Can't get final track up to acceptable volume!

  • Thread starter Thread starter AndyDenyer
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AndyDenyer

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I've finished a track in REAPER and rendered it, but it is much too quiet compared to other professional tracks. I imported it into audacity and amplified it is much as it will go without clipping and it's still too quiet. I've tried a hard limiter but it crackles at those peaks which have been cut off. Is there a solution to this? Any help would be appreciated! :D
 
Whoops there's a thread about exactly this next door. I'll try "Voxengo Elephant" and post again here afterwards.
 
Dont just use a Limiter and crush it. Use A comp or multi-band, mastering is setting up a chain, period. The sound is change thru each process and by each process brought to a desired level until it has reach the limiter if you crushing a mix with just a limiter then you result with be the same, crackling, distortion and un desired sound. Look up Mastering Studio chains and emulate their chains with plugins.
 
Look up Mastering Studio chains and emulate their chains with plugins.
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You have some really interesting ideas...
 
I have got compression and multi-band compression on the master already. I think the reason the final mix is so quiet is because the master fader is turned down quite a bit to avoid clipping. I used the Voxengo Elephant limiter and the peaks are gone with no crackling or distortion- I assume that what I did with audacity was simply too crude, and Elephant used a more complex method of compression that simply cutting off the peaks. I might buy the limiter, depending on how much it is. And regarding your point on mastering chains, where would I find that sort of information?
 
Ok I looked up the price... that is clearly not an option for me. Is there a freeware plugin that is just as good, or a cheaper alternative than anyone knows about?
 
Massive Master said:
You have some really interesting ideas...
Click to expand...

I googled mastering chains and came up with some nasty bondage sites. I don't think that I will emulate them with plugins, sounds even more painful.
 
AndyDenyer said:
I have got compression and multi-band compression on the master already. I think the reason the final mix is so quiet is because the master fader is turned down quite a bit to avoid clipping.
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That's a sign of a different problem, recording too hot. If you're recording at the right level it is extremely unlikely that you will run out of headroom on the master bus.
 
bouldersoundguy said:
That's a sign of a different problem, recording too hot. If you're recording at the right level it is extremely unlikely that you will run out of headroom on the master bus.
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Hmm well it isn't easy to set levels when you're one person. Also the only indication I have on the tascam is an LED per channel which shines green, yellow and red. There is no clipping, though...
 
Since you're using reaper, select all the tracks, and pull the faders down so it's not clipping while the master is at 0.

I'm not mastering genius, but part of your problem may be individual tracks and peaks that are popping up, not clipping, but significantly higher than the rest of the track. You may need to do some compressing of individual tracks so that when you limit the master it's not so extreme.
 
AndyDenyer said:
Hmm well it isn't easy to set levels when you're one person. Also the only indication I have on the tascam is an LED per channel which shines green, yellow and red. There is no clipping, though...
Click to expand...

Why is it any harder? You are right there with the gear so you can either watch as you make some noise or simply record a take and look at the level afterward.
 
I've got compression on individual tracks already, but I'll try getting it at 0db.
 
Hey Andy, I have to admit that I have given up for the most part and use a pro for mastering my CDs now. But I recall having a similar problem a while back. There were some pops and crackles on one of my recordings. They were real brief and you didn't notice them so much when listening - well, OK, I heard them but I didn't realize how loud they were. I had a machine that didn't have any visual editing and I never saw it. But when I had someone else clean up the track it was much easier to get it up to volume. So... are there any sounds that shouldn't be there that are eating up sonic space on your tracks? Transients that might be compressed/limited on individual tracks - as a couple of other folks have mentioned? It might be better to go back into the mix to solve those problems.

I know this is a home recording forum, but I'm a fan of pro mixers and mastering engineers despite the fact that I do quite a bit of tracking at home. I realize that's not what everyone is after though, or that it is even reasonable considering budget. But good mixing and mastering are really tough skills to learn. Best luck!
 
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