QUICK MASTERING TIPS: How to Master A Song | 424recording.com

[@lycanthrr2077]

I’ve spent so much time getting EQing instruments... I’m grateful though because all the time spent I was learning/becoming super familiar with what I want to do and how I can fine tune the instruments.

[@davidreidy5750]

Just learning about brick wall limiting.Last part of an online course I'm taking for DAW recording/editing/mix/master.Worth it⚡🤖⚡

[@tbhv]

this video is actually a godsend- thank you so much for your videos

[@424Recording]

Happy to help. Enjoy, Thibaut

[@demofactory]

Thanks for the great tutorial Mike. Straight and too the point. Take care friend!!!

[@guillaumealtamira7115]

at the moment i try to eq ... i ve never done that seriously before... must try and try. thanks mike!

[@424Recording]

Good luck, guil. Def the best way to learn how to do it!

[@676bun]

Like what you said at the end, "if ppl complain because your music isn't loud enough, then there prolly ppl you don't want listing to your music anyways".... I agree, good music doesn't have to be loud. It is interesting to watch music being shaped on a computer, I do it by ear (a lot of trial and error). I listen to music through headphones, and sometimes it seem like a lot of modern music is over compressed, I mean if the level meter on the cd player is pegged out and the songs start to give you a headache after a few tracks,.. I don't think this is good. some of the greatest stuff I like the level meter hardly goes half way up. Example: REM's album Reckoning barely makes it to mid level at loudest and also cant understand a single word Michael Stipe is singing, But that's another reason I love that album, its better when you don't understand the words (my opinion).

[@424Recording]

Great point. A lot of Bowie stuff barely goes past -3db and it sounds great. I like Bowie because it's Bowie not because it's loud. You can always turn it up. But you can't uncompress over-compressed music. Kind of like burnt toast. Ear fatigue is real! Thanks, bun! I'll check out Reckoning!

[@MultitrackCassetteFans]

One other fascinating fact I’ve read a long time ago about mastering: in the USA, mastering was/is generally seen as the last step of the artistic process, while in Europe it was/is the first step of the manufacturing process...I read this in an old book about recording, so I’m not sure wether this is still the case nowadays. But I thought I had to share this intriguing fact with you ;)

[@424Recording]

Hmmm, that is interesting. On the one side, it's artistic, on the other utilitarian. I feel like I'm more on the European side haha. Thanks, MCF!

[@424Recording]

Joel Glyn-Davies makes sense, mate!

[@MultitrackCassetteFans]

Thanks for posting this. I don’t have any experience with mastering...I wouldn’t know where to start, but I guess it always depends on the purpose you’re mastering for, CD, vinyl, radio etc. As a teenager, I was a huge Prince fan, and I always wondered why the snare drum on the 7” single of “Purple Rain” (or when it was on the radio) sounded so different from the LP version. Later I learned that it had to do something with mastering. Mastering for vinyl also means you have make the sound a little rounder and compressed, in order to keep the needle in the groove and not jump out of it by sudden changes in dynamics. Bruce Springsteen recorded his Nebraska album on a Tascam 144, and when they tried to make a laquer disc of that, they got all kinds of writing errors, causing the needle to jump out of the groove. They had to pull several mastering tricks to finally get it ready for production

[@424Recording]

That's a good point, in terms of formats. I feel like a lot of people today, including myself, are just trying to get some stuff out there digitally so I wanted to give a quick tutorial on how you could go about mastering your tracks. Obviously, it's more complicated with more tracks and getting them to all work together well, leveled out, same volumes, low end the same, etc. If you're mastering for vinyl, I would definitely go with someone who is a pro at it, but if you're just putting some stuff out for yourself and friends, it can't hurt to try your hand at it. That's a good point about Nebraska; I need to review that one!

[@markrawlison3446]

Good stuff man! Thanks for the tips and lessons.

[@424Recording]

My pleasure, Mark. Thanks for watching!

[@benwilliams9075]

Thanks for this mike!

[@424Recording]

Thank you, Ben!

[@DaveZula]

Very good info, Mike!

[@424Recording]

Thanks, as always, David!

[@kunaikai]

My super easy master trick is just to duplicate the song and it just lightly bumps it. I also will play all of the songs on an album at the same time and play with the volume till they all are the same. Really sloppy stuff but it works

[@424Recording]

Whatever works, K A! If it sounds good, it is good. I'll have to try that duplicate trick. I've done that with single tracks before, never thought to do that with bounces. I have used that 2nd trick you mentioned! Not a bad idea for leveling things out

[@jonathanzohany1454]

Could you do something similar to these song comparisons in reason essentials? im struggling with mastering and final mix volume

[@424Recording]

Jonathan Zohany sorry, Jonathan. I do not have that program. Thanks for watching!

[@thatmuchfurtherwest647]

Is there also a good mastering in the standard apple garage band or do you have to buy this logic pro x software ? Thanks

[@424Recording]

Yup! You should be able to use the standard plugins in Garageband. No need to upgrade unless you're feeling like there's things you can't do in Garageband that you want to do. Cheers and happy recording. Thanks for watching!

[@chrisjjespersen]

do you record to the tascam then mix in logic and master in logic or do u record and mix on the tascam?

[@424Recording]

Depends on the song and the project and how lazy I'm feeling. I've used both techniques (and even mastered outboard from the Tascam). When I'm using the Tascam, I tend to stay out of the DAW and unless it makes sense to clean stuff up in the box

[@burtreynolds2969]

Is this song that you're mastering a 4 track composition?

[@424Recording]

Yessir

[@chinmeysway]

A few of these would be great, like to exemplify a few types of genres. These type tutorials are often unbearable bc then producer is a typical gross commercial pop music guy type. Glad this is not that ha! Non gloriousness is good.

[@424Recording]

Ha! Thanks, Steven. Nah I'm just a regular guy trying to express myself.