What is your home mastering process? Home mastering process.

[Mystical Musician]

I'm curious about your home mastering techniques and process. What do you usually use?

Personally, I try to keep my master track minimalistic:

• Compressor (if needed)
• Satin Tape Simulator by u-he
• KClip Zero by Kzorg (clipper)
• One or two limiters, Arturia's Bus PEAK

Sometimes, I also use an overdrive before or after the tape simulator.

That's it. Curious about yours.

 

[Gesuguru]

More power to you. I can hardly mix my music half the time.

 

[Mystical Musician]

More power to you. I can hardly mix my music half the time.

Click to shrink...

Ho? For mixing, I see it a bit like learning an instrument. In the beginning, it's useful to listen to reference tracks and try to reproduce the same type of mix and sound. Like with an instrument, where you listen to the music and replicate the pattern. Start without applying any effects, aiming to get the best sound from your instruments and adjusting the volumes. Try to keep levels around -6 to -12 dB for each instrument. Apply nothing, no EQ at first, and use your ears well.

Later on, you may want to add EQ, but seriously, there aren't too many rules. Have a good pair of headphones that suit you and a good listening system.

 

[r4v3r]

+1 for the minimalism.

• Infrasonic (airwondows)
• Ultrasonic (airwondows)

Cutting down useless frequencies bellow 20hz and above nyquist frequency.

• Parametric EQ 8band (LSP)

Last minute frequency adjustments. My mixes tend to be quite dark so I end up boosting some of the high end.

• Hypersoft (airwondows)

"Clipping". Hypersoft is a weird plugin but i like how it sounds.

• Limiter (LSP)

I use it as a brickwall. Hypersoft (i think, i hope) catches all of the peaks so this is just here to avoid intersample peaking. I could get rid of it. The usual max gain reduction is about -0.5db - -1.0db

 

[Mystical Musician]

OK interesting. I downloaded a Mathew Jonson exemple set here https://www.ableton.com/en/blog/mathew-jonson-rhythm-melody-and-chaos/ There is some tips for the mastering made by an Ableton guy, I think.
And I watch an Art of Mr. Bill, there is a very minimalist mastering, even the loudness is not very high, its good to know don't need much (for our home mastering).