The Mastering Show

Gear: does it matter ? And if so, how much ?

And if gear DOES matter, does it define your sound ? And how ? In this episode we’re joined by Mike Hillier to talk about the significance of gear in mastering.

Topics include:

* Is a wide selection of gear essential to success in mastering (and mixing) ?

* What are the “essential” pieces of gear we just couldn’t live without ?

* If two pieces of gear can be made to sound almost identical, does that mean there’s no worthwhile difference ?

* Is that even a question worth asking ?

* Do mastering engineers have a “sound” ? What defines it ?

* How does your gear shape your “sound” ?

Full show notes on the website

http://themasteringshow.com/episode-37

Mentioned in this episode:

Leapwing

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Learn to master !

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If you enjoy this podcast, you may also enjoy the Home Mastering Masterclass course ! Here's a quick introduction to the course, and also an exclusive offer for Mastering Show listeners. For all the details, click here:

http://www.homemastering.com/special/

Mentioned in this episode:

Mastering

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Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

In which Ian probably goes too far with his analogy explaining compression using sponges. And in which Jon describes the concept of “sloppage headroom” and inter-sample peaks, and in which we also discuss:

* Why lossy data compression doesn’t affect dynamics, except

* When it does. And

* Why dynamic compression doesn’t affect lossy compression quality, except

* When it does. Plus

* mp3 or AAC ? VBR or CBR ? Do we care ?

* The ultimate mp3 encoder stress-test

Full show notes

http://themasteringshow.com/episode-36

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

You asked questions. We answered them. Or tried to, at least! Featuring another mind-mangling guest appearance by Ian Stewart - although he’s not the one to blame for any confusion :-)

Questions include:

* What are LUFS loudness units, and are there any guidelines for using them ?

* What is the K-System, and how does it relate to LUFS ?

* Should you always use low and high-cut filters while mastering ?

* What’s the best bit-depth to supply for mastering ? 24-bit or 32-bit float ?

* Can Ian’s Perception plugin be used while mixing ?

* How do you manage payments and file security when working for clients ?

* Phase-linear EQ in mastering - what, when, why and how

Full show notes: http://themasteringshow.com/episode-35

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

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Dynamics. I talk about them ALL the time. “This song has great dynamics”... “make sure you keep plenty of dynamics”... “your music NEEDS balanced dynamics”… but what actually ARE they ?

Just like everything else we talk about on this show, dynamics are more complicated than they might seem at first glance. For example, there are at least two different types ! In this show we unpick the topic and try to shed some life on the truth about dynamics, including:

* Why the loudness war hasn’t reduced loudness range

* Why “DR” measurements don’t measure dynamic range

* Why “crest factor” is a better term, and how it relates to the two types of dynamics

* The natural dynamics of different sounds, and

* When you don’t want to hear them

* What Ian really thinks of the Prodigy, Skrillex and the Chemical Brothers - and their dynamics

* How to measure dynamics

Check the show notes for links

http://themasteringshow.com/episode-34

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

How should I prepare for mastering to get the best results ? It’s one of the things we get asked most often, and it often seems like the answers are really straightforward. But then you record a 50-minute podcast answering the question and realise maybe it’s not quite as simple as it seems, once you get into the details...

(And even if you’re planning to master your own music, keep listening - almost all these points still apply !)

In this show we cover topics like:

* Seven deal-breaking mistakes that can halt the mastering process in it’s tracks - before it’s even started

* The best file format to use for exporting your mixes

* How to send files - is it safe to “zip" audio ?

* Dynamics for mastering

* What can (and can’t) be fixed in mastering

* Ian’s "Mastering Maxim” for getting the best results when working with a mastering engineer

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

Bob Ludwig is a mastering superstar. This show starts out with the interview I did with him for this year’s Dynamic Range Day, after which Jon and I dig a little deeper into some of the topics we touched on:

* Why some of Bob’s clients ignore his advice (!)

* The #1 problem with many of the mixes being sent to him lately

* How he used to cut really hot masters for vinyl

Plus we branch out into a few other subjects, including:

* Bob's approach to client requests for loud masters

* What is Loudness FUD ?

* How to use a loudness meter in mixing

Bob Ludwig: http://gatewaymastering.com/bob-ludwig/

Show notes & links: http://themasteringshow.com/episode-32

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

Everybody wants their music to sound loud. But does it need to be loud in order to sound loud ? What does that mean ? Well, it takes us about 30 minutes to really nail the answer to that question in this Dynamic Range Day themed episode, but we get there eventually - and we cover some pretty interesting ground along the way !

For example:

* How to make things sound loud without making them (much) louder

* The trick of balancing loud and quiet songs against each other

* When to turn things down

* What is "loudness potential" ?

* How to get the right balance of loudness before mastering

* The most common loudness issue Ian faces when mastering, and

* The 100% successful strategy he uses to solve it

Full show notes http://themasteringshow.com/episode-31

Dynamic Range Day http://www.dynamicrangeday.co.uk/

Dynameter http://bit.ly/2nnWQY6

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

The first Q&A show got a great reaction, so we decided it was time for another one ! Questions this time:

- Re-mastering - opinions about the 2009 Stone Roses re-issues

- Do young people find clipping and other distortion more acceptable ?

- Should a clipper ever be used after a limiter ?

- Should bass sounds always be in mono ? How do you treat them ?

- Does speaker or headphone calibration software really work ?

http://themasteringshow.com/episode-30

Mentioned in this episode:

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Some of our favourite albums are live recordings - and some of the most challenging and interesting mastering projects are also recorded live. In this episode we discuss

- The most common problems with live sound, and the mastering rules you’re allowed to break to solve them

- What is the “ideal” live recording ?

- How restoration tools can be useful for mastering live sound

- Two of Ian’s favourite live albums

- Techniques for mastering live classical music

- How to preserve the most important aspect of any live recording in mastering

Links: http://themasteringshow.com/episode-29/

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn to master !

Click HERE to see Ian's courses and mastering resources

Leapwing

Find out more about Leapwing's plugins