I Studied Mastering for 2 Months THIS is what I learned! | Drum and Bass Tutorial

10 simple steps to master your track. Mastering is an elusive artform that takes years to master, no pun. However you can learn basic skills to do "self" masters so you can play your track in a set. In this video I show you how to master a drum and bass track for beginners.
MASTERING RESOURCES:
TBProAudio mvMeter2 → bit.ly/2ZPrSMM
How to Read VU → Meter bit.ly/2NZ5E8o
Using A VU Meter To Do Gain Staging → • Using A VU Meter To Do...
LUFS Explained → • LUFS Explained - SIMPL...
MIX/MASTER GURUS:
Andrew Scheps → • Andrew Scheps: Balanci...
Break → • Pro Mastering Session ...
Fanu → fanumusic.com/
Glenn Schick → • Mastering with Headpho...
Ian Shepard → @ProductionAdvice
Joe Gilder → @HomeStudioCorner
Resound → @Resoundsound
Subvert Central Mastering → www.scmastering.com/
White Sea Studio → @Whiteseastudio
GREAT MASTERING SERIES:
Mastering Essentials Series | Sound On Sound → bit.ly/2NCLu40
Are You Listening Series Season 1 | iZotope → bit.ly/2MnXplE
Are You Listening Series Season 2 | iZotope → bit.ly/37PlaKX
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0:00 Intro
1:59 1 - Listening Environment
3:46 2 - Audio Platform
4:07 3 - Premaster File
5:16 4 - Gain Staging / Metering
7:16 5 - Limiting
9:54 6 - Tonal Balance
15:13 7 - Tonal Control
17:43 8 - Coloration
22:43 9 - Dynamics
28:37 10 - Exporting
29:18 Review
29:48 Final Thoughts

[@STRANJAH]

💡 What is in YOUR mastering chain? 😀

[@vnayini]

Nice! Interested to hear your perspective on mastering. My chain is pretty simple - saturation, compression, EQ and a limiter to toggle on/off mono. Am I doing it all wrong? :)

[@SerendipityForever]

@@vnayini It sounds like you're doing the right things, is that the exact order of your process?

[@0e0]

DMGaudio Equillibrium, NI Passive EQ (even if it's older i have some settings that make things quick for me) Elysia Nvelope, DMGAudio TrackLimit

[@vnayini]

@@SerendipityForever Yep! For now. Looking forward to incorporating your insights.

[@STRANJAH]

@@0e0 Man I want the DMG stuff, I played with Multiplicity and it sounds so transparent and responsive! Expensive but I'll eventually get them all.

[@grizcuz]

My only tip is.....WAIT. By the time you've composed and mixed your tune. You'll have heard it dozens of times. You'll have no critical ability left. Save your project and don't open it again for a week or two. You'll be surprised by what you have or haven't done to the mix. If you've got good friends who produce similar types of music and have a similar skill level (or even better are far more advanced than you). Get them to give it a close critical listen and ask them to write some notes about what you are doing right or wrong. But don't give it to a friend who might get jealous of your work and just dent your confidence. If you can afford it, pay someone to master your tune, just once. Then compare your master to theirs and see how close you can get on your own. There's more than one way to skin a cat. All that matters is how it ultimately sounds.

[@STRANJAH]

That's good advice, wait for some objectivity. The reason I'm teaching mastering is some users would like to do a quick master so they can play their tune in a set and share it to DJ friends, and make sure it holds up in a DJ mix. I do encourage paying for a mastering engineer for an official release, unless you feel confident doing it.

[@starmadnes1401]

I agree with your method.

[@ultrajayme]

I like using Ozone for my home mastering.

[@badnrad]

Honestly this is some of the most priceless advice you can stumble across on the internet. One of those things you end up having to learn on your own over many many years lol, like me...

[@picas256]

Someone give this man a medal!

[@djkrptdnb]

Yep, he’s a legend in his own right

[@kasparr1304]

Come here to say this...dude is the real MVP

[@tonkatim420]

inorite. Legend!

[@antonzaitsev1975]

My masterin chain, utlity (bass mono below 150hz), fabfilter (cutoff at 30hz to 21k hz), mix buss compressor (OTT or other bus comp), ozone 9 elements, youlean loudness meter, span

[@alanattias]

This is what I've been waiting for!

[@rionvalet]

This is totally what I've been waiting for!

[@georgeespley9177]

Thank you stranjah! Never miss any of ur vids!

[@pau1_r3d61]

Great video Stranjah. Good luck on your mastering journey.

[@sammcgowan2236]

I've been looking for a video like this for years!

[@johncitizen8828]

Again, incredible, relevant content delivered with clear explanation. Keep it up Stranjah! 🙏

[@djkwes]

Another great resource video and well explained. Keep going! You are helping me out a lot! Salute 👏

[@vaenson]

Your tutorial stack actually helped me to finish a track! Keep up your great work!

[@anattaevergreen4115]

genius thanks for taking the time and putting this together! learned a lot and you express everything really well. Props and keep up the awesome work

[@Rprth]

loving it and loving your speech, you're awesome man.

[@franschan]

Very well thought out and accurate information, would be nice to stumble upon this early in one's audio journey. Kudos Stranjah!! Good job Keep it up

[@Bside360]

Very stoked to see this video. I have been struggling using Ozone and finalizing. Your workflow chart and knowledge were so helpful! Looking forward to improving my mix

[@patrickcassidy2179]

This is great! Awesome tutorial

[@drummouth]

This video is a great help! Many thanks

[@senseofawemusic]

This was Awesome! What stood out to me the most was what you did w the bass and mid bass in the Multiband compressor. It really controlled the sounds and made it much cleaner and smooth sounding.

[@sugarfree_shane8374]

Easily one of the most informative tutorials I've ever seen. Thank u bro!

[@SevenVeilsMusic]

Thank you for this!

[@mascarimedia]

Another amazing video - thank you!

[@patrickmurray8701]

Wow! Well done Stranjah

[@teecee301]

Awesome Vid Bro, really helped me a lot

[@danilaryzhov6675]

Amazing video, thanks for such a great lesson!

[@STRANJAH]

My pleasure!

[@SirTroyanDub]

Great video man ! Much Love! :)

[@ASH-ou4cg]

1:31 big it up Alan! So great of you to do all this work, to help us all out!

[@STRANJAH]

Thanks man! I want to keep learning more and share knowledge :)

[@gracescale]

Thanks for the work. Would be cool to know also more about using meters and what aspects to pay attention to.

[@fougertmusic]

Thanks a lot for this video, I loved it!! :-) On my Master Buss I have Ozone 7 Maximazer (acting as a Limiter), SPAN By Voxengo (Analitic tool) & Utility which I use to create a volume fade at the end, so tracks fade out into silence at the end.

[@regislabarde5161]

Very interesting, thank you for your share

[@sutusmihaly]

..awesome tutorial..

[@joedoe9717]

Thank you very much,gold!

[@TheDuked]

Top one G! one thing to add is a linear phase EQ will help stop any affect the boost/reduction may have on the frequencies around it, so this can be useful as a first EQ

[@MadazzaMusik]

I made my first dnb tune after watching one of your videos. Thanks m8

[@ASH-ou4cg]

7:44 verly clearly said Alan. Thanks for pointing out this important detail, that the limiter is in fact at the END of the chain, despite being one of the first things that is inserted.

[@STRANJAH]

Okay glad it was. I didn’t want to confuse people. But adding at the start of the session is an important step in this particular engineers process.

[@user-vg5rv5xf4u]

Your videos are the best ...I already know like 50% of the knowledge but you boost that to like 98%

[@threethievesmusic]

The Amek 200 is amazing so smooth!

[@user-td9lk9xw6i]

so helpful!

[@ASH-ou4cg]

10:34 it is important to note that these values and amounts should be based on the track itself. These are by no means 'presets', or values that are always to be adjusted. One must listen to the track and hear what 'actually' needs adjusting and go from there. What is good for one track, may not be the same for another and this definitely stands true depending on the quality of the original mixdown.

[@STRANJAH]

Yes. One thing I admit I missed in this video is the use of the spectrum analyzer

[@IamDjvanZ]

Thanks Alot For this Tutorial

[@Tumanic1996]

DUDE, THANK U X

[@LL0rGGe]

You dah most underrated producer on youtube. luh dis shiiiiii

[@streakysupercat]

Amazing tutorial!! I use Ozone Maximizer & SPAN on my Master!

[@natureswayresidentialsolut230]

THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!! I am struggling big time with wrapping my head around mastering and of course I'm probably overthinking too much. Going to sit down and watch this tomorrow morning! Big up! - Damyja

[@STRANJAH]

Your welcome, the intention of this video is help you get the basics so you can perform masters for tracks you want to play in a set. I dn't expect everyone to be Master Engineers, as that takes years. But this will give you a broad set of skills to start getting your tracks up to par so you play them out and share them.

[@TylerWoodwardhackedmyaccount]

@@STRANJAH Thank you! Question.....do you know, or can you recommend anyone who does such great tutorials like yours, but with Cubase, and focused on DNB? I do learn a lot from you, but it can be a little difficult to translate with a different DAW at times. No worries if you don't...just thought I'd ask and take a shot in the dark! Much appreciated!

[@TylerWoodwardhackedmyaccount]

@@STRANJAH btw this is still Damyja...i have a few different accounts which is why my questions show on 2 different accounts here, lol

[@Rawwb]

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR KNOWLEDGE. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@johncitizen8828]

My (ahem) ‘mastering’ 😂 chain: Pro-Q rolling off below 30hz, Glue Compressor, sometimes PSP Vintage Warmer *VERY* lightly with a GR of between 0.5 -1db, Ableton’s Utility to check my mix in Mono, finally Pro-L and then Metric A/B for referencing.

[@ketsi3079]

i use EQ to cutoff anything below 20hz and above 20k hz, ozone imager to control bass below 100hz and highs above 13.8k hz, if needed i use another Parametric EQ, dynamic EQ or Gulfoss for tonal balance/control, SSL comp for dynamics and lastly ozone Maximizer for the gain and limiting. Span is my go-to spectrum analyzer and sonarworks reference 4 to improve my studio monitors.

[@boxfreshbeatslondon8493]

amazing!

[@st-ev4ll]

gold.

[@ferlez2370]

I"m on another genre, but the way you organized the process is very useful!

[@Rzn8B58]

The mastering chain I use now is like this. 1. mono filter to control the low lows with a cutoff at 20hz and add some punch to the sub range and low mids with a 0.6- 1db boost to the overall low end. 2. eq taking out some 160 hz build up and some 600 hz build up and any other resonance or build I can find ,but small 1-2 db changes unless its really annoying resonance. 3. Saturation knob set to high and boost until it sounds ugly then back off till it sounds louder and not distorting in a nasty way. 4. Saturation knob set to neutral and same process as highs 5. Saturation knob set to low and same process as other 2 knobs. 6. Ott flavored to taste 7. Maximizer with the milisecond timing of every knob I can control set to the ms of the bpm im working at. I just play with the values until it sounds good. 8. Soft clipper set threshold to -0.6 db and play with it till it's as loud as possible without clipping red on the master. I may add a camel phat sometimes before the ott if it sounds good. It's such a dark art lol. It's cool to see other peoples chains, I like looking at the pop guys vocal chains, blows my mind. Eqing is the hardest thing to me because we all hear different and what might sound good to me may sound like butchered crap to someone else. Thanks for sharing your chain this is really great information and you covered a lot of what I also found on my journey through the internet for knowledge on this topic, thanks bruv.

[@jentaro]

Very diligent work. I really enjoy when I see music editing done with care and from a Plugin Alliance fellow user at that. Shadow Hills and BAX EQ are really something to swear by. Still haven't tried the AMEK, though.

[@originaali]

Can you consider to make tutorial about ghost triggers and multiband side-chaining 🦦? Great videos mate!

[@tmpltmusic6754]

Nice Vid... Thanks for sharing. At my mastering progress, I only use max 3-4 tools. Neve 542, Tegelere Creme, Kush Aaudio Silika and a Limiter (depends on the Song). Mastering can not do magic, if the mix is not good, only a few engineers could fix it... -14 LUFS is what I do. If you want it louder, turn up the volume. Smashing the Limiter in order to get -5 LUFS is not the right way for me.

[@neonraytracer8846]

5 minutes in, and I'm really looking forward to the rest! I love your content!!

[@STRANJAH]

Thanks I'm glad you picked up on that, as hand gestures and body lingo is something I'd like to improve on. I'll check out the JP Philips video. I also watch Charisma Matrix and Evan Carmichael for this kind of material. Much respects.

[@ZombieGhost2250]

I love warmness in my bottom end!

[@DelonCore]

Thanks Fam the tips! Much Love!

[@badnrad]

Thx king

[@nolanroberts2710]

Atta boy reppin Canada like a big boi.. Massive tips in this everybody take a chair and have a listen.. Canadas got some fire DNB comin! Big ups to ya homie!

[@STRANJAH]

Bigup man!!

[@aotradimension_music]

Excelente ¡¡

[@chalversonfry]

Thanks again for a great tutorial! Have you, or are you planning to do a tutorial on how to mix a jungle / DnB track?

[@XVIV1504]

amazing video mate! can you make a FJAAK type breakbeat techno tutorial?

[@seen632]

i use fab filter pro q 3 and ozone 8, limitless limiter and l2 maximizer

[@AlMondO93]

I had to do a couple of rewinds on that intro. Funny af.

[@STRANJAH]

glad you enjoyed it, I thought I'd do something more subtle this time haha

[@kmmusic1668]

Big up!

[@dvs4xn]

Super nice video!, also wanted to ask if you still doing dnb tutorials could you try out macky gees black widow bass, its a super classic sound but im really strugeling to recreate it

[@DJPaulaFrost]

Epic video. Thank you, I'm in the studio tomorrow working on my album. BTW your website is currently down : (

[@durotimiadebutu8450]

This channel has literally taught me everything i know about producing

[@bugatjixl4789]

Same

[@ObedOtoo]

I have hold the believe that the best use of reference tracks is at the mixing stage rather than the mastering stage where you are very limited in the moves you can make to get close to the reference track .

[@STRANJAH]

good advice

[@ObedOtoo]

@@STRANJAH If we pay attention to details and make sure that at the mixing stage we dot the i's and cross the t's at the mastering stage we might have to do a lot.

[@AlessandroArcidiaco]

For me too many processors in the chain. I usually tend to use corrective EQ + corrective comp + color eq + color comp + limiter/clipper. Anyway, thanks for sharing!

[@0e0]

typically open-back headphones have better transient response than closed back.

[@SkorpionDnB]

Thank you!!!!!!

[@SkorpionDnB]

and i have the same headphones! hopefully now my masters wont suck anymore

[@STRANJAH]

What do you think of them?

[@berenonliproducoes7765]

mano tu é brabo

[@paradigm_shift9]

Awesome advice! Thanks for making all these videos much appreciated! Also would it be possible to send you a track to get your input on it?

[@ASH-ou4cg]

28:27 big up the Macc! I get my stuff done by him too!

[@STRANJAH]

He’s a classy guy and does a great job!

[@georgeespley9177]

My mastering chain is Utility bass mono under 200hz (that’s what Ed rush and optical said they do) Eq Compression Saturation Multiband compression Ozone imager Gullfoss eq (cool plugin, it adds clarity to ur mix with just a few adjustments) Then I add a limiter at the end pushing it up so it’s being compressed 3-5 dB I have only been producing nearly six months so I could probably improve my mastering chain -any tips appreciated! Cheers!

[@STRANJAH]

Thanks That gullfoss EQ looks nice for sure!

[@georgeespley9177]

STRANJAH It is a great plugin It makes any mix sound better haha 😂

[@ASH-ou4cg]

27:55 sounds pretty great to me!

[@TheWwhhiizzzz]

Great info. One comment, the SSL bus compressor has a very slow attack setting, wouldn't that actually emphasize punch and only reduce audio after the 30ms transient? I typically use that kind of slow compressor to add punch on a drum BUSS and glue shit

[@euphoria.8437]

So just a quick question , when the limiter is at the end of the mastering chain … when you eq and it makes the track just a bit louder should you go back into your LUFS meter and make sure your tracks at the lufs it was before u eq’d … if that made any sense at all 😂😂 what a legend tho this has gave me a much better understanding of mastering !

[@mariuskramer7121]

waves analog button just adds some annoying noise btw i also recommend to activate true peak on your limiter

[@ASH-ou4cg]

19:21 Nice! Would be a great match for my Dangerous D-Box! ;)

[@STRANJAH]

It could be a nice addition for sure I heard it’s in virtually every mastering studio

[@FranceBaguette01]

Hi, any chance you can make a tutorial on how to recreate the bass in « Flat T - L Bass » ?

[@CtrlZMusic]

true peak help you to prevent this analog clipping :)

[@STRANJAH]

thx I found out after this video!

[@ASH-ou4cg]

22:45 ah! The Mighty 'Glue'! I swear by this buss compressor. I have the hardware version and ALL my tracks go through this!

[@STRANJAH]

Ahh so you are familiar with this one too? I recently got it

[@ASH-ou4cg]

@@STRANJAH In hardware yes. I had the SSL 4000G plugin on my UAD system, but decided I wanted the hardware version, so invested in this top notch clone a few years back. www.audio-scape.com/products/buss-compressor

[@briancase6180]

Very good intro to mastering! Best of all, you demystify it. I have been on a similar journey over the past year and I have arrived at basically the same place you have. One question: why did you use only the clipper in the TDR limiter 6 GE? I think their limiter is also very good. It's actually a great starting point for getting into mastering as it has a pretty complete chain in one plugin for $50: hard to beat. I think standard clip is a great clipper, by the way. I should also give a shout-out to the bx-digital eq. I like to use it in mid-side mode. It's great for those small moves, as you illustrate. One more thing: you can use an analog-modelled eq for some bit of saturation. Try a pultec emulation (e.g., analog obsession RARE). The pultec is great for some punch in the low end (be careful with it!).

[@STRANJAH]

I don't have any other clipper other than the one in TDR, but I will look into the one you mentioned, thank you!

[@sramirez1906]

Great content as always. What's that reference track?

[@CriptMusic]

have you tested the elysia museq? recomend defo. it has a really warm and smooth sound and its really nice to work with 🙏

[@STRANJAH]

Yes heard good things, I dabbled with it. I liked the controls on Amek more, but I will give Museq another try.

[@JessicaSaves]

Great video, nice and to the point. One criticism... talking in between A/B comparisons ruins the effect

[@NRTKDNB]

I have DT770pro 80Ohm :) also good for mastering

[@EXKORTEX]

Why the 'dynamic phase' setting on the Pro-MB and not the 'liniar phase' one ?

[@Hardlytryinganyway]

Do you think you could use the Ozone Dynamic EQ in place of the multiband compressor at the tonal contorl section? I know its not really a compressor as such, but distortion of the low end and kick is my main problem and I haven't been using multiband so I think this might help.

[@STRANJAH]

Yes absolutely. I was using it before I had MB.

[@Hardlytryinganyway]

Amazing, thanks so much for this video, it's been so much help 🙏

[@notificationsareblocked.yo53]

Put a T Racks Classic Clipper on Master. Boom done. Sounding better than Diplo.

[@MadazzaMusik]

I only use my headphones for everything. They arnt what most peoe use and I bought them for about 50 pounds about 15 years ago. Looked at getting a backup pair but they r like 250 quid now.

[@JIMBEATMAKER]

Hello man ! I’m a little bit lost in your exemple you say that BREAK use a limiter at the end of his mastering chain, but in the order of your chain you put it in first!? Before the eq, the coloration…? And then when you recap at the end of the video the maximized is in last position, and the clipper has disappeared 🤔

[@craigsteel9736]

What is the tune you are mastering, and the reference? Both are sick

[@BrassicaMusic]

Setting the limiter to the loudness your reference seems to be smashing the peaks of your track immediately. I've always understood this as bad mastering practice if you're not preserving the full crest of the wave. Am I wrong?

[@AlexPalMusic]

Nice! What app do you use for making dnb?

[@bluefire9113]

26:40 nice GR beat

[@binx236]

Hi! I've been clicking on the link in your description to get serum but it doesnt take me to a specific plug in (just the general page). Which one should i be downloading? I'm new to this sorry if it's a stupid question haha

[@STRANJAH]

Looks like PB aren't selling it anymore so you'll have to grab it directly xferrecords.com/

[@marianobattista4261]

Hi! I recently bought the DT 990s for producing dnb, and I noticed that the hihats sounds so much high, is there any way to EQ to prevent lose my ears? Thanks so much!

[@agnz]

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