Mastering compression confusion, T-RackS, and Harbal
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Posted on Nov 09, 2004 05:40 pm
shep9040
Member Since: Nov 09, 2004
Hi. I've been mixing my band's music for a while now in Sonar, but I just started playing with mastering a bit. I got Harbal, which I love, and recently purchased T-RackS because one of the Harbal guys reccomended it as the last step of the process- the idea here is to eq in Harbal, load the eq'ed file into T-RackS, load the preset setting "opto+1/2inch," and then let the program do its magic.
Well, the resulting file is much louder than the original, of course, but I find that the preset's compressor affects my music in what seems like a negative way- with the compresser turned off, and just the limiter turned on, my file sounds as loud as commercial music (and when I look at the waveform in Soundforge, it looks like other commercial songs, but I think it may be too loud. With the compresser turned on, the resulting audio is a few db's quieter and all the life and punch of the music seems gone (though the guitars seem more managable). I am just a hobbyist, so this certainly isn't life or death here, but I just don't know whether the uncompressed, maximized signal is listenable, and I don't understand why my audio doesn't sound louder and more punchy when the compressor is engaged. As I said, I'm new to this, so any advice would be appreciated-- dbmasters, I always enjoy your posts in the Sonar and Harbal forums, so I was hoping maybe you could help.
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Nov 09, 2004 06:15 pm Im no expert on compression but by the sounds of it, it could be the compression setting you are using is perhaps just to heavy.
Very heavy compression will do exactly what you describe i.e. suck the life out your song and kill it dead. You may want to reduce the intensity of the compression ratio in the t-racks plug til it becomes less noticeable and more lively again.
By the way, have you thought that the maximiser may be all ya need and the track just doesn't need any compression?? Also, when yi say you think its maybe too loud - is it clipping in Forge?? If not, then its good to go - just watch the monitors for the dreaded old red!!
Anyways, good luck. dB or someone like that will have a better technical explanation for ya - as I say...I am nae expert.
Coco.
Nov 09, 2004 06:21 pm yes, it sounds like too much compression to me. Subtle is the key. Also, maybe not use compression but use a maximizer like Waves Ultramaximizer or something in that line instead.
Welcome to HRC.
Nov 09, 2004 08:00 pm Thanks to you both- my track isn't clipping or anything, so maybe I'll just avoid the compressor altogether. By the way, this is an excellent forum- I've been browsing the boards this afternoon and have already learned a lot!
Nov 09, 2004 08:49 pm Aye - this is a good forum for sure. I've been browsing round here for almost a year now and still learning and lovin every minute.
Stick around Shep, you'll learn loads more - some real pro's and generally good bunch of folk round here.
Also, good luck wi the old masterin. Think dB is right on there - you mibbes dont need the compression on this track or sure as hell, not as much.
Good luck to ya anyway.
Coco.
cooloFrisco's Most UnderratedMember
Since: Jan 28, 2003
Nov 10, 2004 02:46 pm From my limited experience mastering, a multiband compressor can really help to even out the sound. I don't know about the compressor in T-Racks, but the compressor will probably help, if you can adjust the settings on it. Also, I like compress before I do the final EQ (harbal in your case).
