Help with mastering song?!


Question: Help with mastering song!?
I am using Samplitude Magix Studios!.
even if unaware with the software can you please give tips on how to better master a song!. I am getting the homemade effect!.Www@Enter-QA@Com


Answers:
You're using 1400$ software and you don't know how to use it!? Dang, that sucks!. =) I strongly recommend downloading the manual!. You can google it, it's out there!. It's huge, but so is the sheer amount of stuff that Samplitude can do!.

Interestingly enough, I'm really familiar with this program!. I'll give you a few tips, but only a few of them are particular to Samplitude!.

The key to getting a good song is to record well, mix well, and consider mastering the "final polish"!. That means you need to record your tracks with the best s-n-r that you can muster - good quality microphones, good preamps, etc!. Acoustic treatment is important, you want absolutely no background noise!.

When mixing, use your pan and volume options first!. This is probably half of the battle - you should be able to get most of your sound with proper panning and volume adjustments!. When using your EQ, highpass everything except bass and the drums (not cymbals, the drums)!. I suggest starting at 200 hz, but I've highpassed guitars up to 350 hz before, to get rid of mud!. I highpass everything but the kick and bass around 80-100 hz, and highpass the kick and bass around 50-60 hz!. The idea here is to tighten up the bass!. It may sound weaker, but it plays better on different systems!.

I start with the kick, get it tight, then start adding other things, piece by piece!.!.!. usually bass, then snare, then toms, then hi-hat, then cymbals, then guitars, other stuff, and vox!. Solo nothing after the kick - listen to how it sounds in the mix and adjust from there!.

I compress just about everything at least a little!. I eq mostly to cut mud and to make room for other instruments!. I try to boost as little as possible!. I add little reverb!. Samplitude has some really cool reverb options, including a convolution reverb, which is very cool once you figure out how to use it!.

Most instruments can be cut at least a little somewhere between 300 and 800 hz!. This is a mud zone for many instruments, and a good way to clarify a track!.

Alright!. You've panned, volumed, eq'd, and compressed to your heart's content!. It sounds decent, but it still has a few things lacking!.

I don't like the compress the whole track very much, but I do like to use the multiband compressor!. Samplitude has a very cool one, it is worth reading the manual to learn the full extent of what it can do!. Compressing bass frequencies is usually a good thing!. If you can figure out how to make the bass frequencies mono, it helps in making the bass a little more solid!. This is one of the last things you should do to a track when mixing!. Keep your ratios small, you want the meter to be showing no more than a few db being cut at any one time!.

Too much compression leads to that "turn it up, they still sound quiet" syndrome!. Be warned!.

At this point you should be using no other effects, and should have a mix that sounds pretty decent!. Time for the sparkle!. A lot of this stuff is kind've voodoo, and a lot of it is subtle!. Having a good monitor and taking lots of breaks for your ears to recover are extremely good ideas, as is A/B'ing the master to the original to hear the differences, and if they actually still sound better!.

Parallel compression is cool!. Mix down the track to stereo!. Compress the crap out of it!. Use lots of tape saturation!. Use harmonic excitation in copious amounts!. Basically, go overboard!. Now blend it back into your mix in small amounts!. This is a trick motown producers used to get punchier sounds!.

Tape saturation can be very effective!. There is an option in the control panel where you can set a blend, though - you want this option set to blend wet and dry!. That way you can be a little heavy-handed (but not by too much) and have that thicker sound, but still have the full bandwidth of the dry mix!.

Boosting certain frequencies at this point can have a beneficial effect, if moderation is used!. A few db around 3 khz adds to "attack" or "presence", for instance!.

It would be best to do the multiband compressor thing now, rather than earlier in the mix process!. Again, keep it subtle!.

The trick to raising the volume is to control the transients!. Some tracks will have lots of spiky transients, and these limit how high you can boost your tracks!. Compress them down, and you can raise your volume by that much!. Compress them too much, though, and the track starts sounding lifeless!.

The sonic balance can start changing as you raise your volume, though, so be mindful of that!. Re-tweaking may be necessary!.

Hmmm!. Kick not beefy enough!? How about using a vst midi trigger to add in a beefy little bass drop!?

Okay, there's more, but my fingers are getting tired!.

Google "mastering drums db", etc!. Definitely find that Samplitude manual!.


SaulWww@Enter-QA@Com



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