Ableton Forum

Hi guys,

do I have to consolidate and then export my track before mastering it ?

Typically, mastering involves working with the final rendered version of your track. So you'd get your mix nailed and then export the track. That exported version would be/get mastered.

if you are mastering your own material, i don't really see a need to export and then master the final file. you have a lot more control over the sound of your song if you just continue making edits in the same project, from the production through mixing through mastering stage. for me, these 'stages' don't really happen linearly, i.e. i'll continue honing aspects of my mix as i am mastering (i.e. finalizing the track).

the best solution would be to save different versions of the same project so you can go back on decisions you made if need be. if you start to become constrained by CPU resources, just up the buffer.

as long as you have good reference songs that you like, you can come up with a pretty good 'master' on your own, by comparing your sound to that of typical songs you like (as a general guide, using good monitors). for me, this doesn't really require tons of plugins. my 'mastering' process simply involves putting the following on the master channel: TBReelBus (tape emulator) --> Sonnox Inflator (adds perceived volume and harmonics) --> FabFilter Pro-L (great transparent limiter). Sometimes I'll add an EQ-8 before the limiter to add some fairly high Q boosts in the midrange to add presence if needed, but thats it. I often tweak some of the individual channels (i.e., 'mix') when i am in the 'mastering' process to solve any particular issues i notice. If i were to export first, i would lose the ability to really tweak the individual channels, which I don't like. in my mind the mix isn't over until the master is over, again if you are mastering your own material.

so no, i wouldn't export and then master. i do it all at the same time.

Either method works, I know a lot of people who do it both ways.

not really trying to start a heated debate or anything so don't get upset by my asking... but how can you consider it mastering if you're simply mixing with added effects on the master channel?

aren't you really just still mixing?


having asked that... i'm not saying that you can't finish a track that way so don't misunderstand my meaning, but i'm failing to see where the line in the sand is drawn between mixing and mastering if you're still tweaking the mix.

IMO, the ONLY thing that defines "mastering" is that you have someone else withn unbiased opinion working on it for you. Otherwise it's all mixing if you ask me.

Agreed with Tarekith. I don't really see a big difference between mixing and mastering when you are 'mastering' your own material.

I think of mastering as the final mixing steps you take to get your own track sounding as loud, punchy, and clear as your reference material.

I think if it's your own material it's just a workflow thing. I like to master separately because I find it helps me make decisions if I mentally separate the two but there's no reason you couldn't just apply mastering plugins in the master output.

Depends how much of a CPU drain your track is without the mastering. I've had tracks where my attempt at Mastering could just go on within the project file itself and others where I didn't have the juice left to do the mastering without exporting first.

Personally, I think it's better experience to export your mix and create a new mastering project. It's what you'll have to do if you ever get things professionally mastered anyway, I find it easier to concentrate just on the mastering aspect by having a separate project, and it really forces me to get my mix down right because it's a pain to export, open a new project, etc. But, you should do what works for you...

Thanks for all the answers guys!

Are you turning down all your tracks to for example -4db for mastering? Or is there no need if I already have a headroom of -3db due to my mixing ?

If you're going to put plug ins on the master channel to do the mastering, doesn't matter at all, those will catch any peaks. You can leave the master meters peaking at -3 too, as long as you're sure that they always peak that amount each time you play the song and those you won't clip.

Sometimes random modulations in softsynths and things can make the peak vary slightly each time it plays. That's one reason that you see people recommending to aim to peak your mixes at -6dB, just gives you a bit of safety room.

Far from a formal definition, but in my mind the mix is about balance whereas mastering is making the mix loud.

Just the way I parse it in my head, probably not technically accurate.

Is the goal of mixing that the master volume doesn't go over 0db (the red) ? (not sure, is that clipping? )

Yes and yes.