How to perform Dolby Atmos Mastering?
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- Опубліковано 22 лип 2024
- Hey! Just created a Dolby Atmos mix and want it to be mastered?
Watch our video:) We will describe Dolby Atmos Mastering, Why You Need it, and how to prepare your track for release in Dolby Atmos format.
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00:00 - Intro
00:20 - What is Dolby Atmos mastering?
1:13 - What are we doing in the mastering stage?
1:25 - Checking loudness
1:47 - Correcting object placement
2:33 - Comparing Atmos mix to Stereo Mix
3:30 - Why Dolby Atmos?
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Get professional advice from our engineers.
Get your mixed and mastered track back. Tell us if you want changes and we will revise the mix for you. And then... You are ready to release!
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There is no such thing as "mastering an Atmos Mix". You can either mix it or remix it. There are no rules. Yes, there are plenty of uninspiring Atmos mixes out there but the best ones push the boundaries and are inspirational. An example is the incredible Five Seconds Flat album by Lizzy McAlpine. The sheer artistry and skill present in those Atmos mixes are stunning. Personally, I'd rather people experimented and we never get to the stage where there is a set of rules like in stereo mixes.
I start my Atmos post production by turning my synths off.
I feel compelled to comment as I disagree with most everything you say. You're talking about changing the mix by "fixing the placement mistakes" that probably is highly intentional from the producer. And making changes that make the mix sound more like stereo because people switch between playback systems? What if the intent is to let the Atmos be something different? I'm sure you are experienced and have a good grasp on best practices regarding Atmos mixing but please call this Mix consultation rather than Mastering. It muddies the waters on what mastering is, I clicked on your video because it makes sense for someone to check my levels and overall frequency response in another listening environment. Applying your Atmos mix tastes on my mix, no thanks. 🤨
You're right") But this can be intentional with a very experienced producer who knows all the nuances of the Dolby Atmos technology. In most cases wrong panning/object placement can sound ok in the binaural version, but absolutely disastrous in different formats (7.1.4 , 5.1, etc). The engineer's task is to find a sweet spot. The mix should sound pretty similar when listening to different format versions.
Also, regarding making it similar to the stereo version, this is the main requirement from Dolby. "The main reference for Dolby Atmos mix is a stereo version." Listeners shouldn't be confused by absolutely different balance, placement, etc.
@@MajorMixing Thanks for answering, I get where you're coming from. The Dolby requirement you're referencing is weird to me and I chose to interpret in another way. An absolute majority would probably want the stereo and Atmos mixes to resemble each other in the core elements, I agree. But choosing to place stuff in the 3D space when given the tools to do so in Atmos should be a creative decision, not something imposed on us by the supplier of the format technology. I know Dolby likes setting up rules but some of the early rules regarding Atmos have drifted into the "recommendations" bin and I'm sure this will too, it makes no sense to me. If you want to listen to the stereo version, do that. If you want an Atmos experience, trust that the Atmos version has been tailored to best present the song given the new tech, not keeping unnecessarily close the stereo mix. Listeners are smart, they will recognize the song even if the panning is different (but as I said earlier, the creative decision will probably be similar between the versions for the most part, I just hate the idea of limiting the creativity due to something Dolby said). Cheers!
@@studiovinden I actually agree with most of what youre saying here. I think there are a couple things that get conflated when it comes to this. One, is the producer producing for the atmos format specifically meaning theyre not even doing a stereo version (or the stereo version isnt deemed as important or may be derived from the atmos version). Id argue that if this is the case and the producer wasnt 100% sure about their panning choices, eq, compression, time based fx etc that they should be hiring a 'mixer' just like if the same producer wasnt 100% sure about his choices during a stereo mixdown. Theyd hire a mixer.
As far as the option as a producer/artist for being able to completely do whatever they want for the atmos version of an already existing stereo mix, I think they should be able to do whatever they want.
Thing is most artists and producers are still completely focused on the stereo version first. Atmos mixes are a second thought and many of those artists/producers, justifiably so, dont want a mixer, who may very likely NOT be the person that mixed the stereo version to come in and do whatever they feel like in the atmos version. Alot of the time the artist isnt even involved much in the atmos mix. So i guess it depends on whos involved.
That being said i still havent heard any compelling reasons for a professional mixer experienced in atmos to hand over an ADM BWF file to a dedicated mastering engineer especially if there is an existing stereo mix that the mixer has to basically match sonically before it would ever get approved.
Sorry for being long winded. Thanks for the video @majormixing
Infomercial, shy on the info.