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MASTERING ✵

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◦ MASTERING PROCESS: THE FINAL STAGE ◦

We suggest that you bookmark this page and study it. These are the steps that many Producer/Engineers take when composing, recording, mixing, and mastering a track. [Note: Any thing underlined below is very important and were places that had us ‘stuck’ when learning this process.

Mastering is the final step in the audio production process, where the goal is to prepare the final mix for distribution by optimizing its overall sonic characteristics. Here’s a general process for mastering audio:

  1. File Preparation:
    • Ensure that you have a high-quality stereo mix file in a lossless format (such as WAV or AIFF) at the desired sample rate and bit depth.
  2. Import and Playback:
    • Import the mix into your mastering session or software.
    • Listen to the entire mix to familiarize yourself with its content.
  3. EQ (Equalization):
    • Use EQ to address any tonal balance issues and enhance the overall clarity of the mix.
    • Make subtle adjustments to correct frequency imbalances without drastically changing the mix’s character.
  4. Compression and Limiting:
    • Apply compression and limiting to control the dynamic range and maximize the overall loudness of the mix.
    • Use a transparent approach, avoiding excessive compression that can compromise the mix’s dynamics.
  5. Stereo Imaging:
    • Fine-tune the stereo image to ensure a balanced and coherent spread of frequencies.
    • Address any potential phase issues and ensure mono compatibility.
  6. Harmonic Enhancement:
    • Optionally, apply harmonic processing or saturation to add warmth and richness to the mix.
    • Use this sparingly to avoid introducing artifacts.
  7. Final Limiting:
    • Apply a final limiter to set an appropriate ceiling for the overall loudness.
    • Pay attention to artifacts like clipping or distortion, and use the limiter responsibly.
    • Many people use the [Fab Filter L2 Limiting, Sonnox Oxford Limiter, and the DMG Limitless]
    • Here at SNP Studios we master in the digital realm, we place the limiter at the end of the plugin chain. We are loyal to the plugin ‘DMG LIMITLESS’. Although They are all great, each one of them have a slight different characteristic. Yes, we ran various test and comparing them side by side.
  8. Level Matching:
    • Ensure that the overall loudness of the mix is consistent with industry standards. This may involve using loudness meters and matching the perceived loudness to similar commercially released tracks.
    • Here at SNP Studio we use the “Youlean” to compare the a industry track to our loudness of the limiter that we are using.
  9. Dithering:
    • If you’re reducing the bit depth for distribution (for example, from 24-bit to 16-bit), apply dithering to minimize quantization distortion.
    • Honestly, here at SNP we tend to export at [96 KHZ and 32-BIT].. We have ran multiple test and noted that Each KHZ has a slight difference in stereo field dimension. Also keep in mind that the higher the KHZ the bigger the files will be and the more lag it might process in your DAW depending on How much Ram or CPU you have.
  10. Sequencing and Fades:
    • If your project involves multiple tracks (e.g., an album), sequence them in the desired order.
    • Add any necessary fades or crossfades between tracks.
  11. Metadata and Format Selection:
    • Add metadata, such as track titles, artist name, and album information.
    • Choose the appropriate file format and settings for distribution (e.g., WAV, MP3, or other formats).
  12. Quality Check:
    • Listen to the mastered audio critically to ensure that the changes made during mastering are enhancing the mix without introducing artifacts or unwanted changes.
  13. Final Export:
    • Export the final master to the desired file format and resolution.
    • There you have it. Enjoy 🙂 . Feel Free to contact us if you need any help.

Remember that mastering is both a technical and artistic process, and the specific steps may vary based on the characteristics of the mix and the desired end result. It’s often beneficial to have a fresh set of ears or a dedicated mastering engineer for this stage, as they can provide an objective perspective.

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