CD
Mastering Advice From Our Engineers

"If you're recording and mixing in a small project studio,
with less than ideal acoustics and only a small set of near field
monitors, be aware that certain frequency ranges(particularly
the low end)may not be reproduced accurately. Over the course
of many days or weeks working in this environment your ears will
become used to this inaccurate sound and you will tend to over
mix or EQ those frequencies to compensate. The result may be
a mix that sounds severly unbalanced when played back on systems
outside of the studio.
Beyond the top notch gear, the Soundlab offers a wide variety
of monitors, both large and small, in rooms designed for critical
and accurate listening. Areas that need to be boosted or cut
can be quickly identified in these listening environments, and
our engineers can take steps in the mastering process to help
you achieve a balanced mix that sounds great on all playback
systems." Brian


"When submitting a master for post production, try
to peak your levels at around -2 to -4dB. This allows our engineers
a reasonable amount of headroom to work with on your project.
The same thought goes for compression. Compression can always
be added, but can't be taken away. If it comes to us overcompressed,
then the damage is already done." Joe


"A good sounding album needs a good relationship
between the bass and high end. There has to be a clean bass response.
Muddiness in the low end can make the sound of the song lose
its focus. I like to make the bass bumpin'. You have to have
that nice and clean pillow in the subs. Also, just because a
CD is loud, it doesn't mean it sounds great. Sometimes it sounds
better not having your master squashed to "0"dB. Many
commercial releases will have peaks at "0"dB, but the
music will hang around anywhere from -10dB to -5dB. Leaving some
dynamics is good. If the music is squashed, there is nowhere
for the music to go - no room to escalate." Tom


"CD Mastering is your last opportunity to make a positive
impact on how your music will sound... quality CD Mastering is
essential." Dave

Back to top of
page
|