it could have been better... || REFERENCE 2

[@AndersSteenHansen]

Reference is a great plugin, and Tom who owns Mastering The Mix is a very cool dude. You definetely missed that you can set the level line refresh speed to be short (3 sec), Medium (10 sec) or integrated..I think it's a pity when people put a lot of effort into a product and you can't spend 10 minutes researching it before making a video..Then it makes it pretty hard to take a review like this seriously..

[@SamHeadphaze]

Well said!

[@WaltMecleary]

Agreed... he seems to be getting lazy about these plugin videos lately. He used to put them through their paces and push every aspect of them until they start to break up . I like seeing at what point a plugin fails. The only thing failing lately is me coming to this channel as often.

[@ajs3385]

Yeah. I got this plugin this week and it's been very helpful. It does make sense to read the manual before instructing 7,000 people about the plugin.

[@holgieselchen7033]

He would be well advised to read through the manual before publishing his footage and then prepare himself for the contents. Compared to iZotope's Ozone is an incredibly flexible and transparent plugin in mastering.

[@lamourdelamusique3178]

100% facts

[@itsstevekeys]

Wow, for the first time ive felt like you missed the actual function of the plugin... good thing i own the 1st version and its amazing. 1- you can level match 2- set up to 6 bands which you can solo and compare loudness, stereo width and compression. 3- compare LUFS, true peak 4- you set it to follow/mirror your daw or just loop a section regardless of what section of the song the daw is playing. 5- you can switch from one reference to another and chose different sections from each. I totally loved the 1st version. Am yet to check this one out.. but this time you mastering the mix a disservice.

[@toddthomas4761]

Thanks for posting... I'm just about to scoop this plugin and it looks very useful!

[@GregManningVideos]

I’ve been following you, but this review is a bit embarrassing. You have to start reading the manual, or watch a tutorial video. Don’t be lazy! You simply never understood what this plug-in actually does.

[@evelyntelevision]

yeah, i feel the same. makes me reconsider my decision to keep following. kind of undermines the review

[@GregManningVideos]

@@evelyntelevision : Don’t get me wrong. I love the guy for what he did with honest reviews. But it’s a fact that modern plug-ins are not like an LA-2A comp with only a few knobs. It takes time and effort to understand how they work. He’s gotten a bit lazy and assumes he understands the purpose of a specific plug-in by just looking at the GUI. No, this is NOT what a good engineer does.

[@evelyntelevision]

@@GregManningVideos Yeah, same, I like his reviews, I just think that that extra level of reading the manual and learning the specifics of a product before reviewing would be very helpful and more accurate, especially since this is part of his profession; he makes money off of these videos through patreon and merch, so it would be nice to see the higher level of professionalism I know he gives as a producer, as a reviewer. As is, a review like this isn't much help to me, even though there's the potential for it. And I wouldn't bother taking the time to write these comments if I wasn't a fan who just wants to see a creator I like be successful and reach his full potential.

[@GregManningVideos]

@@evelyntelevision Very true 👍🏾

[@cucumberforest]

Yes you are absolutely right!

[@rebazkh85]

I don't care about what Apple releases, but there's a bigger release I'm so excited about, and it's ableton live 11.

[@YiggaP]

I am both excited and disappointed. Excited by the "new" features (not being ironic, it's great but comping is why I still keep Logic, and ARA). Disappointed because I bought Live 10 Suite a bit more than a year ago. Expensive. And the upgrade is 199 euros (well 159 for a limited time) ... I believe free or at least cheap upgrades should be guaranteed for at least 2 years, especially when you buy such an expensive software (that is worth it in my opinion).

[@SakariKaripuro]

for some reason ableton never gets their upgrade prices right. i remember buying ableton live 9 for around 220e and the upgrade is.. well.. almost the same.

[@rebazkh85]

Yes it's expensive, but it's worth it in my opinion.

[@-Deena.]

Cubase Pro 11 is exciting for me but my guess is it will be released (and the upgrades from 10.5) just after Steinburg's Black Friday sale. Sneaky tricksters!

[@hamisheginet]

@@YiggaP i too use ableton, but money wise nothing can compare with reaper. with one version free update... If you get 6 u can update til 7.99... And they update a lot ... No big jump on numbers...

[@Beexzz]

Aaaaand after a while here it is! A guy who does NOT read the manual thus failing to make good preview of tool in question. Man, this is embarrassing but as always I enjoy watching you fiddling around and not understanding what this tool is all about. Btw, Tom (from MTM) makes some pretty useful digital audio tools. My advice is: RTFM!

[@stuartjones8695]

Yeah used to like and take the advice of this channel. Realised that is no longer a good strategy as this review is at odds with everyone else. Luckily I already bought it. This channel has become its own snake oil. Unsubscribing.

[@ShaneEuston]

These dude has started to hate every plug in, read the manual or go dig deeper this is actually a game changer.

[@misskmusic]

Every review of Mastering The Mix plugins on this channel is done without reading the manuals or spending more than a few minutes using the plugins ^^

[@BurntMcgurnt]

I know every question he has is answered in the manual its ridiculous and I love this plugin it has help me so much for so long

[@dsomerville5293]

I noticed this guy pans any plugins that might affect any tools that take business away his studio. Hmm

[@BurntMcgurnt]

@@dsomerville5293 haha I didn't think about it like that but you're right!

[@GTSongwriter]

It's been 2 years since this video... Have you changed your mind and do you now use a referencing plug-in or not?

[@algol85]

The punch dots are measuring peak to average ratio (also called crest factor)

[@TheGurner1]

I did get this - and use it for mastering, where I just A/B with the original file, volume matched, to see if my mastering is actually sounding better - I also have Metric A/B which is a similar plugin - I don't know which is best, but they are both certainly very useful to me

[@Illiyinmusic]

if youre checking to see if its, "sounding" better as a whole why even use this plugin. Just put the reference track in its own track. waste of money and time. I get using metric ab

[@fleximarvellous]

Big Sur will be available per November 12th, make sure that your automatic update is turned off until February 2021!

[@Whiteseastudio]

Still running high sierra

[@JimijaymesProductions]

I feel like Ozone which is much more expensive (though often elements is free) has way better graphs at least easier to read. Maybe I am missing the way they are doing the reference but with Match EQ and such I am pretty sure you can match better.

[@saxombie8614]

Well but here u have an Stereo Width match too, which is a nice tool. I mean, ive tried the SlickEQ M width match setting but didnt work well.. it gets really random results, dunno why. If u know another way to 'width match' please let me know!

[@YiggaP]

I care more about your videos than Apple's :-)

[@johnwave2827]

There are some nice things you missed that you might like! - You can make a snapshopt of the curve with ctrl+ click - You can make the plugin listen for longer times with a change in the settings Tip: Walkthrough start watching from 7:43 Enjoy!

[@michaelsupryn7184]

i'm anyway intrested in your opinion about the new silicon for audio prduction.. :P Can it compare with i9 from intel or is silicon beating the transients out of intel? :D

[@speakersmysterious8831]

Could you do a review on dearVR MONITOR?

[@dizzle0988]

please tell me the original song name

[@Gongtopia]

You should have taken the 2 minutes to watch their video so you would have had a better idea of how it works. As it is, you missed out making a better review.

[@zakthan]

There is always this one comment in his video, I love it XD

[@macfisto77]

@@zakthan This comment mirrors a very common theme all throughout the comment section of this video. Not just one, but very many.

[@grimmmstudios2367]

Are you not supposed to be adding reference tracks to compare YOUR mix with? the tools are to allow you to compare different elements.

[@mache3984]

At the end of the day, your ears are the best tool.

[@evelyntelevision]

I've had my eye on this plugin for a long time, waiting for a sale. Now there's finally a sale, but now I'm not sure about buying it. I was about to get the ADPTR AUDIO Metric AB plugin from PluginAlliance last week with the $30 promo sale, but I held off for Reference. Now I really don't know what to do lol. Does anyone have experience with these or other plugins that would lead them to recommend anything for this purpose? I really need to start referencing other tracks and analyzing them as well as I can to learn from them.

[@evelyntelevision]

Any chance of getting a review of Metric AB and how it compares to Reference?

[@damienruba611]

@@evelyntelevision I like Reference version 1 over adaptr AB because of the workflow. However I prefer ADAPTR AB over Reference Version 2 since that workflow is now gone. Overall AB is a more powerful plugin with better metering but the workflow is a bit clunky.

[@evelyntelevision]

@@damienruba611 cool, thanks so much for the help! much appreciated

[@HeyTom__]

Metric AB all the way. Extremely easy to use

[@DavidRichardsDC]

You missed the point. You put your reference in the "original" section. You placed nothing in the "reference" section. So, you compared your "original" to nothing, missing the whole purpose of the plug-in. This could have been avoided by literally 10 seconds of research which you pride yourself on not doing.

[@DerekPower]

I would love to see ABBA used as a reference track for that upcoming artist named Darude ... Sandstorm is the new hit, right?

[@MixedByDotRob]

I don't get this plugin. And I want a big red Reference-button that plays "Sandstorm by Darude"

[@MixChecks]

Right on. I need to make every Jazz quartet mix sound like Sandstorm. I think that would make the world a better place :)

[@WaltMecleary]

I say there are two types of people... one of them reads manuals and the other one has parts left over.

[@bluedev1495]

I like your reviews but you really missed on this one, should’ve read the manual. Mastering the Mix offers awesome plugins for a great value. I use this and Levels on every session, they’re awesome. And yes, it is an average curve of every reference you load into it. Nobody is saying match it 1:1, it’s meant as *reference*.

[@macfisto77]

Yes, please do watch the demo or read at least parts of the manual if you are confused. You are giving an opinion to a lot of people who respect it very much. Being simply uninformed can then become a issue. Just my two cents. You make great content for the masses for free. So who am I to ever truly complain l!

[@JustinNathanielAdams]

I've started using the 8X upsampling in Metaplugin during mastering and WOW is it sounding good! Thanks for the heads up on that one :D :D

[@theparkerilla7292]

Yep. You're roasted for not reading the manual or watching the explanatory video. That was like watching a newbie trying to mask multi-layers in Photoshop without having a basic tutorial or reading the manual. (No sweat, that's my default approach to new software too ... but I'm not expecting to get it to do what I want until I've learnt what the terminology and the buttons actually tell me - and what they do). Ref 2 is nice improvement on Ref 1 with more information and flexibility of monitoring options. I agree it doesn't make sense to use more than 3 reference tracks (plus earlier versions of current song). Though I'd disagree with the idea of summing up across reference tracks to get an 'average' ... if a visual artist did that the colour would likely be brown mud. I believe the 'Send Ref' is aimed at the track mixing stage rather than the mastering, unless you are using a master track loaded with plug-ins ... though that wasn't covered in the tutorial video ... (my criticism - of the video - not the plug-in) & N.B. The upgrade was free if you have Ref1 ... (points finger at Waves)

[@theparkerilla7292]

That desired feature of averaging it out over the whole track (or selected segment) happens if you let it play from the start (of track or loop) ... I'm not sure if it does 'look ahead' analysis or has to play through in real time

[@larsthomasdenstad9082]

@@theparkerilla7292 I recently got the original REFERENCE and I have been using it quite extensively. It is good for a relative n00b like myself to break down what I am hearing. Happy to hear that upgrade is free. Also, I agree that this is a product that is quite hard to understand without at least looking at the PDF cheat sheet.

[@bryndayy]

Wait it's free? It didn't let me download it for free to upgrade. Hmmmm

[@larsthomasdenstad9082]

@@bryndayy It was a little hard to find. I got it on Plugin Boutique, and it was in "My Account", you just pick the version you want to download.

[@subject_ultra]

Can you check out NUGENs 600$ Paragon reverb?

[@djrandomjavabass]

I think you need to read the manual..

[@MixYourWay]

MTM know their deal. Don't mean to board up the RTFM bandwagon but hey! This tool is no magic bullet neither is Ozone. Like you've always said, we must trust our ears at all times, but these suites can really make the difference for smaller/home/project studios. I've used the previous version for several months now and it does what it is supposed to do, just give you an idea of what you're dealing with so you can proceed one way or another. It may not be the best suite but it does the job if you know how to take the info in and plan your mastering moves accordingly. Cheers!

[@-Deena.]

If its the only mastering plug-in you can afford, and aren't that experienced, it has it's place.

[@saardean4481]

Judging a tool before even understanding how it works is lazyness squared. Next try the Equilibrium Eq and result will be “its a bad eq cause i dont understand it withiut reading a manual”.

[@ruddock7]

Agreed

[@damienruba611]

Is it me, or I feel like Reference 1 is actually better then Reference 2 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@Whiteseastudio]

I never tested Reference 1 😳

[@damienruba611]

@@Whiteseastudio in Reference 1 the bottom part splits up in to up to 5 bands and takes an average of that. Which in my opinion makes more sense to monitor if you have too much mid lows, air or sub. Then having just a curve which is very material depending.

[@bryndayy]

Yeah he undersold the plug in some by not understanding how to use it, but I fully agree. Things like the dots are way easier to see in v1 and the bands seem better to me. I think the only actual useful thing is the midi trigger, but overall this convinced me not to upgrade.

[@damienruba611]

@@bryndayy I think a better approach would be to have both options. Whether you want to work with bands or a full curve ( kind of like the Izotope one). I really do like their plugins, but I think they made a huge mistake with this one.

[@djcolinturnbull]

I have it! I think I would agree. The user interface seemed a bit better also! But actually adptr metric AB is a much better plugin! I switched from reference

[@twitchbook-1]

Insane, I really like it than you actually still making music beside the our current situation, that's exciting

[@kyborgftw]

try out "ADPTR AUDIO Metric AB"

[@liamhebden8857]

"cave...beings" to be completely politically correct hahaha

[@theactualtruth4951]

Hmm you know what? Apple should release some hardware eqs and compressors.

[@Rompler_Rocco]

🍎 Got me thinking of Louis Rossmann, that guy from NYC who repairs Apple products and fights for Right to Repair legislation. Just learned that he started off working in studios, where he became an expert at repairing and maintaining the recording equipment... which makes it even more interesting that he doesn't use any Apple products personally 🤔

[@peterbrandt7911]

Yep, you're right, there are quite some plugins like that. That said, I'm set with plugins like that.

[@TheDanielShepherd]

The other problem I find with reference tracks is obviously they're mastered, which means not just louder but EQ'ed differently too. Also going through a limiter makes everything sound brighter or more hyped in the top end, so I think you've at least got to slap a limiter on your master bus to compare with to give you some idea on if you're in the right ball park with mastered tracks. Either that or try and get hold of unmastered tracks from your favourite artists to compare to - which is going to be near impossible (though perhaps if stems are out there you could sum those?) - but yeah it's tricky to aim for a mastered sound during the mix down, i've done it but you end up just trying to do a master on the stereo bus - I spend more time trying to match the overall EQ of the mastered track because there's nothing wrong with the balance of my mix it just sounds off when you compared it to a mastered track.

[@scottfaircloff9530]

thanks for making time to demonstrate.

[@AMPProf]

NOT LINUX ???? OHHHH

[@TheGurner1]

Hmm, could be a good buy - I think after a few days it would all make sense ;-)

[@YannisFyssas]

less blah, more focused talking. You need to script first then record.

[@DavidRichardsDC]

Watching my Dad trying to use his iphone = watching you review this plug-in. It's almost painful to watch. Your channel is often quite helpful but, do yourself a favor and learn *something* before wasting everyone's time with a video like this. We still love you for your quality content, but this wasn't it. This one might deserve a re-do

[@000aleph]

I have REFERENCE 1 and I actually prefer it to the new version, because I like the simplicity of the bottom display with the three freq bands and the simple level and stereo width displays. Making these displays continuous and doubling the number of freq bands slows down the workflow of using this plugin. I think having 6 freq bands, a continuous width and level display is all unnecessary information.

[@asawiggins]

Not to be rude or judgmental, because I like a bunch of your videos, but these videos are wasteful of time if you as a reviewer do not take the time to understand the way a plugin works before you jump into reviewing it. The manual/short tutorial videos explain a lot of the things that you are guessing through and if you take the time to do research on the basic functions of the plugin so that you properly understand the GUI, these reviews will be much more valuable to the audio community. Again, I like your channel and respect your knowledge and skill, but please consider it.

[@liamhebden8857]

Seems very useful, it's cheap, but I feel like I would be getting confused about what I was doing... So my rubbish "in theory" opinion is: this would be a good starting point for a master, to do a little bit to get the master in the right direction and then disregard it and belive in yourself... boom

[@marcusherbold993]

Small VST Plugin developer vs Apple??? Dont think they are a threat to each other and arent on the same playing field. I highly doubt its gonna matter if they release the same day as a global giant like Apple

[@alexanderbrand2048]

Thank god your videos are free of charge - I'd feel bad for the wasted investment otherwise

[@certainlyjoel]

Love this review man!

[@carlosp.1846]

Agree with the comments... a bit amateur review this one.. like ‘you should be able to do this,’ when in fact you can if you read the manual 3 secs. if you are lazy, perhaps watch another review of the plugin before doing yours. That said, I like the way you make us understand the concepts, related to real experience, this is good.

[@deejaySilence]

I did not get this 🤷‍♂️

[@AMPProf]

DANCEING QUEEN AHHHHHHHH AHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[@GauravKumar-pw8gn]

Woah! That's great

[@FluxriderTV]

Tonal balance control does averaging

[@MikeDeanOfficials]

You don’t have a clue 😂 It’s a great plugin if you know what to look for.

[@audiospectra]

This video proves 2 most important things. 1. You have to read the manual. 2. It's always a good idea to use reference songs that are in the same key as the song you're working on. So, I don't know what to say Wytse. I don't know if I should say it's a horrible video because it does have some good things and gems about using reference material. I mean, the plugin is created so that you can process individual sounds in a mix, but you're processing the entire mix which defeats the purpose of the plugin. I really don't know what to say about this video :)

[@suavocado69]

Music Is Love Forever

[@andyloeper]

Punch means compression

[@emiel333]

You got my view. And like. 😁

[@Tunemood]

Perfect time since Magic AB is no longer supported!

[@dykodesigns]

Regarding the Teespring merch, some black hoodies would be nice.

[@MixChecks]

What about sandstorm colored?

[@dykodesigns]

@@MixChecks I prefer to wear black shirts. I already have the black T-shirt but wouldn't mind a Whitesea hoodie.

[@michaelwirth6843]

The only problem is the cheap sounding music - elevator music??.

[@jojomarino7327]

Read the manual! Haha 😹. Cons, you didn't learn the features in the plugin before reviewing the features.

[@kazaudio1546]

i love your reviews buy you totally missed the point on this one

[@EdrikPrinsMusic]

I think mastering the mix plugins are decent for people who have no understanding of mastering. but also I think one might easily outgrow such plugins as one gets more knowledge and skill. Also can you do a review on the Exponential Audio R4 reverb? It's a $358 reverb that's $29 until the 16th this month and I need to know I haven't bought snakeoil ;p

[@damienruba611]

For us professionals, taking mixing or mastering jobs, 9/10 times clients will send us reference tracks. Software like this makes it easier to reference.

[@EdrikPrinsMusic]

@@damienruba611 I was talking about mastering the mix plugins in general, but I would like to ask you; would you use this plugin for refencing or something alternative?

[@damienruba611]

@@EdrikPrinsMusic actually I prefer the older version one of this plugin to be honest. ADAPTR Audio Mertric AB is the one that seems to be every ones favorite at the moment. Melda MCompare is another one to look in to.

[@marceloribeirosimoes8959]

Watch a tutorial first could be a lot of time saving... 😅😂

[@mache3984]

Creativity shouldn't be so technical. I enjoy creating, not fiddling around with plugins that really serve no purpose but to annoy and distract you. This is cool, but impractical to use. Every beat, song and sound will be different and a tool like this takes your mind away from the big picture. The beauty of art is that it's raw, unique, original. You can get to a point where you get lost just trying to tinker with things that really need not be disturbed.

[@djabthrash]

Making sure you don't have way too much low end against most commercial mixes you trust is not a creative task ...

[@JayTheLane]

Oil of Snake.

[@sergenity]

he didn't check REFSEND hhh)so in next video pls >LetiMix GainMatch

[@shairaptor1865]

I never use Reference mixes! Why should I want to copy a mix or master of someone else? I mix and master like I want, it's my own sound. Don't mimick or copy others, do your own thing!

[@djabthrash]

reference mixes is not about copying, but about checking you're in the ballpark of commercial mixes you trust in many aspects (low end, stereo width, loudness)

[@consistentlyaverage]

I love your stuff but I just cant get behind watching you figure out a plugin for 16 minutes because it's your 'thing' to not read manuals or educational material on the products you are meant to be reviewing. This doesnt help me. The whole obsession with GUI and simplicity is tiresome because theres a world of great plugins out there and some stuff you just have to work for to get the best out of it and that's ok. Especially when the information is there in written and video form. It's like the equivalent of someone's dad trying to build something and not reading any manuals or anything and feeling elite because he made something unnecessarily difficult for himself and then figured it out when it was all already there for him. Except sometimes it feels like you dont even want to like things for the sake of content? As I say I'm a follower but I scratch my head a little sometimes.

[@RichCurtisDJ]

ADPTR A/B is a much better product than this one. Highly recommend

[@danielmaxwell3199]

RTFM MATE

[@JulianGrimmMusic]

You should’ve watched their walkthrough video. It’s short and easy and it shows how to access most of the features you accused of missing. If you are not a naturally fast learner and intuitive person you should really read manuals. I used to really like some of your videos but this was a really lazy review and I feel you’re taking your shtick to a level that’s hurting your videos.

[@stonelark]

If you're going to write a review, you should at least learn how to use the product first.

[@dumpydoctor7670]

metric A/B did it first

[@damienruba611]

Sample Magic AB did it first, Melda MCompare did it second, that was like 8 years ago. The first version of Reference also came out before Metric AB. So technically Metric AB did it last.

[@MixChecks]

@@damienruba611 I like being in last place... :)

[@PB72UK]

Oh man This video is Snake oil 😂 .. at least learn what it's meant to do lol and how you install it before jumping in and saying it could be better.... Haha in this instance your review could be a lot better!

[@germanher7528]

I didn't like the plugin

[@snakeface5652]

What this plugin does can literally be done for free, and it's probably barely even longer to do it for free.

[@brucekai7462]

I’m gonna mention the elephant in the room.... WHO ARE YOU??? What have you done, mixed, produced or created that makes you think your opinion matters??? Would be different if you were a known mix engineer or producer with credentials but I figure someone who makes a YT channel like this doesn’t have much skill anyway.

[@tbainbridge]

ADPTR Metric AB is way better than this. And even without you reading manual it should be easy for you to work out.

[@audiolab303]

Metric AB is the best

[@MixChecks]

Love that plugin :)

[@desubeats]

I highly disagree with everyone saying "read the manual noob". Good UI designers make self explanatory interfaces and tools that don't require you to read the manual or have "tool tips" when hovering over an UI element. The whole point of not reading the manual is to see how intuitve it's designed and to show ease of use.

[@Whiteseastudio]

Amen

[@tonykitson195]

I normally like your takes on plugins but this is a lazy, lazy review.

[@GustafWestin]

CUBASE 11 out today more important

[@hmubusin7977]

I think Metric A/B from plugin alliance is way better than this imo

[@MixChecks]

Yeah it's a great plugin. Though I haven't used reference

[@AsherPetersonAGP]

Dude this review is not good.

[@TheJoecoool]

just use your ears not your eyes

[@joost3783]

Dude check out MetricAB it's like reference but 100x better (also turns on my macbook fans :D)

[@MixChecks]

I love the sound of a macbook fan.

[@jakedenagy8590]

Bloody snake oil again. 😂