TotalSonic wrote on Wed, 07 December 2005 01:40 |
hmmm... Depending on how big of a change you mean by "drastic" - it might not do it - although maybe if you combined it with a multiband comp only set for a single low to low-mid band it would do it for you. I've used an SPL Vitalizer and analog eq's to achieve some semi-drastic changes on the bottom end also.
It can get ugly real fast - but Wave's Maxx Bass might do what you asking also.
But If the client really wants mastering changes to be "drastic" from their original mix - but only want to change a specific freq band or sound of one instrument I usually direct them to try and bring these kinds of things out in their mix first. I usually think of mastering as trying to just enhance the integrity of the mix instead of drastically changing it. Then again - if they are in a time bind or simply do not have access to the unmixed tracks then you have to make do.
Best regards, Steve Berson
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It's actually not the client as such, it's me.. A lot of these mixes are pure digitally created i.e. from soft synths and soft samplers and mixed ITB.
Of course words are relative, I would say 3dB is drastic in mastering, e.g. adding 3dB at 200Hz can really make a difference good or bad. So when I say drastic I actually mean "saturation", "fatness", "analog distortion", not just a "clean nice bass boost"
MaxxBass is something I need to play around with more, but it doesn't distort harmonics like I want, it seems.
My frustration stems from a mastering I did a couple of days ago. The first mix I got had a kick with decent low end but no punch, and the bass synth was incredibly low in volume. Some multiband and EQ rectified it quite a bit. The client was satisfied with the mastering but realized his mix - or actually his choice of sounds - was poor.
So he re-did the mix and I mastered it again, but from scratch. The kick now had punch and some deep low end but the bass synth was still low in volume. The client was very happy and loved everything this time. Of course it cost him 2x fee but next time he'll probably pay even more attention to the sounds and mix, and follow the pointers I gave him.
However, my frustration is that I wasn't completely satisfied with the mastering myself. I felt it just needed a bit of this saturation in the area around the fullness of the kick (it had punch and sub but lacked some fatness), it was too clean and digital - even after some excellent tube saturation on the whole mix.