Mastering at Digital Domain
Mastering with Grammy award-winning engineer Bob Katz includes SADiE editing, all the necessary outboard processors, and Bob's custom innovations.
Audiophile quality Mastering
Using the world's most transparent A/D Converter, transfers from analog are performed from customized tube tape recorders and analog processors. Digital processing is done with greater than 24-bit accuracy. Learn more about the art and science of CD mastering by reading the dedicated Articles section of this site.
Unique Mastering Techniques
Bob has some unique techniques, including his own stereoization process, which can capture the original ambience and space in a recording and help to compensate for multimike and multi-generation recording techniques. Bob's stereoization is now available for all mastering engineers in the patent-pending K-Stereo processor, which can be purchased through Digital Domain. Standard mixing techniques often reduce the sense of space and depth in a recording---it's nice that there are some digital ways of recovering what has been lost. Bob finds it useful to recommend his stereoization on about 30-40% of projects that come in today. Another useful technique which has become Bob's "signature" is his microdynamic enhancement, a method he has developed of enhancing and preserving the impact and dynamic range of a live performance, while retaining a loudness character to be competitive with other music of the genre.
Noise Reduction and Restoration
Including: Cedar Retouch, a new miracle process that allows us to remove noises that no other system can remove. For example: chair squeaks in the middle of an orchestral passage, the conductor humming a tune, audience coughs, paper rustling, you name it! Backdrop, a new psycho-acoustically based noise reduction system from TC Electronic, that reduces continuous noises such as hiss, rumble, and buzz, with little or no effect on the musical quality. Be sure to leave a sample of the noise for a fingerprint.
Stereoization and Microdynamic Enhancement
There are many things digital processing can do for your music which couldn't previously be accomplished in the analog domain. For example, Bob's invented a process called microdynamic enhancement, that can restore or simulate the liveliness and life that you'll find in a great live recording. Bob's used it to get more of a big-band feel on a MIDI dominated jazz recording. He's used it to put life back into an overly-compressed (or poorly-compressed) rock recording. It's really useful and extraordinary--it actually helps remove some of the veils introduced in multi-generation mixdowns, tape saturation and sound "shrinkage" attributable to using opamps or negative feedback in audio mixing consoles. Bob's microdynamic enhancement process is achieved totally in the digital domain.
He's invented another digital process called Stereoization, which can be applied to unidimensional (flat-sounding) material, and now embodied in a box which can be purchased. Stereoization is very different from the various width-altering processes that are now-available. Stereoization is a very natural process and does not simulate an artificial image or create fake images like some of the "boxes" which have appeared. Instead, Stereoization captures and extracts the original ambience in a source. The degree of stereoization is completely controllable. Instruments in the soundfield have natural space around them, as if they were recorded with stereo microphones. The natural process uses long-standing psychoacoustic principles, and it's fully mono-compatible.
The above remarkable processes can only be achieved digitally. DSP engineers are constantly inventing new ways to simulate all the traditional analog processes.
What happens during mastering at Digital Domain?
How long does mastering take? Until we know more about your project or your music it is hard to estimate how much time is needed to master. Mastering can take as little as 3 hours and as much time as you and we deem necessary to get the quality of CD you are looking for. There is a natural point of diminishing returns, and for the vast majority of CD's we master, that is rarely more than 5 hours. Bob always keeps in close touch with you during the mastering, making sure you know what's happening, always discussing with you a given sonic approach to your music before proceeding with the time.
After the hourly-based mastering is done, we make a reference CD. You get to hear the reference CD, and we can make any changes you may desire for the final master. The CDR (or DDP) master is then done at a flat rate, which includes a complete PQ code list and a guaranteed CD master which will be replaced with no questions asked if the CD plant finds a problem with it. (To date, with hundreds of CDs, there have been no problems, but it's nice to know we stand behind our work).
Monitors and Control Room
The real key to good mastering lies in the control room acoustics and monitors--the ability to be able to hear extremely subtle changes and react to them. Clients who visit Digital Domain say that they can hear details in their music that they never knew were there. Take a visit to our studio for more details.
Other things to know about mastering
We've written many articles about how to decide on master format, analog or digital sources, and how to get the best performance from your equipment. Take a trip to our Articles and start exploring.
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