thx
I did exactly what you've done in this video, and suddenly my master sound 3 times better.Ian thank you so much!
That's amazing to hear Mladen!
Ian's one of the few guys I trust, mostly becasue he doesn't seem to give a fuck about how loud he can get the master - just how good he can get it. I used to agonise over reference mixes and how I couldn't get my songs as loud, but now my masters are maybe 4-5dB quieter than commercial mixes, but they sound good and that's all that matters.
I'm struck by how subtle the EQ application actually is when you do the loudness matched comparisons. People might debate the overall approach, or individual tactics, but the end result speaks for itself. Very conservative application of the tools yields dramatic differences between the raw mix and the finished product. It's not only ear candy you're after, it's also crucial for preventing fatigue on the part of the listener, who might be listening to an entire album, or an hour or so of pop radio. Poorly mastered or unmastered music, particularly pop/rock, can be very fatiguing to listen to after just a short while.
Ian has excellent ears and mastering technique...what an informative video! Thank you.
I agree Steve! Ian is truly wonderful!!
I love how you can see Graham's "Never Satisfied EP" in the waveform preview.
Lol ! I should check those so I don't break any confidentiality agreements... I still had that open after answering some email questions :-)
Great bit at beginning for creating context of mastering, and the rest makes entire mental process and strategy more human and accessible. Great video.
Thanks a lot for this video! At 20:24 this "onion-like methodology" is perfect since it is used to enhance the qualities of the song's unique character (through strings, voice, snare, volume, toms...). And it is good to remind us that a third party perspective is useful in creation (at 33:00). Really a pleasure to see your process going along. There is love respect and taste before any technology. Thanks to Ian for sharing his experience (i have seen many of his videos) and to Warren too for sharing his own and other's also. Thanks to both of you we can (might?) improve the sound quality of our music so to make people feel way better. Wish you the best to both of you!
Really interesting. Great Video. Thanks for letting us being part of the progress. Thumbs up :)
great video, it show the quality of human being u are, professionalism and open to share your journey with others, specially in the mystic world of audio mastering. cheers.
Thanks ever so much!!
Great info here, I particularly like how we are presented the whole process in the order that it was implemented (the onion layers). Thanks Ian and Warren!
You're very welcome noisesoundtonevibe!! I'm really glad you enjoyed the process! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
currently taking Ian's home mastering masterclass and it's very insightful and interesting that he's switched up the plugins he used then and now in the video,although still keeping intact with the values and concept he really recommends for mastering. Thanks Warren! (And Ian!)
Glad you like it ! The FabFilter plugins weren't on my radar at all when I recorded the videos for the masterclass.
Wow - my two favourite music production mentors on youtube in the same video - Great :)
Thanks ever so much Smittefar1! I really appreciate your kind words! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Wow, this is like chocolate and peanut butter together! Awesome!
Hahaha Thanks Rob! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Tip: try peanut butter and Nutella together :-)
noisesoundtonevibe Nutella would be whom? Joe Gilder?
Rob Burgess
I was thinking of actual Nutella :-p But I think in terms of audio engineering/production advice, the closest thing to the delicious chocolate-y, hazelnut-ey gooey goodness that is Nutella would be the UBK HFTH. I'd love to see them collaborate with PLAP.
Haha Nutella Rob? Funny! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
for someone like me who has a small bed room studio, i love video's like this, thanks so much the tips and tricks and taking the time to share. \m/
Thats fantastic to hear Joseph! So glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Ian, you're my man!
Cool vid, thanks Warren... this was very interesting.
By the by, I'm having a Marvellous Time Recording and Mixing! Thanks, B.
just to say one word: great!! - thx a lot warren and ian - i can clearly hear what ian did - and understand why its done :)
Thanks very much Fritz!! Thanks to Ian! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing many Warren
That sounds amazing. I love when those strings come in. Many thanks for the great video
Thanks Warren! always a pleasure to watch your videos.
Thanks ever so much Greenviolence! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for the info !
You're very welcome Roy!
Let me EQ this highend up a bit... Ah, let me lift now the lows and the mids as well.
Perfect 😎
😛
The two of you collaborating is brilliant!
Thanks Cat andbeats! I had a great time with Ian! He Rocks for doing this! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for an awesome and well explained video, Ian.
Hey Warren, love your videos. Just wanted to make a request. Don't know if it will be possible to pull of for you, but, still giving it a go by asking you.
Would it be possible to put together a tutorial about album mastering? Workflow and how every track of an album is mastered to give it a cohesive sound? Would be super helpful! Thanks for your content!!!
Excellent video.
Thanks ever so much W G!
Been looking for some home mastering vids! this is great! thanks Warren and Ian of course!
Thanks very much Eric! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanx Ian & Team WarHu & Team PLAP......these info vidz are priceless!
how long i've been waiting for some new Ian's video! Thanks!
Hi leprozoriy, great stuff!! Yes, truly blessed to be able to feature Ian on the channel! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thank you Ian and Warren for this!
Hi John, thank you ever so much! Truly blessed to have Ian on the channel! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
thanks Warren
So I came here instead :) That was the mastering tutorial I was looking for. Thanks Ian!
You all realize that about 88% of Warren and Ian's credibility come from their English accent, right? 😉
Haha really Vijay? I would hope my body of work would help? Haha It's ok!
@@Producelikeapro Well there's that too '-) Happy Holidays Mate!
@@vksolanki haha thanks
In the A/B I preferred the unmastered version because it had more clarity in the high end (less low mids) but I feel like over the course of an album that tone would be fatiguing and irritatating so the mastered version with its better balnce and more controlled high mids would work better.. Awesome video by the way great to see mastering tutorial by a professional mastering engineer who is know NOT to just try to get things loud. Thanks Ian and Warren very informative.
Thanks JimijaymesGuitarist! I love what Ian did! I've been blessed to work with some of the best Mastering Engineers in the world and Ian did an amazing job!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Glad to see you've connected with the man behind Dynamic Range Day. A relly reflected and good mastering-engineer.
Hi Bjørn, yes, Ian Rocks! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Bjørn Loldvar Larsen ok
Thanks Ian. Huge improvement, even with subtle changes. This song has a really big bottom, but it works.
Yes Ian rules Jesse! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Very Good. I was able to hear everything he talked about on a pair of (equalized flat) audio-technica ATH-40X phones and almost everything in my (sonarworks EQ) Mackie
HR-824 monitors. Thanks….
Hi Alaheim, fantastic! So glad that Ian was able to do this video for us! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
on my mixes you have to reinvent the wheel
then watch a mixing video xD
I can read Ian's screen shots.....great mastering video !!!
Wonderful Piedscooter1!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
So very interesting. Thanks Warren amd Ian. great video
Thanks very much halcyondaystunes! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for this!
Thank you for the video, noob question here: in this video, Ian does a cut around 230hz, then a huge boost around 40hz which effectively impacts the cut he previously did, I would think, pushing up the frequencies that he wanted removed. Can someone please comment on/explain that? I guess boosting something that's been cut does not have the same effect as something that hasn't, but is that all there is to it?
About the TC multiband vs Pro-MB: Short answer, no, you can not get that kind of "spanky attack" on pro-mb. The reason is that Pro-MB is much more transparent. It's actually highly program dependent which the TC is not. Especially the attack is really "effect like" on the TC multiband whereas on Pro-MB they aimed for ultimate transparency so it's very difficult to get that kind of spank that you have going on with the TC.
Great! I love it!
Great video!
LOL. "Lumpy" and "Stompy". I love those descriptions.
Hi Jeff, Haha I agree! Genius!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Maybe its just me, but I found a harsh hi mid spike in the vocals, in the mix itself, which at louder volumes would be very fatiguing. The mid boost in the mastering process gave the vocals more body, which helped cut the harshness.
Yeah, I'm wondering if that's an issue with whatever they used for a mic, or the pre, that might be adding some harmonic distortion. I couldn't EQ it out completely on the multitracks. Some of the other tracks from this album (that were released on PLAP) seemed to have a combo of high-mid peakiness, and then the response just nose-dives, and there's _nothing_ above it. 10, 12, 18dB of boost at 8k and you can barely get an Ssss to creep out from under the song. In that case, you work with what you've got, and hope dynamic EQ or MBC can keep things in check a little better.
I'm a noob compared to this guy, but with the EQing sections, I thought it would be more efficient to just narrow the Q's more and be subtle so you're just tweaking specific elements, rather than using such wide Q's, then having to compensate for their overall effect. I felt the wide 3dB EQ on the entire low end made the mix muddier.
I guess it's all about personal preference AND really important is that every single listening situation is different from the next (eg. headphones, speakers, rooms, background ear tinnitus, ear wax.... you name it!!!) so the subjectivity on this stuff is off the charts!
Even with my own mixing I might mix it differently after a few days - what's changed? Maybe I've just listened to something prior that colours my perception or audio desires!
I might hear a tune with a cracking snare, which has me thinking mine sounds lame; or a tight kick-ass bass and now mine sounds wooly - ahhh! So many variables :o
I did forget to state though I appreciate much of what Mr. Huart showed and I learned new things... and he seems like a nice fella!
Interesting questions! For new people who want to try this technique, then initially using a wider band too find the approximate areas would make sense, then narrow after that.
Great video
Thank you a lot!
You're very welcome Artur!
Hello Ian, Thanks for your videos. If you ever added reverb to a mix, would you add it after your EQ, compression, limiter chain?
Bloody good job mate.
As ever, great video! I'm gonna get some of free T-RackS plug-ins to compare with Native Instruments plug-ins for a starter. Thanks for useful info and let's start mastering! (well, one step at a time...)
Hi Byolegy, I haven't compared them back to back!
That's fine, I will! I might not have an experience, but do have a good hearing :)
Exactly! Demo them both!
Wow! So much heavy and worthful 'behind closed doors' information. Gives me a marvelous time ;)
You're very welcome mkshoffmeister! Special thanks to Ian for doing this video for us!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Smashed it Ian...learned so much as usual
I agree 100% Amen Panesar! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Sweet! Just as I was finishing up a song too. :) I'll take a lot of this into account when I... attempt.... to master.
Hi TrevinDahl, I hear you!! Mastering is still a little scary for me! Haha I like to give it to people like Ian! However sometimes we just don't have the budget!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
thank u i learn about Eq in mastring thank u so much
Hi amer alrawi, you're welcome! Thank you Ian! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing many Warren
great video! The EQ curve in FF looks almost like a tilt eq with a bump.
Thanks very much Sonicology Records! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
excelent. just when i thought i had eq sorted hahaha. great ive learnt something important. i still need to get my head round mid/side thou not had much practice with it.
Hi Matthew, I agree, the Mid/Side technique is not something I use often! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Is this the same master that is actually on Apple Music?
MUCHAS GRACIAS
Brilliant! Mastering is still a mystic science, but it's explained so well!
Hi a the, I hear you! I think the people that specialise like Ian are the best! Myself I only Master out of necessity when the budgets are very small! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
That multi band compresor makes the snare disapear
Excellent Video ! Thanks for sharing such brilliant insights. I only missed the level in LUFS of the mastered version, important subject for these digital streaming days.
Thanks Fernando! I'm really glad you enjoyed the video! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Fernando,
Knowing the final (integrated) LUFS isn't that helpful to be honest, because it depends on the internal dynamics of the song. A full-on heavy metal track which is loud all the time will read loud than (say) a prog rock track which might have more dynamic variety.
But, for what it's worth the integrated LUFS measurement of this song came out at -11.8 LUFS
Thanks for your answer Ian and for pointing out the importance of dynamics. These days we producers are somehow lost because of the difference on average levels for streaming. For instance, between Spotify and Tidal. I was lucky enough to find a great article on your website about the topic. productionadvice.co.uk/tidal-loudness/
Thank you for that !
My pleasure :-)
There's also a graphic here that summarises all the main services:
productionadvice.co.uk/online-loudness/
Thanks Ian! That's great information! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
What would be fun - is provide the original mix, and allow your followers have a try on mastering and compare to Ian's final Master.
please train more about mcdsp plugins they are great plugins and I remember that you had a post about mcdsp mastering tutorial changed my beleaves about mastering
Hi Kambiz, I agree! McDSP are great plug ins! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Nice detail, and very useful understanding... Thanks for sharing Ian Shepherd !!!
Warren,,,, Thanks so much for all you do mate,,, (and I'm USA born, but am 25% English, but a touch of Scott hahaha, lol) Why is it, but seems though if born with an English accent, the understanding of music is more colorful ? he he he,
All in fun :D,,, But seriously, Thanks for giving so much of your time Warren, can not put to words how much I appreciate you... Cheers :D
Thanks ever so much The Rocker! Yes, Ian was very gracious to share his knowledge with us!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
What about loudness for audio cd?
great video!
Thanks Alexandre!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I prefer it before than after. When level matched, the mastered one sound muffled
Hi Christian, I do prefer the after! But obviously we all hear things differently and all prefer different results! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Will sound different on every speakers
Great vid!!
Thanks very much Mark! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
hi tnx a lot for this post
anyway I think that we can master this genre of songs higher level without any squashing
sorry for my weak language coz I'm Persian
and many many thanks Warren for your training in mix and mastering
maybe you don't believe that every night I see you on my dreams
love you so much and tnx again
Thanks for your great comment Kambiz! By the way your English is perfect! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Produce Like A Pro
tnx a lot my real friend
Hi Kambiz, you're very welcome! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Produce Like A Pro
warren you don't know how much you helped me in mix and mastering and my productions have changed to a good quality
many many and thousands thanks
I love you so much
Thanks Kambiz, I really appreciate it! I'm so glad to be able help in any way I can! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I like the honesty...similar results....thats it the equipment im using needs n upgrade....so its official paid plugins r better than stocks
Hey, many thanks for the great video. You've done amazing work here Warren and Ian! By the way, may I know the name of this song? It's so catchy.
Song name?
so, all additive EQ, verse subtractive interesting TY! One question, are your VU meters the very last plug in the chain?
Looks like a cut around 300hz would have done the same as all those boosts. How lufs relate to rms? I use voxengo span, and it only uses rms. I always shoot for around
-12rms for my masters.
RMS is a calculation of 'This is how it is'. LUFS is a calculation with algorithms that give you 'This is how it will sound'. RMS levels meter the internal loudness of the file, and LUFS is a unit that tells you how loud it's perceived. That's why some RMS-matched files might not be equally loud -- and LUFS units will show you that difference you hear, but can't see with RMS.
I love iZotope Ozone 7, but I rarely find myself using its multiband compressor, and I instead use my outboard t.c. electronic Finalizer Plus, so I understand why you're using the PowerCore.
I thought the vocal was rather harsh in the high mids in some expressions. Perhaps a mid/side multiband compressor in mid mode with a high Q could have addressed that.
I've only used M/S compression once in my career - too dangerous :-)
At a minimum, a narrow-band C6 (or anything else) to tame the vocal. I read about how a mix engineer uses it live to tame Chris Tomlin's voice (popular contemporary Christian artist). It literally hurts my ears at times.
Ian what is the danger of M/S compression? (I've listened to most of your shows, but don't remember hearing you mention that). I'm finding M/S compression is the only way to get that wide filled out stereo spread needed to compete with most modern mixes (the width wars?).
It's ear candy which I can't stop using now that I've discovered it. I thought it counted as an acceptable technique for 'purists' (ie not gratuitous processing).
Is there is a podcast you could point me towards where you discuss it?
While I'm here thanks for the shows. You and Warren (and a few others) have helped me get my mixes half way respectable! Still working on the other half....
Thanks Hillwalker! I appreciate being appreciated! I am very glad to be able to help and extremely thankful that Ian was able to master this song for us and do such a thorough tutorial! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I think a "rescue mission" would've taught us all much more, just my thought.
who ever gave it a dislike is because thinks is better than Ian but in reality don't know shit😂
What system is this pro-tools
Hi Warren,..I think if I had mixed the original, I would have been happy with that,....so typically, would you always send a mix of this standard to be Mastered further?
Hi Tim, great question! I personally use a Professional Mastering Engineer when I have the budget so I know it will sound the best it can in every listening environment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
How would u take the vocals clicks out ?
Thanks Ian for showing use your mastering process for this mix, I did notice every change you made (maybe because I'm listening on headphones).
I wanna ask you two questions, not about your technique but about the plugins you use (sorry if you feel annoyed):
1) Why didn't you use a Linear Phase EQ?
This comes to my mind because I'm actually subscribed to your e-mail series "Mastering with Plugins", and in the Part #5 about EQ, you say that we should use Linear Phase EQ always in the mastering process (I'm actually not very sure about this because Linear Phase EQ it's usually used when phase shiftes cancels some frequencies from other tracks).
2) What do you think about Tokyo Dawn Labs (TDR) plugins? They're very transparent and high quality in my opinion.
Hi heavymetalmixer91, yes, it seems to be easier to hear the subtlety on headphones. I will see if I can get Ian to answer these questions for you! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi heavymetalmixer91,
1) If I'm honest, I probably emphasise the importance of phase-linear EQ in the plugins course more than strictly necessary. I find it can be really important for narrow, "surgical" boosts and cuts, but for quite broad changes like the ones I'm using in this song it's less of an issue. I played around with the different settings when I was mastering this song and didn't hear a huge difference, but didn't mention it in the video, sorry.
2) I've only played with the TDR Nova EQ so far, and I really like it. But it has quite a distinctive sound because of the way that it works, and I didn't think it was right for this song.
Hope that helps ?
Yeah, thanks to both for the answers.
Yes indeed heavymetalmixer91, special thanks to Ian for not only doing this wonderful video but also spending the time to answer these questions! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Tx Warren & Ian for this Great Video !!
You're very welcome Jeff! I'm really glad you enjoyed the video! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
very interesting
Thanks David! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing many thanks Warren
off topic but has anyone got experiance with Mackie ProFXv2. mixers? Im not fussed about the built in fx or eq's unless they good. I want it to group compress (elysium Mpressor i hope) and add analogue flavour and summing. Ive seen a 8 channel for £169 and its ranking better then the more expensive AllenHeaths and Yammaha, seems to match Soundcraft too
Hi Matthew, sorry I've never used that Mixer! It's been years since I used a Mackie Mixer, however when I did in the 90's I made great sounding music, it's the ears not the gear after all! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Would it be same thing if you used one fab plugin to do the subtractive Eqing. And open another eq for adding eqing ?
Instead of all the eqing on one plugin ?
It would sound the same, yes - but you wouldn't see the overall shape, or be able to bypass in one go, both of which I think are valuable
thanks sir that is what I was thinking. thanks for explaining
I can barely hear a difference between most of those A/Bs. Is UA-cam compression masking the differences, or do I just have rubbish ears?
Hi Dan, I hear you! I would suggest using headphones! I can hear the changes on my Ultrasone headphones, also Ian did say he didn't do too much to the mix, only subtle changes! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Question about that automation: If I hear Ian well it is pre plugins chain, not after, right?
Correct
can't tell if I'm missing it, but what is Ian calibrating his vu meter against to come up with -11db?
The VUMT has a calibration setting. By default 0 VU = -18 dBFS, which works well for mixing, but for mastering I use 0 VU = -11 LUFS
Production Advice Real dope that u answered! Thanks! I get it...LUFS. I sometimes calibrate with pink noise...does that make since?
With the VUMT you don't need the noise, you can just dial in the value you want. But noise can be helpful when measuring monitor loudness, for example I use pink noise @ -14 dB RMS
Production Advice just what I needed to know. I use the LVL meter from LSR so I get it...u confirmed I'm on the right track. Thank you!
I'm confused a little bit, can you maybe explain Warren, is he actually getting his volume from the gain plug-in not the limiter? I've always been taught to use the limiter to increase the volume. If so if I'm mastering in Pro Tools using something like Ozone what do you suggest using to increase the level? Would appreciate your advice, thanks for all you do friend
Correct, I don't add any gain with the limiter. I use the "Stereo Tools" plugin to add gain, so that other processes can be bypassed with minimal gain changes (except when I go overboard with the EQ :-p)
In Pro Tools there is a mono plugin called “Trim” which will allow you to adjust the gain in the same way that I do in this video - it will convert to stereo once applied to a track, and gives you up to 12dB gain to work with.
Production Advice thank you, one more question how do you determine the amount of gain you're going to add?
That depends on the material, but with the VU meter calibrated @ -11, my goal is for the needles to average around zero, pushing up to +1 tor +2 for the loudest moments, for example @ 27:40 in this video
a black art for ears better than mine
Hi Dean, I hear you! I prefer not to master, I like to let guys like Ian who do this every day do it!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I still dont like the sound of multiband compressors . they still soubd strange to me on masters
They are great if you have one element that jumps out of your mix and triggers the compressor. You can keep the majority of the compression acting independently of the 'jumpy element' (a bass drum or snare for example)...
Good interface (check) good monitors (check) room correctly treated (check) played on youtube on highest quality even though youtube quality is bad (check)... still cant hear a single difference when the volume is level matched from the mastered to unmastered... :/
Hi Ladraz, thanks for the comment! I'm listening on my Ultrasone HFI-680 Headphones and I can hear the differences. Maybe headphones is the secret? Although I do hear changes on my Genelecs. I imagine UA-cam's quality is inconsistent. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Ladraz i can but its very suttle and mainly just balanced. I have sony mdr ex 650. Someone once said to me dont look at an eq like you look at an eq on a amp. Its not for boosting its for balancing, its called a equalizer to equalize frequencies. Never forgot that! thou i may hear it cos i produce and always hone in on the tiny bits of sounds. It all has to fit even the delays. Thanks Ian for doing this im almost 0 to half hero now hahaha. Marvellous 😊
give me another year and i will hopefully be a few steps from hero. I dont know what i will do if i have to mix/master anything thats not trance thou hahaha
Hi Matthew, yes I agree the moves are pretty small. Ian was generous and said the mix was already very close, it takes a very talented person to do less! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Produce Like A Pro and hopefully i will be there just in time to finish my first album. just concernteating on creativity and mix to the best i can do now. Im not rushing to get an album out! I need to focus on live stuff so i can buy hardware. im thinking a 8 channel mixer for group compressing with 500 series stuff. Im too poor for the big toys hahaha
Hi Matthew, best of luck with your album!! The 500 Series equipment is an amazing way to go!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
can I still download these files to mix?
LuvMusiq37 yes you can! Please mix them and post on the Produce Like A Pro Facebook page! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing many thanks Warren
What do you listen on?
Great question! Let's see if we can get Ian to answer that! I listen on Genelec's mainly! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I like Bowers & Wilkins speakers - the large 801s are the best but these days I have a smaller pair that I really like. They're not available any more though and I'm not sure what the current equivalent is. I also use a studio locally that has Genelec S30C speakers - again they don't make them any more, they have a ribbon tweeter which sounds very different to modern Gens.
Monitor choice is a very personal thing, though - for example just swapping out the amp you use can make a difference, and the room + treatment has a huge effect. Other brands often used in mastering include PMC, Focal & Dynaudio.
Hi Ian, I have to try Bowers and Wilkins Speakers! Knowing you use them makes me want to try them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
The good 'ol Klanghelm VUMC! The final EQ curve looked almost like a tilt EQ centered at about 5k. DO Mastering Engineers ever use tilt EQs?
Why not? It depends on if it does what mastering engineer wants or if it doesn't. The same for everything else
Smiley EQ is really being used for example.
It's all about "macro dynamics" and EQ? :-)
Hi Jenya, I think there is large part of it that's just small tweaks! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I can't hear anything he does :( I am so sad.