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Thanks Brad,

Is this pretty much the prevailing view amongst professional mastering engineers?

I have the same song mastered twice, one using IDR and the other using UV22. Both come from a 32bit source. For the life of me I can’t hear the difference between the two (IDR and UV22). I should say that both sound like 16bit copies of the original, but really they both sound better!(warmer, punchier, more balanced)…perhaps they don’t have as much ‘depth’ as the 32bit mix. But again, between the two dithered versions, I can’t hear the difference…they both sound good!

Anyone?

Jim

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Thanks again Brad... very helpful info.

Jim

Guys,
Do you think dithering with POW-r gives results similar to HDCD? I've only had 1 record I worked on mastered HDCD, and still not sure what I think about it, except I only heard it decoded by one CD player, and it was very dark compared to playback in a non HDCD player. I don't know if that particular player was dark sounding in general.

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Hi Jim,

I'd have to say that I too prefer IDR to UV22, especially in the form of Waves' L2 unit/plugin.

Greg

POWr get's my vote. IDR & UV22 both sound pretty similar, so unless you're splitting hairs, both will do. But UV22 looks cooler, like tempest. (just joking about tempest yall)

Just wondering how all the above mentioned dither algorithms compare to the dither function on a Cranesong Hedd 192, as well as on pieces utilizing Sony's Super Bit Mapping? I'm not a mastering engineer, but was wondering what I should use between the two mentioned for delivery to a mastering engineer. Thanks.

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Agreed, my vote is for IDR or POW-R, but don't just switch them on, try out different settings when dithereing each project or song - the differences in character are not easily spotted at first, but go for what "feels" best and you should be in the ballpark. (Note that in IDR there is a setting where the dither is of, you don't wanna do this.) My personal preference right now are the POW-R dithers.

I used the UV22 dither for a while about two years ago. At first I liked what I heard, but I got tired of it's sound - it has one.

BTW, can someone explain what on earth the digital/analog switch on the L1/IDR is for?? Sure, the settings sound different but I don't know what they do - anyone? (I'm looking for a tech explanation)

Ben

Does one always need to dither? I just finished a mastering project and used IDR in the Waves L1+ on 24-bit/44.1k mixes. I found I used different settings on different songs, including some that sounded better without dither and noise shaping. On some I used noise shaping and no dither. On some I used both. I trusted my ears, and the client and I both like the sound.

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Thanks Brad! I felt I had to do what I thought was best for the record. It's good to hear that people like you might also make the same decision. :cool: