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MIXING TIPS - PREPARE YOUR MUSIC FOR MASTERING!
Ground Work
In order to produce the best possible results from the mastering process as to how your material should be formatted and processed, our guidelines are provided below. The closer your material conforms to these guidelines the better the results. However, we can work with all types of recorded material, so although it is preferred, it is not an absolute necessity that your material meets these guidelines.
Resolution, formats and peak levels
Best results are achieved with mixes bounced to 24 bit .wav or .aif files (44.1khz or higher). The material should be compressed with Winrar (or SimplyRar for Mac) as the .rar format includes error correction mechanisms. The peak level should be set at around - 4dB, to 'weed out' digital clipping. The peak level may be lower than - 4dB as long as the audio files are delivered in 24 bit.
We advise you against sending any material in the MP3 format as it leads to “lossy” encoding, which can result in interference, but we can of course work with all audio formats. Formatting to MP3 (or 'lossy' formats) should be done as the last step of the mastering process. We also offer MP3 optimalization services for internet distribution etc. where the music is limited in a different way than for the CD format.
Turn off effects on the master buss
All effects on the master buss such as limiting and dithering should be turned off in the mix (this of course does not apply to the effects within the individual tracks). We advise against compression on the primary signal. However, if you find it necessary to use compression in order to produce the desired sound, we would then advise you to apply it as minimally as possible. It is easier to apply compression than to take it away!
It is very important that the primary signal is not processed with “finalization” effects (such as BBE sonic maximizer, Crysonic Spectralive etc.). These effects can “lock” the sound and make the mastering process quite difficult. One of the final stages of our processing is the application of “finalization”, if we think it suits the piece.
EQ - Bass and low-mid care
Certain frequencies (primarily in bass and low-mids) tend to be reproduced inaccurately under non-ideal listening conditions. This may result in a poorly balanced mix. To avoid this, we advise that the mix is reviewed on other monitors than those used in the mixing process. Alternatively headphones can be used to pick up on these imbalances.
To achieve a good mix there must be a good balance between bass and treble. "Mud" in the midrange (ca. 100-250hz) has a tendency to mask the bass and cause problems with mastering. Often this problem can be largely overcome by the use of a multiband compressor targeted only at the low-mid range. This compressor can be used on wide frequency content such as that seen in the case of guitars, pianos, vocals and pads. The result can be a mastered piece that has more punch, depth and definition.
Phase problems
It is important to identify elements that are out of phase before the material is sent to mastering, as it is not possible to correct out of phase elements within the mix in the mastering process. This is especially important for material intended for vinyl. Phase problems, especially in the bass range, can at worst make the needle skip out of the vinyl groove (this is an uncommon occurance and we scrutinise all final vinyl masters for this problem). The outcome of phase problems in material intended for digital media is hard to predict and varies greatly from one audio system to another.
Fading
Fading in and out of tracks should be left to the mastering process. Often, if the track is cut too early, in the middle of the natural room reverb, it results in an undesirable sound when the background disappears. In addition, room and microphone noises are important reference points for noise dampening, if it is required. We recommend leaving about 10 seconds of “silence” (with background noises) before and after each track. If the music is intended to be faded in or out, we would request you to include a description of when the track is required to be faded and the length of the fade you require.
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