[ddots-l] Re: the mysterious world of mastering
- From: Bryan Smart <bryansmart@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2010 12:07:49 -0500
However, if you're having to use a limiter, your levels are too high, anyway.
On tape, passing 0DB gets you saturation. On digital, passing 0DB gets you
clipping. Both are bad. However, if you avoid passing 0DB by a limiter applying
gain reduction, then you've still got distortion, as the limiter flattens out
the peaks of the waveform. It is better, when transferring data to a mastering
engineer, to reduce the output gain, consequently bringing up the noise floor
just a tad, then it is to keep the level high, and try to smooth it out with a
limiter that will certainly add distortion. Limiters are great, if you were
doing the mastering. What you're trying to do, though, is give him as clean of
a copy of a mix as possible, not the loudest copy.
Sonar's mixing engine is internally 64-bit, even though your audio interface
might only capture and render at 24-bit resolution. When you're mixing/quickie
mastering yourself, you might put the mastering meter up close to -1 or -2,
then throw on a multiband compressor that includes a limiter to get a taste of
what it will be like when mastered. When you're stripping it back for sending
off to a mastering house, bypass your compressor, and pull down the master
bus's input gain by 4 or 5 DB. Each 6 DB strips off a bit of resolution in the
output signal, but you want that free headroom so that the mastering guy has
room to apply compression as he wants, to match levels, etc. If you wanted, you
could go through each track, from start to finish, just be sure that the master
meter never peaked over 0, and you'd be fine. However, that was way more
important back in the days when we mastered from 16 bit masters, and even a few
lost bits would bring up the noise floor significantly. That just isn't the
case with 24 bit. You can lose 1 bit for insurance purposes. Further, loosing
that bit by cutting back on a bus's input gain means that you're trimming
signal inside Sonar, where the resolution is 64-bit. Not even the most
experienced and opinionated audiophile will be able to tell the difference
between 64 and 63 bit audio.
You and your mastering guys will have preferences, but the goal in what you
give them should be to present them with a mix that has a little amount of
headroom, and uses as little compression as possible for the over-all mix.
Sometimes, sending them mixes with some compression applied isn't bad,
particularly depending on the genre, and if the type of compression contributes
significantly to the character of the song. Using a single band compressor with
slow correction speeds that is intended to keep the over-all level of the song
constant, rather than performing a lot of dynamics reduction, is perfectly
fine, too, as long as you know how to set it so that you aren't hearing pumping
effects. The problem is that a large part of what they do for you is to
expertly calibrate multiband compression, and, while compression can be added,
it can't be removed. If you squish what you send to them, they can't unsquish
it. If you limit what you send to them, they can't remove the distortion.
You know, for sending to mastering guys, you can go a step higher in audio
quality. Sonar will happily save out audio files with 32-bit resolution. You
might think that's pointless, since your interface only recorded at 24-bit.
However, remember that the mixing engine is 64-bit. If you're worried that
pulling back on a master bus gain control will force them to bring up the noise
floor when they boost up the recording with a compressor, then send 32-bit
audio. It will make the noise floor of the files that Sonar creates 25 times
lower than 24-bit. What a world. When do we stop caring?
Bryan
-----Original Message-----
From: ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ddots-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Sean A. Cummins
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2010 2:21 PM
To: ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ddots-l] Re: the mysterious world of mastering
-.1 and you can achieve this with a brick wall limiter.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Shawn Brock" <shawn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <ddots-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2010 9:48 AM
Subject: [ddots-l] the mysterious world of mastering
> I'm always the first to say, I don't know when it comes to answering most
> questions about mastering. And it seems that the longer I live, the less
> I know. You would think it would be the opposite right?
>
> Mastering has never been my cup of tee, and that aint ever going to change
> as far as I can see. Its a lot like great visual art, I have a great
> appreciation for it, but I know my talents lie elsewhere.
>
> I was reading back through several years of Sound On Sound Magazine, and
> found some articles from great engineers who make a living on both sides
> of the fence, those who record and mix, and those who master.
>
> My reason for reading up on this is because the mixing of my record is
> complete, and the mastering session will take place on December 13th.
>
> Its been a long time sense I was the party responsible for delivering
> files to a mastering house, and I see the game has changed, or maybe it
> hasn't.
>
> I'm working with Robert Hadley and Doug Sax of The Mastering Lab Inc
> www.themasteringlab.com
>
> The credits and knowledge these men possess of there craft is quite
> astounding! Needless to say, this is costing me a fare price, and I want
> to give them the best product I can to work with...
>
> Anyhow, in the interest of providing the best possible files to them, I
> wonder if any of you have any tips?
>
> I'm uploading split stereo 24-96 files to them a week in advance, and will
> also be taking the files down on a hard drive.
>
> My questions are all about the meter. When I look at the master busses
> output meter, my objective has been to get it to stay below 0. You know
> how it goes, you start mixing on a tune, add some compression, turn the
> kick up, and bla bla bla. The next thing you know, the output meter is
> bouncing between minus 4 and plus 2... So in your collective opinions,
> what kind of output numbers do you like to see on a tune that's ready for
> mastering?
>
> I don't want to go to the point of obsession, and line A Coleman Audio
> 2-channel VU meter into my chain, like David Rideau does... But I want
> the mastering house to have the best product they can get from me.
>
> Any thoughts and advice is always appreciated.
>
> Shawn
>
> PLEASE READ THIS FOOTER AT LEAST ONCE!
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