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Great Video On EQ Mastering

by Steven Wagenheim
12 replies
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I don't usually go crazy over stuff like this but check out this Fabfilter mastering video demonstrating the new Pro Q 2


This is one area where I absolutely have to improve. I had no idea this stuff was so complex as far as getting a sound just right. This guy nitpicks this track to death.

Definitely worth a listen to.
  • Profile picture of the author HeySal
    So does this mean if I were to send you a tape of me sqaulering in pitches that could repell the dead, that you could make me sound like Gracie Slick?
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by HeySal View Post

      So does this mean if I were to send you a tape of me sqaulering in pitches that could repell the dead, that you could make me sound like Gracie Slick?
      Um, I plead the 5th. LOL
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      • Profile picture of the author HeySal
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        Um, I plead the 5th. LOL
        It was actually a serious question, Steve. Can this kind of equipment make anyone sound good? From my musically ignorant point of view, it seemed like it was saying they can actually change the wrong notes you hit to the right ones, clarify muddy ones, etc.
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        • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
          Originally Posted by HeySal View Post

          It was actually a serious question, Steve. Can this kind of equipment make anyone sound good? From my musically ignorant point of view, it seemed like it was saying they can actually change the wrong notes you hit to the right ones, clarify muddy ones, etc.
          EQ can "fix" a multitude of sins but for vocals, what you really need is pitch correction and slight autotune. Naturally, with that, EQ, compression, reverb and other FX can make you sound pretty good. But the better your voice is, the easier it will be to get it good.
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          • Profile picture of the author David Beroff
            I don't know very much about this stuff, but it seems like he working on music which has already been mixed from its various component pieces. When he shows how he works on improving one area, but that modification has a side effect on another, I was thinking that it'd make more sense to make these changes on the component tracks before they were mixed together, (so as to avoid those "side effects").

            I'm probably missing something basic here; like I said, I'm out of my element.
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            • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
              Originally Posted by David Beroff View Post

              I don't know very much about this stuff, but it seems like he working on music which has already been mixed from its various component pieces. When he shows how he works on improving one area, but that modification has a side effect on another, I was thinking that it'd make more sense to make these changes on the component tracks before they were mixed together, (so as to avoid those "side effects").

              I'm probably missing something basic here; like I said, I'm out of my element.
              In actuality, all those "fixes" were done on each individual track. But then you start combining things and little "minor" problems pop up. I say minor because in the grand scheme of things, these problems aren't that big a deal. To the average listener, these problems wouldn't even be noticeable. Be honest. Did you really think all the things he pointed out were so bad? Did you even notice them before he pointed them out? I didn't and I've been mixing music for over 35 years.

              An expert mastering engineer will pick out the smallest details in a track that are easy to overlook in the original mix. And then of course there is personal taste. Some engineers may have looked at this mix differently and made different changes or none at all. This isn't an exact science. And the more complex a track is, the more variables are involved whereas a track of just drums, bass and guitar is going to be pretty easy to get right the first time.

              Mastering is something that takes a lifetime to perfect. I'm still pretty average at it after all these years. For one thing, I don't have the keen ear that some of these people have. A lot of things I simply don't hear and nothing can change that.

              Anyway, don't know if I've answered your question or not but the bottom line is, sometimes you can't get everything 100% perfect in the initial mix.
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              • Profile picture of the author David Beroff
                No, I didn't notice anything before he pointed it out.

                But if there's one character out of place in some MySQL or PHP code, I'll catch that right away. So I well know the feeling.
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                • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
                  Originally Posted by David Beroff View Post

                  No, I didn't notice anything before he pointed it out.

                  But if there's one character out of place in some MySQL or PHP code, I'll catch that right away. So I well know the feeling.
                  Big difference between programming (I've done some in several languages) and music. With programming, one character out of place and the program could literally come to a grinding halt, if it even compiles. With music, it is mostly subjective and in the ear of the beholder. There is no real "right or wrong" with music. It is what the producer "thinks" is right or wrong, assuming their ears can even pick it out.

                  As someone who has both written computer programs and musical scores, music is much harder to get "right"

                  Here's part 2 where he goes into compression to fix things that EQ couldn't fix.

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                  • Profile picture of the author David Beroff
                    Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

                    Big difference between programming (I've done some in several languages) and music.
                    Of course. My only point was that I'm much more "sensitive" to tiny issues in an area in which I'm already more comfortable.
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                    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
                      Originally Posted by David Beroff View Post

                      Of course. My only point was that I'm much more "sensitive" to tiny issues in an area in which I'm already more comfortable.
                      Which is how people become experts in their field. The more they do it, the more in tune they get with everything. When I first started programming I was close to clueless. Took me many years to get to a point where I was comfortable working on major software releases. Part of me misses those days. Part of me is glad they are over with.

                      It was a real mixed bag.
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                      • Profile picture of the author David Beroff
                        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

                        Which is how people become experts in their field. The more they do it, the more in tune they get with everything. When I first started programming I was close to clueless. Took me many years to get to a point where I was comfortable working on major software releases. Part of me misses those days. Part of me is glad they are over with.

                        It was a real mixed bag.
                        Understood. I had felt much the same way when I chose to walk away from software design after doing it for twenty years.

                        Fast-forward yet another twenty years, and now I find I'm having fun getting back into it once again.

                        Have you ever considered using some of your rather varied background to find a new niche for yourself today?
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                        • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
                          Originally Posted by David Beroff View Post


                          Have you ever considered using some of your rather varied background to find a new niche for yourself today?
                          Not really. I'm happy with what I'm doing now. I've done so many things in my life that if I listed them all your head would spin. I never held one job for more than 9 years and that was a miracle since the place almost drove me to a nervous breakdown.

                          Today, I do some article writing for clients I pick up here and there and concentrate mostly on my music in a variety of sub niches.

                          More than enough to keep me busy.
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