Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor (Plugin from Brainworx)

[Ploki]

Re: shadow hills
Green isn’t oversampled. If that’s what you’re after ok, but it can make hotter mixes sound brittle in the end. Sometimes its fine and gives it extra crunch.
Also the interface doesn’t translate well to software use, which is a common issue with PA plugins. Indiscernible fields of same looking knobs

I like configurable oversampling in my compressors that i use for mastering.

My go to that i work with for 90% of my mastering jobs:
- presswerk
- tone projects Unisum

Honorable mentions i use when these two dont fit:
- weiss
- kotelnikov
- proc2
- pulsar mu (they know how to translate analog ux to digital to perfection)

Mastering is about getting your mixdown onto a specific medium at the right levels. For streaming and iTunes, you need to be concerned primarily about dynamic range. You should master using transparent multi and compression that doesn’t add distortion and has a mixed phase mode. Something like Acon Digital Multiband Dynamics.

That’s sort of true.
You generally shouldn’t target lufs. Do what’s right for the track.
I often use dirty comps for mastering, sometimes client wants that extra smooch. Also clipping. Like 3-5dB - clipping you can hear distorting audibly.

Sometimes they don’t and they want it balanced and finished as cleanly as possible.

[diroxe7660]

Despite the idiosyncratic interface, the workflow is just as fast as other compressors once you get used to it. My experience with it on mix buses has been positive. I think it's receiving too much hate.

[Lbdunequest]

A master buss compressor is not a mastering compressor. The SSL compressor is from the SL-4000 G series mixing console. It was designed to tame errant peaks from spiking your speakers during mixing.

I use the Brainworx Townhouse compressor on my mixbuss.

Mastering is about getting your mixdown onto a specific medium at the right levels. For streaming and iTunes, you need to be concerned primarily about dynamic range. You should master using transparent multi and compression that doesn’t add distortion and has a mixed phase mode. Something like Acon Digital Multiband Dynamics.

Well i used and still use Bus Compressor to master the tracks. I get paid for that. To me its a mastering compressor.

[jamcat]

OK but most mastering engineers aren’t mastering on large-format mixing consoles. That is where you would find an SSL buss compressor.

[plexuss]

Mastering is whatever you want it to be. There are no laws. The differentiation between mixing and mastering is just to provide a guideline for a best-practice workflow. Generally speaking mixing involves the individual tracks and mastering involves the final-format mixdown (usually stereo). Putting anything you want on the master buss is encouraged, as long as it sounds good to you. Same for mixing. Or, even, don't follow the mix/master guideline. I don't. I master while I mix. Then once the mixing is done, I keep the master buss that I put together while mixing, I stop mixing, and refine the mastering from there. I might copy the mix project, render the pre-master mix, and import that into copied mix, remove all the mix tracks so now I am mastering the stereo mix, taking it forward from where I left off with the mix. Whatever works for you...

[jamcat]

I master while I mix. Then once the mixing is done, I keep the master buss that I put together while mixing, I stop mixing, and refine the mastering from there. I might copy the mix project, render the pre-master mix, and import that into copied mix, remove all the mix tracks so now I am mastering the stereo mix, taking it forward from where I left off with the mix.

So are you mastering a single isolated song? You're not mastering a collection of songs together as an album?

If you're mixing and mastering one-off songs, what exactly separates mixing from mastering? Why split it into two processes at all?

[plexuss]

I master while I mix. Then once the mixing is done, I keep the master buss that I put together while mixing, I stop mixing, and refine the mastering from there. I might copy the mix project, render the pre-master mix, and import that into copied mix, remove all the mix tracks so now I am mastering the stereo mix, taking it forward from where I left off with the mix.

So are you mastering a single isolated song? You're not mastering a collection of songs together as an album?

If you're mixing and mastering one-off songs, what exactly separates mixing from mastering? Why split it into two processes at all?

CPU management, especially when I am working in 96k.

Also I work on my own music and have been doing so for decades so I find I can get good consistency between tracks and don't have to master a group of tracks to sound like a cohesive record. When I master someone else's album, which rarely happens, I will pay more attention to getting the right vibe across the tracks in the record. But or my own stuff I can avoid that step.