Secrets of Mixing • Secrets of Miking • Compression explained • ISRC codes • What to Expect from Mastering
10 Common CD Mistakes • Studio Monitor Madness! • Testimonials • Acoustic Guitar Miking • Site Map
Separation Mastering Illustrated
|
and Problem? Solution |
From
the late 50's, 2-track master tapes were
transferred onto
stereo vinyl recordings. Studios
with multi-channel consoles, machines and
Digital
Audio Workstations still use the 2-Track to 2-Track protocol. Adding
more technology doesn't increase the engineer's
ability
to perfect mixes in inaccurate control room situations. Separation Mastering allows musical elements of a recording to be optimized separately - without compromises. |
Client Question) Is it any more costly to do Separation Mastering with vocals split into lead vox & backup vox? This is an area to be careful with for sure. The more Separations, the more possibilities for changes - which can be really good if you're into it! It can add cost, but generally not significantly. For instance if we need to de-ess both the lead vocal and backup Separations, it takes only a small amount of time, like a minute or two, to de-ess each Separation. But if there are noises in the tracks or widely varying levels, then each track would require time to make the individual corrections. Reblending lead and backup vocals takes only the amount of time required to meet your goals. Always approach your mix so that you like what you're hearing - our refinements should be "icing on the cake" - not the whole bakery! As with traditional mastering we can't predict what will happen until we're actually working on your project. NOTE: Somehow, one of our clients accidentally turned off the vocal automation when he made his Separations. The client was unable to do a remix, so we had to "ride" the vocals in mastering. The result was really excellent and well worth it - but it would have saved time had he checked his Separations to be sure everything was done correctly! Q) Should I avoid tweaking the .WAV files prior to sending them to you (i.e. removing DC offset, audio errors, etc.) -- I'm assuming the less I touch the better. Actually the happier you are with your tracks/Separations the better - within the context of your mixdown goals. So if there's audio errors, like tics or clipping (or vocal tuning), we'd rather have you take care of that. We take care of any sonic issues arising from DC offset. Solutions from
Separations -- Concerns from Pro's
"I have notices
that some stuff
coming
in now from home studios, where everything has been mixed
in a DAW, has a different kind of 'not
very well done' feel compared to
what I used to get 20 years ago from analogue tape, and in some ways
it's harder to deal with." -Andy
Jackson, recording engineer for
David Gilmour, mastering engineer
Once you understand how Separation Mastering works, you can relax! You can really do less, not obsess and just make an excellent mix - allowing the extra touch of mastering to take the sound to the next level. When you take home the mastered CDR, you're really hearing the final result and you can make changes based on your exact wishes for your product. "[Sophisticated mixing
plug-ins] will
help you avoid embarrassing
(and expensive) encounters
with your mastering facility." -Chris Gill - Future Music Magazine
Solutions
from
Separations -- An Important TIP
about Wave POLARITY!
No one should ever have an "embarrassing" encounter with a mastering facility. Why would you ever be embarrassed? Because the mastering engineer believes your mixdown can't cut the mustard in today's competitive music market? Because that mastering engineer might send you home to do a remix before he or she can accomplish your goals for you? No one should be embarrased when Separation Mastering is used, because the flexibility and non-destructive recallability and control of the sound is unparallelled. Yes in some cases, we have encountered cases where the client went back to recut some tracks, simply because after hearing their project clearly and disctinctly, it was obvious that some errors needed repair. But the ability to make corrective adjustments to a mix means you will have a more potent, professional blend of your tracks when keen listening skills guide the crafting of your sound. When you attend your Separation Mastering session, you will have a completed project and a greater understanding of what makes a great mix happen. These situations are not embarrassing, they are helpful, given the professsional goals of our clients. Separation Mastering can be eye-opening and positive, particularly when no one in the mastering studio makes you wrong for having done (what you thought was) your best. "We have discovered a world of options in our mastering sessions! No longer are you tied down! Separation is truly an essnetial aspect for digital recording. No teniamos idea de lo que se trataba. Nuestra experiencia es que te abre atados a la masterisacion tradicional. La Separacion es un aspecto indispensable para la industria de la grabacion." -Medina, LA, California   
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
 |
