Mastering via Internet?

[ecktronic]

I am looking into where to go to get a heavy rock CD of my band mastered. I am based in Scotland so wouldnt go further than Scotland. But i have seen this mastering internet site. The company is called AUDIOMASTER and they do Online mastering. What you do is send your wav files over the internet to them and they master them and send them back.

It seems a little dodgy to me, but i hear it is being done quite alot these days? It only costs £100 aswell which is around $150 and thats cheap!

Anybody know anything about this company or used online mastering?

 

[4-Man Takedown]

I would stay away from there. Check out this thread.

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=126821

Instead, save up a bit more and go with one of the more knowledgable guys on this board like Massive Master or masteringhouse. Then, let us know how they did.

Good luck.

 

[kylen]

I am looking into where to go to get a heavy rock CD of my band mastered. I am based in Scotland so wouldnt go further than Scotland. But i have seen this mastering internet site. The company is called AUDIOMASTER and they do Online mastering. What you do is send your wav files over the internet to them and they master them and send them back.

It seems a little dodgy to me, but i hear it is being done quite alot these days? It only costs £100 aswell which is around $150 and thats cheap!

Anybody know anything about this company or used online mastering?

Ask them for a free sample of their work if you aren't familiar with them. They should be able to master 2 of your songs so you can judge. Otherwise you would want to go by word or mouth recommended MEs I would think.

 

[Simman]

I am looking into where to go to get a heavy rock CD of my band mastered. I am based in Scotland so wouldnt go further than Scotland. But i have seen this mastering internet site. The company is called AUDIOMASTER and they do Online mastering. What you do is send your wav files over the internet to them and they master them and send them back.

It seems a little dodgy to me, but i hear it is being done quite alot these days? It only costs £100 aswell which is around $150 and thats cheap!

Anybody know anything about this company or used online mastering?

What is you budget for mastering your project? I'm NO mastering house but $150 is unrealistic, especially for anything credible.

However, I do recall some time ago, someone on this form was sending a project to the Lodge, NYC (a real no BS mastering house). I think he was quoted a price of $2500.00 USD but I can't recall the scope of the effort. You may want to do a search on Emily Lazar..

or look here: http://www.thelodge.net/


Anyway, best of luck

 

[LRosario]

Toss that idea. It's a scam and a definite waste of money.


From a professional perspective let me give you advice...

Nothing beats a professional mastering facility where YOU can be present. So if Scotland has no places that interest you, and you cannot be present to over see the process, you might want to consider mailing your master copies to a qualified facility that you feel is up to the job.

Thats a better way to spend your money.

 

[Massive Master]

Audiomaster has lost all credibility with me. Most places that label themselves "internet mastering facilities" make me wonder things...

They rarely have photos (Except for Audiomaster, which had photos of MY room), some have very little information (except for Audiomaster, which had a lot of information from MY site), and some are just plain deceiving - I see them all the time claiming to have Fairchild 760's, Urei 1176's, Teletronix LA2A's, etc. - I know that they have the UAD collection (nothing wrong with that - so do I), but many of them are parsing their sentences to insinuate that they actually have a $30,000 Fairchild in the house. BTW - In Audiomaster's defense, they DO mention "digital emulations" of...

Here's a good one - "Mastering grade digital converters" - What the hell does THAT mean? Digi?!? Lynx?!? Echo?!? All of which are fairly good, but "mastering grade" has a certain gravitas to it. The two things that I want to know more than anything else as far as gear is concerned in a mastering room are converters and monitoring. Everything else (except for experience, of course) is secondary. Another Audiomaster example - It used to list Event TR8's as mains (in a mastering room?!?) and after Blue Bear let his opinions out on the referenced thread, the AM site now says "Custom built monitoring system." Of course, maybe it's a custom built monitoring system now. Maybe it's an Event TR8 with a nail in it. Who knows?

As far as offering services over the internet, I have no problem with that. I have clients from all over the U.S., Canada, South America, Europe - I've never met or even spoke to many or most of them in person, on the phone, or otherwise. I'll even open up an FTP session for clients if they want to send their stuff in over the net. However, the general idea of specializing in "mastering over the internet" leaves a strange taste...

[EDIT] After thinking about that a bit, I'd like to rephrase slightly... There are many sites (mastering and otherwise) that are anywhere from overly vague to blantantly deceptive. These sites, especially the latter, are the ones that bug me. If someone wants to do mastering in their bedroom on $1500 worth of gear, that's fine. If they want to charge $10 per tune to make some extra cash so they can get new gear, that's wonderful. I don't even have a problem with "slick" websites. Hell, I try to make mine as "slick" as possible. That's the first impression in many cases.

What I DO have a problem with are the claims that are inferred by some of these sites - Phony photos, phony gear lists, outrageous claims - All aimed at pulling the wool over inexperienced artists' eyes. The bands deserve better treatment. [/EDIT]

 

[masteringhouse]

I would stay away from there. Check out this thread.

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=126821

Instead, save up a bit more and go with one of the more knowledgable guys on this board like Massive Master or masteringhouse. Then, let us know how they did.

Good luck.

Thanks for the plug!

There's nothing wrong with mastering over the 'net as long as you have the opportunity to listen to the results of YOUR material before committing to paying for it. Every ME has a different style and approach, so being able to hear the results in advance guarantees that you are going to get the results that you want.

You should ask for a sample of a 16 bit 44.1K stereo wav file (not MP3's unless you are on a very low bandwidth connection and are impatient). Use the wav file to burn a CD and listen on a variety of different system to check how well it will translate, do not just listen to the file on computer speakers because you are not going to get a full picture of what's happening sonically.

BTW, mastering is about more than gear. It's about experience, taste, and an objective ear. You could put 4 of the top ME's in a room with the same gear and the results will be 4 completely different sounding CDs. Listening to the results is the only true way to tell.

 

[Farmpunk]

There is a place in Omaha, Nebraska called Studio B. They do a damn good job, and are reasonably priced. The guy you want to do your mastering is Doug Van Slough. He is one of the best I've heard.

 

[chessrock]

Mastering over the internet . . .

What does that even mean? Does it imply that their facility doesn't actually exist in the physical realm ? Hmmm. "We are a mastering facility that exists only in theoretical cyberspace."

Interesting.

When you break it all down, mastering is mastering. Most audio facilities have a web site. So if I send someone stuff to master, and they have a web site, does that mean they are "mastering over the internet?" C'mon guys. This stuff is silly to begin with and quickly getting out of hand.

If you found and heard about the mastering facility via the web, then great. I find businesses that way too. I also find them using the phone book. That doesn't mean they're "Mastering via the Yellow Pages." They're just mastering, okay? And I found them in the goddamn phone book.

And just because you use the web to deliver your work to them . . . doesn't make it any more "internet mastering." I'm sure they'll just as quickly accept your work if you send it to them Fedex. I suppose then you could tell everyone you did "Fedex Mastering." Then we'll see other posts popping up asking whether UPS Masstergin is preferable to Fedex Mastering. Now that might make for an interesting topic.

 

[Massive Master]

Chessrock -

I remember the first time I saw "Internet Audio Mastering" on some site - Yeah - It sounded like you could upload your files and run Sonic Solutions via a Citrix server or something.

 

[masteringhouse]

Mastering over the internet . . .

And just because you use the web to deliver your work to them . . . doesn't make it any more "internet mastering." I'm sure they'll just as quickly accept your work if you send it to them Fedex. I suppose then you could tell everyone you did "Fedex Mastering." Then we'll see other posts popping up asking whether UPS Masstergin is preferable to Fedex Mastering. Now that might make for an interesting topic.

The difference between Internet mastering and the other forms that you mentioned is that it's a quick 2 way street. In other words (at least the way that I do it), the ME gets the initial delivery of material either over the web or via mail, BUT the client gets proofs to sign-off on along the duration of the project and provides feedback via the web. That's something that you can't do with Fed-Ex very inexpensively or quickly. It also allows the client to judge the material over a period of time on several different systems before commiting to the final master (something that you can't do if you attend a session without great expense).

You're right though, if all a place does is allow you to send your project over the web, not much benefit there ...

 

[BruceAMiller]

Remote Internet Mastering

I think that the idea of Remote Internet Mastering (where YOU are tweaking knobs that exist on a server far away) is interesting and not too far away.

...suppose there would be a hell of a lag though!

Seriously, if you are doing it yourself this would only make sense for an expensive specialty item you needed to run your mix through...like maybe the Cedar (spelling?) noise reduction system.

Bruce Miller
(Engineering tips at http://BruceAMiller.us)

 

[chessrock]

I can understand the idea of remote mastering. And I can certainly understand the benefit of being involved in the project from a remote location . . . in the same sense that I can see the benefit of a "virtual meeting" via Webex or teleconferencing.

When it's put in that light, it makes a lot more sense. I guess I just have a problem with the name. "Internet Mastering." I dunno.

 

[masteringhouse]

I think that the idea of Remote Internet Mastering (where YOU are tweaking knobs that exist on a server far away) is interesting and not too far away.

...suppose there would be a hell of a lag though!

Seriously, if you are doing it yourself this would only make sense for an expensive specialty item you needed to run your mix through...like maybe the Cedar (spelling?) noise reduction system.

Bruce Miller
(Engineering tips at http://BruceAMiller.us)

Not quite what you were talking about, but collaborative mastering (and mixing) over the net has been here awhile. The idea being that a specialist can perform noise reduction (or mixing/cutting) and you can listen locally for comments and approval. See:

http://www.sadie.com/fr_index.html?/latestnews/archive/rocket_april02.html

 

[chessrock]

collaborative mastering (and mixing) over the net has been here awhile. The idea being that a specialist can perform noise reduction (or mixing/cutting) and you can listen locally for comments and approval. See:

http://www.sadie.com/fr_index.html?/latestnews/archive/rocket_april02.html

Say, Tom . . . that's pretty cool stuff. I was just wondering: Is this similar at all to using ISDN for voiceover production? What kind of hardware or software investment does it entail ?

Thanks

 

[masteringhouse]

Say, Tom . . . that's pretty cool stuff. I was just wondering: Is this similar at all to using ISDN for voiceover production? What kind of hardware or software investment does it entail ?

Thanks

'rock -

I haven't used it, so I can't speak from direct experience. It's basically a file sharing system. Here are a few links to check out:

http://smw.internet.com/audio/reviews/rocket/index.html

http://images.emusician.com/files/141/netstudioQandA.html

The rocket network site appears to be down:
http://www.rocketnetwork.com

 

[BruceAMiller]

cool stuff Tom!

-Bruce Miller