I don't mix much anymore, but when I'm done mixing I send them out for mastering (mastering your own mixes is somewhat self-defeating).

Caisson wrote: open topic on "What do you do after your mixdown"

ie. send it to master, eq, compress, go stereo, interleaf then mono, interleaf then stereo, etc your tips tricks or whatever you do after Your mixdowns......

It really depends what the mastering studio/engineer wants!

Usually, if doing the mixing, I mix and assign all tracks and effects to stereo groups
(also known as submasters or subgroups) and assign those groups to the stereo 2-channel (L/R) output.

I record out the file of the normal stereo interleaved mix and then make additional passes of each separate subgroup.
This process creates Separations or Stems.
A simliar concept to the color separations used in printing.

Stems/Separations example:

Groups are assigned to the stereo mix output.

Tracks are not sent to the stereo mix - only the group output goes to the stereo bus.

- Drums w/effects are mixed and panned out in stereo and assigned to a stereo subgroup.

- A bass subgroup w/effects

- Guitars & rhythm instruments subgroup w/effects

- Vocals subgroup w/effects

Then deliver both the 2-channel mix and the individual stereo Separations/Stems to the mastering studio.
(usually as 24-bit 96k wavs on DVD-ROM unless other format
and media is specifically requested)

And I agree, you shouldn't master your own mixes.

KJ
---------------
Kyro Studios

I find out what my mastering engineer wants to work with. They are all a little different.

And yes, as Massive said, MASTERING IS A MUST!

Pardon my ignorance, but what is the reason for having someone else perform that function? Is it to have another person, with fresh ears, listen to it and tweak things you might have missed?

How is it defeating to attempt to do it oneself? It sounds like even the pros who know sound and are very accomplished themselves send it off to Clearmountain or somebody else to do it, so why?

Thanks
Keith

A big part is the objective ears... Once your invested into a project like that, it's impossible to hear it "for the first time" again.

That and the monitoring situation... If your room has a particular null or resonance, you'll be adjusting (or not adjusting) what you can't hear... Until it's heard on another system...

You can't tweak what you can't hear. And you'll likely wish you could've tweaked what you couldn't hear at the time.

I've been "forced" to master several of my own mixes to hit deadlines... I can't remember the last time I was happy with it months later... Basically, if you do or don't do or hear something while you're mixing, why would you suddenly hear it during mastering? Especially on the same system or in the same room...

There are so many more reasons, but that's one of the more important ones, IMO.

But you've hit the nail on the head also - I've never had to argue with a professional engineer about the importance of the mastering phase. With a lot of hobby & home engineers, I can yell until I'm blue in the face about it, as some of them just don't grasp the basic concept of it. At this point, they just think of it as "making it louder." And indeed, while that's part of it, it's the least important part.

Actually, the mastering engineer might be listening for different things than the producer or mixer, things other than the content itself - which should make no difference to her - like noise, artifacts, overall level, consistency and loudness. The mastering engineer might have a "pristine" listening space, superior to the recording studio, ears that know "finished" when they hear it and very specialized, critical, yet "minimalist"(She's not going to remix the guitar parts!) equipment, to put this "finish" into any mix as well as the ability to output "ready to duplicate" material to the specs of the duplication house.

In reality though, the mastering engineer doesn't have to "do" anything - if all is well! The ME, may simply be "the closer", the ONE person, who doesn't have to say "I don't know, what do YOU think?", as she is "the end" of the process, she is the only person she needs to satisfy, her job is to say, with finality "This is the best it can be." And, for all of us who never know when to quit, that's nice - even neccessary - to hear...

TG