Mastering opinion

[JonathanEarthenMusic]

I'm wondering if I can fix the Brick by just lowering the volume myself? Or is that something that can only be addressed actually in the mix and master to get rid of that brick shape and be less fatiguing ? I've had other "bricks" that don't sound so fatiguing, but I suppose it also depends on the genre too

If you mean just from the Wav file then probably not, if you turn is down you'll just end up with smaller brick as those dynamics have already been squished out of it. You might be able to get some semblance of dynamics back using an expander and maybe a transient shaper but it's probably easier to just go back to the original mix and start over.

For sync you can't really afford to rely on 3rd parties for any mixing or mastering duties unless it's a co-writer and you both have a vested interested in the track. Most of us master within in the DAW session itself as it's much easier to be able to bounce all the different alt mixes required by libraries if the mastering chain is applied as soon as you hit bounce in your DAW. Takes a little practice and getting used to, a lot of us use Ozone as everything you need is in one plugin - It' even has an AI assisted mastering feature that can probably do a better job than whoever mastered your Christmas track, although I prefer to think of it as a starting point that I can tweak it's pretty good most of the time.

Mark

I really appreciate it, Mark, thank you. That's exactly what I need to do, I've been really reluctant to get into mastering, it seems overwhelming to be honest. But I will try ozone. Did you buy the full version? Have you found you've need all the features of the full version?

Would you say I've "bricked" this track way too much too? https://www.taxi.com/members/ocDl4_2KTS ... -suffering

[cosmicdolphin]

But I will try ozone. Did you buy the full version? Have you found you've need all the features of the full version?

I have the Advanced Version of Ozone9 - I would say I use most of it but I'm an advanced user - I think standard would be suffficient

Would you say I've "bricked" this track way too much too? https://www.taxi.com/members/ocDl4_2KTS ... -suffering

Yes 100% bricked - hard to listen to

[telefunkin]

I've been really reluctant to get into mastering, it seems overwhelming to be honest. But I will try ozone. Did you buy the full version? Have you found you've need all the features of the full version?

Would you say I've "bricked" this track way too much too?
https://www.taxi.com/members/ocDl4_2KTS ... -suffering

I keep recommending this place for anyone who wants to up their game at mastering and mixing too.
https://mastering.com/
All you have to do is sign up and then you can watch a ton of excellent free content. There are replays of 3-day (2-3 hrs each day) sessions on mixing various styles, as well as very detailed training on fundamentals like reverb, eq, compression, etc, and they're great - NO COST. You can pay to get access to their full courses but you don't need to do that until you've got all you can from the abundance of free content. One point they stress is that mastering doesn't have to be complicated, and the better the mix is, the easier it is to master. They demonstrate that in their sessions.

Ozone is a great mastering solution and even the least expensive version will give you an 'intelligent' starting point if you want, but you can adjust its result or set it up yourself from presets or from scratch. The more expensive versions offer more tools but can be seriously overwhelming and you might not need those tools. IMHO pitching in at the 'easy' end would be best if you're unsure, and you can always upgrade later. Beware though, they frequently release new versions and will keep tempting you to buy the latest one with its new bells and whistles.

As for your track, I agree with Mark that its a bit much again. Also, it sounds as if the ideas ran out after 1m and the rest was grafted on (including some timing issues that ought to be addressed). If its for sync, leaving an edit point or two would help, and would provide an opportunity for the track to rebuild (with variation) towards the end so there's more of a sense of progression rather than repetition.

[JonathanEarthenMusic]

But I will try ozone. Did you buy the full version? Have you found you've need all the features of the full version?

I have the Advanced Version of Ozone9 - I would say I use most of it but I'm an advanced user - I think standard would be suffficient

Would you say I've "bricked" this track way too much too? https://www.taxi.com/members/ocDl4_2KTS ... -suffering

Yes 100% bricked - hard to listen to

Thank you kindly!

[JonathanEarthenMusic]

I've been really reluctant to get into mastering, it seems overwhelming to be honest. But I will try ozone. Did you buy the full version? Have you found you've need all the features of the full version?

Would you say I've "bricked" this track way too much too?
https://www.taxi.com/members/ocDl4_2KTS ... -suffering

I keep recommending this place for anyone who wants to up their game at mastering and mixing too.
https://mastering.com/
All you have to do is sign up and then you can watch a ton of excellent free content. There are replays of 3-day (2-3 hrs each day) sessions on mixing various styles, as well as very detailed training on fundamentals like reverb, eq, compression, etc, and they're great - NO COST. You can pay to get access to their full courses but you don't need to do that until you've got all you can from the abundance of free content. One point they stress is that mastering doesn't have to be complicated, and the better the mix is, the easier it is to master. They demonstrate that in their sessions.

Ozone is a great mastering solution and even the least expensive version will give you an 'intelligent' starting point if you want, but you can adjust its result or set it up yourself from presets or from scratch. The more expensive versions offer more tools but can be seriously overwhelming and you might not need those tools. IMHO pitching in at the 'easy' end would be best if you're unsure, and you can always upgrade later. Beware though, they frequently release new versions and will keep tempting you to buy the latest one with its new bells and whistles.

As for your track, I agree with Mark that its a bit much again. Also, it sounds as if the ideas ran out after 1m and the rest was grafted on (including some timing issues that ought to be addressed). If its for sync, leaving an edit point or two would help, and would provide an opportunity for the track to rebuild (with variation) towards the end so there's more of a sense of progression rather than repetition.

Awesome, thank you for that. I will chedck out mastering.com, I appreciate it. Some really great ideas and feedback there, I will certainly do that, thank you kindly!

[irthlingz]

I keep recommending this place for anyone who wants to up their game at mastering and mixing too.
https://mastering.com/

Do you know if these are the same as the videos on:
https://www.youtube.com/@masteringcom

?

===
Michael

[AlanHall]

I keep recommending this place for anyone who wants to up their game at mastering and mixing too.
https://mastering.com/

Do you know if these are the same as the videos on:
https://www.youtube.com/@masteringcom

The two links resolve to the same page, it appears to me...

[telefunkin]

Do you know if these are the same as the videos on:
https://www.youtube.com/@masteringcom

Its the same company, but you might be better off going to the main site to avoid the temptation of being pulled into the Youtube rabbit holes. On that site you can click on 'Free Courses' at the top to get to the free training. As well as some great specific tuition courses you can click on the 'Public Event Replays (Archive)'. That opens a list of all the free events they've run over the last couple of years. Many of them are 3-day sessions (2-3 hours each session) where they start with a set of raw tracks and take them right through mixing and mastering. The different sessions cover different genre's so there's something for everyone in there (with a bit of hunting around). In each session they explain the thought process along the way and what they're trying to achieve, so even if the details are specific to that session the general principles and mindset start to become clear. Quite honestly, I think these sessions are gold dust and definitely the best free training available. BTW I have no affiliation with this company and have only subscribed to their free content, so I cannot comment on their paid courses.