11 Tips for Better Mastering Results
1. Check The Files
Triple check the files you are submitting to your mastering engineer. Be sure that the mastering engineer is receiving the actual final approved mix files. I know this sounds silly, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sent a master to a client, only for them to realize I was not sent the correct final mix file to work from. Humans make errors. Computers do strange things sometimes as well. If an incorrect file is used for mastering, it’s not always an easy change to “pop in” the correct file, no matter how small the change. Depending on the mastering engineer’s workflow, it could mean redoing a lot of work. Don’t use the word “Final.” Avoid using the word “FINAL” in your mix titles. Stick with version numbers. It’s somewhat concerning getting a mix file with the suffix: FINAL REAL FOR REALLY FINAL. Whether it’s mixing or mastering, I find that sticking with a simpler numeric naming scheme makes things easier for everybody involved. Song Title V1, Song Title V2, Song Title V3 etc. is much easier to manage, reference and verify. Check for ticks. Be sure that there are no issues like ticks, pops, plugin glitches, drum trigger misfires, or other unwanted noises audible in the mix files. Things like this can be less apparent or obvious in a quieter (less hyped) unmastered mix, so listen closely in a good listening environment before sending files off for mastering. It’s not uncommon for a client to tell me they hear a noise or problem that “wasn’t on the unmastered version,” only to go back and find it on the unmastered version with careful listening. When making an unmastered mix louder in the mastering process, things can be exposed that were undetected or less of an issue before mastering. Headphones are a great way to check for these types of issues. A good mastering engineer can use software tools to remove most unwanted noises, but it’s best to prevent anything like this from existing before sending off to mastering. Another common situation is receiving a file where the final sustain or reverb tail is abruptly cut off. When this happens, I either have to wait for a new file before proceeding, do an abrupt fade out, or superimpose an ending using a reverb to give the illusion of a natural decay. Always check your bounced files to make sure nothing has been cut off. A few seconds of room/equipment/tape noise before or after the song can actually be helpful for the mastering engineer. (See #5). Check the vocals. I believe that vocal tracks are often the biggest cause of ticks/pops and other anomalies that tend to become more present after mastering. I strongly suggest listening to the vocals isolated (no music) and cleaning up any unwanted breaths, headphone bleed, and other saliva/mouth sounds between vocal phrases that may become distracting or unwanted in the final master. I spend a lot of time scanning songs for mouth sounds and other ticks/pops that seem to get exaggerated after mastering and removing them. It’s always appreciated when this is taken care of ahead of time.2. Keep The Noise
It may not seem logical, but if you have some excessive hiss or equipment noise before a song or as the final note decays, don’t attempt to crop or fade it out. Instead, leave a few seconds of just the noise (no music or other sounds, ONLY the noise) so the mastering engineer can use it as a fingerprint for doing some transparent noise reduction. One thing I see regularly is engineers not leaving a useable noise sample before or after a song. It only takes a fraction of a second to trim off excess time before or after a song in mastering, so you’re really not doing a huge favor by doing this ahead of time. Instead, you’re decreasing the chances of the mastering engineer doing some transparent noise reduction on the heads, tails, or quiet sections of a song. Rather than sharply fading out a noisy/hissy ending, I suggest leaving a few seconds of noise before the song starts or as it ends. You’ll be better off letting the noise/hiss exist on it’s own for a few seconds and asking the mastering engineer to apply appropriate noise reduction with their specialized tools. Without a good sample or fingerprint of only the noise, it’s basically impossible to do noise reduction that doesn’t have a lot of artifacts.3. No Limiting
I know clients can be impatient and most are used to hearing highly compressed and limited music. To many people, the louder version automatically sounds better. I encourage mix engineers to get exciting and powerful sounding mixes without using limiting on the their master buss/fader. If your client is complaining about your mix not being as slamming as something that’s mastered, ask them to A/B your mix with that material at the same level. Leave the loudness to the mastering engineer. Don’t go down the rabbit hole of trying to make your mixes compete with mastered material or you may have just made yourself the mastering engineer as well. If the client is having a hard time approving mixes without limiting and loudness levels comparable to other mastered material, and you must apply a limiter to your mixes, provide the mastering engineer with both the loud/limited versions the client approved, and versions without any limiting or loudness processing on the master buss/fader. Chances are, your mastering engineer can achieve better results working from the non-limited versions.4. Spelling & Punctuation
Each mastering engineer or studio has its own method for receiving the project info from you. However that may be, be prepared to provide all the info with exact spelling and punctuation. Usually, the names of the files from the mix engineer are not perfectly named or in any sequence other than alphabetical. Even though the mastering engineer might know your name or band name from email correspondences, they might not know the official spelling of it. Be prepared to provide the following info with exact spelling/capitalization/punctuation before the mastering session starts: Artist Name Album/Release Title Song Order with full/complete titles CD-Text and metadata can also list the songwriter, composer and other details if you’d like, but the three I mentioned are the most important ones. I have a form on my website that goes through all the details needed for a project, but other mastering engineers may need you to provide an email or text file with all the pertinent info. Your mastering engineer will appreciate not having to render and upload new master files because you failed to provide the correct or complete info until the last minute.5. ISRC Codes
Think about ISCR codes ahead of time, not at the last minute. Don’t assume the mastering engineer will add/generate ISRC codes for you without request. According to ISRC guidelines, a mix can only have one ISRC code for it’s entire lifetime, so it would be bad practice for a mastering engineer to apply an ISRC code to a song without being asked as that could create a conflict. I offer ISRC code generation as an add-on to my mastering services, but only if specifically requested on my order form. Some clients need or want me to generate codes for them, some already have their own to provide, some don’t care or don’t need them, and some don’t think about it until it’s too late. By too late, I mean that we’ve already sent off the DDP for CD production, and now it’s time for them to set up the digital distribution release, which usually requires an ISRC code. If you don’t have ISRC codes, your digital distributor will provide them for you, but at this time, it could be too late to add them to the CD production master. I used to see this all the time, but now I see it less as I offer ISRC codes from the start, if needed, on my order form. You can’t retroactively add ISRC codes to a CD after it’s duplicated or replicated. If a CD has been manufactured without ISRC codes, it will never have ISRC codes. You would have to wait for the 2nd CD pressing to add them to a new CD production master (DDP or CD-R) before the manufacturing starts again. The importance of having ISRC codes embedded on your CDs in 2015 and beyond is debatable, but the point is to be proactive about ISRC codes. If you or your record company will be providing the ISRC codes, send them to your mastering engineer as soon as possible. If you need your mastering engineer/studio to generate ISRC codes for you, bring it up before getting started, not at the last minute, after the DDP has been sent off for CD production. The same can be said for UPC/EAC (barcode).