Mastering - analogue vs digital and peaks MASTERING GUYS

[JohnRoberts]

This is an old trick and may not be simple to get a digital file to play this way, but if you could reverse the playback to play the file backwards (from end to start), instead of having loud transients emerging from silence, you would get gentle builds (the opposite of sounds decaying) and than sudden drops to silence (much easier to manage with slow analog dynamics). This old trick was easier to use on mechanical media, but it seems digital tracks, if played backwards could benefit.

Another possibility is to use non-real time, or not true speed processing, where a file is slowed down for dynamic processing, then sped up again afterwards for normal playback. Of course there is no reason why analog processing can't be made faster, while distortion (due to gain manipulation) and perhaps control voltage feed though from imperfect gain elements may become more apparent.

JR

 

[abbey road d enfer]

Hi Tardishead,

I recently timed a square wave through a simple triode and it looked like it delayed it 20uS.

T(us)= 0.35/F(MHz)
Means your triode stage had a cut-off of about 17.5kHz.

Maybe you could run the track through more tubes than the sidechain to delay it enough?

In order to increase significantly the delay, the Fc must become uncomfortably low.

 

[Autophase]

This is an old trick and may not be simple to get a digital file to play this way, but if you could reverse the playback to play the file backwards (from end to start), instead of having loud transients emerging from silence, you would get gentle builds (the opposite of sounds decaying) and than sudden drops to silence (much easier to manage with slow analog dynamics). This old trick was easier to use on mechanical media, but it seems digital tracks, if played backwards could benefit.

JR

Great trick, ive mastered a couple of tracks like this. Reverse the track, slow attack quick release. It works well on dance music where the rhythm is rigid and the behavior is predictable. The only slight drawback is you have to do it a few times before you get a feel for how it will sound when you play it the right way, but definately it works, its not just some gimmick or experiment.

 

[tv]

With an auto-release limiter, this in effect gives an auto-attack processing.

It's louder and punchier as well.

(Choose your kicks wisely).