I have a 2488 and am having a hard time getting my CD's to come out with a sound level that is comparable to other CD's that I play on the same player. I'm assuming that this machine is capable of producing Cd's of the same sound levels, just having a hard time getting them. I'm using the eq and compressors a little. When I crank up the levels in the premastering phase, the tracks overload, though the original levels during recording were great. Any suggestions?
Sound levels on 2488
- Thread starter MontyMac
- Start date
The overblown levels you hear on commercial CDs come from professional mastering houses with very expensive gear.
It is only because of the high-end gear and the skill (although I hate to use the term in this connection) that these discs are still remotely listenable even at the levels they are being squashed in order to increase perceived volume.
Now, it depends of course also on what kind of music you make, but if you really want to emulate this, squash the heck out of your final mix with a compressor (so there are no peaks left) and put a hard limiter on it just below 0db, and then give the mix as much volume as it can take before the artifacts ruin the music completely.
It'll sound bad, but loud.
I have a 2488 and it is capable of good dynamics (within reason) so I keep some breathing space in my mixes. I don't like for my acoustic recordings to sound like a club mix.
A bit of selective compression/limiting on some or all tracks can make up for a lot of what is heard as a 'too low' overall volume, without having to get into "straight-line country" on the meters.
Also, to preserve headroom in the mix, always try to roll off EQ rather than boosting.
Bottom 'hash' in tracks can take up a lot of mix space, so filtering off most things below 80-100hz will, on many tracks, help clean up a mix and make it easier to boost.
Hope this helps,
Best,
C.
It is only because of the high-end gear and the skill (although I hate to use the term in this connection) that these discs are still remotely listenable even at the levels they are being squashed in order to increase perceived volume.
Now, it depends of course also on what kind of music you make, but if you really want to emulate this, squash the heck out of your final mix with a compressor (so there are no peaks left) and put a hard limiter on it just below 0db, and then give the mix as much volume as it can take before the artifacts ruin the music completely.
It'll sound bad, but loud.
I have a 2488 and it is capable of good dynamics (within reason) so I keep some breathing space in my mixes. I don't like for my acoustic recordings to sound like a club mix.
A bit of selective compression/limiting on some or all tracks can make up for a lot of what is heard as a 'too low' overall volume, without having to get into "straight-line country" on the meters.
Also, to preserve headroom in the mix, always try to roll off EQ rather than boosting.
Bottom 'hash' in tracks can take up a lot of mix space, so filtering off most things below 80-100hz will, on many tracks, help clean up a mix and make it easier to boost.
Hope this helps,
Best,
C.
NYMorningstar
Recording Modus Operandi
You're probably tracking too hot. Use 24 bit recording and track at about -18dbfs. You can add back gain at the mixing and mastering stages.
Zaphod B
Raccoons-Be-Gone, Inc.
I agree with all of the above.
I too am not getting volume levels comparable with commercial CDs, but my dynamics are much better as is the overall sound quality. It's only an issue when I want to load my music in a CD changer alongside commercial CDs.
Anyhow, as NYMorningstar and Cosmic said, you can always compress your mix during mastering and add some gain to bring your overall level up.
I too am not getting volume levels comparable with commercial CDs, but my dynamics are much better as is the overall sound quality. It's only an issue when I want to load my music in a CD changer alongside commercial CDs.
Anyhow, as NYMorningstar and Cosmic said, you can always compress your mix during mastering and add some gain to bring your overall level up.