need mastering

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INDUSTRIAL88

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ok i got about 15 songs done with cubase sx2.0,they mostly consist of about 6 midi tracks,2 audio synth tracks and 1 audio vox track,im going to get like 6 or 8 songs ready for a cd ,but i know im going to need some mastering,cause i dont know everything about it ,plus im getting color deaf from hearing all my stuff over and over again,i think the stuff sounds good ,i played it every whare, in my car ,at the club i go to, in my house my freinds house ,it sounds good but needs a little more ,what advice can anyone give me about getting it mastered,im from new jersey,so any advice would be helpful,thanx in advance!!
 
ok...i'll put in a plug for...

Massivemaster

before he does
 
This is a shameless plug for Homerec's own Sjoko at NGS Productions in Santa Barbara. He did great work for a very reaonable price on my album "Reunion". He worked fast, he worked for a very fair price, he was always responsive to our needs and requests, and always treated us like pros. And his results were excellent. Can't ask any more than that. Send him an email.-Richie
 
thanx to all

thanx alot for reply's,what does any one think about t-tracks for mastering,any thought's on this one?for software-not hardware?
best regards-88
 
one more thing

i only find myself using the BBE-sonic maximizer,"it really brings out good color to the track"any thought's on mixing pluggins with midi,that works well
best regards-88
 
Re: one more thing

INDUSTRIAL88 said:
i only find myself using the BBE-sonic maximizer,"it really brings out good color to the track"any thought's on mixing pluggins with midi,that works well
best regards-88
Click to expand...

I've never thought the sonic maximizer really achieved quality results for use in mixing and mastering applications. It's better suited for live applications (mostly bass). Playing around with time/phasing compensation does not necessairly produce the consistent results from one monitoring system to another. So while it may sound good on your system, the same setting could sound harsh in another. One of the main purposes of mastering is to create a mix that will be reproduced well on ALL systems, so if you're trying to clear up mud in the bottom end, judicious use of EQ willl produce better results.

In regards to midi, I'm guessing that you intent to use this to automate the plugins? I've used the automation features of Pro Tools for this purpose with good results for things like noise reduction where the noise floor changes and I can automate the threshold value of the noise reduction to compensate. It can also be handy to adjust EQ settings for specific problem areas.
 
One thing is for sure - If you're sending your tracks ANYWHERE for mastering, keep that (BBE) thing away from the mixes.

On the other hand, if it's really giving you a sound that you like, send a copy with and without it. The M.E. can use it as a guide, but probably get better results that the BBE.

John -
 
Massive Master said:
One thing is for sure - If you're sending your tracks ANYWHERE for mastering, keep that (BBE) thing away from the mixes.

i understand your view,the "BBE" im using it as a vst,and it does make my midi tracks more powerful
but your right i should try to use an "EQ" i have the"Renaissance Equalizer" ill give that a go ,i was at the club that i go to last night and spun one of my songs there,it over all sounded good ,couple of things i have to do to make certian parts sound better,but over all im happy the way its coming out.
and what i usually use "BBE" for is my battery tracks,and when i use juno2,daAlfa2,beast and others it seems the "BBE"it gives it more warmth and punch,and when i toy with "T-Tracks"it seems like it overall makes the track sound a little better,but i dont know everything,so im going to try toying with the"Renaissance EQ"on each track to see what it sounds like,
thanx for the info
and best regards
88
Click to expand...
 
On individual tracks, the BBE is not nearly as dangerous. Just do be careful with it - It's so easy to fall under it's spell...

I also invite you to see my hot-rodded DX BBE Maximizer. Admit it, it's funny...

John -
 
I also invite you to see my hot-rodded DX BBE Maximizer. Admit it, it's funny...
Click to expand...

hehe yeah anyone who has one of the software plugs knows those settings would make your ears bleed - like 10,000 monkeys scratchin their little fingernails on a chalkboard. The hardware ones are great for certain live applications though...hehe a 'friend' of mine has them... :D

IMHO T-Racks type of finalizing is sometimes cool for the rest of the band to demo cuts in post production in their cars and homes to get a 'taste' of what they sound like. But sending that to the mastering engineer as an example of what someone wants would seem to be limiting the potential of the projects' sonic possibilities and possibly not a good use of the MEs' time. I'm a garage ME so I'm also listening to what the Pro advice is and would tend to follow that.
 
My master is Bob Katz

A word about mastering. The equipment used in mastering is not found in any fairly good sized professional recording studio. The engineer you choose should be experienced in your genre. First you are purchasing their ears. Their experience. Their monitors. etc. Lastly their mixing equipment.

Bob Katz - Digital Domain, Orlando Fl is considered by many to be one of the worlds foremost mastering experts. I spent a few days in his 3 1/2 million dollar mastering studio.

The first thing he does is seperate all sounds into as many as 200 frequencies. SEPERATION OF SOUND. He gets rid of clutter, burn, quiver. He listens for harmonic problems. He cleans up your tracks and figures out the correct pan for a full stereo sound. DEAD QUIET BACKGROUND. He fixes notes, repitches if necessary. Corrects imbalances in timing, harmonic timbre of the combined instruments on certain chords, moves some notes into proper alignment in increments as small as millions of a second.

He prefers you discuss your project early. When you do your stereo mix if you tell him details of your recording and your equipment he will recommend how to mix. He wants ZERO compression, reverb, effects. He wants to do them for you if possible. INHANCED SOUND NOT DISTORTED GAIN. No home studio can do a master radio air play ready recording. A home studio can only do a very good demo. When the home recording mix gets sandwiched between two major artist mastered releases on FM stereo radio, trust me, you instantly hear the difference no matter how great the song, or how incredible the playing, how professional the vocalist.

He was just finishing a project and burning a CD for a major label before starting my project. A So American Band had a new million selling latin dance album. They were red hot. For years they were a garage band recording on a portastudio to cassettes. I heard the demonstration of what he had done to see if the label had any usable tracks from their home made tapes.

The demo had 30 second cuts, first as the cassettes sounded, then clutter sounds removed, then seperation of tracks, then enhanced sound of the playing, and mastered for spatial balance. From a card board box of dozens of old tapes(some partially melted from sun exposure) he had enough tracks for MCA to release 3 CD albums that could be sold in any mall store.

In any search engine run "Bob Katz master engineer". Read
some of what you find.

Oh, my masters were INCREDIBLE and reasonable. (not the $3,000 per hr fee charges to labels)

Cman
- Ronnie SeCoy 57 old white (hair)guy who got his first recorder in 1964
 
Re: My master is Bob Katz

miraclemusic said:
He wants ZERO compression, reverb, effects. He wants to do them for you if possible.
Click to expand...
I agree with much of what you posted, with the exception of this.

Effects used stylistically in a mix, such as reverb or other effects are NOT the domain of the mastering engineer at all.

A mastering engineer will not put an ambience on a particular track such as the guitar, but not the keyboard. THAT is the function of the mix engineer and producer.

The only effect you WOULD leave to mastering would be compression on the mix buss -- THAT is a much better candidate to leave to the ME, but the other effects are not the in the ME's area unless they're to be applied to the entire mix.
 
yes thank you for all the info,,,it gets really deep and if you get to deep you drown and then the track is dead,i think im going to get the sounds as clear and powerful as i can get them to my taste and then let a pro handle it from there with my budget and ill see what happens then thanx again
best regards
 
Re: Re: My master is Bob Katz

Blue Bear Sound said:
I agree with much of what you posted, with the exception of this.

...

The only effect you WOULD leave to mastering would be compression on the mix buss -- THAT is a much better candidate to leave to the ME, but the other effects are not the in the ME's area unless they're to be applied to the entire mix.
Click to expand...

I would add to that:

"figures out the correct pan for a full stereo sound."

There is stereo enhancement during the mastering stage, but this is a different thing than panning.

"He fixes notes, repitches if necessary."

Without access to the individual tracks I don't see how this can be done without effecting the entire mix.

"Corrects imbalances in timing, harmonic timbre of the combined instruments on certain chords, moves some notes into proper alignment in increments as small as millions of a second"

Again, how would you fix bad timing on the drums when everthing else is fine?

Bob will work with stems (submixes), but without them the enhancements you are speaking about are not possible without effecting the entire mix and therefore should be taken care of during the mixing stage.
 
Re: Re: Re: My master is Bob Katz

masteringhouse said:
There is stereo enhancement during the mastering stage, but this is a different thing than panning.
Click to expand...

so when I'm told to pan the guitars hard left and right for the stereo effect....its not worth much if it will be done in mastering though? or is there something else?
 
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