Mastering Tools

[teleblaster]

I've been checking out some different tools for mastering lately. I don't have a ton of money to spend on the business this year so it keeps me from purchasing the top tier stuff; Sonnox, Waves, UAD etc. But, I'm finding that there are some cool toys available at reasonable price points. Here's what I've been using. Curious to hear what others are using; what you like and don't like.iZotope Ozone: I got a stripped down version of this when I updated SoundForge; the limiter, 'verb, mband compressor and the EQ. I was really stoked at first after hearing them in use; but I'm finding that their a little surgical/sterile. That's not really a bad thing, but they're not a go to tool for warming a mix up. They work really well for fixing problems. The limiter is probably the coolest of the tools. It can get a little grainy, but on the right source with the right tweakage you can get some butta' out of it. It's great for warming and punching up a drum mix I like the multiband as part of a chain in front of something warmer and vibeyer (is that a word?) likePSP Vintage Warmer: OK, this thing is total dope. Granted I just downloaded the fully functional demo last night so the newness hasnt' worn off yet, but you really only have to slap the tame simulation presets on a mix to hear how cool it is. I inserted it on a guitar track in a project and OMG, this thing is amazing for warming up and bringing out some mojo. At $150 it's at the top end of my budget, but I suspect that I'll be popping for this before the 2 week demo bombs on me. I'll probably be dependent on it by then.Voxengo Elephant: What a quirky and cool tool. Transparent limiting to hard squishy pumping and all points in between. You can bring a mix to life or destroy it with this tool; your choice. At $70 bucks this was a no brainer. One downside is that the GUI is ugly and kinda painful to use. Curious to hear what tools you're all using, and how you like them.

[steveha2865]

I've been using Izotope Ozone for about six months or so and have been very happy with the results. It's extremely cost effective in my ProTools LE Win XP setup. The only issue I have is that with more that three instances of it running my CPU starts to run out of power. I'll have to move up to a multi-core processor pretty soon.I'll have to try the PSP Vintage Warmer, it sounds like another effective tool. Thanks for the tip.

[elser]

I like Ozone. I think it's got alot of bang for the buck. I've also used the Waves stuff but it's pretty expensive. TRax doesn't sound as clean to me as Ozone. Just my opinion.

[ernstinen]

I use an Empirical Labs Fatso. It's an analog hardware unit, but it's WAY out of your price range.But check out Massey plugins --- they're great, and quite a few are FREE! http://www.masseyplugins.com/index_v2.h ... e=homeThis guy is a mad genius, so get 'em while you can!Ern

[teleblaster]

Thanks all for the responses. Just to be clear. I think the Ozone stuff is great; just not my first choice if I'm tryinmg for warm/vibey sounds. The 4band is an amazing fixit tool. But, since I have access to the multi track projects more oftent then not, I choose to fix things there. Which brings up a new question. Do you master on the 2Buss in your DAW or do you render and then use a tool like WaveLab/SoundForge to master?I've heard great things about Massey, but it's only available to PT users. BTW: I downloaded a couple more of the PSP demos (their multi-delay is gorgeous), and would have to say that PSP and Voxengo are 2 of the best value to cost products that I've run into so far.