mastering - waves c4??

[hellraiser85]

Does this compressor work well in mastering? If yes, What adjustments works better for a metal mix (in flames, arch enemy, etc)?
Principally I´m interested in attack and release parameters, and the range of frequencies to adjust bass, middle and highs. I use the folllowing settings and I think it sounds well:

low: 0 to 200 Hz; attack: 4.00 ms; release: 80 ms

mids: 200 to 2000 Hz; attack: 4.00 ms; release: 40 ms

high: 2000 Hz to 15000 Hz; attack: 15 ms; 40 ms

(ussually a put the threshold between -13 and -14 dB)

I am committing some serious mistake???

Thanks!

 

[greyskull]

i Hate to be unhelpful, but it depends on the source material.
sounds to me like you might be hitting it a bit hard, but i cant tell without hearing it!!

 

[Let it burn...]

just make sure the frequencies are good before you head over to the master buss. 9 out of 10, you should only have to use a multiband comp when the source-material is badly mixed.

 

[hellraiser85]

There's a sample that I recorded using this C4 settings when I mastered it. What do you think?

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=790227

 

[kev]

Guitars were nice btw, everything else doesnt get in there though! Levels?

 

[AStacy2]

Yes, I feel like you are committing a serious mistake.


If you're the one mixing and mastering, what do you need a multiband comp on the 2bus for? Just mix it good. Unless you feel like your not good at mixing but are extremely taleneted at using a multiband comp on the 2bus than I just don't understand.


I think that it's pointless to try and master something yourself unless you are at least waiting a few days inbetween mixing/mastering and going into a WAY better room to do the mastering. The point of mastering is making the music translate well on any medium in which your song is going to be presented. Burn some CDs, get a boombox, get a shelf system, get an iPod and try them in different places and then take notes on what you hear everytime. Go back and change your mix accordingly. Yes, it's a terribly time consuming way to master something, but unless you've got a lot of experience or are going into a real mastering room it's the only way.


If you're just trying to make the song louder though, disregard everything I've said because we obviously have different ideas of what mastering is.

 

[Jaymz]

Well in Hellraisers defence, if hes doing what im doing/thinking, its just adding that final bit of "penaz" on the overall mix just to give it a bit of something thats pleasing to the ear before calling it your own.

 

[abyssofdreams]

Hmm, well I kind of disagree with the statement that multiband is not needed in mastering.

I do post-EQ a lot, especially in the LOW area, to get things to sound bigger/fatter but the mix
mostly gets very muddy then so I put on a C4 after EQ, listen closely to wicked/muddy areas and
compress them a bit, mostly the C4 setting in mastering is very similar to the one Andy uses on
guitars sometimes.

C4 helps a lot to tame the lows if you tweak your mix with EQ very hard (like +6db at 60hz-100hz or so)

 

[botus99]

I don't get why everyone gets bent out of shape with MC use in mastering or on the 2buss. Theres been a few times where I've had what I thought to be a very nice mix, then I added MC and got an even better sound (thats been maybe two times ever, but the points still there). Whatever you can do to make your mixes sound better is what you should do.

But as Greyskull said, its always going to depend on the source material. No preset, or variation of, will be your saving grace with MC.

 

[MetalWorks]

It seems as though he was saying if you are the mixing engineer than you shouldnt need the multiband to go in and compress or EQ certain frequencies, not just using a multiband in general.

A multiband is surely helpfull for a mastering engineer to have more precision over the frequency ranges that are in need of adjustment.

But the mixing engineer has even more precise access to go back and fix the orginal mix.

So I understand HexTheNet's point.

I guess if you dont quite know where to go in your mix and you are more comfortable using the Multiband on the 2bus then thats a different story.

Not saying thats the case.

But it seems natural you would develope your skills better by going back to the mix and fixing spots so that next time your mix comes out closer to where it should be every time instead of fixing it in the mastering process everytime.

 

[MetalWorks]

Whatever you can do to make your mixes sound better is what you should do.

I think that's what really matters in the end.

 

[LSD-Studio]

no multiband on your 2bus during mixdown!

in mastering: I'm pretty often using a multiband myself....the finalizer's one cause it's so easy

 

[nwright]

I don't use any MB comp on the master bus during mixing, but I often use it during mastering. Being able to do it by frequency - for me - allows me to tailor the sound without resorting to strictly EQ tweaks. And, it can add some additional punch in the process. I mix and master on 2 different (well, now 3) monitoring setups, and I feel that it's working for me. As I learn more about mixing, I do find that I use it a lot less, or at least more sparingly.