***Everyone asking about mastering***read this***

[Creamyapples1]

I dont think i understand where you are going.

It was sarcasm. More to the point of it, most of the time, if someone asks about mastering, they are bombarded from every direction as to why they shouldn't even think about it, and at the same time pushed in the direction of having some "Mastering Professional" do it. Not minimizing the efforts, talent, or skill of the Mastering Pros amongst us, without them, most of the inspiration we have wouldn't exsist as we know it. However, There are alot of people here with a deep desire to learn new things and apparently Mastering is one of those things, rather than scoot them along the path of taking their work to a ME, it would be and IS nice to see people actually teaching, advising, criticizing, etc in regards to mastering in an average novice project environment. I'd venture to say that the majority of us who participate on a hobbyist/novice level are under no delusions that we're going to crank out the next Top 100 Album, but doing the absolute best that we can, with the knowledge and gear that we do possess is the goal of goals. Advice from people more experienced, more educated, etc is invaluable.

 

[metalredneck]

Master Baiting

The one thing that was imparted to me in the classes I've taken from our local sound guru is that mastering should be the Windex on your music. Polishing up, not transforming. Ultimately, if it pleases you, then f@%# 'em all with a sharp stick.

 

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Advice from people more experienced, more educated, etc is invaluable.

What sticks in my throat in forums like this is that such advice is usually welcome as long as it doesn't conflict with the desires or beliefs of the less-experienced person posing the question. But when a more experienced person says that some pre-conceived notion that sounds very attractive to the rookies is incorrect or insufficient, the experienced person gets labeled as a snob or an elitist.

The experienced are always asked to be open-minded when it comes to the needs of those less experienced or more budget-constrained. And this is a proper request. But that open-mindedness needs to be a two-way street; if someone who knows the subject says that the answer is more difficult or requires more than the questioner would like to believe, they need to be just a open-minded and be willing to understand that the experienced may not be just being a snob, they may actually be telling it like it is.

For both sides of the equation, the truth is not always pleasant. The question is do we want pleasant answers or truthful ones?

G.

 

[junplugged]

I wonder if it makes any sense to have a good ME waste their time w/ something that was created without any other 'pro' involved at any other point along the way.

If I'm recording in an amateur room, with cheap guitars, unknown quality mic, pre, converters, 16 bit all-in-one daw box or home computer and software, mixed by the amateur performer/writer/recordist, I would doubt that by the end, anything could be done with it. If I did bring it to a ME, wouldn't he/she say, 'you want me to work with this?' or would they take the job and try to shine it up?

Put my junky track in a nice revealing room and I'd probably hate it. but keep it in the car or on pc speakers or my nearfields or converted to mp3, would mastering really ever make a difference?

obviously, you can tell i've never tried it....

 

[bblackwood]

I wonder if it makes any sense to have a good ME waste their time w/ something that was created without any other 'pro' involved at any other point along the way.

There's no way to know until you get some feedback or try it. The thing to do is to find an honest mastering engineer that will give you a real world assesment of your mixes - he might even do a snippet/track for free or for low dough just so you can hear how much (or how little) of a difference he can make in the overall impact of your art.

But ask around and make sure you talk to someone who has a reputation of being a good guy as some mastering guys will tell you whatever they need to to get your dough.

 

[innobidova]

Ill buy your music.

Mine, too?

 

[SonicAlbert]

kind of reminds me of giving up your publishing when you are the recording artist, when publishing was originally meant to find you a recording artist for your song.

But when you master a song you don't give up any rights to your songs. Not sure how that comparison applies to mastering.

 

[JeffLancaster]

So here's my thoughts, and I know some of them are just an extension of what others have said, but personally I do this all for fun and the satisfaction of doing something myself. I did the research on studio construction and acoustics myself, I built my own room with my own two hands, I built my own studio furniture and I make my own cables. I sing and play every instrument myself on my recordings, and I do my own mixing. Now I'm finally at the point of trying to get my first completed works finished off, burned to cd, and maybe posted on my website for all the world to hear. When my works are complete, whether people like them or not, I'll be proud of the knowledge I've gained and be able to say "I did it all myself". And to me, that is the spirit of "home recording" and it's why I like to hang out on this board - to learn from and share with others about how to do everything the best we possibly can, not to be told repeatedly that it will come out better if someone else does it. Now if I was a pro whose living depended on my music, then yes, I would want the best mastering engineer I could find to work with. I'd also want the best studio available to record in with the best available engineers doing the tracking and mixing. But for now I make my living in another field, and spend most of the money I make on doing this all as a hobby. There are tons of great threads on this forum about how to design and construct studio rooms, how to select and use recording gear, and how to make your mixes better. But it seems that many times when I look at a mastering thread all I see is an argument about whether or not you should try it yourself. Hell, I think we all know the pros and cons, but for those of us who choose to do things ourselves, let's try sharing our experiences, give pointers to others as we can, post examples, pretty much the same way we share info about all the other subjects here on homerecording.com.

 

[SouthSIDE Glen]

And to me, that is the spirit of "home recording".

Jeff, I agree with everything you said 100%.

The above quoted phrase, I think, highlights part of the divide over mastering. Over the past few years since this board was opened, the difinition of "home recording" has expanded in meaning, to the point where it has taken on an almost split personality.

You are right that probably the majority of "home recordists" are hobbiests such as yourself, or part-time musicians just wanting to get a recording for posterity or demonstration, or something along those lines.

But every season that goes by incresingly sees semi-pro and pro tasks moving to the "home studio". Big studios are dying on the vines left and right, and more and more performers and engineers are going independant or freelance, and doing this by moving their work into the house (or garage, or loft ). "Home Recording" isn't just for amateurs anymore.

Again, it's a difference of where the poster/questioner is coming from. Just as it matters what type budget they have when recommending gear, just as it matters what kind of music or sound they're working on when recommending specific engineering techniques, it matters what their basic purpose is when recommending mastering options.

G.

 

[masteringhouse]

I found this podcast earlier today and thought that it had some pretty good advice from Shelly Yakus on mastering.

See Episode#34-Why Is Mastering Important:

http://www.musicianscast.com/

 

[noisedude]

Trying to master your own music will also give you a LOT of insight into the flaws of your mixing! Mixing your own music will give you a LOT of insight into your flaws in tracking! Etc....

The problem with this is that it always comes back to how I'm nowhere near as good a musician as I like to think I am!!!

Great thread guys, lots of sense being talked. I think we're all more or less on the same page, and that it's only at "semi-pro" level that paying big money for a mastering expert becomes economical enough to consider.

The big concern that I would raise would be the problem of not being able to 'hear' your own mixes ... cos they're yours. Other than taking a week or two between mixing and 'mastering' there is little I can think of to get around this, but it is worth bearing in mind that there is a big loss of objectivity involved that might compromise your chances of getting something other people will think sounds great!!!

Nik

 

[pingu]

The big concern that I would raise would be the problem of not being able to 'hear' your own mixes ... cos they're yours. Other than taking a week or two between mixing and 'mastering' there is little I can think of to get around this, but it is worth bearing in mind that there is a big loss of objectivity involved that might compromise your chances of getting something other people will think sounds great!!!

Nik

Thats true.


Just try and master other peoples tunes for about a month in the break.

 

[pingu]

So here's my thoughts, and I know some of them are just an extension of what others have said, but personally I do this all for fun and the satisfaction of doing something myself. I did the research on studio construction and acoustics myself, I built my own room with my own two hands, I built my own studio furniture and I make my own cables. I sing and play every instrument myself on my recordings, and I do my own mixing. Now I'm finally at the point of trying to get my first completed works finished off, burned to cd, and maybe posted on my website for all the world to hear. When my works are complete, whether people like them or not, I'll be proud of the knowledge I've gained and be able to say "I did it all myself". And to me, that is the spirit of "home recording" and it's why I like to hang out on this board - to learn from and share with others about how to do everything the best we possibly can, not to be told repeatedly that it will come out better if someone else does it. Now if I was a pro whose living depended on my music, then yes, I would want the best mastering engineer I could find to work with. I'd also want the best studio available to record in with the best available engineers doing the tracking and mixing. But for now I make my living in another field, and spend most of the money I make on doing this all as a hobby. There are tons of great threads on this forum about how to design and construct studio rooms, how to select and use recording gear, and how to make your mixes better. But it seems that many times when I look at a mastering thread all I see is an argument about whether or not you should try it yourself. Hell, I think we all know the pros and cons, but for those of us who choose to do things ourselves, let's try sharing our experiences, give pointers to others as we can, post examples, pretty much the same way we share info about all the other subjects here on homerecording.com.

With your attitude man, it wont be long before you ARE producing pro results.

Good on ya.

 

[pingu]

And Brad is one of the guys who really knows what he's talking about when it comes to mastering. He's one of the major mastering engineers in the country.

2nd and 3rd that.