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GMC Forum _ PRACTICE ROOM _ Recording & Mastering
Posted by: Narzsa Feb 19 2013, 02:34 PM
Hey guys,
I hope you all are well? 
I've recently decided to dable in the field of recording and mastering. The goal to produce a rough demo for my band
I went out and brought equipment to set up a mini studio, but now comes the hard part....learning how to use it all!
I've watched a number of videos regarding pro tools (i have express which came with my m-box) and im getting there, but the videos i find are mostly disjointed or repeating the same information
Does anyone know of any youtube tutorial series that cover alot of ground?
Or even your essential list of videos that you refer to?
Posted by: Gabriel Leopardi Feb 19 2013, 03:21 PM
Hi mate! I'm not a pro tool user but something that I learnt at the University is to learn the concepts not the software. I think that you should go for tutorials where recording, mixing and mastering concepts and secrets are shared. You can do the same things with different software, the important is to know what you have to do.
Posted by: Narzsa Feb 19 2013, 03:33 PM
Hi Gab,
Thats a really good tip, cheers mate
Lets face it, if i understand what i need/want to achieve, the concepts of good mixing and recording, i then know what topics and terminology to use when searching on how to achieve those results in pro tools
Posted by: steenamaroo Feb 19 2013, 04:11 PM
That's great advice.
I'm a ProTools user and if I was starting again I'd pick reaper.
Their support seems to be fantastic and the software is well laid out and easy to use.
Protools has been (in my experience) a money pit, and a waiting game for features that other DAWS have had for years.
Having said that, if you stick with PT have a look on ebay for a 101 training book. It's not bad at all.
Posted by: jstcrsn Feb 20 2013, 01:49 AM
I'm a ProTools user and if I was starting again I'd pick reaper.
Their support seems to be fantastic and the software is well laid out and easy to use.
Protools has been (in my experience) a money pit, and a waiting game for features that other DAWS have had for years.
Having said that, if you stick with PT have a look on ebay for a 101 training book. It's not bad at all.
I agree, try reaper it is free so if you don't like it , but if you like it most here use it and you will get tremendous advice and you can search youtube to get a wealth of info and if you don't like it - ehh- it was free
Posted by: Todd Simpson Feb 20 2013, 07:17 AM
Congrats on getting in to recording The very best advice I can give you about learning about mastering is to develop a relationship with an actual mastering engineer. Youtube is great and all, but your demo is your bands calling card and it really does pay off to trust the mastering to a pro while you learn the ropes. The good news is, we have one here at GMC. His CMC name is TonyMiro. Here is his profile
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_forum/index.php?showuser=2194
He is a Professional mastering guy. Mastering isn't even very expensive these days (Expect a Pro to charge around $50 per track, if the rate is far less, be very suspicious) . So I"d keep trying on your own, but have a pro take a look at your demo before you start handing it out if at all possible. I really wish someone would have told me all this back in the day And whether you work with tony or someone else, ask TONS of questions. Pick their brain, they have all the info that you need.
P.S. About reaper, you don't have to Marry one DAW or the other. Instead, I'd say "Date" several. Being fluent in more than one DAW has numerous benefits. Also, if you only know one, you've placed some limits on yourself that just don't need to be there. I use LOGIC 9, REAPER and I've used Pro Tools in the past so I can move around in it. Pro Tools is in lots of bigger studios and by TONS of Hip Hop guys but i've seen things change in home studios to the point where I see more folks using Reaper on PC than Pro Tools, and LOGIC on the Mac. Learning Pro Tools is a good idea, but Learning REAPER is an even better one. 
Todd
I hope you all are well?
I've recently decided to dable in the field of recording and mastering. The goal to produce a rough demo for my band
I went out and brought equipment to set up a mini studio, but now comes the hard part....learning how to use it all!
I've watched a number of videos regarding pro tools (i have express which came with my m-box) and im getting there, but the videos i find are mostly disjointed or repeating the same information
Does anyone know of any youtube tutorial series that cover alot of ground?
Or even your essential list of videos that you refer to?
Posted by: mr rotton treat Feb 20 2013, 07:28 AM
Hi Narzsa, if you have a little extra coin to spend check out www.groove3.com
There have tons on instructional videos on how to use protools, logic, reaper and most of the main DAW's out there.
Plus lots of vids on how to mix and master and how to properly use studio fx.
I've personally bought videos from there to learn reaper and its been a great help!
Very reasonably priced too.
Posted by: Todd Simpson Feb 20 2013, 08:18 AM
If you are up for spending a bit, checkout the online music mastering course @ SAE as well.
http://online.sae.edu/course/audio-mastering-101
Posted by: tonymiro Feb 20 2013, 09:15 AM
ProTools is a good recording and mixing DAW and can be great for post. PT is particularly good when its the full PTHD version. Mastering though isn't really one of its
strengths.
There's a huge difference by the way in professional mastering and the stuff turned out on the internet by some people who say they can 'master' your work. Most of the latter think mastering is about making things loud and what effects you use on the 2 bus. It isn't. With mastering a lot of the work is correction - fixing issues from the recording and mixing. That really means that you need to be objective about the mix and the person who has done the mix is very rarely objective enough. It also means that the mastering engineer has to be able to hear the mix extremely well. That is why we MEs invest a huge amount in to our monitoring chain and the room. If you can't hear it you can not make any decision on what to do. Still more of the work is ensuring that the project meets quality requirements, can translate and is fit for purpose. You need to know technical audio engineering like the colour book standards, EBU standards for levels and so on. Mastering is both art and science.
The only rule, if it is a rule, in mastering is listen before you do anything.
Videos can be a great help when you're starting out but they can only teach you some basic generalisations about mastering. The issue here is that what you do really depends on the mix that you receive, so any video is always going to be a 101. Professional mastering engineers nearly always have been trained by other mastering engineers (my training was 6 years). That way they get hands on experience of what to do with real examples rather than vague generalisations.
By all means you can do your own 'home/bedroom masters' and it's a good way of learning. You won't however become a mastering engineer over night. If you want to read any forum posts on mastering, what we do and how, then I've posted a few threads on the forums here.
Posted by: Narzsa Feb 20 2013, 03:09 PM
Wow, some really great information, cheers guys :-)
I must admit as I learn it is coming across more and more that mixing and mastering are almost two different beats entirely, each requiring alot of knowledge and experience to master. Is actually quite exciting! :-D
I'll definitely take up some of those lessons to expand my knowledge as it sounds like good stuff and I'm definitely convinced to pass recordings over to an expert for the mastering side to get a good sound out of it all whilst I learn. Again, very excited! :-)
Posted by: steenamaroo Feb 20 2013, 03:21 PM
That's a great bit of info to take away.
I'd attempt to answer many questions about mixing/recording/engineering, but I wouldn't touch any question about mastering.
It's just a different set of skills, or at least a very fine tuned version of the same skills.
Asides from their experience and equipment, one of the great benefits of a mastering engineer is his detachment from the project. They are usually clinical and do what's best for the project without prejudice.
I'd recommend outsourcing it where possible for that reason, amongst others.
Posted by: Rammikin Feb 20 2013, 03:36 PM
I went out and brought equipment to set up a mini studio, but now comes the hard part....learning how to use it all!
I would recommend you start with a book called Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio by Mike Senior. It's by far the best book on the subject.
Posted by: tonymiro Feb 20 2013, 04:14 PM
I'd attempt to answer many questions about mixing/recording/engineering, but I wouldn't touch any question about mastering.
It's just a different set of skills, or at least a very fine tuned version of the same skills.
Asides from their experience and equipment, one of the great benefits of a mastering engineer is his detachment from the project. They are usually clinical and do what's best for the project without prejudice.
I'd recommend outsourcing it where possible for that reason, amongst others.
Absolutely right - a big advantage of using a mastering engineer is the objectivty.
Many but not all mastering engineers started as mixing or recording engineers. There are some similar skills and some different ones. Working on the stereo mix itself often involves trading off a win against a loss - which is a lesson all mastering engineers have to learn and is different to mixing. The studio sound treatment and monitor placement is also very different as is the hardware.
Also as Rammikin says MIke's book is one of the better ones for beginner/intermediate mixing.
Posted by: Todd Simpson Feb 23 2013, 12:08 AM
Also, BERKLEEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC ONLINE will let you take some PRO TOOLS courses for free as part of their Sample Course list. Here is the link. You just have to sign up for an account which is also free
http://lms-intro.www.berkleemusic.com/course/view.php?idnumber=6627849_sample
There is even an ADVANCED MASTERING COURSE in the preview section. Spiff!
http://lms-intro.www.berkleemusic.com/course/view.php?id=124
Todd
Posted by: tonymiro Feb 23 2013, 11:59 AM
Not sure which one you mean Todd as the advanced course that I can see is more to do with mixing using PT than mastering. To be honest I'd say it would leave you at 'advanced beginner' than 'advanced' level. Nonetheless a structured course is a great way of learning for people new to audio production.
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