The Definition of Mastering

Although I agree with Weissound's original post as far as the literal definition of Mastering and the process of Mastering I think we have to keep in mind that CD production is on a steady decline. Most people buy music online and with iTunes you can pick and choose which song from an Album you want to buy, so the relationship, relative levels and EQ to make an Album sound consistent is less and less needed. Yes it has to sound good and loud but Mastering itself has to evolve with the new age of internet distribution.
 
When I master I think of it as putting the "sparkle" on my mix that makes it sound like it was done in an expensive studio. Unless my mix is off I just EQ to a bit of presence and brightness to make it sound a bit more "hi fi" and cohesive. Then just mess with some multiband stereo imaging to get the higher freq a bit wider, excite and compress a bit. Wallah. Mastered.
 
When I master I think of it as putting the "sparkle" on my mix that makes it sound like it was done in an expensive studio. Unless my mix is off I just EQ to a bit of presence and brightness to make it sound a bit more "hi fi" and cohesive. Then just mess with some multiband stereo imaging to get the higher freq a bit wider, excite and compress a bit. Wallah. Mastered.

Hence the purpose of this sticky. So that when you do that - you don't think of it as mastering. That's a continuation of mixing.
 
glad i saw this post, never really bothered with mastering eq etc, just made the beat ad that was it lol
 
Although I agree with Weissound's original post as far as the literal definition of Mastering and the process of Mastering I think we have to keep in mind that CD production is on a steady decline. Most people buy music online and with iTunes you can pick and choose which song from an Album you want to buy, so the relationship, relative levels and EQ to make an Album sound consistent is less and less needed. Yes it has to sound good and loud but Mastering itself has to evolve with the new age of internet distribution.

Where do you see this evolution going? And do we differentiate between processing across the mix-buss as a stage of mixing and a stage of mastering? I frequently treat the 2-buss during the mix phase and I don't consider it mastering.

---------- Post added at 01:34 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:32 PM ----------

Mastering Is The Art of Compromise.

It is? I suppose sometimes.
 
Where do you see this evolution going? And do we differentiate between processing across the mix-buss as a stage of mixing and a stage of mastering? I frequently treat the 2-buss during the mix phase and I don't consider it mastering.

---------- Post added at 01:34 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:32 PM ----------



It is? I suppose sometimes.

sure it is, not JUST, but including... here is a piece from a good article that illustrates compromise in mastering.


"Mastering requires an entirely different “head” than mixing. I once had an assistant who was a great mix engineer and who wanted to get into mastering. So I left her alone to equalize a rock album. After three hours, she was still working on the snare drum, which didn’t have enough “crack”! But as soon as I walked into the room, I could hear something was wrong with the vocal. Which brings us to the first principle of mastering: Every action effects everything. Even touching the low bass affects the perception of the extreme highs.

Mastering is the art of compromise; knowing what’s possible and impossible, and making decisions about what’s most import and in the music. When you work on the bass drum, you’ll affect the bass for sure, sometimes for the better, sometimes worse. If the bass drum is light, you may be able to fix it by “getting under the bass” at somewhere under 60 Hz, with careful, selective equalization. You may be able to counteract a problem in the bass instrument by dipping around 80, 90, 100; but this can affect the low end of the vocal or the piano or the guitar – be on the lookout for such interactions."
 
sure it is, not JUST, but including... here is a piece from a good article that illustrates compromise in mastering.


"Mastering requires an entirely different “head” than mixing. I once had an assistant who was a great mix engineer and who wanted to get into mastering. So I left her alone to equalize a rock album. After three hours, she was still working on the snare drum, which didn’t have enough “crack”! But as soon as I walked into the room, I could hear something was wrong with the vocal. Which brings us to the first principle of mastering: Every action effects everything. Even touching the low bass affects the perception of the extreme highs.

Mastering is the art of compromise; knowing what’s possible and impossible, and making decisions about what’s most import and in the music. When you work on the bass drum, you’ll affect the bass for sure, sometimes for the better, sometimes worse. If the bass drum is light, you may be able to fix it by “getting under the bass” at somewhere under 60 Hz, with careful, selective equalization. You may be able to counteract a problem in the bass instrument by dipping around 80, 90, 100; but this can affect the low end of the vocal or the piano or the guitar – be on the lookout for such interactions."

Nice post!
 
isn't it cite off Bob Katz's book ?
Mastering Audio, if I am not mistaken,
if so, you should mentioned author
sure it is, not JUST, but including... here is a piece from a good article that illustrates compromise in mastering.


"Mastering requires an entirely different “head” than mixing. I once had an assistant who was a great mix engineer and who wanted to get into mastering. So I left her alone to equalize a rock album. After three hours, she was still working on the snare drum, which didn’t have enough “crack”! But as soon as I walked into the room, I could hear something was wrong with the vocal. Which brings us to the first principle of mastering: Every action effects everything. Even touching the low bass affects the perception of the extreme highs.

Mastering is the art of compromise; knowing what’s possible and impossible, and making decisions about what’s most import and in the music. When you work on the bass drum, you’ll affect the bass for sure, sometimes for the better, sometimes worse. If the bass drum is light, you may be able to fix it by “getting under the bass” at somewhere under 60 Hz, with careful, selective equalization. You may be able to counteract a problem in the bass instrument by dipping around 80, 90, 100; but this can affect the low end of the vocal or the piano or the guitar – be on the lookout for such interactions."
 
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