The Definition of Mastering

  • Thread starter Thread starter WeissSound
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[F_or_DEAF] said:
how does that process DIFFER from an ALBUM being mastered?
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No sequencing - no track matching - the data encoding is a lot less. A single song can be a complete project - it's just a short version. The premastering would be fairly easy relatively speaking.

Mastering is just the phase that ensures proper transfer onto a medium, whatever that entails. It's also the last stop to ensure the music sounds the best it can - and a lot of mastering engineers shine by how well they handle the "pre-mastering", which is treatment to each mix.
 
Lol, I was about to sticky this. Someone beat me to it. Good job on the post.
 
lol very true

---------- Post added at 08:22 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:19 AM ----------

You do not "master a song" you master a project for dumb dumbs that don't know

---------- Post added at 08:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:22 AM ----------

pre- mastering is probably just to make shure you have a good mix
 
fyre produtions said:
lol very true

---------- Post added at 08:22 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:19 AM ----------

You do not "master a song" you master a project for dumb dumbs that don't know

---------- Post added at 08:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:22 AM ----------

pre- mastering is probably just to make shure you have a good mix
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True - although a "project" can in fact be a single song. Like old 45s were often just the same song on the front and back. However, that still needed to be properly transferred from 1/4" magnetic tape to vinyl. Which is what the mastering process was for - creating a "master" vinyl imprint in which actual 45s could be reproduced from. Yay history.

Premastering is the basically applying mix techniques to the 2-track to ensure translation, sweeten the sound, etc. In some mediums, vinyl in particular, it also ensures that the music will properly transfer as vinyl has specific rules in terms of how the playback works. Too much low end and the wrong dynamics can cause a needle to skip off the record.

In today's market - mastering weighs heavily on the premastering ability of the mastering engineer. Digital transfer doesn't really have a master copy - as any full encoded file is as good as any other. And CD prints are pretty lightweight in terms of the standards that must be adhered to. Premastering is what most people think of as mastering. Confusing?

---------- Post added at 08:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:45 AM ----------
TheVicksProductions said:
raising the dynamics, and multibanf compression!
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This is not mastering. These are things that may or may not happen in the mastering stage.

And you don't really "raise dynamics." Actually, if you are making the track louder, you are most likely reducing the dynamic range.

Lastly, if you are using multi-band compression on your 2-buss chances are your mix needs work and/or you are not achieving the best results from your processing.
 
WeissSound said:
if you are using multi-band compression on your 2-buss chances are your mix needs work and/or you are not achieving the best results from your processing.
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Multi-band dynamics shouldn't be used while mixing??
 
[F_or_DEAF] said:
Multi-band dynamics shouldn't be used while mixing??
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Within the mix, sure, multi-band dynamic processing can be incredibly useful. When working the mix-bus conventional wisdom is that multi-band processing is reserved for correcting major mix deficiencies.
 
gotcha...mix-bus multi-band dynamic processing and non-mix bus multi-band dynamic processing are two, totally different things, right?
 
[F_or_DEAF] said:
gotcha...mix-bus multi-band dynamic processing and non-mix bus multi-band dynamic processing are two, totally different things, right?
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Completely. I don't think multi-band has been fully explored as a tool. I certainly haven't. However, I use multi-bands in certain instances, like if a performer is swaying in and out of the mic and the midrange is changing - or if there's a tone that occasionally jumps out in an unappealing way.

On the master bus, if a certain element is too loud, but the frequency balance feels right, it can be a good way to target that element. But if the mix is available, you would just turn that element down.
 
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