What is the best plug-in for Mastering?

[JonnyGinese]

hey,

I'm jstu wondering which plug-ins are the best for mastering and volume maximizing. Or if you suggest hardware which and why? Thanks for the help. I've been messing around with T-Rack and I was about toi try out Izotope Ozone... and i hear Wave L1-l3 were good. I'm jsut wondering yoru experiences wiht differnt plug-ins.

Jonny

[Chris Cavell]

To quote Brad Blackwood:


Mastering is the last creative step and the first technical step in the process of relaying your music to your fans, regardless of release format. While many think mastering is about processing (equalization, compression, limiting, etc.), mastering is truly about an experienced, unbiased listener in a great room with great monitors listening to your music. If changes are needed to improve the way your music will impact people, whether it be for the sake of translation (good sound across a variety of playback systems) or overall cohesiveness, then processing is engaged. But the real benefit is the experience the mastering engineer brings to the table. Look for mastering engineer with the experience to know what pitfalls can keep your record from being what you want it to be and also knows what can be done to maximize the potential of your music.



(taken from the FAQ page at Euphonic Masters (http://www.euphonicmasters.com/faq.php))

Now, after reading that, do you honestly think that an answer to your question, "What is the best plug-in for Mastering?" actually exists? Well, it does, and the answer is: The "best mastering plugin" for all intents and purposes in my opinion, is a good mastering engineer.

Cheers,
Chris

[JonnyGinese]

right.. I know that Chris... But what I'm asking is.. OK.. I have a good mix already... adn the volume is already up to par.. what do i do to "master" it. Just make it soudn the way i would listen to it on any old stereo (but on my monitors)? and then save it?... and what are the best tool taht a good mastering engineer woudl use.. I know there isn't gonig to be a plugin thast going to do it for me.. but there are things that are used by the good engineers taht im wondering about... thanks again for the Quote..

Jonny

[Chris Cavell]

We use the exact same tools that you use in mixing...it's just how, why, and when we apply them that often differs.

As an ME, I prefer very transparent (and often sterile) processors for eq usually. If you're completely in the box, that would be something like the Lin EQ's from Waves, the GML EQ, or perhaps even the new digi EQIII, but I haven't tried that one yet for mastering. Compressors are another matter...that really is choosing whatever fits the track the best for me. Most of what I use when compressing offers sidechain inputs...which see alot of use, and I use alot of hardware here. But if you're completely in the box, a good place to start getting the feel for compression in mastering is the Renaissance compressor on the opto setting. Opto Soft can give you a good idea of the subtle versatility you can get when using the sidechain. For limiting, it's usually the L3 now...but it takes a ton of tweaking to get it to sound better than the L2 for most material I've been mastering. Sometimes I won't use any limiting at all, and other times I'll just saturate converters...it all depends on what sounds best for the track. I use POW-r type 3 exclusively now for dithering.

To give you an idea of just how much the implimentation of these tools changes from project to project and even track to track: Most of the tracks I'm working on in today's project are as follows eq->ms->sidechained comp on the m and eq on the s and slight spreading->back to l/r->eq, comp, eq, comp, eq, limit (paying excruciatingly close attention to the following src), src, dither (yes, I'm really having to earn my money on these). On this same project, 2 of the tracks are just eq and dither.

Cheers,
Chris

[MidnightFlyer]

Do you have Vintage Warmer? IF so, there's a good preset called MixTapeLite, which gives a real nice gain and is pretty transparent. I've been using it on the master fader for quite a while now.

It's certainly not the "best" for mastering, but if ya got it...use it.

[adrock337]

(taken from the FAQ page at Euphonic Masters (http://www.euphonicmasters.com/faq.php))

Now, after reading that, do you honestly think that an answer to your question, "What is the best plug-in for Mastering?" actually exists? Well, it does, and the answer is: The "best mastering plugin" for all intents and purposes in my opinion, is a good mastering engineer.

Cheers,
Chris



I have read your advice on many posts here on the DUC and you always recommend that mastering be done professionally. how do i really know who is good? Is there any advice that you can give? I certainly don't want to look based on cost because i have a feeling you get what you pay for. Any advice?

[Naagzh]

Most MEs will give you a one-minute sample of their work for free, so try alot of them out.

Once I went to a local ME on the word of an engineer at a local studio (a decent place, too). I told him (the ME) that the band wanted more volume, and to bring out some subtleties if he could. "Impress me", I said.

A week later I got a complete piece of crap in the mail. It sounded like he took Maxim, sqaushed the waveforms into bricks, and walked away from his rig without ever listening to the songs.

I chewed his butt up and down until he agreed to do it again. For no extra charge.

The mixes are now louder but they still sound a little funny to me.


So, you can weed out the hacks by asking a few questions about their equipment and their clients. For example,

1. What genres of music were your last three jobs? (If he stutters or slips at all on this one, go elsewhere.)
2. How is your control room treated? (If he says he uses headphones mostly, beware.)
3. What reference CDs would you use to compare my mixes? (If he suggests comparing 50 Cent to your friend's punk band, run!)
4. Have you read Bob Katz's book, Mastering Audio? (And if you haven't, it's great.)

That said, a decent mastering job can be had for roughly 70 bucks per song, depending on where you live.

[Chris Cavell]

One way to choose a mastering engineer is to simply look on the back of your favorite album.

Most independent ME's will do a tune for free with the end chopped off. Most of us also keep a fairly up to date demo CD of our work...which we'll normally send for free to anyone who is seriously interested in our work.

So, call or email the person, and ask to hear some of their work. They'll either point you to some of their work, or send you an album...if you like it, cool, if not, try someone else. If you want some specific recommendations of ME's besides myself who are known to work with independent material:
Bob Ohlsson (hyperback)
Brad Blackwood (euphonic masters)
John Scrip (Massive Mastering)
Chris Johnson (airwindows, relatively new to the game, but more dedicated to the craft than anyone else I've seen)

Obviously, the prices will differ quite a bit among the people on that list...some are relatively small one man operations (so you'll probably spend a little more...and get special attention to your project), while others are larger "house" operations where the efficiency and quality of their business model has allowed them to offer really incredible prices without compromising quality. Whoever you end up choosing, just make sure that as an ME, they share the opinion that they aren't happy with the product unless you're happy with the product.

[adrock337]

Thanks for the tip. I did try contacting you but i think i might have sent it to the wrong email address.

Should I just make contact when everything is completely recorded? Or start looking now? I have about another two months until it is ready for mastering.

Would i send a completely mixed (to the best of my ability) wav file?

Do you also do mixing?

[Chris Cavell]

Adrock, I've been pretty busy as of late, so if an e-mail has gone unnoticed or unreplied I apologize.

I usually recommend you start discussing things with your mastering engineer a few weeks before the end of the mixing process...if only in the form of mp3's. A good M.E. normally welcomes this communication, and it can go a long way to improving your mix for mastering, as well as improving the mix in general (it never hurts to have another set of well-trained ears). It also helps to establish for the M.E. an idea of the particular sound you want to acheive in mastering.

Normally you would send the finished bounces of the sessions in 24 bit and in whatever sample rate the session happens to be recorded.

I also mix, but I usually prefer not to both mix and master a project. Just one or the other. I have on occasion done both, but in my opinion, the end result is usually better when a seperate set of professional ears is working on each aspect.

It's never to early too start shopping around for a mastering engineer in my opinion. Take a listen to their work, check out other's recommendations, contact previous client's of theirs to see what they thought, etc when deciding who you want to offer the job.

I've been working on a FAQ recently that should answer most of these questions and hope to have it added to my site soon.

Cheers,
Chris