my blog
Plugins are your best friend and a dangerous enemy
Especially dynamic processing such as EQ's and compressors are beeing extensively marketed to be DSP-versions that are hardly distinguishable from legendary analog audio equipment. They're getting closer by the minute (this is not an outcry of "I think analog equipment sounds better") and I use plugins for mastering purposses more and more. As an example the Powercore based CL1B Tube Tech compressor is excellent as is the native SSL bus-compressor from Waves. But I only use them with moderate settings just as I doo with analog compressors and EQ's. The reason is simple: they sound better and more true to their origins.
I've seen sessions with Pultec inspired plugins gaining 10 dB here and there and compressions settings of 10:1 and a low threshold setting on an acoustic Martin D28 recorded in a great room with good microphones. The result was not in ballance with the instruments real sound, and in the mix, it sounded almost artificial. Lifting vocaltracks with a +12 dB high-shelf starting at around 5 kHz will just let you have problems with the highs of all the other sources in the mix. Putting a 5:1 compression and makeup gain on an accordion just isn't musical and it will for sure only boost those clicksounds you don't whish to be hearing.
The best way to improve sound quality is to work with the recording and the acoustics in the recording situation, but after that, you could improve the "musicality" of your mix drastically by setting your processing to more moderate settings and be more true to the sound of the program material. I'm sure that if you were using hardware, you would never use it with such insane settings, simply because they don't sound their best. By using more musically tuned settings, I think you will be surprised, how much you will hear plugins improve your results.
A word on compression
Most contemporary music production has an "In Your Face" approach to sound. The mastering-technicians quest for the 4 dB RMS point is now on! But haven't we all got an obligation to think twice?
Many people in music find that a lot of the music produced nowadays sounds flat and "digital". In fact we have never had better technology available to produce and ensure well-sounding music. In my opinion the "flat" sound is not related to the "D" in the modern DAW. It is mostly related to the "d" in the dynamics-processor plugins, available at the tip of the cursor.
In all sorts of modern music production I think compression is used to a wide extend. A lot of producers and technicians use compressors on single tracks, groups and on master-busses to achieve "that" hitsound. As I see it, it is actually all the track and group compression that is transforming a lot of wellsounding recordings into a parallel flow of machinelike soundstreams. Making levels too homogenius tends to make most musik sound similar when it comes to dynamics.
We long for the varied and unique sound of great producers and bands of the past. How 'bout getting it back by using lower ratio-settings and less compressor plugins? It's worth a try....
A little tip for mastering/mixing
When trying to improve your final mix in a mastering process you should apply a low-cut to your mix, before starting to use compression. This is also relevant in mix situations.
The reason is that deep frequencies between 20-40 Hz hardly can be hard to hear on common nearfield monitors. They also seem to contain "less" energy in your mix, than they actually do. These frequencies are normally part of Bass-drum, Bass or effect-sounds, and will - if allowed - influence a lot on compressor-behavior on the total mix and hence create pumping effects.
Another reason to lowcut is to secure better playback on smaller speakers. If you try to playback a 40 Hz tone on a small clock-radio, it will distort the signal at a far lower level than for instance a 1 kHz tone. Therefore a roll-off on sources containing really deep frequencies is essential to secure good musical replication.
hugabuga here we go!!!
First Blog entry from my hand on the MI7 community. I've been around on a lot of forum- and communitysites, and this seem to be one of the best....
Since I'm hardcore into mastering, I have not got the most interesting music-listing on the site - I think I'll post some of my earlier productions one of the days - just so you know what I've been into.
Been mastering a loungemusic album this weekend, while outside the sun was shinning from the bluest of skies. The music really got to me, and I was almost at Cafe del Mar sipping drinks at sunset... almost...
Am I the only one thinking of the possibilty of a random player of the music on this site? I think it would be a cool way of learning you other guys music, without browsing around all the time.
If you find that a relevant idea, let me know, I'll write the Malmö headoffice of this secret organisation.....
