For Raw RSS Feeds
Tom Volpicelli, President of The Mastering House, took some time to answer your top questions regarding Mastering. If you have additional questions for Tom, just leave a comment.
What is Mastering? What’s the difference between mixing and mastering? (For the laymen)
For some, mastering is a misunderstood art which conjures images of mad scientists twiddling with knobs or the Wizard of Oz. Others believe mastering simply makes a CD as loud as possible. Mastering, in fact, is neither of these things; it is generally considered the stage of audio production where the final mixes are enhanced and prepared for the formats that will be used during replication and distribution. In the case of CD, the final master is not really created until the replication process. Some may refer to this stage as pre-mastering rather than mastering, but we’ve come to use the term interchangeably.
In the newer age of downloads, the final product produced during this stage may very well be the final “master”.
To understand the difference between mixing and mastering let’s start with a little background. The audio production process is essentially broken down into phases with each one building on the previous. First, there’s pre-production, where the producer and artist get together to choose songs for the album, arrange the music, and organize everything in preparation for the recording session. This phase is critical in order to get the best performances and use of studio time.
Next is the recording phase where the basic tracks are recorded, along with any overdubs for vocals and instruments. Rather than “fixing it in the mix”, the focus during recording should be to get the best possible performances and sound for the tracks. A bad microphone choice or placement means more corrective measures will need to be made later. Likewise, a bad performance could mean more editing, auto-tune, or other processing, which tends to make a performance sound less natural.
Recording is followed by the mixing phase, where all tracks are combined, usually as a stereo two-track mix. In this stage, the final decisions on how the individual tracks will sound and how they will combine for a given song are made. EQ, levels, effects, and any other processing is applied to the individual tracks which are then mixed together in stereo. There may also be some processing done over the entire song, but it’s usually best to keep it minimal. One of the biggest complaints among mastering engineers are mixes which are over compressed or limited. It can be very difficult near impossible to remove the artifacts created when a mix is overly compressed or distorted. Likewise, poor decisions on EQ, levels, or effects for the individual tracks are very difficult to address since the mastering engineer will only have access to the stereo mix and not the individual tracks of the song. For example, if a vocal is too bright while the other tracks are dull, compromises will often need to be made.
The final phases of audio production (or post-production) are mastering and replication. Just as the mix engineer’s job is to combine all of the tracks together for an individual song, the mastering engineer works to combine all songs together to create the album. While many of the processes are the same (EQ, compression, etc.) it’s a higher level view and approach for the project than mixing. Final decisions for EQ, compression, and levels for the songs are made along with the order for the tracks, edits, fades, pre-master, quality control, and documentation for the replication plant. Again, this is why things like overall EQ and level for an individual song are best left until the mastering stage. Until you have heard a song in the context of all the songs on the album it’s very hard to make a final decision on its level and balance. That ballad that sounded so good on its own may be far too loud when compared next to a “rocker” that’s mixed at a later time.
Why is Mastering important in today’s competitive market?
The Internet has opened the floodgates for artists; it has leveled the playing field in terms of promotion, marketing, distribution, and global audience access. When promoters, labels, and potential fans listen to a song on Sonicbids, or any other social networking site, they could be comparing music that has been produced in a small project studio against those done with a significantly larger budget. Even though the song may be great, without mastering it can sound muddy, weak, and lack the impact of a properly mastered song. It’s analogous to a job interview; no one goes to an interview in dirty clothes and a bad haircut. Mastering provides the “grooming” for your music to help ensure that it makes the best impression. Mastering is also a reflection of the professionalism and maturity of an artist. Non-mastered tracks tend to sound amateur against a well-mastered track.
Another consideration is the fact that the budgets for artist development at record labels has been shrinking. If you can present a completed product that requires little to no additional production costs, you will be a much more attractive candidate.
What should I expect from professional mastering?
Professional mastering, when done well, provides a better balance in frequency and dynamics, more consistency between the tracks of an album, improved focus on the important parts of your music, along with a quality-assured source that is ready for duplication. Many look to mastering to solve mixing problems, but it’s often a compromise. A positive change in one area may have a negative effect elsewhere in the mix. Another misunderstanding is that some think that effects can be added to tracks; since the mixes are usually delivered as two-channel stereo, the effect will be over the entire song, which is not the same as applying them to individual tracks. In some cases, a mix can be delivered as “stems”, or sub-mixes of the song. In this instance, mastering can address some of the track issues more effectively, but it places the mastering engineer into the mixing process.
What should I look for in a good mastering engineer?
A mastering engineer should have a wealth of knowledge, not only in the technical aspects of recording, but in various styles of music. A good mastering engineer should be very detail oriented, have great ears, and have a genuine interest in your project. A mastering engineer needs to be able to translate the artist’s vision for the project while keeping the technical details as unobtrusive as possible, so communication skills are extremely important.
What’s better – Analog or Digital?
Both! When we think of digital we often assume cheaper plug-ins and hardware, but there are exceptional digital outboard units as well. Generally, digital tends to be more surgical and detailed in nature, while analog (in part because of its slower transient response) adds a certain smoothness and character. Digital creates the ability to employ techniques like look ahead, which are difficult to implement in the analog domain. On the other hand there can be so many variables associated with analog that it’s next to impossible to code it digitally. Personally, I like to take a hybrid approach, using the best of both worlds with a hybrid digital and analog path (depending on the material).
What’s the most important – the Mastering equipment or the Mastering engineer?
There’s a popular saying among mastering engineers, “It’s the driver not the car”. Obviously having good gear makes a big difference, not only in the quality of the sound, but in how quickly and easily the engineer can perform his work. However, a good engineer can work around limitations while a bad or inexperienced engineer is likely to produce poor results, good gear or not.
Why not Master at the recording studio? Should you try this at home?
Due to the fact that mastering serves as the final presentation, critical listening is crucial to ensure the overall sound of your music. The requirements for mastering rooms and gear are a bit different than a recording studio. Mastering suites are usually very minimalistic when compared to mixing studios in order to help reduce issues like reflections and comb filtering that can come from a large consoles and nearby equipment that are necessary components in a recording studio. Trying to master on the same gear and the same room that the tracks were mixed and recorded in can be difficult if the room and gear are not setup optimally for critical listening. For example if the mix room is bass deficient, then the mixes may have a tendency of being bass heavy. Similarly if the monitors are not full range or are “colored” in some way, as is often the case in mix rooms, you could be making EQ decisions that are not best for the music and do not translate well on other systems. Mixing and mastering in the same room with the same equipment is like failing to proof read your final work. Each stage of the audio production chain serves as a check and balance system; having someone who can view the entire album from a fresh, original, and objective perspective is very important. This usually requires a different listening environment, set of ears, and a detachment from the recording and mixing phase.
In home studios where the owner can’t afford expensive equipment and room treatments, the issues with regard to the room, monitoring, and gear may be even further compounded. You can’t master what you can’t hear, or hear properly. Many plug-ins and semi-professional hardware, due to price range and the need to target a specific market, does not have “mastering grade” quality. As a result, the distortion and noise that it adds may do more harm than good. While trying it at home can be a great learning experience, and fine for demos, if you plan to compete with other artists who have had their albums professionally mastered I would suggest a consultation with someone who has mastering experience. Again, would you cut your own hair for an important job interview, or have it done professionally?
What format is best to deliver your mix to the Mastering studio?
The best format is the one that changes the original mix the least. I usually recommend sending mixes as stereo interleaved files at the same sample rate and bit depth as the original recording. These files are often delivered on a CD, DVD, or even transferred over the Internet. Formats such as mp3 use compression algorithms that degrade the quality of the audio, which is certainly not recommended.
What will it cost? How much is too much for mastering?
Prices vary depending on the experience as well as the engineer’s list of previous clients and overhead. Discuss rates with the studio; some studios charge by the track, by number of minutes for a track, hourly, or a flat rate for an album. Based on the studio, some may also charge more for attending the session versus delivery by mail or Internet.
In my opinion, any money spent, which does not result in your artistic goal, is money wasted and too much for mastering. It could be the $10-per-song guy who, while inexpensive, is nowhere close to achieving professional results, or a top name engineer who rushes through a job charges top dollar yet couldn’t care less about you or your finished product. Given that there a quite a few “mastering engineers” who advertise over the Internet but lack the qualifications, some people like to play it safe by choosing a bigger name in the mastering field. You need to decide if that feeling of security and the name displayed in the credits of your CD is going to be worth the extra expense. There are many experienced mastering engineers that aren’t household names yet do a great job because they love what they do and care about their clients and any product that has their name on it. Some engineers will provide a demo of your material before having payment to ensure that they meet your expectations and to show that they are legitimate facilities, others may charge for this service. In addition to these considerations there is the question of your return on investment. If mastering costs more than you are going to make back in CD sales, or doesn’t help to take your career to the next level, then it may be too much.
What does it take to become a mastering engineer?
As mentioned, an analytical and critical ear is essential along with a good technical background and the taste and judgment of knowing what, if any, types of processing to use. Having experience with the other phases of audio production, as well as being fluent in the language of music, is also helpful in my opinion. Above all you need to have a passion for creating great sound, and like any craftsman, a genuine sense of pride in the work that you do.
Tom Volpicelli, President
The Mastering House Inc.
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}