You are correct about mastering being a very difficult process. It can
only be learned by trial and error by trying different settings and
then listening to them on different audio systems(car, boom box, home
audio system, personal CD player, etc) and noting what works and
doesn't work. The best thing you can do to make mastering easier is to
have a great mix. Having a stereo compressor across the mains(this
doesn't mean compressing the mix just the output)will help quite a
bit. Also, mastering usually involves a group of pieces not just one.
The idea is to maximize the volume on all the tracks without killing
the dynamics and giving the group of tracks a coherent feel as far as
eq is concerned. One way to start is to have a benchmark to measure
against,ie a CD that you feel your record should sound like. That way
you can compare your mastered mix against a professionally mastered
product. You're going to need the following plugins or outboard gear:
1)stereo compressor/limiter - for maximizing volume , 2)multi-band
compressor - very effective in compressing only the EQ range of the
mix that needs compressing, 3)Mastering EQ - includes low cut, high
cut, 5 or 6 bands of EQ with sweepable Q, variable frequency and 24db
of cut or gain. My website <html><a
href="http://www.yourhomestudio.com"<Your Home Studio Dot Com></a> is
a basic tutorial on home recording studio setup. It may be a bit too
pedestrian for you but check out the links. You may find some more
information there. |
