I love that feeling when I see a new video from this channel and I know it's going to a be a high quality video with legitimate tips from professionals and not just random tutorial videos. Thanks for bringing in great people to share their knowledge.
Thanks very much Klubz Productions! That's very kind of you! I definitely want people who work on music every day so we can ALL learn from them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@@Producelikeapro I just sent this video to my partner on a record. Preparing our once rehearsal studio, now recording basement home sound factory. Just wanted to take the time and tell you congratulations on this video and all the hard work and obvious dedication to music we both share . Sincerely, J.
I really like this guy! Now, I know there are only so many hours in the day and Mr. Sokol is probably a very busy man, but something like a "Mastering Basics" video with him using one of your mixes (or maybe even a mix from a PLAP academy member!) would be amazing.
I cannot begin to express how I love the in-depth explanations about the inner workings of the gear here. Unlike most videos where people claim "this is magic," here we have a guy who went down the technical rabbit hole and listens and therefore can put words on what the tools allow you to do. I love that. In a world full of snake oil salesmen it's good to have facts. Not alternative facts (that would simply mean lies), but actual facts. Thanks, Warren and Warren!
Hi noisesoundtonevibe, I agree! He was able to really break things down for me to understand as well! I love learning! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Friends, I hope you're doing marvellously well and had a great start into the new week! Being able to master your own songs has become a crucial skill to mixing engineers, producers and home studio recordists: Often, budgets don’t allow to hire an external Mastering engineer anymore. So in order for our music to compete with songs on the radio, Spotify or I-Tunes, we have to learn how to master music ourselves. Today, we are blessed to sit down with the insanely talented Warren Sokol from United Mastering: In this video, Warren breaks down his complete mastering chain and explains his favorite tools - digital as well as analogue. All the way from Acoustic Room Treatment and picking the right Speakers, to Signal Flow, Converters, Clocks, EQs, Harmonic enhancers, Compressors, Limiters and Dithering. Warren goes into great detail on each of his processors, explains their unique characteristics and how you can use them to achieve full and punchy masters. You’ll also learn how to prepare your mixes for mastering and Warren points out common mixing mistakes to avoid in order to achieve a great master. I hope you enjoy this interview and it helps you to craft big, radio-ready masters! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@Jason Simmons if the instrument you are mixing, doesn't need much bass, like guitar and vocals, it works very well. It keeps the mix from getting too much unwanted lower frequencies built up, making the mix muddy. I hope this helps, 3 years after you asked.
discovering and watching this video is like walking through a door in a polluted traffic tunnel and coming out into a fresh, clean alpine forest. Thanks Warrens.
I wouldn't often listen to a full 45 minutes of an interview but this was super interesting all the way through. Especially the parts where Warren (S) is talking about what he's thinking about at various stages of the master or when using pieces of gear. Invaluable! Thanks again Warren (H)!
I really did enjoy Sokol's approach to listening to music...trying to hear the sounds between the tracks. I could tell Warren (Huart) really valued what Sokol had to say - he was unusually quiet! Sokol really does have a lot of great tips.
Again as one of the few beginners that watch your videos ( I can tell by the comments most of your viewers are professionals as well ) I love that fact that , you go into great details and I can still follow along . Your channel is truly great . So glad RUclips algorithm suggested it .
Mr. Sokol, it is engineers such as yourself that inspire me, in all my years of study, i have never encountered someone who could so eloquently explain the complexities of mixing. Mr. Huart, i must thank you for sharing this experience with the public. I wish the both of you continued success.
I posted a comment before reading any of the others, now after reading some of the others I see that I am not the only one to feel this way. Well done!
I'm impressed with his ability and confidence to explain what and how the gear works in different scenarios. I'm not a techie and he gave even me a kind of understanding of how to use this gear. If ever I needed a mastering engineer he would be one of my first consideration.
There's always 40something complete Einsteins of music production who dislike videos with valuable information handed out freely for enthusiasts and even people already working in the art of recording and producing music. I wonder why ? Is it because they don't like it being freely handed over to the general public ? What? Thx for the great videos Warren!
Hi Warren Huart, I watch all your video's. this one makes me feel so humble and my god how little I know. I really liked Warren Sokal and what he had to say. Like you he's forgotten more than I'll ever learn. Please keep them coming . Thanks Dave.
The only 30+ minute instructional video I've watched in its entirety 2018. Dunno if that's a testament to this video or a jab at YT these days. Probably both...
Hi Joshua, I hear you! When I was looking at doing my Mastering Video I realised that there were 20 minute videos just on just one of the 5 ideas. So in this series I wanted to make sure I gave a lot of information to people! I've been running an Academy now for a year and a half and I get the same questions and issues to deal with from all of us, so I have a pretty good idea of what to pinpoint in a discussion! Thanks for your great comment! I really appreciate it!
Very good presentation; and I especially like the comments from Sokol about getting into the spaces between the performers and bringing the overall loudness up without causing harm to the mix. Very helpful in offering an understanding of how the mastering is approached. Thank you for this interview!
Hi Warren. Thanks very much for this video. Warren S. certainly knows his stuff and it was a delight to see him so enthusiastically share his knowledge. I started out on a second hand Yamaha mt100 4 track tape recorder, progressed to a secondhand Boss portastudio, then in the early 2000s when computers really became the norm I couldn't afford it and working on a pc didn't appeal anyway so I bought a secondhand ADAT and a 16 channel desk. It's perfect for live recordings. The cost of my set up was only a few hundred pounds but I figured that I couldn't hear any difference between 90s recordings on tape and 00s recordings on computer so the only difference must be the way of working rather than the quality of the recording. Seeing Warren explain how he goes about using his gear helps a great deal from the point of view of preparing a mix for mastering and it is interesting to see how one process informs the other. Great work and thanks again for the video.
Thanks have just finished a Degree in Sound Engineering and Music Production at Point Blank University in London - it’s amazing that I thought I was getting closer to understanding EQ, Compression and Limiting - this wowed me the depth !!
A great 45 minutes. Makes me confident that my mixes being sent to be mastered are going to be relatively easy to master because I did things good upfront in the final mix down. Great great explanation of the gear!
That was incredibly informative. It really helped me to understand the compressor/limiter difference and also gave me more grounding in eq from a mastering perspective. I was definitely overdoing it before now! Thanks to you both!
Thanks Warren and Warren Sokol, I got so much from that walkthrough. Really appreciate the sharing and hearing how you got into mastering. Your interview really highlighted the skill of the craft.
Some of what Warren was sharing was over my head to be honest, but it was good to hear some one articulately talk about mastering from years of experience. If you get another chance Warren, I guess I'd like to see a bit more of his decision making process at the console where we could hear what he is doing. The gear review was great, but I found myself wanting to hear him use the gear and explain his decision making process. Thanks as always for the great job!
Maor Applebaum also used the Titan compressor. These two mastering videos helped me decide that it's a sound investment. Great discussion here about clipping, about dynamic range, about EQ. Thanks to both.
I experienced the clipping track issue the other day. For some things I will record guitar and bass direct through my interface. I tend to leave the cable plugged in and switch guitars while recording. The bass level had to be a lot higher than the guitar and for a couple of dubs I forgot to turn the level down when I switched back to guitar. Needless to say the dubs clipped like mad but I didn't realize it through my headphones while recording. So when I went to mix the dubs in... I realized pretty quickly that I had to rerecord them yet again. Live and learn. Love this mastering vid! Looking forward to more.
Man this is one of the best Mastering videos I have seen on youtube. I have other favorites but this 1 is definitely topnotch. So much useful and detail info I already watched it 4 times. Good job man and thanks!!!!
Totally awesome. I am now completely discouraged but recognize that at home, I will never be able to do what Warren Sokol does - not even close. It seems the more I learn the more I recognize how much I don't and probably won't ever know or be able to do alone. Oh, well - never give up being the motto - I did learn some stuff and will try to put the principles into practice.
It is something I believe everyone of the digital/analog monitor controllers on the market could use!! Although the 16bit format is really disappearing quickly, so I don't know how relevant it will be in even another year. I would really like to see a bit rate & sample rate indicator on these types of monitor controllers! Since they will usually accept any bit rate & any sample rate & then upsample to 192K (or above), which is a 32bit process in most modern DAC's. So it would be really great to have a simple LCD, or even indicator lights to show the actual bit rate & sample rate feeding into the monitor condroller/DAC! anyway....too much to much info...? ;^) Cheers! WS
There is a difference between 0 dBu and 0 dBFS that is important to mention because a lot of people don't understand it and just say dB, and might get misunderstood. dB is an alogrithmic unit that has to be related to an outgoing point, like SPL means that 0 dB equals 20 microPascal (the lowest we can hear). dBFS means Full Scale and 0 dB in that case is the highest you can get with a digital signal. When you said "we professionals don't talk like that", I thought that this is a bit wrong because mostly professionals who understand that important difference will insist to be accurate. Otherwise, great video! I like watching your videos and feeling marvelously well while doing it :)
Hi Jonathan, thanks for clarifying the difference! Glad you enjoyed the video! I can't speak for everyone only the people I know, like the mastering engineers and producers etc we interview. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great informative vid. As someone, bound by finance, who has to record, mix and master his own work it is so helpful to find the same principles being demonstrated at the highest level.
So much useful, well delivered information passes through Produce Like A Pro it is shocking and very comforting at the same time. I am sure that I am not the only one that loves all that you do! Thank you Warren an thank you PLAP team!!!!
This is one of the most informative videos I have watched on your channel. I am now wanting to know more about how my gear actually works(technically) in comparison to each other. Thanks.
Hi Warren, thanks a truck-load for the great content and keeping in touch with your audience. In this video you mention not compressing too much on the 2-bus when mixing. I'm working on my bands project at the moment. My 2bus generally consists of; density mkIII on the lowest ratio/fastest release with less than 2db reduction, a tape emu at +2db peak, and a limiter with less than 3db gain reduction(which I wouldn't print in the copy for mastering). I'm trying not to "over-vibe" my tracks and I don't want to blast my listening devices to hear my mixes. Does this sound like good practice to you?
Hi Adam, Unfortunately, that's nearly impossible to say without hearing the mix. My best advice would be to not have any one static setting & use the bypasses to check & see if what its doing is actually helping! To do this, you'll have to do it at matched levels, because I'm sure that is making things louder. So you'll have to turn down the output of the final limiter to match the level of mix before going through any of it. That way you hear the processing & not just the loudness increase. If it's better good! You may want to do this on each individual plugin in the chain as well, to make sure what it's doing by itself is truly beneficial! Also, anything on the 2-bus being used just to make the overall mix louder probably doesn't really need to be there!! Cheers!
Thanks a heap Warren. I will try some more ab comparisons. I would certainly not be leaving my loudness limiter in the final mix for mastering, I just use it to make sure I can hear the mix when I'm checking outside the studio.
It was really nice to hear someone talk about exactly what the different oddities these mastering eqs have, like the bell widening instead of jumping to center frequency. That's something that you might hear is odd (in a good way) but have no idea what its actually doing, other than making things sound good. I love knowing the science behind my gear. I've been producing and engineering rock music for almost 15 years and just know when i hear something good, but always curious as to whats happening in the magic boxes. Also nice to hear some tricks being told, especially why he used specific gear for the reasons he does and not others. Honestly its fantastic information for someone just starting out, or even someone who has been at it for many many years like me, you always get to learn something new. I've been meaning to ask if you could include something going forward in your series, which seems to be overlooked mostly in your studio tours and interviews, and thats AD/DA converters and what sample rates are being used and why, for any given studio/producer. I personally hear such huge differences between different AD/DA boxes, it would be lovely to know what some places use what they do, and why. Also the debate on tracking 44.1 vs 96, and anything in between is always brought up online, and it would be great to know from these guys who are producing the stuff we hear on the radio, what they tracked/mixed at, and why. Cheers!
Hi Josef, thanks for watching!! I like to learn why certain gear sounds one way & another piece sounds different & to be able to visualize what is happening while I work! I've found that when I understand how & why a certain EQ sounds the way it does, when I run into problems that need fixing but are difficult to track down within a 2-trk mix it helps me to find & fix the problem faster when I can visualize the problem & the solution in my head! Although when I am working on a good mix, I am more focused on how it is making m e feel throughout my body. When I feel it effecting me the right way, I know it's done "cooking"!! Cheers! WS
Hey there "other" Warren, thanks for replying! Welcome to youtube, don't get sucked in haha. Thanks for sharing info on here and opening your place for us to see. It's such a small community of professionals in this industry, so its always nice to see us come together and talk shop. Also this introduced me to those active bass traps, that tech boggles my mind, and now I'm looking into see if thats a solution I might want to use for my mixing space. Was your space designed originally by an acoustician and then tailored to you after? Was bass an issue when you got in there or was there a passive trap that was removed for the active? Thanks, cheers!
Hi Josef! The AVAA's were definitely a surprise to me when they actually did what they claimed to do!! If you have low freq room modes they would probably help once you find the most optimal place for them in your room...which take a bit of time some science! the room we are in was not originally designed as a studio, although it has been being used for producing music in multiple ways over the years. But never to the level of detail we needed. So we did have to do some work to get the freq response flattened out. Mainly in the bass, which is usually the case in most rooms. Thanks for watching!! WS
awesome video, I'm now getting into mastering and found this quite helpful for like an overall view of a professional setup, I definitely want more of these, and Warren(s) if you have any suggestion about what to study and how to learn this craft, please let me know!
Only really put this on as background but got immediately hooked and stayed til the end. The part where Warren H says "is that an antelope I see?" I was expecting a wild animal to have wandered in to the room
7 лет назад+1
interesting, I use multiband all the time ! I find that it's often the most transparent way to fix problems, or for example, evening bass notes. I also find it to be the most transparent way to make kick and bass work together (multiband sidechain). it's more transparent than normal sidechain compression and makes great room for the kick low end. Multiband sidechain is the future ! :D
Re. "don't use high pass filtering, if the mixer is referring to the Mixbus TV video, the guy instructs you not use multiple high pass filters on the same instrument. Just use one at the end of your fx chain. Layering hpfs on top of each other will cause phase problems, but you still need one on your drum bus, bass bus, guitar bus, etc to clean them up.
Hi Adam, definitely have to use EQ and High Passing properly! Important to listen and not to look! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I got to the end! I really learned a lot- and it was really interesting listening to how the HEDD works and adds the harmonics in an additive fashion instead of affecting the entire signal. It's a piece of gear that has aged very well. Warren 2 knows his stuff for sure!
Thanks Amoth!! I am a big fan of the HEDD!! Excellent converters & the harmonic emulation has yet to be beat in my opinion! Does so much so subtly & simply!! Love it! Did you know that you can have the DAC upgraded to Cranesongs new "Quantum DAC" that's in the new Avocet's & the Solaris? The DAC in the Avocet is by far one of the best I've ever heard!! I am waiting to do the upgrade on my HEDD until he is done designing the Quantum ADC though, so I can have them both upgraded at the same time. The current HEDD DAC beat out pretty much every other one we tested, so it certainly has held up!! Cheers!
Hi Warren Huart. Thanks for this video, it helps me really a lot though. But there is one question that still eating up my brain and i wanted to ask. As Sokol pointed it out, I understood it's not a good thing using limiter on a mixing bus before mastering(correct me if i got it wrong). But can i use limiter on individual track without causing any problem for the late mastering process? Again thanks a lot, you are a big help.
Wow, I went to The Recording Workshop in Chillicothe way way back around the early ‘80s. They’ve been going a lonnngggg time! Good to hear they’re still around - had a good experience with them and learned a lot.
Warren, have you done or can you do a tutorial on ideal frequencies for particular instruments in a mix? You speak about not having too much frequency overlap between instruments while also avoiding frequencies that are undesirable for each instrument. I am particularly interested in regards heavy music like Motorhead. Thanks!
Wow! Best video I´ve seen on youtube. I learned so much and I´m not even done with this video. This is priceless. I love to see and feel the passion you guys have and I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your knowledge, you just pushed my hunger for more, you guys just really influenced me exercising the profession as an audiologist.
Warren's Squared. Thank you very much for this impressive conversation and very much needed discussion and outlook on sound. In all things there are two sides of the coin, this being inspiring, welcoming, engaging, and powerful. This is a gem. Thank you both and sharing, this goes much further beyond the scope.
From PASSEQ manual: There is basically only one type of filter used in the PASSEQ: The bell-filter or peak-filter. But since the center frequency of the peak-filter, concerning the HF and LF bands, is only marginally within the perceptible hearing range, these filters auditorily and visually rather correspond to shelf-filters. 😉
So, I just realized how little I know about sound. I've always known I had a lot to learn, but wow. I wish I had the time to go to a workshop like Chilicothe. Great information on all of Warren's videos.
Is it me or is there an ever so slight slapback delay in the room. Is it a function of the room or something else? Maybe the two lapel mics being slightly behind each other? Either way, I am really enjoying everything you put on this channel! Thanks!
He seems like a pretty awesome mastering engineer and also fairly flexible and understanding upon receiving a mix you know going through school being told that mastering Engineers will turn you away for typos and not enough Headroom at least -6 DB that would be a deal-breaker typically for hard up mastering Engineers but I like how he has an optimistic attitude about it and wouldn't even mind getting in there to creating a Better Mix level before he bounces it down to a stereo file in which he could Master with plenty of Headroom I think that's very Noble humble and awesome great video.
Thanks for watching Troy! With digital mixes, it fairly transparent to adjust the gain down in the DAW before going out to my analog chain & I also have the option of using analog attenuators as the first step in my mastering console, so as long as the signal isn't clipped, it can easily be brought down to whatever level sounds best hitting any analog gear being used! I've never felt like it was my place to say this or that mix is worthy or not...I operate more under the idea that it is my job to educate my clients about the these things so we both continue to grow & get better & better results! I receive mixes of all quality's, from mixes that are so good that all I am doing is bringing the level up to where it needs to be & doing it without messing up what I was given. To mixes that are so bad that there isn't anything I can do that doesn't just make thing worse! So when I get mixes with problems I always try to go back to the artist and/or mix engineer & discuss changes they could make in the mix that would fix any problems. I can sometimes fix them on my side, but it is always better to do it on the individual tracks where the problems exist, rather than trying to isolate them within a finished mix where no matter what you do, you are going to effect everything, not just the track(s) with the problem! But there are times when the answer I get back is: "we don't have the session anymore", or "we don't have the budget or time to go back to the mixing stage & make changes". So when that happens I am more than happy to do what I can to fix things...if it is possible...and as long as they understand that I can only do so much with specific issues when I only have the 2-track mix. Unfortunately there are times when I just cant fix a bad mix & then only option is to say "this is not ready to be mastered", but if I can give the client what they are wanting I try to do it. But if they can do better & in the end that will make ME do better work, thats the way it should go, so we do that! Every session is different & I am being paid to make the sound in my clients head come out of the speakers, so whatever technique is going to make that happen, is the correct technique for that session! Cheers! WS
Great video! I bit overwhelming with specific HW concepts, since I was more oriented learning to master in-the-box, but plenty of great general tips on audio processing! Thanks!
I'm learning a lot from this series. Coupla filming observations. I love the editing--keeps a great pace. The camera however, really needs to be more on what is being described. Otherwise, this is great stuff, and I'm grateful to learn so much for free. Keep up the great work!
thank you very much for a fantastic video ,listening to those who polish the end product give much insight into how to record and prepare a good mix .thanks again for allowing us to gain knowledge, that may well of never been obtainable otherwise. I always learn much from professionals like yourself and those you interview.
Great video. Always love Warren S. I have a few questions if you have a chance: in a previous video when you were at Universal you were using a Dangerous transfer console. How does that compare sound- and featurewise to your Manley one? I know it's a huge topic but are you particular about the cabling and electricity (as in AC to your room) and how important are these factors to your ears? Do you buy into these "esoteric" audio and electrical cables that in some cases cost a ton of money? Thanks and all the best!
Hi Stefan! We did have the Dangerous consoles at UMS & I actually prefer the Manley over them. More functionality & I feel like the build quality & sound is a bit more stable. Neither really have a sound of their own, but I guess I feel like the Manley has less of an effect on the output when just passing through the console. ...I assume there are people that disagree with that though. As far as the cabling question, I sit somewhere in the middle on that. I agree that a lot of the esoteric cabling out there is just a lot of $$ for a filter of some kind, in the form of a cable. However, I have also found that there are some out there that really do make a positive difference (usually NOT the most expensive ones BTW)! For example, all of our ang, dig & work clock cables at United Mastering are made by Audioquest. They are solid-core copper, with a silver coating & truly seem to allow more of the depth & dynamics within a recording to make it to the other side of the processing chain without being destroyed!! Since installing them here, I've been getting consistently louder masters, without the dynamics having to be crushed to make it loud & my clients noticed it right away..which is all that I am concerned with!!! If they are happy, then it must be correct!
Thanks for your reply! Your cabling must rival the cost of your equipment but I guess in mastering you're dealing in milimeters while "normal" people are dealing in feet and miles! You mentioned that you were a teacher once and that really comes through in the way you explain audio concepts in a really understandable and approachable way. Hope you do some kind of tutorial series in the future. All the best!
Yes, our cable runs are all very short! Although in mastering you are effectively making a long daisy-chain of gear & cables to build a sound, so it adds up! We were able to get Audioquest to custom make all of our cables so they are all only as long as they need to be! Most are only 3'-5' long or shorter, except the runs going to the speakers which I believe are around 9'-12' long. So although these cables were not cheap, the total length of all of them is probably equal to 2 or 3 single cables needed to go from the studio to the control room in most recording situations! ;^) I've heard a lot of "audiophile" cables that effect the sound in one way or another, good & bad! We went with the Audioquest "Mackenzie" (analog) & "Coffee" (digital) cables because they didn't change the signal coming down the line, but allowed it to get to the other end unchanged! I noticed it the most in the depth & dynamics that my masters now have compared to the previous system I worked on, which used almost identical gear, but was built over many years so the cables were all different & random quality & lengths. These details really do make a difference when the essence of your job is to maintain and/or enhance the inner details & dynamics of a recording! Cheers! WS
It's really interesting that he uses SADiE for mastering, I've heard it's fantastic for mastering. Warren, I'd love to see some type of instructional mastering video where either you or one of the pros you regularly talk to goes step by step, start to finish, in mastering a song. Loved this video, I've never seen someone use two different convertors before, really cool stuff. Super helpful.
Thanks for watching Joseph!! I've used SADiE for over 15 years now & in my opinion it is one of the best sounding DAW's out there (yes there are differences in the sound of different DAW audio engines!!) & the editing options...to me...are the fastest & easiest to learn to use in depth!! Plus the new WAV-Mastering options make life easier for me because I can use one EDL to make all of the different master formats at any bit rate & sample rate I need! They are also some of the nicest people in the pro audio gear business!! Their customer service is the best I've received from any gear manufactures to date & has been since I bought my 1st (used) SADiE Classic System over 15 years ago!! I really can't say enough good things about Prism/SADiE!! (sorry, dont mean to sound like a salesman!) Cheers! WS
Thanks Klubz Productions and Warren! My question is what do you gain from taking a recording from 44.1 to 48 to 96 or higher. The data is already missing in the original recording so in theory you really are not getting the data back.
To start he may be adding harmonic content or air bands which are over 20KHz that would need sampling rate over 44.1Khz to get recorded. Also some plugins do benefit from higher sample rates which could sound better.
Quite informative. Thnx. Please explain how the monitor signal gets picked off from the processing path and sent to the Avocet. My understanding of the Avocet is that it does not pass signals thru so it cannot be placed in series with the processing gear (different from the old Dangerous Monitor where it passes the AES signals thru). Do you have to send each signal that you want to monitor to a router? Am I missing something? Thnx
Not the first video I've seen with Mr. Sokol, such a knowledgeable and interesting guy - and as always, more great content from PLAP. My question is, is all that hardware proportionally better than software equivalents in relation to the (gargantuan) cost verses the end result? Don't the various modules shown in this video just follow a set of rules that could be emulated on Plugins in a DAW? Thanks again Warren (and Warren!)
Hi Ben, thanks for the kind words!! To answer your question, I feel there are definitely benefits in using high quality analog gear that can't yet be achieved in the digital domain. Mainly using gain staging to build up a sound in a way that can't be emulated digitally...yet. Analog compression also still feels more natural & pleasing to my ears. Having said that, there are a ton of great sounding plugins that are making the need for analog gear less & less all the time. Myself & many other mastering eng's use plugins everyday & in a lot of cases they can be better than the analog equivalent. My job is to make my clients music sound as good as it can & I am lucky enough to get to use the best gear available to do that, so I do! But i definitely do not look down on anyone for using the best gear available to them to get the best results, regardless of what it actually is. Because in the end, it is really the song that matters!! I cant think of one single incident were someone said, "this song would be a hit, if they had only used analog EQ on it".
Yeah clipping is a real pain and it sometimes in my demos here and there it happends lightly and I hear it first after hours of work. He describes it very well! How do I record under 0 like - 5 or -8 ? Isnt there than no sound under zero. You two describe it very good but how do I do that? My workflow after recording is : 1.Eq - 2.Compressor - 3.Limiter - 4. Reverb and other effects. Thank you for the answer Warren. - Dante
It's question with thanks in advance? Or thanks phrased in quite uncommon way? I'm plainly curious. Also there is button "edit"(3 dots on right side to comment)
Hi Dante! that is an easy one! When you are tracking, sent the preamp/input level so that the loudest parts only hit around -3dBFS to -6dBFS on the peak meters! (if it isn't loud enough, turn up your speakers!!) "Digital Zero" is where the red lights go off at the top of the meter & if thats happening, then the peaks of your soundwaves are being clipped off & can never be replaced! In general if you record & mix on the quieter side, it tends to make it easier to get a loud master that still has great detail, dynamics & life!!
Warren Sokol Thank you a lot! I will use this knowlege on my next producing session for sure! Much love to you! I feel your passion for music so much and its nice to meet you! I will make sure to check your multimedia! I as well will share this video and retweet it on my Twitter! Your welcome! Music is hope so you are hope as well making/mastering music. My best wishes to you and again thank you for the answer! - Dante PS: You are for sure welcome to listen to my music here on RUclips for free.
This was amazing! So much insight on what the mastering engineer is listening for, which is so different than mixing. How are the Delta H. Design products working? What change did you hear in your room?
This was a great vid, thanks Warren....and I made it to the end! :) Warren Sokol was very well spoken and really helped to demystify the "dark art" of mastering!
Wow! Great!! Mastering guys/gals are a completely different type of animal and this guy is a proverbial mastering engineer in the greatest sense of the title. I like his approach. He’s probably out of my traditional price range but I can help imagine how cool it would be to hear him master one of my mixes. Thank you Warren for bringing a different but important perspective to the production process. Cheers! ✌️
Thanks for that great video. Something make me confuse about Manley massive passive... I don't own the real hardware but I'm using the UAD plugin. And what he told about this EQ is far away from what I hear... and after a few analyses with Room Eq Wizard, the plugin is not reacting as what it's said in the video.... I'm not telling he's wrong, i'm not telling the plugin is not emulated the right way, I'm just telling that I didn't understand "single band with 4 controls" for me it's really a 4 bands EQ... Any precisions re welcome?
Probably the best technical video so far Warren, even my girlfriend( I prefer womanfriend) loves your videos, ...you also have this reminisance in your core, and you bring that out in your interviews... A question has a thousand explanations, it's about how you ask the question....
I love that feeling when I see a new video from this channel and I know it's going to a be a high quality video with legitimate tips from professionals and not just random tutorial videos. Thanks for bringing in great people to share their knowledge.
Thanks very much Klubz Productions! That's very kind of you! I definitely want people who work on music every day so we can ALL learn from them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
+1 a truly enlightening video. Great channel.
Thanks very much Yblig! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@@Producelikeapro I just sent this video to my partner on a record. Preparing our once rehearsal studio, now recording basement home sound factory. Just wanted to take the time and tell you congratulations on this video and all the hard work and obvious dedication to music we both share . Sincerely, J.
Agreed! Warren has done more for audio than most have “said they have”. @ProduceLikeAPro for the win!
I really like this guy! Now, I know there are only so many hours in the day and Mr. Sokol is probably a very busy man, but something like a "Mastering Basics" video with him using one of your mixes (or maybe even a mix from a PLAP academy member!) would be amazing.
What an exceptionally good idea..! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching!!
Cheers!
WS
I cannot begin to express how I love the in-depth explanations about the inner workings of the gear here. Unlike most videos where people claim "this is magic," here we have a guy who went down the technical rabbit hole and listens and therefore can put words on what the tools allow you to do. I love that. In a world full of snake oil salesmen it's good to have facts. Not alternative facts (that would simply mean lies), but actual facts. Thanks, Warren and Warren!
Hi noisesoundtonevibe, I agree! He was able to really break things down for me to understand as well! I love learning! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for the kind words noisesoundtonevibe!!
Cheers!
WS
Warren Sokol - you are great ! Thank you for the details. Detail is everything for us mixers/ producers.
Hi Friends,
I hope you're doing marvellously well and had a great start into the new week!
Being able to master your own songs has become a crucial skill to mixing engineers, producers and home studio recordists:
Often, budgets don’t allow to hire an external Mastering engineer anymore. So in order for our music to compete with songs on the radio, Spotify or I-Tunes, we have to learn how to master music ourselves.
Today, we are blessed to sit down with the insanely talented Warren Sokol from United Mastering: In this video, Warren breaks down his complete mastering chain and explains his favorite tools - digital as well as analogue.
All the way from Acoustic Room Treatment and picking the right Speakers, to Signal Flow, Converters, Clocks, EQs, Harmonic enhancers, Compressors, Limiters and Dithering. Warren goes into great detail on each of his processors, explains their unique characteristics and how you can use them to achieve full and punchy masters.
You’ll also learn how to prepare your mixes for mastering and Warren points out common mixing mistakes to avoid in order to achieve a great master.
I hope you enjoy this interview and it helps you to craft big, radio-ready masters!
Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Marvellous makes me think of Arnold J Rimmer.
Hi Pinkney Vs_Robots hahah I Red Dwarf reference!! Nice! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
How do you know the best places to use a high pass?
@Jason Simmons if the instrument you are mixing, doesn't need much bass, like guitar and vocals, it works very well. It keeps the mix from getting too much unwanted lower frequencies built up, making the mix muddy. I hope this helps, 3 years after you asked.
discovering and watching this video is like walking through a door in a polluted traffic tunnel and coming out into a fresh, clean alpine forest. Thanks Warrens.
I wouldn't often listen to a full 45 minutes of an interview but this was super interesting all the way through. Especially the parts where Warren (S) is talking about what he's thinking about at various stages of the master or when using pieces of gear. Invaluable! Thanks again Warren (H)!
Aw shucks thanks very much! I'm really glad you enjoyed the video!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I really did enjoy Sokol's approach to listening to music...trying to hear the sounds between the tracks. I could tell Warren (Huart) really valued what Sokol had to say - he was unusually quiet! Sokol really does have a lot of great tips.
Thanks for watching Yuda!!
Cheers!
WS
Hi Yuda, yes, indeed! Warren S. is amazing! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Again as one of the few beginners that watch your videos ( I can tell by the comments most of your viewers are professionals as well ) I love that fact that , you go into great details and I can still follow along . Your channel is truly great . So glad RUclips algorithm suggested it .
Mr. Sokol, it is engineers such as yourself that inspire me, in all my years of study, i have never encountered someone who could so eloquently explain the complexities of mixing. Mr. Huart, i must thank you for sharing this experience with the public. I wish the both of you continued success.
Thanks very much Airrion! Yes, Warren S. Rules! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks so much for the kind words Airrion!!
Cheers!
WS
I posted a comment before reading any of the others, now after reading some of the others I see that I am not the only one to feel this way. Well done!
Quote of the day: 'Yeh we got perfect levels! The red light is on the whole time!'
Haha I know genius!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I laughed hard at that. I'm definitely gonna use it in the future!
yeah that can be a sign of saturated quality sound. Maybe not with cheapo pre amps ;-)
I am a home studio guy strictly for my own music. This has been the best video I have seen on mastering! Thank you!
I'm impressed with his ability and confidence to explain what and how the gear works in different scenarios. I'm not a techie and he gave even me a kind of understanding of how to use this gear. If ever I needed a mastering engineer he would be one of my first consideration.
There's always 40something complete Einsteins of music production who dislike videos with valuable information handed out freely for enthusiasts and even people already working in the art of recording and producing music. I wonder why ? Is it because they don't like it being freely handed over to the general public ? What? Thx for the great videos Warren!
Thank you Warren squared! I stayed til the end and it made me realize how my poor attempts to master on a DAW are woefully inadequate!
Hi Warren Huart, I watch all your video's. this one makes me feel so humble and my god how little I know. I really liked Warren Sokal and what he had to say. Like you he's forgotten more than I'll ever learn. Please keep them coming . Thanks Dave.
The only 30+ minute instructional video I've watched in its entirety 2018. Dunno if that's a testament to this video or a jab at YT these days. Probably both...
Hi Joshua, I hear you! When I was looking at doing my Mastering Video I realised that there were 20 minute videos just on just one of the 5 ideas. So in this series I wanted to make sure I gave a lot of information to people! I've been running an Academy now for a year and a half and I get the same questions and issues to deal with from all of us, so I have a pretty good idea of what to pinpoint in a discussion! Thanks for your great comment! I really appreciate it!
Very good presentation; and I especially like the comments from Sokol about getting into the spaces between the performers and bringing the overall loudness up without causing harm to the mix. Very helpful in offering an understanding of how the mastering is approached. Thank you for this interview!
Agreed 100%! What an amazing comment! Warren S. is wonderful! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
13 min into this and have gotten so much out of it. Awesome interaction.
Thank you Warren!!
this is possibly the best interview I've ever seen...
Wow thanks ever so much Sam Be Mixing!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Warren. Thanks very much for this video. Warren S. certainly knows his stuff and it was a delight to see him so enthusiastically share his knowledge. I started out on a second hand Yamaha mt100 4 track tape recorder, progressed to a secondhand Boss portastudio, then in the early 2000s when computers really became the norm I couldn't afford it and working on a pc didn't appeal anyway so I bought a secondhand ADAT and a 16 channel desk. It's perfect for live recordings. The cost of my set up was only a few hundred pounds but I figured that I couldn't hear any difference between 90s recordings on tape and 00s recordings on computer so the only difference must be the way of working rather than the quality of the recording. Seeing Warren explain how he goes about using his gear helps a great deal from the point of view of preparing a mix for mastering and it is interesting to see how one process informs the other. Great work and thanks again for the video.
The best ever video i have watched on mastering, so much information explained in such an understandable way, i learnt so much from this.
Please more from this guy i could listen to him all day.
Thanks ever so much! Yes, warren Sokol Rules!!
Probably the best informational video on mastering / music production I have seen. Thank you for bringing this content for everyone to enjoy.
Wow thanks ever so much Wesley!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks have just finished a Degree in Sound Engineering and Music Production at Point Blank University in London - it’s amazing that I thought I was getting closer to understanding EQ, Compression and Limiting - this wowed me the depth !!
I have watched at least a hundred of your videos and learned something new every time thank you for what you do for the engineer community
Thank you ever so much my friend!!
A great 45 minutes. Makes me confident that my mixes being sent to be mastered are going to be relatively easy to master because I did things good upfront in the final mix down. Great great explanation of the gear!
Are you kidding me? Heck yes I stayed till the end! Very informative! Thank you Warren for the insight.
Aw shucks thanks ever so much!! You Rock! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
That was incredibly informative. It really helped me to understand the compressor/limiter difference and also gave me more grounding in eq from a mastering perspective. I was definitely overdoing it before now! Thanks to you both!
Thanks Warren and Warren Sokol, I got so much from that walkthrough. Really appreciate the sharing and hearing how you got into mastering. Your interview really highlighted the skill of the craft.
Man! I would listen to him all day! So much knowledge have this guy! LOVE THE VIDEO!
Thanks ver so much Ivan! That's very kind of you! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Some of what Warren was sharing was over my head to be honest, but it was good to hear some one articulately talk about mastering from years of experience. If you get another chance Warren, I guess I'd like to see a bit more of his decision making process at the console where we could hear what he is doing. The gear review was great, but I found myself wanting to hear him use the gear and explain his decision making process. Thanks as always for the great job!
Thanks Karl! Yes, Warren S. is amazing! Great guy and knows his schnizzle! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching Karl!!
Cheers!
WS
I've seen this one but I'm watching again because that is the best Mastering thumbnail of all time.
Maor Applebaum also used the Titan compressor. These two mastering videos helped me decide that it's a sound investment. Great discussion here about clipping, about dynamic range, about EQ. Thanks to both.
Prolly the best equipment breakdown ive heard in a while
I experienced the clipping track issue the other day. For some things I will record guitar and bass direct through my interface. I tend to leave the cable plugged in and switch guitars while recording. The bass level had to be a lot higher than the guitar and for a couple of dubs I forgot to turn the level down when I switched back to guitar. Needless to say the dubs clipped like mad but I didn't realize it through my headphones while recording.
So when I went to mix the dubs in... I realized pretty quickly that I had to rerecord them yet again. Live and learn.
Love this mastering vid! Looking forward to more.
Great stuff Warren and Warren. Thank you for taking the time to share you're incredible amount of knowledge with us.
Man this is one of the best Mastering videos I have seen on youtube. I have other favorites but this 1 is definitely topnotch. So much useful and detail info I already watched it 4 times. Good job man and thanks!!!!
Thanks very much Sebatian! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks Sebatian!! glad to pass on the info & there will be more coming in the future!!
Cheers!!
Totally awesome. I am now completely discouraged but recognize that at home, I will never be able to do what Warren Sokol does - not even close. It seems the more I learn the more I recognize how much I don't and probably won't ever know or be able to do alone. Oh, well - never give up being the motto - I did learn some stuff and will try to put the principles into practice.
This is really inspiring to make music!!!
The information is excellent!!!!
The 16 bit dithering button to hear dithering is wicked....
Hi Keith, yes I agree! Great button! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
It is something I believe everyone of the digital/analog monitor controllers on the market could use!! Although the 16bit format is really disappearing quickly, so I don't know how relevant it will be in even another year.
I would really like to see a bit rate & sample rate indicator on these types of monitor controllers! Since they will usually accept any bit rate & any sample rate & then upsample to 192K (or above), which is a 32bit process in most modern DAC's. So it would be really great to have a simple LCD, or even indicator lights to show the actual bit rate & sample rate feeding into the monitor condroller/DAC!
anyway....too much to much info...? ;^)
Cheers!
WS
There is a difference between 0 dBu and 0 dBFS that is important to mention because a lot of people don't understand it and just say dB, and might get misunderstood. dB is an alogrithmic unit that has to be related to an outgoing point, like SPL means that 0 dB equals 20 microPascal (the lowest we can hear). dBFS means Full Scale and 0 dB in that case is the highest you can get with a digital signal.
When you said "we professionals don't talk like that", I thought that this is a bit wrong because mostly professionals who understand that important difference will insist to be accurate.
Otherwise, great video! I like watching your videos and feeling marvelously well while doing it :)
Hi Jonathan, thanks for clarifying the difference! Glad you enjoyed the video! I can't speak for everyone only the people I know, like the mastering engineers and producers etc we interview. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I loved this video. I can't afford one piece of equipment in that room, but I learned enough to improve my mixes immensely. Thanks!
Glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great informative vid. As someone, bound by finance, who has to record, mix and master his own work it is so helpful to find the same principles being demonstrated at the highest level.
Unlike many I hear on this topic this was really informative and engaging the whole way trough. More videos with Mr. Sokol please.
So much useful, well delivered information passes through Produce Like A Pro it is shocking and very comforting at the same time. I am sure that I am not the only one that loves all that you do! Thank you Warren an thank you PLAP team!!!!
Hi Michael Vealey aw shucks thanks ever so much!! You are very kind! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This is one of the most informative videos I have watched on your channel. I am now wanting to know more about how my gear actually works(technically) in comparison to each other. Thanks.
Hi Warren, thanks a truck-load for the great content and keeping in touch with your audience. In this video you mention not compressing too much on the 2-bus when mixing. I'm working on my bands project at the moment. My 2bus generally consists of; density mkIII on the lowest ratio/fastest release with less than 2db reduction, a tape emu at +2db peak, and a limiter with less than 3db gain reduction(which I wouldn't print in the copy for mastering). I'm trying not to "over-vibe" my tracks and I don't want to blast my listening devices to hear my mixes. Does this sound like good practice to you?
Hi Adam,
Unfortunately, that's nearly impossible to say without hearing the mix.
My best advice would be to not have any one static setting & use the bypasses to check & see if what its doing is actually helping!
To do this, you'll have to do it at matched levels, because I'm sure that is making things louder. So you'll have to turn down the output of the final limiter to match the level of mix before going through any of it.
That way you hear the processing & not just the loudness increase. If it's better good!
You may want to do this on each individual plugin in the chain as well, to make sure what it's doing by itself is truly beneficial!
Also, anything on the 2-bus being used just to make the overall mix louder probably doesn't really need to be there!!
Cheers!
Thanks a heap Warren. I will try some more ab comparisons. I would certainly not be leaving my loudness limiter in the final mix for mastering, I just use it to make sure I can hear the mix when I'm checking outside the studio.
It was really nice to hear someone talk about exactly what the different oddities these mastering eqs have, like the bell widening instead of jumping to center frequency. That's something that you might hear is odd (in a good way) but have no idea what its actually doing, other than making things sound good. I love knowing the science behind my gear. I've been producing and engineering rock music for almost 15 years and just know when i hear something good, but always curious as to whats happening in the magic boxes. Also nice to hear some tricks being told, especially why he used specific gear for the reasons he does and not others. Honestly its fantastic information for someone just starting out, or even someone who has been at it for many many years like me, you always get to learn something new. I've been meaning to ask if you could include something going forward in your series, which seems to be overlooked mostly in your studio tours and interviews, and thats AD/DA converters and what sample rates are being used and why, for any given studio/producer. I personally hear such huge differences between different AD/DA boxes, it would be lovely to know what some places use what they do, and why. Also the debate on tracking 44.1 vs 96, and anything in between is always brought up online, and it would be great to know from these guys who are producing the stuff we hear on the radio, what they tracked/mixed at, and why. Cheers!
Hi Josef, thanks for watching!!
I like to learn why certain gear sounds one way & another piece sounds different & to be able to visualize what is happening while I work! I've found that when I understand how & why a certain EQ sounds the way it does, when I run into problems that need fixing but are difficult to track down within a 2-trk mix it helps me to find & fix the problem faster when I can visualize the problem & the solution in my head!
Although when I am working on a good mix, I am more focused on how it is making m e feel throughout my body. When I feel it effecting me the right way, I know it's done "cooking"!!
Cheers!
WS
Hey there "other" Warren, thanks for replying! Welcome to youtube, don't get sucked in haha. Thanks for sharing info on here and opening your place for us to see. It's such a small community of professionals in this industry, so its always nice to see us come together and talk shop. Also this introduced me to those active bass traps, that tech boggles my mind, and now I'm looking into see if thats a solution I might want to use for my mixing space. Was your space designed originally by an acoustician and then tailored to you after? Was bass an issue when you got in there or was there a passive trap that was removed for the active? Thanks, cheers!
Hi Josef!! Thanks ever so much for the great comment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Josef!
The AVAA's were definitely a surprise to me when they actually did what they claimed to do!!
If you have low freq room modes they would probably help once you find the most optimal place for them in your room...which take a bit of time some science!
the room we are in was not originally designed as a studio, although it has been being used for producing music in multiple ways over the years. But never to the level of detail we needed. So we did have to do some work to get the freq response flattened out. Mainly in the bass, which is usually the case in most rooms.
Thanks for watching!!
WS
Great, thanks for the info, and enjoy your room!
This video shows that mastering is truly an art in it self . Great content.
Wow, Mr. Sokol is a next level mastering engineer.
Warren Sokol is such a cool and friendly person. Good one! Thanks!
I agree 100!%!!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching imaginarytube!!
Cheers!
WS
awesome video, I'm now getting into mastering and found this quite helpful for like an overall view of a professional setup, I definitely want more of these, and Warren(s) if you have any suggestion about what to study and how to learn this craft, please let me know!
Great stuff Tutatis! More coming from Warren Sokol very soon! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Excellent descriptions and discussion of the gear! Thanks Warren & Warren!
a truly "master"ful video. Such a detailed view - rare to get that.
Thanks ever so much!!
Wonderful interview! He's extremely well-spoken and articulate. Thanks!!
So much talent, so much knowledge, so much fun!
Only really put this on as background but got immediately hooked and stayed til the end.
The part where Warren H says "is that an antelope I see?" I was expecting a wild animal to have wandered in to the room
interesting, I use multiband all the time ! I find that it's often the most transparent way to fix problems, or for example, evening bass notes. I also find it to be the most transparent way to make kick and bass work together (multiband sidechain). it's more transparent than normal sidechain compression and makes great room for the kick low end. Multiband sidechain is the future ! :D
Great stuff. Watched from start to finish. Felt like 5 mins :) Keep up the good work.
Thank you ever so much! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Re. "don't use high pass filtering, if the mixer is referring to the Mixbus TV video, the guy instructs you not use multiple high pass filters on the same instrument. Just use one at the end of your fx chain. Layering hpfs on top of each other will cause phase problems, but you still need one on your drum bus, bass bus, guitar bus, etc to clean them up.
Hi Adam, definitely have to use EQ and High Passing properly! Important to listen and not to look! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I got to the end! I really learned a lot- and it was really interesting listening to how the HEDD works and adds the harmonics in an additive fashion instead of affecting the entire signal. It's a piece of gear that has aged very well. Warren 2 knows his stuff for sure!
Thanks Amoth!! I am a big fan of the HEDD!! Excellent converters & the harmonic emulation has yet to be beat in my opinion! Does so much so subtly & simply!! Love it!
Did you know that you can have the DAC upgraded to Cranesongs new "Quantum DAC" that's in the new Avocet's & the Solaris? The DAC in the Avocet is by far one of the best I've ever heard!!
I am waiting to do the upgrade on my HEDD until he is done designing the Quantum ADC though, so I can have them both upgraded at the same time. The current HEDD DAC beat out pretty much every other one we tested, so it certainly has held up!!
Cheers!
i'm currently in the market for a ADC and DAC and the HEDD and Forssell are on my lists.. might just get the HEDD
Really amazing tips, presented in a friendly manner and atmosphere !
Hi Warren Huart. Thanks for this video, it helps me really a lot though. But there is one question that still eating up my brain and i wanted to ask. As Sokol pointed it out, I understood it's not a good thing using limiter on a mixing bus before mastering(correct me if i got it wrong). But can i use limiter on individual track without causing any problem for the late mastering process? Again thanks a lot, you are a big help.
A great insight into the mastering world, thanks SO much for this one Warrens!
Hi AJay, you're very welcome! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
By far the best mastering gear and techniques uide I've seen so far thank you.
After years of development, the RUclips algorithm knows me and works fine already, recommends me the right stuff I need. :D
Wow, I went to The Recording Workshop in Chillicothe way way back around the early ‘80s. They’ve been going a lonnngggg time! Good to hear they’re still around - had a good experience with them and learned a lot.
Excellent video from two very knowledgable guys. Thanks.
Your channel is amazing, Warren! So much invaluable information. Thank you so much!
Warren, have you done or can you do a tutorial on ideal frequencies for particular instruments in a mix? You speak about not having too much frequency overlap between instruments while also avoiding frequencies that are undesirable for each instrument. I am particularly interested in regards heavy music like Motorhead. Thanks!
Wow! Best video I´ve seen on youtube. I learned so much and I´m not even done with this video. This is priceless. I love to see and feel the passion you guys have and I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your knowledge, you just pushed my hunger for more, you guys just really influenced me exercising the profession as an audiologist.
Warren's Squared. Thank you very much for this impressive conversation and very much needed discussion and outlook on sound. In all things there are two sides of the coin, this being inspiring, welcoming, engaging, and powerful. This is a gem. Thank you both and sharing, this goes much further beyond the scope.
I know im a bit late to the party but I love the Mastering Stuff ❤️ thanks for being consistently amazing, year after year
Thanks ever so much Ryan! Glad to be able to help
Thank you for this video, Warren. Your videos were extremely valuable as I put together my latest album. much gratitude
You're very welcome!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
From PASSEQ manual: There is basically only one type of filter used in the PASSEQ: The bell-filter or peak-filter.
But since the center frequency of the peak-filter, concerning the HF and LF bands, is only
marginally within the perceptible hearing range, these filters auditorily and visually rather
correspond to shelf-filters. 😉
So, I just realized how little I know about sound. I've always known I had a lot to learn, but wow. I wish I had the time to go to a workshop like Chilicothe. Great information on all of Warren's videos.
Is it me or is there an ever so slight slapback delay in the room. Is it a function of the room or something else? Maybe the two lapel mics being slightly behind each other?
Either way, I am really enjoying everything you put on this channel! Thanks!
Hi Shaun, that must be the lapel mics! The room was quite dead. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This was a fabulous video! BIG thanks to the Warrens!!!
Extremely helpful again, wish I understood all of it. Thanks so much.
Super interesting!!!! Loved it. I used to have to hang out in a studio for weeks (70s) to be able to do this.
He seems like a pretty awesome mastering engineer and also fairly flexible and understanding upon receiving a mix you know going through school being told that mastering Engineers will turn you away for typos and not enough Headroom at least -6 DB that would be a deal-breaker typically for hard up mastering Engineers but I like how he has an optimistic attitude about it and wouldn't even mind getting in there to creating a Better Mix level before he bounces it down to a stereo file in which he could Master with plenty of Headroom I think that's very Noble humble and awesome great video.
Thanks for watching Troy!
With digital mixes, it fairly transparent to adjust the gain down in the DAW before going out to my analog chain & I also have the option of using analog attenuators as the first step in my mastering console, so as long as the signal isn't clipped, it can easily be brought down to whatever level sounds best hitting any analog gear being used!
I've never felt like it was my place to say this or that mix is worthy or not...I operate more under the idea that it is my job to educate my clients about the these things so we both continue to grow & get better & better results!
I receive mixes of all quality's, from mixes that are so good that all I am doing is bringing the level up to where it needs to be & doing it without messing up what I was given. To mixes that are so bad that there isn't anything I can do that doesn't just make thing worse!
So when I get mixes with problems I always try to go back to the artist and/or mix engineer & discuss changes they could make in the mix that would fix any problems. I can sometimes fix them on my side, but it is always better to do it on the individual tracks where the problems exist, rather than trying to isolate them within a finished mix where no matter what you do, you are going to effect everything, not just the track(s) with the problem!
But there are times when the answer I get back is: "we don't have the session anymore", or "we don't have the budget or time to go back to the mixing stage & make changes".
So when that happens I am more than happy to do what I can to fix things...if it is possible...and as long as they understand that I can only do so much with specific issues when I only have the 2-track mix.
Unfortunately there are times when I just cant fix a bad mix & then only option is to say "this is not ready to be mastered", but if I can give the client what they are wanting I try to do it. But if they can do better & in the end that will make ME do better work, thats the way it should go, so we do that!
Every session is different & I am being paid to make the sound in my clients head come out of the speakers, so whatever technique is going to make that happen, is the correct technique for that session!
Cheers!
WS
Great video! I bit overwhelming with specific HW concepts, since I was more oriented learning to master in-the-box, but plenty of great general tips on audio processing! Thanks!
I'm learning a lot from this series. Coupla filming observations. I love the editing--keeps a great pace. The camera however, really needs to be more on what is being described. Otherwise, this is great stuff, and I'm grateful to learn so much for free. Keep up the great work!
thank you very much for a fantastic video ,listening to those who polish the end product give much insight into how to record and prepare a good mix .thanks again for allowing us to gain knowledge, that may well of never been obtainable otherwise. I always learn much from professionals like yourself and those you interview.
Hi Darren, thanks very much! Agreed, thanks very much to Warren S!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks a lot to both of you Warrens!
Great video. Always love Warren S. I have a few questions if you have a chance: in a previous video when you were at Universal you were using a Dangerous transfer console. How does that compare sound- and featurewise to your Manley one?
I know it's a huge topic but are you particular about the cabling and electricity (as in AC to your room) and how important are these factors to your ears? Do you buy into these "esoteric" audio and electrical cables that in some cases cost a ton of money? Thanks and all the best!
Hi Stefan!
We did have the Dangerous consoles at UMS & I actually prefer the Manley over them. More functionality & I feel like the build quality & sound is a bit more stable. Neither really have a sound of their own, but I guess I feel like the Manley has less of an effect on the output when just passing through the console. ...I assume there are people that disagree with that though.
As far as the cabling question, I sit somewhere in the middle on that. I agree that a lot of the esoteric cabling out there is just a lot of $$ for a filter of some kind, in the form of a cable.
However, I have also found that there are some out there that really do make a positive difference (usually NOT the most expensive ones BTW)! For example, all of our ang, dig & work clock cables at United Mastering are made by Audioquest. They are solid-core copper, with a silver coating & truly seem to allow more of the depth & dynamics within a recording to make it to the other side of the processing chain without being destroyed!! Since installing them here, I've been getting consistently louder masters, without the dynamics having to be crushed to make it loud & my clients noticed it right away..which is all that I am concerned with!!! If they are happy, then it must be correct!
Thanks for your reply! Your cabling must rival the cost of your equipment but I guess in mastering you're dealing in milimeters while "normal" people are dealing in feet and miles! You mentioned that you were a teacher once and that really comes through in the way you explain audio concepts in a really understandable and approachable way. Hope you do some kind of tutorial series in the future. All the best!
Yes, our cable runs are all very short! Although in mastering you are effectively making a long daisy-chain of gear & cables to build a sound, so it adds up!
We were able to get Audioquest to custom make all of our cables so they are all only as long as they need to be! Most are only 3'-5' long or shorter, except the runs going to the speakers which I believe are around 9'-12' long. So although these cables were not cheap, the total length of all of them is probably equal to 2 or 3 single cables needed to go from the studio to the control room in most recording situations! ;^)
I've heard a lot of "audiophile" cables that effect the sound in one way or another, good & bad! We went with the Audioquest "Mackenzie" (analog) & "Coffee" (digital) cables because they didn't change the signal coming down the line, but allowed it to get to the other end unchanged! I noticed it the most in the depth & dynamics that my masters now have compared to the previous system I worked on, which used almost identical gear, but was built over many years so the cables were all different & random quality & lengths.
These details really do make a difference when the essence of your job is to maintain and/or enhance the inner details & dynamics of a recording!
Cheers!
WS
It's really interesting that he uses SADiE for mastering, I've heard it's fantastic for mastering. Warren, I'd love to see some type of instructional mastering video where either you or one of the pros you regularly talk to goes step by step, start to finish, in mastering a song. Loved this video, I've never seen someone use two different convertors before, really cool stuff. Super helpful.
Hi Joseph, ask and you shall receive! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching Joseph!!
I've used SADiE for over 15 years now & in my opinion it is one of the best sounding DAW's out there (yes there are differences in the sound of different DAW audio engines!!) & the editing options...to me...are the fastest & easiest to learn to use in depth!! Plus the new WAV-Mastering options make life easier for me because I can use one EDL to make all of the different master formats at any bit rate & sample rate I need!
They are also some of the nicest people in the pro audio gear business!! Their customer service is the best I've received from any gear manufactures to date & has been since I bought my 1st (used) SADiE Classic System over 15 years ago!! I really can't say enough good things about Prism/SADiE!! (sorry, dont mean to sound like a salesman!)
Cheers!
WS
Marvelous video!!! Compliments to the Warrens!!!
Really interesting discussion, throughout. Thanks, Warrens!
Thanks Klubz Productions and Warren! My question is what do you gain from taking a recording from 44.1 to 48 to 96 or higher. The data is already missing in the original recording so in theory you really are not getting the data back.
To start he may be adding harmonic content or air bands which are over 20KHz that would need sampling rate over 44.1Khz to get recorded. Also some plugins do benefit from higher sample rates which could sound better.
Quite informative. Thnx.
Please explain how the monitor signal gets picked off from the processing path and sent to the Avocet. My understanding of the Avocet is that it does not pass signals thru so it cannot be placed in series with the processing gear (different from the old Dangerous Monitor where it passes the AES signals thru). Do you have to send each signal that you want to monitor to a router? Am I missing something?
Thnx
Not the first video I've seen with Mr. Sokol, such a knowledgeable and interesting guy - and as always, more great content from PLAP.
My question is, is all that hardware proportionally better than software equivalents in relation to the (gargantuan) cost verses the end result? Don't the various modules shown in this video just follow a set of rules that could be emulated on Plugins in a DAW?
Thanks again Warren (and Warren!)
Hi Ben, thanks for the kind words!! To answer your question, I feel there are definitely benefits in using high quality analog gear that can't yet be achieved in the digital domain. Mainly using gain staging to build up a sound in a way that can't be emulated digitally...yet. Analog compression also still feels more natural & pleasing to my ears.
Having said that, there are a ton of great sounding plugins that are making the need for analog gear less & less all the time. Myself & many other mastering eng's use plugins everyday & in a lot of cases they can be better than the analog equivalent.
My job is to make my clients music sound as good as it can & I am lucky enough to get to use the best gear available to do that, so I do! But i definitely do not look down on anyone for using the best gear available to them to get the best results, regardless of what it actually is.
Because in the end, it is really the song that matters!! I cant think of one single incident were someone said, "this song would be a hit, if they had only used analog EQ on it".
Thanks for answering Warren S! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Yeah clipping is a real pain and it sometimes in my demos here and there it happends lightly and I hear it first after hours of work. He describes it very well! How do I record under 0 like - 5 or -8 ? Isnt there than no sound under zero. You two describe it very good but how do I do that? My workflow after recording is : 1.Eq - 2.Compressor - 3.Limiter - 4. Reverb and other effects. Thank you for the answer Warren. - Dante
It's question with thanks in advance?
Or thanks phrased in quite uncommon way?
I'm plainly curious.
Also there is button "edit"(3 dots on right side to comment)
Hi Dante! that is an easy one! When you are tracking, sent the preamp/input level so that the loudest parts only hit around -3dBFS to -6dBFS on the peak meters! (if it isn't loud enough, turn up your speakers!!)
"Digital Zero" is where the red lights go off at the top of the meter & if thats happening, then the peaks of your soundwaves are being clipped off & can never be replaced!
In general if you record & mix on the quieter side, it tends to make it easier to get a loud master that still has great detail, dynamics & life!!
Warren Sokol Thank you a lot! I will use this knowlege on my next producing session for sure! Much love to you! I feel your passion for music so much and its nice to meet you! I will make sure to check your multimedia! I as well will share this video and retweet it on my Twitter! Your welcome! Music is hope so you are hope as well making/mastering music. My best wishes to you and again thank you for the answer! - Dante PS: You are for sure welcome to listen to my music here on RUclips for free.
I plan on going to the recording workshop as soon as I graduate!
This was amazing! So much insight on what the mastering engineer is listening for, which is so different than mixing.
How are the Delta H. Design products working? What change did you hear in your room?
Great question Danny! That's a Warren S. question! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for this, Warren! Super informative...really helped demystify the intricate process that is mastering...and what a cool guy!
You're very welcome!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This was a great vid, thanks Warren....and I made it to the end! :) Warren Sokol was very well spoken and really helped to demystify the "dark art" of mastering!
Thanks very much! Agreed Warren Sokol rules!!
Wow! Great!!
Mastering guys/gals are a completely different type of animal and this guy is a proverbial mastering engineer in the greatest sense of the title. I like his approach. He’s probably out of my traditional price range but I can help imagine how cool it would be to hear him master one of my mixes. Thank you Warren for bringing a different but important perspective to the production process. Cheers! ✌️
Mr. Sokol, you are awesome! Keep up the good work.
Thanks for that great video. Something make me confuse about Manley massive passive... I don't own the real hardware but I'm using the UAD plugin. And what he told about this EQ is far away from what I hear... and after a few analyses with Room Eq Wizard, the plugin is not reacting as what it's said in the video.... I'm not telling he's wrong, i'm not telling the plugin is not emulated the right way, I'm just telling that I didn't understand "single band with 4 controls" for me it's really a 4 bands EQ... Any precisions re welcome?
Probably the best technical video so far Warren, even my girlfriend( I prefer womanfriend) loves your videos, ...you also have this reminisance in your core, and you bring that out in your interviews...
A question has a thousand explanations, it's about how you ask the question....