Preparing for Mastering

BY DR. TOBY MOUNTAIN

from a talk given at the Parsons EXPO99 on November 11, 1999.

 

The mastering environment should ideally be in a relaxed "non-studio" setting.

Let's rationalize Mastering... 1. Evaluation by another audio professional who has had no previous connection with project. 2. Monitoring of the project in a high quality, audiophile environment which can simulate the listener's experience. 3. Opportunity to make final aesthetic corrections before replication.

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1.Initial Planning

Mastering has to be included in the initial planning because it will affect other facets of the project:

1. Budget (usually $500 - several k more)

2. Time Plan for production (extra week or two)

3. Art work information for CD booklet, etc.

4. Multimedia assets must be coordinated for Enhanced CD or DVD-Audio

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2. Analog or Digital?

The graph at the right is, of course, an oversimplication. It correlates music genres with recording formats. Most higher budget pop projects employ analog tape at some stage, while classical projects use almost entirely digital.

Whether you mix or record to analog or digital can be a personal preference. But there are some important guidelines below for each format that will help you get the best results. Don't be afraid to insist upon these things!

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3.Redundancy (Why not both?)

Redundancy is very important when you are mixing. Try to mix to at least two different formats simultaneously:

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4. Tips during Mixing

1. Do several mixes of each song, if there are artistic issues:voc up/down, more less reverb, etc. take advantage of automation. A mastering engineer can easily piece together several mixes to create a nice composite.

2. Keep the levels healthy, but not peaking. 2-3 dB of peak gives the mastering engineer headroom to work.

3. Use compression sparingly - only on individual tracks, not on the stereo mix bus!

4. Leave fades alone. Fades can be better executed and will have better fidelity in the mastering process.

5. Log all mixes accurately with complete descriptions! Analog: leader all mixes; Digital: ID all mixes.

6. Take copies of mixes home - compare to roughs for "feel" and spontaneity.

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5. Tips after Mixing

1. Avoid any post production DSP after mixing, especially with an inexpensive PC audio program or mixer!

2. Use digital dubs or safeties for experimentation: sequencing, segues.

3. Make final decisions on mixes and sequences

4. Take extensive notes on the things that need fixing.

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6. The Mastering Session - What to bring?

1. All tapes including backups and roughs.

2. Yourself - plus one other person:, a producer or band member.

3. Track sequence with notes on musical sections that need attention.

4. A few of CDs that you know and enjoy on your own monitoring system - a few that may be musically analogous to your project.

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7. What Can You Expect from Professional Mastering?

1. A professional environment with extensive experience and track record.

2. The ability to handle just about any format you may have.

3. The ability to put together any sequence or combination of sounds you desire through editing control and accuracy not available to most multitrack or home project studios.

4. Consistency in the overall sound, ie. from track to track, allowing the listener to focus on the music and not on "sonic distractions"5. A fully verified and approved master acceptable for production at a CD plant..

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8. What Sort of Miracles Can You Hope for?

1. Extensive remedial EQ and/or compression. Rescue of a poorly mixed track.

2. Adjustments of internal levels.

3. Denoising, declicking, removal of cosmetic noises, ie. mouth clicks, acoustic clicks.

4.Sonic repairs of dropouts, noisy endings, etc. with patching, reverb, wave cycling, interpolation.

5. Your CD will be louder than everyone else's! (ONLY KIDDING!)

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