bob katz secret mastering

8/9/2019 Bob Katz Secret Mastering

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Table of contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Welcome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Your Room Your Monitors . . . . . . . . . . . 7Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Dynamics Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Sequencing:Relative Levels, Loudnessand Normalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Recipe for Radio Success . . . . . . . . . . 11Dither . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Equalization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Sibilance Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Noise reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Monitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Advanced Mastering Techniques . . . . . 17

Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19


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Congratulations on your purchase of a TC Electronics Finalizer.

Bob Katz


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Mastering vs. Mixing

When you ask your spouse to turn the TV

down a touch - do you mean only 1 dB?

Think Holistically


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Very few recording studios are suitable for mastering.For optimal mastering, use a different room than yourrecording studio or room. The typical recording controlroom has noisy fans, a large console and acousticobstacles that interfere with evaluation of sound.

What's wrong with near-field monitors?

Subwoofers

Room Acoustics

Monitor Translation

Monitoring Levels and Fletcher-Munson

When you go to a concert, do you identify an

80 Hz resonance under the third balcony?


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Truth in Metering

The Ear Is The Final Judge

Quasi-Peak Meters and Judgment of Quality

Peak Program Meter

Over Counters and Increased Level


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Dynamics Processing

Compression

Limiting

Equal-Loudness Comparisons

Manipulating Dynamics: Creating the Impact of Music

shooby shooby shooby

If the attack time

If the release time

If the combination of attack and release time


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Here's a trick for compressor adjustment:

Multiband processing can help in this process

Compression, Stereo Image, and Depth

At the ballet, do you notice the music first,

before the dancers?

Relative Levels, Loudness, and Normalization

Do you know when the musicians are

out of tune ?


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The Myth of Radio-Ready

radio ready

The Music Always Comes First1

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The Sound Comes Second3

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Preparing For The Radio6 Peak to average ratio


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7 Subsonics

8 Excessive Sibilance

9 Excessive peak percussion

Loudness and the radio

Do you know what comb filtering is?


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What Is An Accurate Tone Balance

Specialized Music Genres

EQ Tricks

When you go to concerts, do you sometimes

think you hear edits?

Wordlengths and Dithering

Here are some basic rules and examples:


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High Q or low?

Equalizer types

Instant A/B's?

Equalization or Multiband Compression?

Baxandall Curve (grey) vs. Shelf (black)

1k 2k 4k 8k 16k


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At concerts do you try to identify the

microphones that are used?

Know Your Limits

EQ Interaction with the compressor


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If a film or TV actor wearing a microphone

crosses his arms, do you immediately notice

the change in sound quality?

Monitors and Equalization

Monitors and Stereo Imaging

beyond

up

over up

Adjusting stereo balance


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Alternate Mixes

MS Mastering Techniques

Do you try to identify the frequency every time

you hear system feedback?

The MS adventure begins


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Even More Advanced M-S Technique

Make an UnFinalized Safety


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References

dBFS - dB reference full scale

Gain, Loudness, Volume and LevelLoudness level

volume

volumecontrol Gain

Sample Rate

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A big thank you to Bob Ludwig, of Gateway Mastering, Portland Maine, andGlenn Meadows, of Masterfonics, Nashville, Tennessee. Bob and Glennreviewed the manuscript and added helpful suggestions that made an evenbetter booklet.

bob katz secret mastering

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