THE MASTER DEBATE
Jul 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Mo Volans
Over the years as a producer, engineer and production tutor, one of the most common topics I'm asked about is mastering. Artists and budding producers always have the same concerns, such as “I need to make my song louder” or “Other people's work just sounds fatter than mine.” At the same time, people with more experience often ask me, “At what point is my production ready for delivery?” In most cases, these concerns all depend on the same things: post-production and mastering.
THE WHAT AND THE WHY
As with most products and processes, upon completion, there is usually a final stage before delivery. Think of a new car fully assembled on the production line; before it can be delivered to the customer, it will need polishing and detailing. As with the car, tracks may be 90 percent of the way there on mixdown, but without that final touch and polish, it won't reach its full potential. Mastering is the final procedure in the mixing process.
The first stage of mastering usually involves delivering the untreated stereo mixdown — in the highest resolution and bit depth possible — to a mastering studio or engineer. Pre-masters used to be delivered on DAT tape or CD; now, as the broadband revolution continues and 24- and 32-bit files are more commonly used, artists can quite easily upload their tracks to FTP servers for download by the mastering engineer. Of course if you choose to master the music yourself, delivery will not be a concern, although following similar practices and keeping the mastering process separate is a good way to maximize workflow and produce professional results.
Once the engineer has the material, he or she will identify what manner of processing the track needs to reach its full potential. A blanket treatment can never be used in mastering because it is completely dependent on the program material. The correct processors for the job will be carefully selected depending on what the job requires. Certain specialized processors are often used in mastering, but a process that may sound great on one production may be totally redundant on another. This selection process can take some time to perfect, so if you're just starting out, have some patience and experiment with different plug-ins and processors.
Although mastering can include techniques to decorate and enhance a good mix, it can also involve using problem-solving methods to fix certain issues within a mix — say, a snare that's too loud or background noise in a break. These same methods may also help rescue an entire mix that may be a little below par (although that is no excuse for sloppy production and mixing in your songs). When all the correct processes are applied in the proper manner, the track should really shine and compete in volume with other tracks, without losing any dynamic excitement or expression.
THE DARK ART
For many years, up until fairly recently, having material mastered to a professional standard was very much the domain of a signed act and a record label's A&R department. With the majority of mastering studios residing in cutting labs and expensive post-production facilities, and highly trained engineers at the helm of myriad high-end outboard gear, it's no surprise that the results were — and still are — as expensive as they sound.
Some of these companies and individuals supplying mastering services are notorious for keeping their methods shrouded in mystery, rarely sharing their coveted techniques. This attitude has led to mastering sometimes being perceived as a dark art and therefore part of the production process that is rarely explored.
I will demonstrate that some of the myths and attitudes attached to mastering are now becoming somewhat outdated, and that even if you have a limited budget, with some practice, it's often possible to achieve perfectly acceptable results using an average home setup. I'll also weigh the pros and cons between having your material professionally mastered and taking the DIY approach.
Although there is no substitute for knowledge, experience and a good mix, I will outline some techniques you can use to get the best results when tackling a mastering job yourself. If you choose to hire a professional to treat your tracks, I will advise on how to supply the material and make the engineer's job easier, so he can supply you with the best possible sound.
MASTERING THE BASICS
We all want our music to sound its best, and at that crucial stage of the final mixdown, one cannot help but wonder what magic the mastering process is going to achieve to bring the mix to the next level. This is the first mistake a lot of artists and engineers make because the mastering process starts at the very beginning of a project — and even as far back as the actual songwriting process.
If we imagine an artist painting on a canvas, we can see that only so much paint can be applied before the picture is saturated with colors and becomes a blur or the paint peels off under its own weight. The same analogy can be used when filling the frequency range and stereo field in a mix. Only so many sounds can be inserted in a groove before the entire dynamic range is filled. With that in mind, a well-constructed groove with well thought-out instrument use and sound selection is the first step to not only to a good mix but also a great finished master.
This “less-is-more” approach can also extend into the world of dimensional effects (reverb, delay, etc.), dynamics processing and EQ. If reverbs or delays are overused in a mix, it will likely lose punch and dynamic interest, and the songs may end up sounding like audio mud. That is due to all the transients being masked by reverb tails and delays. Similar negative results can occur with overuse of compression, limiting and EQ. Those are essential tools in the mixing process, but if they are overused, they can color sounds, resulting in a confused and messy end result.
When it comes to mastering, if the entire audio spectrum is spilling over and there are no dynamics, then there is no room for the mastering processors to work their “magic.” It is important to keep the mastering process in mind from the very start, while at the same time seeing mixing and mastering as two different parts of the production process.
Armed with these basics, we are ready to look at different processes used during the completion of our songs. If you feel confident enough to tackle mastering yourself, the following pointers should help you to navigate the task.
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