my mix got scratchy after i master leveled it.

  • Thread starter Thread starter BRIEFCASEMANX
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BRIEFCASEMANX

BRIEFCASEMANX

Winner chicken dinner!
my mix got scratchy after i mastered it.

after i masterted it, it got loud but scratchy. How can i make better from the "scratzchyness'? Please help :( . It looks weird when I put it back into my Cubase DAW's. It looks WAYYYYYYY more even which I like, but I don't like the scratchy quality's I can hear from it. You can't see any scratching on the waveform picture, while before it looked pretty bad or awful. Weird. Help me, thanks.
 
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The "scratchy" you're refering to is probably distortion from pushing up the volume way too much. Turn the mix down and see if the distortion disappears.
 
Could also be dither noise eh?

Or perhaps to much boost in the high frequencies?

My answers are questions, btw.

6
 
but when i turned it up everything got smoothed out like how I wanted it to be on the waveform. I don't get it?
 
If everything is "smooth" in the graphical waveform, then you have it clipped straight across! :eek:

The wav should look like a fuzzy caterpillar...a bit fatter than the unmastered (un-limited) caterpillar...lol
If you are seeing flat edges (overs) you are clipping.

A quiet mix is much better than a digitally clipped mix... ;)
 
It *looks* "way more even..."

Which he likes...

And now it sounds crappy.

Whereas before, it looked "awful" (probably because it had some dynamics) but *sounded* better.

Anyone else see the connection?
 
here's the waveform. How much is a passive summing thing?
 

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BRIEFCASEMANX said:
here's the waveform. How much is a passive summing thing?
Click to expand...


You don't need passive summing you need to not use some much leveling or compression. You're squashing the crap out of your mix which is creating distortion which sounds terrible. Just back off the levelor, you'll lose some volume but you'll still have a quality track.
 
jonnyc said:
You don't need passive summing you need to not use some much leveling or compression. You're squashing the crap out of your mix which is creating distortion which sounds terrible. Just back off the levelor, you'll lose some volume but you'll still have a quality track.
Click to expand...

??? no i like how loud it is but i don't like the scratching. it sounds like a cat going wild or something. What is a good descrathcing freeware? Also, what does passing summing do? Maybe that will help but i don't know what it does.
 
When working with audio it's usually a better idea to go by how it sounds, rather than what it looks like.

With that said, it looks like shit.

It looks like you went crazy with the limiter. If you hear distortion, or "cats going wild" (same thing I guess), then you probably used too much.

What is a good descrathcing freeware?
Click to expand...

:D
 
??? no i like how loud it is but i don't like the scratching. it sounds like a cat going wild or something. What is a good descrathcing freeware? Also, what does passing summing do? Maybe that will help but i don't know what it does.
Click to expand...

Okay, I fell for it. :rolleyes:

...this thread's a joke, right?
 
can someone explain dither and passive summing? Also I don't think I "compressed" anything. The wave in the picture is a normal large audio file, not mp3. I turned it UP so it would be LOUDER, not change it to mp3.
 
Jamz0r said:
The jig is up, man...
Click to expand...

If i'm doing something wrong then tell me. If I turn the fader down than it's not loud enough. I found something that does passive summing but I still don't really know what it is. Also, aren't there plugins that can get rid of scratching from old records? I'm pretty sure I've heard of that.
 
Not every mix has the potential to be as loud as the average commercial release.

Actually, the VAST majority of mixes (even many commercially released mixes) don't have the potential to be as loud as the average commercial release.

You're talking about *teams* of professionals at every single stage with a clear end game in mind working on the greatest gear available. And a mastering budget (just the budget - labor only) that tops the cost of many home studio rigs.

You don't get that kind of quality from ramming a limiter or blatantly clipping. The potential of a mix is decided before the "RECORD" button is ever pressed for the first time.

Although admittedly, after seeing that display, I'm kind of assuming this is a joke also. But in case it's not...

And yeah... Passive summing has about as much to do with the potential volume of a mix as the brand of coffee the secretary has three weeks before the tracking session.
 
the display is messed up, i think i accidentally had some meter turned up a little that makes the wave taller. It's still very smoothe but you can see a little more white stuff, if that helps you with my answer? Also, how am i supposed to get it louder without turning the volume knob up? I don't get it.
 
sixways said:
Could also be dither noise eh?
Click to expand...
Dither noise???!!!!!
Dither noise is below -80dbfs. Digital distortion is the most likely culpret.
 
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