Re: OT: favourite premastering effects chain

[Per Boysen <perboysen@gmail.com>]

On 31 aug 2007, at 18.13, Rainer Thelonius Balthasar Straschill wrote:

> Hi everyone,
>
> when going from mixdown to premaster, what is your favourite  
> toolchain.
> Especially questions like:
>
>       * what is the usual order and choice of devices (not specific 
>model,
> more generally parametric EQ, compressor, limiter) ?
>       * is there a standard setup, or do you change devices/order from
> case to case?
>       * which devices (here, the make and model counts)?
>       * digital or analogue?
>
> Thanks,
>
>       Rainer



A) First I create a stereo file of the mix without any mastering  
treatment at all.


B) Then I do a certain classic mastering treatment that looks like this:

Stereo Mix clone 1 --> phase inverting
Stereo Mix clone 2 --> stereo swapping
Stereo Mix clone 3 --> mono

Stereo Mix clone 1 + Stereo Mix clone 2 --> merged into Sub mix 1   
(carefully balancing levels
The mono signal added to Sub mix 1 (carefully balancing levels)

Final Stereo Output --> stereo swapping (to get Left and Right right  
again)


C) Then I am at the stage where your posted questions are relevant.  
To the final stereo output I apply processing as below:

Combined frequency and and stereo correlation meter and goniometer  
(not affecting sound, only for reading out data), EQ, multi band  
compressor (sometimes, not always), limiter, a second combined  
frequency and and stereo correlation meter and goniometer.

The only change I do from project to project is that I do not always  
use a multi band compressor. In multi channel projects I usually  
achieve the requested musical dynamics by treatments of each single  
track.

I use only the devices that are part of Logic Pro. They are digital.

__________________
(Disclaimer)

You asked for "pre mastering" so it might be that you intend to have  
a professional mastering engineer treat the mix? These days I rarely  
do that but back when I was associated with record labels that was  
the way to go, and then it is the basic stereo file as in (A) above  
that should be delivered to the mastering house.

Greetings from Sweden

Per Boysen
www.boysen.se (Swedish)
www.looproom.com (international)