Mastering clipping & multiband thresholds

[bluedaffy]

Quick questions on clipping and levels.

1. At the mix stage, is it equally OK to have no clipping occurring but the peaks come very close to peaking + or - 1 db? Or even though it's not clipping is it better to have the clips a few db shy of clipping? (Also, in the mix stage does it matter if the individual tracks peak close to 0 db?)

2. When in the mastering stage and doing some compression, multiband or otherwise, should there never be clipping anywhere in the chain? Or can it clip after compressing because the limiter will stop those peaks before clipping.

3. I've been using a multiband compressor and have been able to get good results so far. It has a high and low threshold so the signal is compressed between them but if it exceeds the high threshold it is not? Am I correct on that? And if so, why would I want a high threshold? I feel like compressing the meat of the audio but not the peaks is counter-intuitive to attempting to control the dynamic range.

 

[Massive Master]

Quick questions on clipping and levels.

1. At the mix stage, is it equally OK to have no clipping occurring but the peaks come very close to peaking + or - 1 db? Or even though it's not clipping is it better to have the clips a few db shy of clipping? (Also, in the mix stage does it matter if the individual tracks peak close to 0 db?)

If summing digitally, there is no particular harm having levels up that high assuming that it's the natural dynamic of what best serves the mix (not limited, not excessively compressed for the sake of volume, etc.). There is no way individual tracks are going to be anywhere near clipping and not have the mix clipping. I can't imagine any individual element in a mix to ever go above -12 or -10dBFS. Even a single acoustic guitar and a single vocal simultaneously hitting -10dBFS is going to bring the mix buss close enough to clipping that you're going to have to watch your effects returns.

2. When in the mastering stage and doing some compression, multiband or otherwise, should there never be clipping anywhere in the chain? Or can it clip after compressing because the limiter will stop those peaks before clipping.

Too many variables and "how does it sound" come into play. Whether it's "good form" or not.

3. I've been using a multiband compressor and have been able to get good results so far. It has a high and low threshold so the signal is compressed between them but if it exceeds the high threshold it is not? Am I correct on that? And if so, why would I want a high threshold? I feel like compressing the meat of the audio but not the peaks is counter-intuitive to attempting to control the dynamic range.

It's no secret that I'm not (very few mastering engineers actually are) a fan of maul-the-band compression except in cases where the mix is so skewed and screwed that nothing else will fix it. "Band-aid for a broken leg" and "polishing a turd" and what not generally come to mind.

That doesn't count somewhat "typical" applications of band-specific compression, such as de-essing. Still, having the vocalist have a little more control would yield a much better result in the end. But I digress.

Anyway -- I'm not sure of which maul-the-band compressor you're referring to, so it's probably going to be hard to comment. You don't need separate thresholds to compress "the meat" for the most part. That said, it sounds like holding a car together with duct tape and worrying about if the color of the tape matches the finish. If you're running a mix through MBC, I'd have to assume that keeping the integrity of the mix isn't exactly the top concern...