Slapping a gain plug on the master track

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beats me
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Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by beats me » Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:24 pm

Is there a technical reason you shouldn’t do this to bring the mix down, or is it perfectly acceptable as long as you feel like less of a man for not taming the sum of your 40+ tracks?

Tarekith
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by Tarekith » Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:46 pm

Why not just pull the master fader down?
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beats me
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by beats me » Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:52 pm

Even better. :) And since you’re the one suggesting it, then I’ll take it as perfectly acceptable.

I think part of the paranoia is seeing other producers micromanaging the level and frequencies of each and every track as they go giving the impression that once you start peaking on the master you should go through everything and start from scratch. A little extreme translation on my part I suppose.

“Just turn down the master fader” just seems too elegantly simple.

Richie Witch
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by Richie Witch » Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:12 pm

Tarekith wrote:Why not just pull the master fader down?
Seems like a reasonable fix since you're at the end of the mix.

Do you ever use groups to reduce the number of channels that effectively impact the Master? I use this technique a lot, so even though I have 20+ tracks, I never have more than five or six group faders to adjust the Master level in the final mix down.
"Watching the Sky" ~ A 4-track EP of piano, strings, and Native American flute

beats me
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by beats me » Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:28 pm

I’ve been getting better with grouping tracks and monitoring the mix as I go but at some point I end up going to my old habits of just piling on more and then it’s a guessing game of exactly where things went haywire. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a producer just adjust the master fader as if it’s an abomination that it’s even an option.

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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by Tarekith » Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:30 pm

Honestly for my tracks I rarely have enough tracks to bother with grouping anymore. Maybe 10-15?

Every once in awhile I'll get a mixdown from a client that has like 90+ tracks, and often times I'll group/folder tracks to make it more manageable.
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beats me
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by beats me » Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:49 pm

90+ tracks. 8O Of somebody else’s track they want you to mix. 8O

I’ve had some “vision” problems with other people mixing my tracks. Not due to their lack of skill, most of the time they are a lot better than me, but because for them different tracks should be mixed differently, like what they feel should be brought to the front I feel should be more in the back and vice versa. And I have a lot less tracks to deal with than 90. I can’t imagine dealing with differences in vision with that many tracks.

For me group tracking is usually more about screen real estate and focusing on a sound type.

sporkles
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by sporkles » Wed Jun 24, 2015 8:56 pm

I don't know how things are in whatever fancy DAW you're using, but in this here Ableton Live, you can create default tracks. All my tracks start out with the fader at -18db, so I can leave the master at 0db. So instead of lowering the master volume, I have to bring it up pre-fader. Much better practice, IMO.

paulmaddox
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by paulmaddox » Wed Jun 24, 2015 9:35 pm

Yep, it's absolutely fine unless you're into the red by an insane amount. Internal headroom is huge, so no issue.

soundsliketree
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by soundsliketree » Fri Jun 26, 2015 1:46 am

One of my favorite tips of all time:
Don't automate track volumes at all. Use Utility plug-ins instead.
This way, when you're at the later stages of a mix and the master volume has crept upwards and is peaking above zero, you can select all tracks at once and reduce their volumes simultaneously without triggering an automation disconnect.

Tagor
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Re: Slapping a gain plug on the master track

Post by Tagor » Fri Jun 26, 2015 5:35 pm

nice one^^

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