Hey everyone,

I recently started using Nebula to finalize mixes and I must say I'm very impressed with it. I'm never going back

I wanted to know what you guys' mastering chains look like.

I have never mixed on a console, analogue gear, etc. so I'm not too familiar with how it all works exactly. I have a vague idea of what an analogue sound path through a console should look like but I'm not sure If i'm doing it correctly.

Here's my chain so far:

1. Tape : which type of tape is best for mastering purposes ? I suppose anything subtle at 30 ips ?
2. Preamps: Which preamps do you guys use ? Is this the right order ? or does it come before/after ?
3. Console In
4. Various EQ's, and compressors
5. Console out
6. Tape : is a tape out necessary ? or is that overkill?
7. Limiter (not Nebula)

I want to know if that chain makes any sense "physically speaking". I'd like to get as close to a "real" mastering console as possible for a start.

And I also want to steal some ideas if you would like to share what you guys use

Cheers !

 

Hey Zero!
So here's my 2 cents in this. I would say that the use of tape twice is probably not necessary. You would be better of using tape on individual tracks while mixing. As for tape. I would say pick up CDSoundmasters R2R if you don't already have it. His Neb prgs. don't have separate in and out plug. Just one. And he has a Tape Booster Plug that naturally adds gain the way Tape tends to. I don't always use it with the R2R though. And yes I would say Ampex or Studer at 30 ips are what I usually end up with. I will sometime run a Tape instance in parallel. I find it to be a much cleaner way to add the Tape.
As for preamps.... I don't really use preamps on my master chain. I tend to use the German master console most times though. Maybe sometimes STN Level Up Gain Stage. There are lots of programs that have been made to help with mastering. I would try to grab a couple of those instead of going for a regular preamp.
The chain you have may be or not a lot of processing and adding on harmonics. The idea is to do as little as possible to your final mix. I think an preamp than a console is probably to much. I say just start with a console or gain stage you like. Then work from there. So maybe more like this...
1- Console/ Gain stage. If needed even.
2- Then EQ/ compress
repeat 2 again and again until you feel it suits you.
3- Then if you feel it needs Tape then add that as well.

You will find there is really no right or wrong order. To Eq first or compress first. You might need 2 compressors and 1 Eq. Then mabe 2 Eqs and 1 compressor. The idea is to stay out of they way. Take away what is hurting the song. Add what little harmonics you think it needs. And then be nice with the limiter. No need for much else because you add harmonics with your Eqs and Compressors. If you need much more then that then it is time to think about re-mixing the song.

Hope this helps some

 

Take a look at this... Pretty interesting stuff!

 

If you want to try to replicate an analog setup (but you are of course free to do whatever you think sounds best) you get something like:
preamp-if-any and other outboard gear -> console in -> tape -> console in again. If I use a preamp program I take the 'line in' variants of the console (AlexB consoles are like that). If I don't use any preamp I take the 'mic in' selection for a channel.

Then any plugins you want on a group-bus, and the console's groupbus-preset as last.
The on the master fader I put outboard gear first again (mixbus compressor for instance), into console 'master preset' or 'mixbus preset', into master-tape (indeed, something 30 ips like the Otari is often nice, depends what you want of course).

This is my _mixing_ idea (not mastering, and during tracking / recording I don't use nebula). The idea being 'in the olden days' you went into your console and it got recorded on tape. But then you played back the tape and it went through the console out the monitors again. That's why console is twice in there. But to be honest, most of the times I don't bother with the 2nd.

On the other hand, if you want to use the console-plugins more like an analog-summer type thing, you would put them _last_ on your individual tracks, and put the 'groupbus' or 'mixbus' presets first on your group-busses and/or master track.

It's all just what you like really. But most often you record with some devices already in the chain (like mic preamp with a 1176 after it) and _that_ is what would come into the console and be recorded. So if I go for tape on every track, I do it like that. Source sound (be it recorded or VSTi / amp sim) -> preamp -> console -> tape. That signal gets bounced / rendered so I don't have to keep nebula running all the time on all the tracks and I start mixing with that.

Broad eq changes (like high-shelve boosts) I do mostly with Nebula, surgical stuff and compression I do with regular plugins. In other words, after the initial batch of 'mojo' I render in my source tracks, I mostly use normal plugins during mixing, except if I really want to change things drastically (boost high end, broad mid cuts, etc..).

During mixing I have a few group busses with the console 'group bus presets' loaded in the 'lower cpu mode' (SE mode as AlexB calls it), and I have a simple algo-plugin (normal VST) doing gentle mix-bus compression on my master track during mixing.
In the end, I put the 'master mixbus' preset _after_ the mixbus-compressor and maybe insert a 'mojo-only nebula preset' that gives some 'flavor' to the mixbus processing (but doesn't do actual compression). Studer a820 on 30ips or Otari 30ips (flicking through options to hear what it does) goes last on master-track and that gets rendered into a single file which I call 'my mix'. That gets mastered in a different session, but I normally don't master myself.

When I do something like 'a quick master' to put it online, I use normal VST plugs for some surgical high-pass and low-pass (cut below 20hz cut above +/- 17000hz) to be safe that I have no frequencies in parts my simple equipment can't reproduce at home , put a pultec EQ nebula before it with the most subtle bass-boost and treble-boost I can dial in, and then I use a nebula-limiter (yes) to do some very slight limiting. After that comes VST plugin (Barricade or Loudmax in my case) to do the real brickwall-limiting (and bringing it to expected loudness, but I often deliver at a very modest -12.5 LUFS EBU-r128 which doesn't need lots of clipping).

While Nebula now has a multiband compressor made by Nebula's creators themselves, I don't have it and I still use VST plugins if I need/want some multiband compression in my mastering (but I often just f*ck things up so I think twice before using a multiband ). If I think I need some high-shelves during mastering I often just go back to the mix to fix it there (otherwise my cymbal hits and instruments can get out-of-balance in the high-end). I don't add that much extra compression during mastering since my mix is already compressed (often api2500 or ssl buscomp) and the 'analog limiter' followed by brickwall will mostly take care of it. Although that new Shadowhill compressor released as standalone Nebula-plugin will find a place on my master or mixbus I guess, but it's too expensive. SKNote's SDC I have but I still have to play around with it :S.


So, on your mastering chain goes whatever is needed to 'fix' your song and (if mastering an album) to make sure it fits with the other tracks. Parametric EQs are nice in Nebula, and don't be afraid to use nebula compressors for the tiny amounts of compression often used in mixbus/mastering. Also, to limit with just a hint of gain-reduction. Just make sure you use a normal brickwall limiter after it, and you don't push the nebula stuff so hard it starts messing up the transients or starts creating artifacts.

 

you can find as well pdf document on Acustica Audio - about mastering at all and with Nebula. Big book

 

Here is a link to the book that will answer all your specific questions: http://www.scribd.com/mobile/doc/258695342

 

Just to add more info to that already answered

if you dont have a scrdb account and want to read it offline

go here

Mastering-with-Acustica_1.0.pdf
Mastering-with-Acustica_1.3.pdf
Mastering-with-Acustica_1.4.pdf

 

Thank you, I wasn't aware that you need an account. This was just the first good search result I got. ☺️