Hi everyone,
I am using Scope v4.0 associated to Cubase SX3. Everything works very fine, but when I come to put on music CD a mixdown, I realise that the output from the CD does not sound as the mix played from Cubase thru SFP.
The result often sounds like a sound soup, with too much basses, and each sound is not so differenciated from the other...
So, I am interested in any best practice on this topic! Which bit rate, which mastering tool, which effect chain are you using?
Kindly regards - F
Mastering for CD
--- Sorry double post ---
Last edited by Lima on Sun Feb 25, 2007 8:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
Welcome to the dawning of a new empire
How do you mixdown the files?
If you choose menù->export->mixdowntofile (or something similar, sorry I don't remember the exact path) the answer is simple: that's not the right way to mixdown using the scope. Scope have to process the tracks and it does in realtime.
So, for example, you can add an Asio dest module into your project and feed the mixer out connections back to Cubase. then add a stereo audio track into nuendo, associate to it the asio-in bus and press play/rec. In this way you are recording the tracks played by Cubase, passing thru the Scope and returned to Cubase.
Another way is to add a Wave dest module and attach it to the mixer out connections. Then open another recording program (Cool-edit etc...) and put it on rec. then play the song from Cubase. In this way you are recording the song played by Cubase, passing thru Scope and feed to Cooledit.
If you choose menù->export->mixdowntofile (or something similar, sorry I don't remember the exact path) the answer is simple: that's not the right way to mixdown using the scope. Scope have to process the tracks and it does in realtime.
So, for example, you can add an Asio dest module into your project and feed the mixer out connections back to Cubase. then add a stereo audio track into nuendo, associate to it the asio-in bus and press play/rec. In this way you are recording the tracks played by Cubase, passing thru the Scope and returned to Cubase.
Another way is to add a Wave dest module and attach it to the mixer out connections. Then open another recording program (Cool-edit etc...) and put it on rec. then play the song from Cubase. In this way you are recording the song played by Cubase, passing thru Scope and feed to Cooledit.
Welcome to the dawning of a new empire
-
hubird
it shouldn't make any difference at all
Do you mean it sounds different when played on the usual home sound systems compaired to your studio monitoring?
Anyway, for mastering these are usefull things:
EQ
Stereo enhancing
Compressing
Psycho-acoustical corrections (PsyQ)
Normalizing/Limiting (-0,3)/Dithering
Not necessory in this sequence, if you only keep the dithering at the end.
Using Optimaster defines already parts of the chain.
(If the dynamics are small I won't worry about dithering).
(tip: I wouldn't use the tips forum when asking for one ).
Do you mean it sounds different when played on the usual home sound systems compaired to your studio monitoring?
Anyway, for mastering these are usefull things:
EQ
Stereo enhancing
Compressing
Psycho-acoustical corrections (PsyQ)
Normalizing/Limiting (-0,3)/Dithering
Not necessory in this sequence, if you only keep the dithering at the end.
Using Optimaster defines already parts of the chain.
(If the dynamics are small I won't worry about dithering).
(tip: I wouldn't use the tips forum when asking for one
).Well, so far I am doing like this:
- all instruments (VST & SFP plugins) are routed into a SFP mixer
- the SFP mixer main output is routed to an ASIO module to get the general output back in SX, and to an analog output for headphone monitoring
- in SX, I create an audio track to record the main output
- once the main output is recorded, I export a wav format file from SX, and I burn the wav file on a CD using Nero B.R.
I think my first problem is that I am making music until the mixdown with headphones (Beyerdynamic DT 770), and probably I don't have enough distance to be close to a loudspeaker ouput. But maybe a device can correct this to have in the headphone something sounding like boxes?
Second, maybe the fact of exporting the track from cubase into a wav file is not good enough (bit rate differences?)
Anyway, I will try now with devices for the mix (compressors, optimaster and so on).
Thanks for the advices!
- all instruments (VST & SFP plugins) are routed into a SFP mixer
- the SFP mixer main output is routed to an ASIO module to get the general output back in SX, and to an analog output for headphone monitoring
- in SX, I create an audio track to record the main output
- once the main output is recorded, I export a wav format file from SX, and I burn the wav file on a CD using Nero B.R.
I think my first problem is that I am making music until the mixdown with headphones (Beyerdynamic DT 770), and probably I don't have enough distance to be close to a loudspeaker ouput. But maybe a device can correct this to have in the headphone something sounding like boxes?
Second, maybe the fact of exporting the track from cubase into a wav file is not good enough (bit rate differences?)
Anyway, I will try now with devices for the mix (compressors, optimaster and so on).
Thanks for the advices!
-
hubird
Routing looks ok.
Are you sure you don't 'double' up effects in SX by/when exporting the wav?
If everything is done like it should, it must be your headphone strategy!
Headphone mixing is the best way to screw your mix, it's a well known phenomenon
Get the clean unmastered mix right before doing anything mastering, as you will only 'enlarge' the faults...
Are you sure you don't 'double' up effects in SX by/when exporting the wav?
If everything is done like it should, it must be your headphone strategy!
Headphone mixing is the best way to screw your mix, it's a well known phenomenon
Get the clean unmastered mix right before doing anything mastering, as you will only 'enlarge' the faults...