Hi everyone! I would like to share with you an article on mastering. My passion is music and in particular the desire to reproduce the true sound of home conditions. There's a helpful audio mastering.
Mastering is an art and a science. Mastering is the final creative and technical step prior to pressing a record album (CD, DVD, cassette, or other medium). Compare mastering to the editor's job of taking a raw manuscript and turning it into a book. The book editor must understand syntax, grammar, organization and writing style, as well as know the arcane techniques of binding, color separation, printing presses and the like. Likewise, the Mastering engineer marries the art of music with the science of sound.
LINK To article
http://www.digido.com/articles-and-demos12/13-bob-katz/26-audio-mastering.html
My questions :
1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
Wow, nice article. I have never thought that creation of a music track can be described as science and art equally. Well, my hearing is so bad as for me it is hard to regognize which sound is better from another. I would prefer to present music as it was recorded, because I think it shows the true potential, talent, and skills of an artists, as it is presented at the classical music concerts.
ReplyDeleteScience is very much present in music, what we hear is the sound wave, which is also reflected. The same recording and playing normally with the use of electricity. How to load the deeper into the literature or even articles on the subject, we can be surprised - the normal thing is on an article that has 5 pages, for example about the power cable.
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ReplyDeleteChecking our hearing we can do this in two ways. One accurate with a laryngologist. The second way (to me more interesting) is to select the audio shop that has a listening room. The difference should be diametrical compared to play at home. In the audio industry works very many scientists.
ReplyDeleteI remember the words of a friend: "I love opera! But when I see on TV I turn off"
Industry audio reproduction is huge, the same album can be heard on many media limited to the silver disc they are, for example: Audio CD, SACD, XRCD, SHM, and for this there are the issue of Japanese, American and European, that really sound different .
However, please note that this is the music and creativity is the most important!
I don't consider myself an audiophile, but I pay attention to sound quality. I think I can tell the difference between good and badly recorded track without a hi-end hardware. But it took some time for me to choose good, mid-range headphones appropriate for the kind of music I listen to most often. I did it the more interesting way you described above - in good audio shop with devices I use for listening to music. I needed closed headphones producing bright sound for fast drum fills with a lot of ride cymbals. Without good reproduction of high tones they would be, at least in some parts, inaudible.
ReplyDeleteI think that audio mastering is all right, it enriches music, but in my opinion it should't be exaggerated, so that performer can reproduce it live on a concert.
I think that if someone manages to reproduce at home the real sound. It will be the end of the search audiophiles :) I do not think that was ever possible to recreate at 100% (if you can measure it ?!)
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ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteYes
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
When I was younger I had this weird passion about comparing different records from the same artist. So for example I figure out that records remaster in Japan have much better sound than for example records made by UK, sometimes records from US were better.
But now I don't mind with this kind of stuff, now I just listen to music.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
There are some genres of music where sound is very important (some progressive styles of music) and this is ok. But I am really against when some people want to remaster some Blues or Jazz Classics and when you listen to remaster record it does not sound to good.
This is quite interesting for me that “mastering” is considered to be art. I always thought about it as more of technical issue but it seems logical that if so much is possible nowadays, by “mastering” you can actually create something completely new.
ReplyDeleteI do not think I could recognize a bad and good sound. The true is that as I always considered myself to have very bad hearing I do not pay much attention to the quality of the sound when I listen to music. But this topic made me think if it is really true because I am able to hear very subtle changes in the intonation when people speak – is it somehow related or the differences in the music are much more delicate?
I see it as two different disciplines – first when you present music the way it was recorded or at least leave the changes to a minimum. In this approach the performers are the artists. And the second when you change the way the sound was recorded to the level where it is something new which makes you the artist.
1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteI have no choice but to say yes. Often when I listened to Polish music, the way it was recorded was very poor. The sound was basically flat. It may have changed, though.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
The sound quality is crucial for you to recreate the scene and hear all the intrinsic details that composer put in the masterpiece. It is really fun when you can listen to the same song or piece for an uncountable time only to hear some new details you haven't heard previously. Of course there are few factors that make it possible and competence of the studio engineer is one of them.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
There is no easy answer to your question. I believe it just depends on the particular music piece that sound engineer deals with. Sometimes, it is more appropriate to preserve the specifics of the recording and the acoustic of the concert venue - that especially regards to classical music, sometimes it would be more appropriate to tweak the sound to reduce noise or even change the bit to more catchy one. The latter often happened to pop music and produced good results.
Hi
ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
I meet with the recordings bad . Sometimes when I listened music in radio I identify bad recording
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
I don't draws attention to sound quality, because I like listening music without attention about kind of music or quality
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
In my opinion it is depend kind of music and people who create it. Sometimes people appropriate a recording music sometimes no.
1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteI have a very poor ear for music, and probably fortunately don’t notice (the previous statements of Polish music), but fortunately because it doesn’t hurt me, but because the subject can’t speak too much.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
With my hearing if I notice something then it must be really extremely good or bad. But I have a lot of friends that pay attention to this. Somehow, it just so happens that I have a lot of friends involved in music and drawing attention to a lot of things I don’t even notice.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
On the one hand, if the music isn’t "corrected" then it sounds worse but the message of the concert and the plates are of similar quality. On the other hand, if the music is corrected then is enriched sounds better but there is the question whose greater contribution to the contractor or the person who is corrected (I know this is a little ironic, but there it is). Also it is very hard unequivocally classified as good or bad.
Your sinus cavities make your voice sound significantly different in your head than it sounds to other people. This means that, if you want to hear yourself how others do, you must record it back to yourself.[1] This is the easiest, most private, and fastest way to find out if you can sing naturally.
ReplyDelete-You don't have to use fancy microphones or recording technology to find out if you've got a good set of pipes. Most computers and smart phones have built-in microphones and voice recording software. Alternatively, you can go analog and use a basic cassette voice recorder or go really old school and record your voice onto someone else's answering message.
-If you're nervous showing off your singing in front of others, this is a great way to get around the performance anxiety. Nobody needs to hear your recording but you; you can sing your heart out without fear of judgement.
The first thing I tend to attack is the noise in between phrases. You would be amazed at how much this can improve a vocal take and with just a few minutes work you can literally transform your recording.
The best approach is to use a noise gate but before you fire one up it's worth going the file and manually removing any really obvious problem areas.
Adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful
In this case I deliberately included some loud lip smacking sounds towards the end of the passage. These were removed by simply cutting them out of the audio region. Gates are capable of handling most low level noise (i.e. unwanted noise at a lower level than your main audio) but you'll find that any louder noise may have to be removed in this more deliberate way.
To be honest when it comes to recordings I'm no expert. Usually I listen to music on the radio of course the better the sound quality the greater pleasure of music appreciation. :) Lately, there is a big movement among audiophiles to return to analog sound processing. Experts are arguing that digital representation of music is loosing “its soul” and only pure analog devices, like vacuum tubes based amplifiers can provide the full spectrum of real philharmonic or live sound experience. The recent renaissance of vinyl records are probably a proof of this idea. Even analog tapes are being manufactured again along with the necessary electronic devices that went out of sale many years ago. There must be a lot of truth in this idea, since the professional studios like TVs, radio, etc. , never stopped using the analog tape recording when making the so called “master recording”. They are still called “master tapes”.
ReplyDeleteAbove all else, I believe that it is important applying to the entire process. In the past - artists recorded the album several weeks, now often - write, submit, and to the studio for 2 days. Then quickly spend. As of any rules of thumb are also exceptions.
Delete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteYes, I did. In the PJ we had an lessons with the different types of recordings. Unfortunately my hearing is not sensitive but I have seen what are differences between good and wrong recording and audio formats. For example WMA is lossless audio format, but MP3 is lossy - but is most popular (we are using this format in mp3 devices, or our phones). I can not find out any differences, but for musicians difference might be huge (probably and not for all ;)).
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
No, I do not. I have a feeling that my hearing is "flat" ;). Most of lossy formats like MP3 are completely enough for me.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
I think it is not possible to listen to music such as was recorded. There are to many devices, which are transforming audio from the microphone to the recorder or speaker. I had a fun when I found a video with an original audio stream, which came directly from the microphone of polish celebrity.
1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteOld records, vinyl or cassette after many years can be really bad. That's why I prefer digital audio. However, I have many friends with gramophones and I had opportunity to listen to the music playing from it. I must say it was really good, but only on new vinyls.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
I do, I prefer to listen high quality music. It's important especially if you have proper audio equipment. With crappy audio sets and so on it doesn't matter.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
Depends, what do you want to achieve. I prefer edited one. But, this is very similiar to photo editing, it's good if it's done correctly.
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ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteNot really. I was never a music lover or a specialist in this field. I usually listen to music in a radio, where the quality can be very different, but it doesn't bother me.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
Usually not. I think I do not have so sensitive hearing and music is not so much my domain that the sound quality can be a problem.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
In my opinion that depends on a situation, kind of music, the artist that is performing. I think there is no simple answer for the question. E.g. classical music has usually a little bit different audience and is played for different purpose than pop music, and when the first one is expected to be performed perfectly by the musicians directly, the second one could be a little adjusted.
I don't have a sensitive sense of hearing but at some basic level I can say that a particular recording is good or bad. Usually, it means that the recording has a lot of noises or just the speakers are broken. To actually "feel" the music as it is I prefer to move from home and listen a philharmonic concert or an opera. On such a concert, I experience the best quality of sound that cannot be replaced by any recording.
ReplyDeleteAnswering your last question, adjusting the music is fine, especially when effect is indeed beautiful. Everyone has own needs and expectations in area of sounds.
Hi, thanks for sharing this article with us. I like listening to music very much, however I am not an extreme audiophile and anything above MP3 128 kbps quality is fine for me. It depends, but music is not just about the quality of sound, sometimes its about the atmosphere that it creates. When I was younger I used to listen to many weird genres like i.e. black metal where the raw sound of the instruments and low fidelity of recordings gives character and soul to the songs.
ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteI noticed the difference between listening music from tape and from the CD. When you listening from tape you can hear crackles and noise. But form cd, during playing music in mp3 format, sound is more clear.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
There is difference between listening music that is played live and played from CD. When people are buying music they don't want to think about noise, they are paying for good quality in hight frequency. That's why today is hard to find bad quality CD.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
When people are purchasing concert and live music tickets, they want something similar to music that was recorded. If they will notice the difference, they can feel cheated. That's why I think this is not appropriate to sell something that could not be played live.
1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
ReplyDeleteI like very much old records, vinyl or cassette. „They” have SOUL
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
Yes, I prefer to listen high quality musi cif it its possible
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
Both.
It's hard for me to imagine life without music. In particular, I like to go to concerts and listen to live music, where sometimes quality it is not as good as it should be. Much depends on the sound and the object itself. At home however I really like to listen to high-quality multi-track recordings in SACD/DVD-A format.
ReplyDeleteIn general I prefer remastered versions.
I`ll be honest with you. I don't care about :) Of course that I've listend many times to good recording and the bad ones. I think everybody did. Remastering, upgrading, this is something that is with us for years, in most cases we don't even know about that. Let it be :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for this article and opening my eyes (and ears) to the fact that mastering is actually an art and quite a demanding one.
ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
Of course. It depends on format and medium on which it has been registered.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
Especially when I listen to the music I pay attention to the quality of sound. Also when I watch movies a good quality of sound is important. And I do not think here about music in the film but about simple sounds like footsteps in heels walking by an empty street.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
I like to listen to beautifully enhanced tones.
ReplyDeleteI used to listen to music very carefully when I was younger - had more time to focus just on music.
Back then, yes - I could easily spot good or bad recordings. I danced all my primary school, so a good ear did help here
I used to pay more attention, now I treat music as a background. I would still immediately badly mastered recording and stopped playing this music, however that happens very rarely.
Last year I added Sonos soundbar to my wish list. Great tune, very convenient and most important.. no cables attached :P
Hi,
ReplyDeleteMusic is important to me. I can hear the difference between low and high quality of streaming on Spotify ;-) Therefore, I am able to identify the recording as good or bad and I definitely pay attention to the quality of sound. From my point of view, good audio mastering increases reception of sound but there are some limits. It shouldn't change too much of the original sound.
It was a very interesting reading. Thanks!
ReplyDelete1. Did you meet with the recordings that you were able to identify as a good or bad?
> Sure I did. Honestly, sometimes I believe they do it intentionally. I can't remember the name of the single though but it was a hip-hop song.
2. When you listen to music it also draws attention to sound quality?
> Didn't get the question but let me answer in way that I understood. I do care about the sound quality as I spent almost 6 weeks to find the second best ear plugs to listen music at gym.
3. What do you think is appropriate? - Presenting at music such as that was recorded? or adjusting the music to sound even better and more beautiful?
> I never had the privilege to listen any professional song as it is recorded or I wasn't aware of it.
By the way, I may not agree with the way this question is being asked.
So, there is an apple on the left and there is another better and beautiful apple on the right. Which one do you want?