04/12/2024
How to prepare your track before you send it to me for mastering>>>
1. Make sure that your master bus is set to -0dB.
Every track I've ever made has been exported with a clean master bus. Absolutely no FX on it, no limiter, NOTHING - and always been set to ZERO. This is a very good habit to get into!
2. Once you've set your master bus to -0dB, if your levels are going over -6dB on the master meter at the loudest/busiest section of your track, then select all of your channels on your DAW mixer (apart from any group channels) and select 'LINK'. This will group all of your selected channels together so that you can do a 'global volume reduction' until your levels are bouncing around the -6dB mark. If the levels are slightly below or over -6dB then don't lose sleep over it. I have always just recommend -6dB as a good base figure to aim for.
(This link option is on Cubase, it may vary on other DAW's)
3. After you've done all of this, you're on the final straight and ready to export. Select your export path/destination, then select WAV as your file type, then for your sample rate select 44.1khz or (48k if you prefer), then 24-bit (or 32-bit) as your bit depth. Record labels prefer 24-bit WAV these days, as opposed to 16-bit.
Now you are all set, so hit that export button!!
4. The very last thing you should do is always, always, always, ALWAYS look at the waveform of your file after it's been exported.
If it looks flat-lined anywhere, then that usually means the mix is too hot and that you should go back into your project to re-adjust your mixer levels. This is another VERY good habit to get into! ;)
Hope this helps guys!
For any more info regarding mastring or my studio bookings, please get in touch using the email address below.
I will IGNORE any spam emails that come in that are not related to mastering>
Contact>
mastering(AT)marksherry(DOT)net
Cheers!
M :)
