Mixing albums to be mastered by different engineers

[fade_2_black]

Im currently in the later stages of mixing a larger budget album that, unlike most of the projects I work on, is going to be mastered off-shore - I'll basically have nothing to do with it.

In the past, I've mastered the majority of my own work (pretty averagely, might I add). I'm pretty stoked that it will be mastered by someone who knows what they're doing, but at the same time, its always been comforting to know that I know what is going to happen in the mastering stages and I can mix with that in mind. I know that through my mastering process, my drums always sit nicer in the mix, guitar detail is increased tenfold, and vocals are glued into a comfortable position in the mix. However, I know everybody masters stuff in a completely different manner and am a little worried that perhaps the master wont return how I would imagine it would - and I would obviously feel it would be at least partially my fault.

What info do you guys get from a mastering engineer prior to finishing your mix and sending it off?

 

[Sacha]

I'm sure most pro mastering engineers would be happy to work with you and tailor things to your mix and requirements. You could even inquire about an attended session if you were really worried?

 

[BLUElightCory]

Im currently in the later stages of mixing a larger budget album that, unlike most of the projects I work on, is going to be mastered off-shore - I'll basically have nothing to do with it.

In the past, I've mastered the majority of my own work (pretty averagely, might I add). I'm pretty stoked that it will be mastered by someone who knows what they're doing, but at the same time, its always been comforting to know that I know what is going to happen in the mastering stages and I can mix with that in mind. I know that through my mastering process, my drums always sit nicer in the mix, guitar detail is increased tenfold, and vocals are glued into a comfortable position in the mix. However, I know everybody masters stuff in a completely different manner and am a little worried that perhaps the master wont return how I would imagine it would - and I would obviously feel it would be at least partially my fault.

What info do you guys get from a mastering engineer prior to finishing your mix and sending it off?

What are you doing in mastering that is altering the mix so dramatically?

Most mastering engineers would prefer a mix that is processed as little as possible, but if you've been mixing with processing on your master bus then the mix will definitely sound different without it.

I'd recommend talking to the mastering engineer about what they'd prefer from you - the best solution would probably be to send a "dry" mix without any major master-processing, and a "wet" mix with your master-processing intact (except for any limiting/clipping or major EQ or stereo-width plugs). This way the mastering engineer has a reference to go off of.

 

[waltz mastering]

The best mixes are the mixes that need next to nothing... Except for slight leveling... maybe an eq tilt here or there for continuity between songs.

2 cents is try not to anticipate or guess what the ME will do and have your mix sound as you want to hear it before sending it off.. just leave some headroom.

 

[Noumenon]

Sorry for the nubish question, but I guess you don't mean that one shouldn't have any processing on the masterbuss then? :O

 

[Ermz]

The best mixes are the mixes that need next to nothing... Except for slight leveling... maybe an eq tilt here or there for continuity between songs.

2 cents is try not to anticipate or guess what the ME will do and have your mix sound as you want to hear it before sending it off.. just leave some headroom.

This is it.

I've been hearing some high-end professional engineer mix work recently, and the mixes generally sound 99% like the masters... sometimes even in volume.

If there is stuff on your master chain crucial to the sound of the mix... keep it there!

However if you do build a rapport with a particular ME, you can play a little more fast and loose. For instance I always mix into Ozone, and my mixes more or less require it to sound right in the end. Plec knows this, and even though I give him a totally un-maximized mix, he knows what it's going to take to approximate the tonal balance I had going into Ozone.

 

[fade_2_black]

If there is stuff on your master chain crucial to the sound of the mix... keep it there!

This is what I wanted to hear.

Cheers!