I think I am ready to learn mastering

Jammer429

Jammer429

New member
alright I now that when mastering one of the things you have to do is wipe out all of the nasty freqencies..I recall seeing a meter that shows you the frequencies that are causing your track to peak/clip..correct me if I am wrong but you can't get a nice loud track with nasty frequencies.do you have any ideas of a meter or anything of the sort that will help me begin my adventure in mastering?
 
Jammer, I'm far from being an expert on this. But I can tell you, that there are "analyzers" and other things that will analyze frequencies.

But....and here comes the statement that will cause world war 3.........you have to use your ears for that kind of thing.

Mastering is so much more than just getting rid of "nasty frequencies". In fact, that's something that should be taken care of in the tracking stage, and then in the mixing stage. I'm going to leave it at that, because I know someone's going to come in with something about "with-holding secrets that only the pros know and don't want to share" or some stupid shit like that.

Someone like Massive Master, Southside Glen, or MasteringHouse is way more qualified to answer this than I am. I do "pseudo-mastering" for my own tunes, which basically just involves slapping a limiter on my mix and hoping it doesn't fall apart.

Wish I could help you more, but I'm really not qualified.
 
Bob Katz has an outstanding book on the subject. Should be required reading for all musicians, not just people wanting more info on mastering.
 
RAMI said:
Jammer, I'm far from being an expert on this. But I can tell you, that there are "analyzers" and other things that will analyze frequencies.

But....and here comes the statement that will cause world war 3.........you have to use your ears for that kind of thing.

Mastering is so much more than just getting rid of "nasty frequencies". In fact, that's something that should be taken care of in the tracking stage, and then in the mixing stage. I'm going to leave it at that, because I know someone's going to come in with something about "with-holding secrets that only the pros know and don't want to share" or some stupid shit like that.

Someone like Massive Master, Southside Glen, or MasteringHouse is way more qualified to answer this than I am. I do "pseudo-mastering" for my own tunes, which basically just involves slapping a limiter on my mix and hoping it doesn't fall apart.

Wish I could help you more, but I'm really not qualified.
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right I know that frequencies are only part of it..as far as I can tell from reading on the internet about mastering is that limiting.compressing eq'ing are involed but I don't understand exactly what I am needing to do..I hear the mix it sound good to me.the only thing that I really want to change is the volume which from my understanding is part of the mastering stage..volume I think is the biggest thing I am wanting for now..lol but thanks for your honesty..I have eq'd the heck of of this track but the only thing that is happening is the recording is mocking me and laughing at me..
 
Jammer429 said:
can anyone else help me
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I'm kinda new at this to but what you need to do is listen to songs that you love to listen to and see how loud it is at a certin volume level on your speaker then listen to your track and see how far away from it you are, you might want to look at enhancers and plug ins like compressors that at the right level can make your music louder, cause if you use a compressor and make the out put louder than the original that can work to but you'll have to work with it
 
valvoya said:
I'm kinda new at this to but what you need to do is listen to songs that you love to listen to and see how loud it is at a certin volume level on your speaker then listen to your track and see how far away from it you are, you might want to look at enhancers and plug ins like compressors that at the right level can make your music louder, cause if you use a compressor and make the out put louder than the original that can work to but you'll have to work with it
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lol I know...I the have everything I need.depending on if the song calls for compression is weither or not you need it..sometimes you need compression sometimes you need limiting or sometimes you need both..but thanks for trying to help me I appreciate it
 
i know i probably didn't help that much but oh well
but hey if you want to know an awesome program for guitar and bass use guitar rig 3
oh my it's awesome i love it i even use it for some vocal effects
 
If the mix sounds good to you. Eq, punch of the mix, etc..., then leave it alone and just bring the overal level up to a good standard. Dont make it so loud you loose all dynamics. Many meople who do mastering for a living will tell you that if they get a great mix, then most of thier work is done. So if its a great mix and sounds good on your monitors, car and other speakers. Then your mostly done. Bring up the level if need be. There is no magic bullet. Its what you like.
 
BushmasterM4 said:
If the mix sounds good to you. Eq, punch of the mix, etc..., then leave it alone and just bring the overal level up to a good standard. Dont make it so loud you loose all dynamics. Many meople who do mastering for a living will tell you that if they get a great mix, then most of thier work is done. So if its a great mix and sounds good on your monitors, car and other speakers. Then your mostly done. Bring up the level if need be. There is no magic bullet. Its what you like.
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sounds reasonable..what did you think of the loudness of the track I uploaded the other day?
 
alright I now that when mastering one of the things you have to do is wipe out all of the nasty freqencies..I recall seeing a meter that shows you the frequencies that are causing your track to peak/clip..correct me if I am wrong but you can't get a nice loud track with nasty frequencies.do you have any ideas of a meter or anything of the sort that will help me begin my adventure in mastering?
Click to expand...
I'm kinda new at this to but what you need to do is listen to songs that you love to listen to and see how loud it is at a certin volume level on your speaker then listen to your track and see how far away from it you are, you might want to look at enhancers and plug ins like compressors that at the right level can make your music louder, cause if you use a compressor and make the out put louder than the original that can work to but you'll have to work with it
Click to expand...
Must we always equate mastering with "making it louder?" It's far from being the most significant part of the process...

And no, there isn't a magic meter. Well-calibrated meters are important to calibrate the chain. After that, they're there to make sure the gear is doing what your ears are indicating. And far be it from me to beat a dead horse, but why are you recording "nasty" frequencies? And why are these nasty frequencies that got past you during tracking getting past you during mixing? And why do you feel that putting a hat on that says "MASTERING" on it, you'll suddenly hear these frequencies that got past you when you were tracking and mixing?
 
Massive Master said:
Must we always equate mastering with "making it louder?" It's far from being the most significant part of the process...

And no, there isn't a magic meter. Well-calibrated meters are important to calibrate the chain. After that, they're there to make sure the gear is doing what your ears are indicating. And far be it from me to beat a dead horse, but why are you recording "nasty" frequencies? And why are these nasty frequencies that got past you during tracking getting past you during mixing? And why do you feel that putting a hat on that says "MASTERING" on it, you'll suddenly hear these frequencies that got past you when you were tracking and mixing?
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no I want to learn to master but maybe I am not ready for it.but as I stated I would be happy just to get it louder..I read on the internet that one thing to do is wipe any nasty frequencies.but like I said I think my mix sounds good..but I would love to master it..I am not confusing mastering with making a song louder I just stated that I knew it was part of the mastering process:)
 
I'll get ya started on mastering:

Step 1 - Go to the Critical Listening thread and read through it all and do the exercises. MasteringHouse started it to help people gain a better understanding on how to listen. He teaches this stuff at his local community college.

Cheers,
 
Chili said:
I'll get ya started on mastering:

Step 1 - Go to the Critical Listening thread and read through it all and do the exercises. MasteringHouse started it to help people gain a better understanding on how to listen. He teaches this stuff at his local community college.

Cheers,
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alright thanks man
 
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