Pinky
and The Brain...
If you know where to look there's a boot of DSotM in 4.1 straight from Parson's quad mix. Musical bliss.
Professional Mastering is Worth the Money.
- Thread starter BrentDomann
- Start date
If you know where to look there's a boot of DSotM in 4.1 straight from Parson's quad mix. Musical bliss.
BroKen_H
Re-member
I had Quadraphenia and the quad version of They Only Come Out At Night.
Both were amazing albums without the 4 speaker sound, but being able to stand in the middle of the stage with such musicians was a special treat. Don't know why this never caught on. But now we have 7.1 and 9.1...
There are more than a million ways & decisions to make when equalizing/mastering your song. The secret is in the hands of experienced & professional judgement. Don't make mistakes on your own songs. If you really care about how you sound, let a professional handle it. It will takes years of experience to know how mastering is done the right way.
SafeandSound
New member
The answer here is a resounding yes, but only by someone who really knows what they are doing. I think many people get a skewed opinion from a bad end result. You need a technically competent engineer residing in a good studio environment/well equipped. Someone who can walk the line between technical perfection and artistic taste.
Barry Gardner
SafeandSound Mastering
Mastering engineer biog
Audio examples and mastering FAQ video
Barry Gardner
SafeandSound Mastering
Mastering engineer biog
Audio examples and mastering FAQ video
BroKen_H
Re-member
Just in my experiments trying to get my own music to sound "best" for free, I've run into so many options: brick wall limiting, 4 & 8 band compression, stereo widening, not to mention getting the EQ just so, etc. etc. etc. If I were trying to produce this stuff for radio, absolutely worth my money to get someone else to do the work. If I were doing this for radio, I'd also hire a guitar player, some studio time to record actual drums, etc. etc. etc.
So, yes it's worth it if that's what you need. Just like it's worth it to buy the brand new F150 with the diesel if you're going to pull a 38' camp trailer with dual slides, but for a truck to haul your trash off, the 80s vintage GMC with a 6 banger will do just nicely...It's about what you're using it for. My mastering is perfectly fine for what I'm doing (writing songs). If someone ever wants to actually use my songs on a project, I'd want them to do it with full tracking and mastering.
So, yes it's worth it if that's what you need. Just like it's worth it to buy the brand new F150 with the diesel if you're going to pull a 38' camp trailer with dual slides, but for a truck to haul your trash off, the 80s vintage GMC with a 6 banger will do just nicely...It's about what you're using it for. My mastering is perfectly fine for what I'm doing (writing songs). If someone ever wants to actually use my songs on a project, I'd want them to do it with full tracking and mastering.
BroKen_H
Re-member
Pinky
and The Brain...
I like his site!
rayc
retroreprobate
I've used Jan at finemastering.de for an entire album plus more. I did so after hearing his work on other folk's tracks then getting a sample track done gratis. I've used another ME as well, Fran Ashcroft at Happy Beat - they are as similar as a platypus & an echidna (both Monotremes, both mamals but rather different). They have different histories, experiences, gear and ears but both had plenty of interesting thoughts, suggestions and expertise and did fantastic work. My future decisions about which of them I use will be horses for courses based.
I don't have the ears to master nor the abstraction that such a perspective needs so when I have something I believe is good enough I ask opinions as to whether or not that's correct, (I have actually asked the MEs if a certain track/s was sonically worth mastering), and get it done when I can afford it.
I don't have the ears to master nor the abstraction that such a perspective needs so when I have something I believe is good enough I ask opinions as to whether or not that's correct, (I have actually asked the MEs if a certain track/s was sonically worth mastering), and get it done when I can afford it.
rayc
retroreprobate
Pinky,
I have a couple of DSOTM's quads including the Parsons. they are cooll. I have about 50 other quad albums decoded and converted for use on a surround sound system but with full quality and in the original quad rather than 4.1 or 5.1. It's great stuff usually though sometimes disappointing when they gets too tricksie - and often rock lacks power on quad as they hadn't really developed a consistent replacement for the stereo sound stage for power.
I have a couple of DSOTM's quads including the Parsons. they are cooll. I have about 50 other quad albums decoded and converted for use on a surround sound system but with full quality and in the original quad rather than 4.1 or 5.1. It's great stuff usually though sometimes disappointing when they gets too tricksie - and often rock lacks power on quad as they hadn't really developed a consistent replacement for the stereo sound stage for power.
A little late to this thread as I am just getting back to the forum after a long time away. It's definitely worth it, depending on your level of seriousness (?). If you intend to make real money, that's your goal, there's no question. I did mastering in a studio. I master my songs at home. I know how. I do not have the same equipment at home. EQ, GOOD EQ, is a big difference. Compression can excite, and compression can kill. But the several comments about fresh, is true. Even when I was mastering somebody else's stuff, I got tired of the constant critical listening, and would have other ears listen.