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How Loud to Master Music in 2023: Mastering Masterclass | Plugin Alliance
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- Опубліковано 14 сер 2024
- Join Justin Colletti as he explains why the common loudness target of -14 LUFS might be too quiet for your music. Learn which plugins can make your mixes louder, display LUFS readings, and allow you to hear how your music will sound when uploaded to streaming services. Create competitively loud masters that are free of distortion when uploaded online.
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00:00 - Intro
01:00 - Audio Examples
02:43 - Target LUFS Levels
06:21 - Target LUFS Levels for Rock
09:04 - Target LUFS Levels for Hip-Hop
10:15 - Target LUFS Levels for EDM
11:56 - Target LUFS Levels When Mixing
12:54 - Audio Example #1 - Rock
17:26 - Momentary, Short-term, and Integrated LUFS
18:04 - Audio Example #2 - Rock
22:46 - Audio Example #3 - EDM
26:20 - Audio Example #4 - Pop/Electronic
29:38 - Target Peak Levels
30:16 - Inter-sample Peaks
31:31 - True Peak Limiters
32:42 - The Importance of Reference Tracks
35:11 - Limiters vs. Compressors
36:53 - Increasing Loudness Using EQ
39:38 - Download and Installation
Music:
"Shine On” by Londinium
Mixed and Co-Produced by Varun Krishnan
“Hymn of Him” by RAE
Produced and Mixed by Aaron Cafaro
“Bother” by Twin Lights & Sarah Steil
“Rise Up” by Karen Bella
Produced by Josh Dion
Mixed by Josh Kaler
#PluginAlliance #MusicProduction #MEGABundle #mastering #LUFS
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how to cancel it?.. it don`t show up in my subscription window/menu...
By far the best video I've seen on the subject. THANK YOU. Wish I would have had this knowledge years ago!
This is effectively the best video about mastering.
So awesome to hear! Thanks for checking it out!!
-Justin
Finally the information about this! Im on the minute 6 and can't believe how detailed and good is this information about limiting. After watching thousands of tutorials in youtube I have only heard about the loudness war and the purpose of getting more loud. The details wich is explained here is an awesome valuable content around the internet. Thx for sharing. I will end it up till the final and take some valuable notes.
What an AWESOME mini master class on mastering. Thank you Justin! I learned a lot, and won’t feel so guilty when I go for -9 LUFS on my rock tracks.
My guy Justin!! 🐐
Metric A/B is an absolute game changer! It made the process of AB-ing so much easier and more accurate. I will never master without it again. 💯
That's great to hear. Thanks for sharing!
Justin,
Great video (as always) full of very useful information presented in an engaging and clear style. Followed up by thoughtful responses in the comments - a true class act. Thanks!
Metric AB is essential for my mastering workflow. Streamliner has turned a very long and tedious task into a quick and easy thing to do.
I also use it in the mixing session. It is a game changer for me
One of the very Best.. of Justin's Video. Enjoyed watching and learning everything he's saying. Great video.
We're glad to hear it's helpful. Thanks for the wonderful feedback!
Yes yes yessss.... 14:10 and more .... Yes yes yessss !!
Excellent educational video, well done, thank you. Long time user and big fan of PA stuff.
We're glad to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks for your support!
Really great vid
Super explained, thank you Justin. Finally a video about LUFS where you don't get confused by vague statements.
Thanks also for the nice examples. Now I finally understood what is behind the whole "Loudness myth". 😃
I like to use the "Youlean Loudness Meter" to control my mixes on the master bus.
Somehow the way you are explaining Mastering is making so much more sense and at the same time answering all the questions i've had while listening and watching hundreds of podcasts and tutorials ... Maybe I am ready to hear it or you are just explaining "the dark art" in a way that just makes sense practically. Either way I just keep yelling out the phrase "FINALLY NOW I UNDRESTAND". Thank you so much. The light is finally visible through this long dark tunnel of stuff I kind of already knew, just needed the details ... The frame of mind to hear/listen for the exact details. WELL DONE SIR.
Great video, thank you!
Peak Levels do not only change when comparing intersample-peaks and intrasample-peaks. But also when comparing the original mastered wav-file and the file that is created when lossy data compression is applied (mp3, aac). This happens to your file when it is streamed via spotify, youtube etc.
Exactly my point I wanted to clarify!
So I would say at least 0.5dB should be a safe minimum (1dB might be still needed in some cases though)
This.
Radio compression is even waaayyy more unforgiving. Radio broadcast has it's own natural compression/limiting, thus eliminating the need to compress/limit a track during mastering. A track intended for album release, even with moderate amount of compression/limiting, will sound crushed and abysmally bad when played over the radio, let alone a track with loudness wars in mind.
@@danielkisel5661 I agree. When i master for CD i use a ceiling of -0.1. When i master for streaming i use a ceiling of -0.5.
Great point! Streamliner allows you to visualize the headroom that you lose when your audio is transcoded into different formats. It helps you identify exactly how much headroom you need to provide your masters to avoid unwanted clipping when your music is uploaded.
With the recent release of Streamliner version 1.1, you can now batch export your music in a variety of different codecs. This lets you listen to how your mixes will sound on phones and laptops prior to uploading your music to Spotify, Apple Music, etc.
Streamliner is extremely useful for checking this!
In my experience you can get away with SOME intersample peaks above 0dBFS as long as they are not excessive, frequent or sustained.
Being able to monitor this is great, and Streamliner does it
Either using a true leak limiter, or setting a slightly lower output can help with this.
But you’ll never really know what effect those intersample peaks have (if any) until you listen through the codec in question. Streamliner helps with that too!
It’s important not to have excessive, frequent or sustained ISPs, but let’s be real: practically all the biggest releases and most of your favorite records have SOME.
It’s not like if the true peak meter flashes slightly above zero for a moment now and then, your whole record is going to explode :-)
Still, something good to be mindful of!
-Justin
Awesome valuable content that there's almost no info around internet. Thank you so much for the tutorial, a lot of things fall in place for me after it.
On intersample peaks. It was my understanding that in the streaming world it had become best practice to deliver masters with a true peak that had been reduced to -.5 or -1 even when using a true peak limiter because the streaming service codec could cause intersample peaks with masters that were approaching .0 true peak. I've been delivering masters at -1 TP for a while because of this. Should I re think? Is it indeed safe to push up to -.1 TP these days as this tutorial suggests?
Wow this is the one of best mastering videos that I’ve ever watched, thanks a lot Justin. Using limiter on individual tracks or busses is a good idea. Im using most likely to get more db; Fab filter pro-L 2, IK classic clipper, ozone maximizer, bx mastering compressor. Im trying to make as loud as possible in the mix without any master bus processes. Trying to better than yesterday everyday
Metric AB is the best investment I have ever made. My mixes improved on the spot. It is really a milestone in my musical journey. I am not making this up. I am sincere.
thx master
Great video
Thanks!
Justin could you please explain the practical approach of the loudness of the all the songs that you have explained. Also I curious about what are the plugin chains used to approach this massive loudness. Please create part 2 of this video. Thanks
I would love to do that!! If Plugin Alliance wants to have me back to do it, I’m all about it! :-)
-Justin
You didn’t mention what true peak you recommend. All streaming services recommend -1db or more.
I use the streamliner and Hawkeye (first PA plugin that I bought) all the time for mastering on the monitor bus, Reaper has that. The master bus has most plugins, the AMEK 250, a Black Box HG2, for now the F6 from waves and 3 limiters various from PA, waves to taste. I'm building a new system that is very powerful and then the waves will be obsolete. Because I'm limited by my computer now. Even with Reaper running.
great video. DMG Audio's Limitless is always my last plugin on my 2-bus.
First, great video.
You asked in Audio Example 2 which sounded better when volumes were equal. The -5 & -6 masters may sound like what other records sound like, but I really prefer the -16 turned up. It just sounds so much better and real.
I get what you're saying, but it would still need some mastering anyway because...
-16 is definitely too low. Spotify has currently normalisation standard of -14 lufs, so it won't raise your track by 2 dB it only turns loud music down, not quiet music up, so -14 dB is minimum I would use in modern music.
And while -5 lufs is kind of crazy loudness, and I don't think any genre needs to go past -7 lufs, I would still master at least to -11 or -10 because who says streaming platforms won't change their loudness standard to -12, -11 in the future and you will left much quieter than the rest of the stuff recently released...
Other than that, loudness is more of a preference thing past certain threshold rather than a must-have.
Thanks for the comment!
Although I like original mix a lot, even if it were level matched to commercial releases, it would sound quite a bit darker, more muffled and a little less alive than what the artist and producer’s favorite records actually sound like, and just wouldn’t sit right when heard next to other commercial tracks in the style.
Sometimes, we can get away with a darker, more muffled, less hyped sounding mix when listening on our extremely detailed sounding studio monitors, but when we listen on a variety of systems, including common consumer systems, we find that there’s a good reason amping up the detail a hair is common.
Of course, there are some tracks that should get darker in mastering, and some that shouldn’t get any louder, but because of the way most people mix, this tends to be slightly less common than the reverse.
That said, if you really love more modest or subdued sounds, and prefer the way those records feel when they are released “out in the wild”, then you should definitely do that! There is no one “right” to making art and music.
Hope that makes sense!
-Justin
The second master really gave more shine and punch to the drums. In the unprocessed mix, they were definitely missing some air.
Also, the masters increased stereo spread and gave the vocals and backings more space and ambience. Liked the lower master best.
@@dmues5s
I agree the second master had aspects the first didn't. However, in my opinion squashing the mix to death did more harm than good. You can also get more shine and air without smashing the mix like a bug.
Great video ! I’ve seen Skrillex master down to -3LUFS insane. Although he is using a form of Clip to Zero mixing/mastering where he is limiting and clipping and many different stages before the master buss.
Thanks! Yes, it can be done! What I’m primarily discussing in the video are what I consider the “safe” ranges for each genre.
Although they are definitely louder than what the streaming services recommend already, it is possible to go even louder still, as I allude to here as well.
It does take more skill and more doing to get even louder without excessive compromise. But yes, multiple stages of dynamic control, as well as EQ management are central to it.
Of course there are also genres and styles that will never sound right anywhere near that loud! :-) But there are some that can definitely get away with it, when done right.
Very best,
Justin
I own all of their plugins they’re all good
I think what is being described as dynamic range here is incorrect. What i think the correct term should be is Headroom.
I totally agree! Use your ear and make a master that sounds as good as possible and make it as load as you possible can. How much you should compress and if you should use a limiter at the end of the master chain really depends on genre (the more you use compression and limiting, the loader the master can be). I recently remastered a recording I made in 2001. I just used my ears and made an analysis after the mastering was done, it ended up around -9 to -10 LUFS, which somehow is the "normal" level for a rock/hardrock record. Jazz is lower, metal is higher, but the important thing is to be in se same ballpark as your competitors. The band Fata Morgana is not a metal band so I think I did it right. Feel free to listen (just click on me).
If you like guitar-driven hardrock with more complex arrangements but still melodic, you should defenetely listen. // Peter
Great vidéo. If i use a true peak limiter at the end of the chain, should i keep my levels under -1dbfs for stream services?
NEVER use true peak. It'll destroy your transients. Trust me.
I don’t know, the bx_limiter True Peak sounds pretty darn good!
It’s one of two True Peak limiters I like currently. But I agree that not all True Peak limiters were created equal.
When I’m using a true peak limiter, I’ll set the output to -0.1.
When using a standard limiter it might be -0.4 to -0.8 depending on how hot the master is. (The hotter the master, the lower the output to be safe. But this range will do it 99% of the time.)
This is less conservative than streaming services recommend, but in my experience it works.
If you’re a real stickler like me, consulting a true peak meter and maybe even a codec like with ADPTR Audio Streamliner can be helpful.
Hope that helps!
-Justin
@@JustinColletti thank you 🫡
Your definition of LUFS/LU is entirely incorrect. LUFS is a scale comparable to dB that is weighted AND gated using specific definitions defined in ITU-R BS.1770-4 to provide a reasonable facsimile to measuring perceived loudness by the human ear, relative to full scale digital. Each change of LU by 1 is comparable to a 1 dB change, and LU itself is in NO WAY a measure of dynamic content. In fact, the measurement itself is not gated-an integrated measurement is. The gating is used to define LRA, which is just a measure of the approximate perceived loudness range using LU, but measures of short term or momentary loudness are not gated. Telling people LU is a measure of dynamic content is outright misleading and creates the misconception that lower LU numbers (-21 is in fact LOWER than -14 by the way) are indicative of MORE dynamics in a recording, when that is just simply not true. It is entirely possible to have a perfect square wave at 1 kHz (which would be completely devoid of dynamic range) that reads something like -20 LUFS, and that does not mean there is some "phantom dynamics" in the tone. It means relative to full scale, the tone is -20 LU in terms of perceived loudness, according to the weighting defined in ITU-R BS.1770-4. Normalizing the same file would create a square wave that is using every dB of headroom, equaling a much, much higher LUFS value, because the dynamics have NOT changed at all-only the recorded level. There is a way to define a measure of how dynamic a piece of audio is over time, but it requires you also measure LU, and LU itself is not the measure of dynamics. This all said, when you see that streaming services are using loudness targets, it is for normalization between tracks or videos, and the ONLY thing that is changed is the playback level, to bring all files played back to or near to the defined target loudness. No change to dynamics occurs unless limiting or clipping happens if tracks are raised in level to the point their largest peaks exceed 0 dBFS. The behavior behind this is different from service to service. Please, PLEASE get your definitions and details right when doing these kinds of videos. You're having people make the assumption that they have been controlled regarding how dynamic their masters are allowed to be, when that's never been the case.
Did you copy and paste that shit
In FabFilter's L2, there is a measurement of Loudness RANGE. Am I correct in thinking that that is a better measurement of dynamics than the LUFS value? (I've noticed that when tracks are very squashed, with little difference between the loud and quiet parts, the LRA number is very small. Quite what an optimal loudness range number would be depends on the song and genre, but I think it's probably more important to get that right than the actual LUFS value, because the overall volume can be turned up or down by the streaming site and the listener, but the loudness range (dynamics) is controlled by the producer).
3:57 into the video and I came here to comment the exact same thing. It’s a pretty big mistake to confuse lufs and crest factor. My juniors watch a lot of these videos and it’s no wonder they end up getting so confused, because of course they’re going to take an official plugin manufacturer page video at face value. Thank you Ben for your excellent explanation and distinction of the two.
There are only two questions when it comes to mastering: Is it louder? or is it better? But hey, let's learn how to make things sound louder again. Music was great when it had room to breathe. I miss those times.
for people born with the rise of CDs and loudness wars in the early 2000’s, we have never heard how music breathed 😂
Am new to this. I tend to push as much as possible before I hear distortion / degradation. EDM stuff.
There's nothing necessarily wrong with that if you like the results, and can ensure your music will sound the same once uploaded to streaming services. Using ADPTR AUDIO's Streamliner is a great way to hear how your music will sound once transcoded by streaming services. If you've checked your music using the codecs in this plugin and don't notice any issues, you can confidently upload it to your music distributor.
ozone 10 advanced, just about to upgrade to version 11. they also have the insight 2 tool. one of my favourites for a long time was the Waves WLM Loudness meter. Bx meter and ADPTR Sculpt are also good
can we get an "inter-sample peaks" count?
Justin I have a question in regards to example 2, would it have been wrong to stay more true to the original when mastering? Your master definitrly enhanced eveyrthing in every way, however, I just aboslutely love the warmness the orignal mix had to begin with. I tend to love warmer tones on mostly everything that I listen to and kind of get discouraged due to the fact that I recognize that different genres require different sound profiles.
Which one is #2 in your book? Is it the EDM track or the heavy rock track with a female singer?
Relative to they way their favorite records sound, in both those cases the masters definitely needed to go a bit brighter and tighter, and in the case of the EDM one, the kick was significantly more pronounced than what they actually dig, when heard across a variety of systems.
For the female rock one, listen to artists like Evanescence and Seether.
I did a slightly darker and a slightly brighter master for the client and they picked the brighter one, which is what I showed here. (It’s probably closer to the Evanescence kind of vibe.)
It is possible to go in a slightly throatier, darker direction with this one as well if desired and I did one like that too, but it wasn’t selected.
It is also possible to go less loud with them and that changes the texture as well.
But it really comes down to taste. Ultimately, you’re going to have to listen to it over the course of the whole song “out in the wild” to really get a sense for what you prefer.
But if you were my client, and you liked it less bright and less loud, that’s exactly what I’d do for you!! :-)
For the electronic one, they were loving artists like 3lau and Peter Robinson & Madeon, where things are a bit tighter on bottom than in the original mix, with a bit more edge.
Either way, I believe you’ve got to listen to your masters in the contexts that they are likely to be heard in, against the records you’re ultimately going to want to compare them to. Otherwise, we’re kind of just guessing IMHO.
If you want to make a statement by bucking the trends in a style, I love to do that too!
Hope that makes sense.
Thanks for the thoughtful comment,
-Justin
@@JustinColletti I was talking about the rock one with the female, but wow im blown away by this response which is brilliant. I will keep all this in mind when working on future projects. Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to address my question. You rock man! 😄🙌
Here is the easiest answer:
- Find the point of complete chaotic squashing, normally around -8LUFS.
- Now work back down the gain of your limiter to see at which level the material sounds the most open yet impactful. I stop just before the low-end fundamentals start to loose punch compared to the unlimited signal.
What most don't see for what it really is, is that once you are at -10LUFS you are already loud. The problem is most don't even get to -10 LUFS in a way that's about respecting "THE SOUND", which is the most important thing, and respecting the transients.
Most normally get there with loads of compression in the mixing stage and even in the mastering stage; which is already putting "THE SOUND" at a huge disadvantage. If you want stuff loud and punchy, it starts with the mix. However, to be completely honest, it actually starts with proper vocal/instrument recording and song arrangement.
just a pity hawkeye is not apple silicon ...will it ever be? it's a good analyser
Having a standalone version made this a little more difficult, but we are of course working with all developers to bring our entire catalogue in all formats to M-series devices.
@@PluginAllianceTV 👍
Who's the band in the video??
This is the music featured in this video:
"Shine On” by Londinium
Mixed and Co-Produced by Varun Krishnan
“Hymn of Him” by RAE
Produced and Mixed by Aaron Cafaro
“Bother” by Twin Lights & Sarah Steil
“Rise Up” by Karen Bella
Produced by Josh Dion
Mixed by Josh Kaler
A good rule of thumb is: the more shitty the music is, the harder you can push it, because it does not matter anyway.
@21 mins - the mix turned up is so much better than the master turned down.
Totally up to your preference! I gave the producer some options, and this was what they liked the most.
It is definitely the one that is closest in tone to how their favorite records actually sound.
If you and I worked on a record together instead, it would come out how you like YOUR records to sound instead! :-)
Very best,
Justin
Mix version sounds better.
(Audio #1)
Mastered loses some excitement. Imho
No disrespect.
Love your videos.
The game is all about EQing and compression b4 limiting and clipping
Trust me
Very useful video. I started pulling back on my overall sound because of all these recommended LUFs. I will go back to mixing to what sounds / feels right. I use the Oxford limiter and then Metric AB for comparison. A must to add warmth and depth is the Waves NLS plug-in. Thank you for your mastering tips!
Master of EDM was not good, lost the focus on the center and weight of low-end :) In my opinion, loud-ness doesn't matter till that time makes it sound better but if making it louder destroys the quality and sonic of the music, it's the wrong decision :)
If you listen to the original mix compared to what actual records in the style sound like, you will discover it has waaayyyy too much low end and kick dominance for the style, and would not sit right next to other records in the style.
If the low end works better for you in the unmastered version, I’d strongly recommend listening to it level matched against appropriate references, and if that doesn’t make it click for you, potentially looking further into what your monitoring situation is telling you about low end.
While there are some electronic styles that might have that much low end, this is not one of them. Compared to literally all of the artist and producers’ favorite records there was entirely too much bottom and kick prominence.
That’s the context you have to be aware of to make good choices in mastering.
Hope that helps!
-Justin
References may not always yield favorable results. In my view, there is an ideal balance when it comes to engineering audio material, specifically in terms of managing perceived loudness across the frequency spectrum. An audio engineer should address market issues rather than blindly conforming to market demands that may not align with good practice. We are aware of how the human ear perceives loudness across the frequency spectrum, and if a master or mix deviates from this curve merely to achieve greater volume, it constitutes an unwise decision. The mix sounded better in accordance with the perceived loudness curve.
Fantastic! Let’s be friends?