718.932.0511
Astoria, NY
Editing: Fades are created and if
desired, audio is deleted or moved to
different areas. Sonic artifacts such
as pops and clicks are removed at
sample level.
Assembly: Track sequence is created
and transitions between songs are fine
tuned with spacing & crossfades.
Delivery format is prepared (CD-R,
DAT, MP3, other).
Quality
Control: Levels, PQ subcode
information, and error rates are checked
to facilitate replication stage.
the mastering process
Mastering
is the final critical stage of
music production where the audio is
optimized and prepared for its delivery
format.
Processing: The energy of the music
is brought out and the project is made
into a consistent statement from track
to track. Improvements
are made in
tone, clarity, richness, dynamics,
loudness, and maximum resolution is
preserved. Tools
used in this stage
include equalization, broadband /
multiband compression, stereo image adjustment, M/S encoding/decoding,
harmonic generation, reverb, denoising,
de-essing, peak limiting, and dithering.
the importance of dynamics
Today
there is competition to make
commercial music as loud as possible.
A recording is made loud by limiting its
dynamic range–the variations of level
of sounds.
However,
excessive limiting of dynamic
range makes music lose its excitement
and emotion which results in a strained
listening experience.
The
mastering engineer must know where
to draw the line between loudness and
degradation. When mastered properly,
an album can be made competitively loud
and still retain its compelling qualities
that make us want to play it repeatedly.
