I love that feeling when I see a new video from this channel and I know it's going to a be a high quality video with legitimate tips from professionals and not just random tutorial videos. Thanks for bringing in great people to share their knowledge.
Thanks very much Klubz Productions! That's very kind of you! I definitely want people who work on music every day so we can ALL learn from them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@@Producelikeapro I just sent this video to my partner on a record. Preparing our once rehearsal studio, now recording basement home sound factory. Just wanted to take the time and tell you congratulations on this video and all the hard work and obvious dedication to music we both share . Sincerely, J.
I cannot begin to express how I love the in-depth explanations about the inner workings of the gear here. Unlike most videos where people claim "this is magic," here we have a guy who went down the technical rabbit hole and listens and therefore can put words on what the tools allow you to do. I love that. In a world full of snake oil salesmen it's good to have facts. Not alternative facts (that would simply mean lies), but actual facts. Thanks, Warren and Warren!
Hi noisesoundtonevibe, I agree! He was able to really break things down for me to understand as well! I love learning! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
discovering and watching this video is like walking through a door in a polluted traffic tunnel and coming out into a fresh, clean alpine forest. Thanks Warrens.
I really like this guy! Now, I know there are only so many hours in the day and Mr. Sokol is probably a very busy man, but something like a "Mastering Basics" video with him using one of your mixes (or maybe even a mix from a PLAP academy member!) would be amazing.
Hi Friends, I hope you're doing marvellously well and had a great start into the new week! Being able to master your own songs has become a crucial skill to mixing engineers, producers and home studio recordists: Often, budgets don’t allow to hire an external Mastering engineer anymore. So in order for our music to compete with songs on the radio, Spotify or I-Tunes, we have to learn how to master music ourselves. Today, we are blessed to sit down with the insanely talented Warren Sokol from United Mastering: In this video, Warren breaks down his complete mastering chain and explains his favorite tools - digital as well as analogue. All the way from Acoustic Room Treatment and picking the right Speakers, to Signal Flow, Converters, Clocks, EQs, Harmonic enhancers, Compressors, Limiters and Dithering. Warren goes into great detail on each of his processors, explains their unique characteristics and how you can use them to achieve full and punchy masters. You’ll also learn how to prepare your mixes for mastering and Warren points out common mixing mistakes to avoid in order to achieve a great master. I hope you enjoy this interview and it helps you to craft big, radio-ready masters! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@Jason Simmons if the instrument you are mixing, doesn't need much bass, like guitar and vocals, it works very well. It keeps the mix from getting too much unwanted lower frequencies built up, making the mix muddy. I hope this helps, 3 years after you asked.
I really did enjoy Sokol's approach to listening to music...trying to hear the sounds between the tracks. I could tell Warren (Huart) really valued what Sokol had to say - he was unusually quiet! Sokol really does have a lot of great tips.
I wouldn't often listen to a full 45 minutes of an interview but this was super interesting all the way through. Especially the parts where Warren (S) is talking about what he's thinking about at various stages of the master or when using pieces of gear. Invaluable! Thanks again Warren (H)!
I posted a comment before reading any of the others, now after reading some of the others I see that I am not the only one to feel this way. Well done!
There's always 40something complete Einsteins of music production who dislike videos with valuable information handed out freely for enthusiasts and even people already working in the art of recording and producing music. I wonder why ? Is it because they don't like it being freely handed over to the general public ? What? Thx for the great videos Warren!
Mr. Sokol, it is engineers such as yourself that inspire me, in all my years of study, i have never encountered someone who could so eloquently explain the complexities of mixing. Mr. Huart, i must thank you for sharing this experience with the public. I wish the both of you continued success.
Hi Warren Huart, I watch all your video's. this one makes me feel so humble and my god how little I know. I really liked Warren Sokal and what he had to say. Like you he's forgotten more than I'll ever learn. Please keep them coming . Thanks Dave.
Again as one of the few beginners that watch your videos ( I can tell by the comments most of your viewers are professionals as well ) I love that fact that , you go into great details and I can still follow along . Your channel is truly great . So glad TH-cam algorithm suggested it .
The only 30+ minute instructional video I've watched in its entirety 2018. Dunno if that's a testament to this video or a jab at YT these days. Probably both...
Hi Joshua, I hear you! When I was looking at doing my Mastering Video I realised that there were 20 minute videos just on just one of the 5 ideas. So in this series I wanted to make sure I gave a lot of information to people! I've been running an Academy now for a year and a half and I get the same questions and issues to deal with from all of us, so I have a pretty good idea of what to pinpoint in a discussion! Thanks for your great comment! I really appreciate it!
I'm impressed with his ability and confidence to explain what and how the gear works in different scenarios. I'm not a techie and he gave even me a kind of understanding of how to use this gear. If ever I needed a mastering engineer he would be one of my first consideration.
Very good presentation; and I especially like the comments from Sokol about getting into the spaces between the performers and bringing the overall loudness up without causing harm to the mix. Very helpful in offering an understanding of how the mastering is approached. Thank you for this interview!
A great 45 minutes. Makes me confident that my mixes being sent to be mastered are going to be relatively easy to master because I did things good upfront in the final mix down. Great great explanation of the gear!
That was incredibly informative. It really helped me to understand the compressor/limiter difference and also gave me more grounding in eq from a mastering perspective. I was definitely overdoing it before now! Thanks to you both!
It is something I believe everyone of the digital/analog monitor controllers on the market could use!! Although the 16bit format is really disappearing quickly, so I don't know how relevant it will be in even another year. I would really like to see a bit rate & sample rate indicator on these types of monitor controllers! Since they will usually accept any bit rate & any sample rate & then upsample to 192K (or above), which is a 32bit process in most modern DAC's. So it would be really great to have a simple LCD, or even indicator lights to show the actual bit rate & sample rate feeding into the monitor condroller/DAC! anyway....too much to much info...? ;^) Cheers! WS
Thanks have just finished a Degree in Sound Engineering and Music Production at Point Blank University in London - it’s amazing that I thought I was getting closer to understanding EQ, Compression and Limiting - this wowed me the depth !!
Hi Warren. Thanks very much for this video. Warren S. certainly knows his stuff and it was a delight to see him so enthusiastically share his knowledge. I started out on a second hand Yamaha mt100 4 track tape recorder, progressed to a secondhand Boss portastudio, then in the early 2000s when computers really became the norm I couldn't afford it and working on a pc didn't appeal anyway so I bought a secondhand ADAT and a 16 channel desk. It's perfect for live recordings. The cost of my set up was only a few hundred pounds but I figured that I couldn't hear any difference between 90s recordings on tape and 00s recordings on computer so the only difference must be the way of working rather than the quality of the recording. Seeing Warren explain how he goes about using his gear helps a great deal from the point of view of preparing a mix for mastering and it is interesting to see how one process informs the other. Great work and thanks again for the video.
Man this is one of the best Mastering videos I have seen on youtube. I have other favorites but this 1 is definitely topnotch. So much useful and detail info I already watched it 4 times. Good job man and thanks!!!!
So much useful, well delivered information passes through Produce Like A Pro it is shocking and very comforting at the same time. I am sure that I am not the only one that loves all that you do! Thank you Warren an thank you PLAP team!!!!
I got to the end! I really learned a lot- and it was really interesting listening to how the HEDD works and adds the harmonics in an additive fashion instead of affecting the entire signal. It's a piece of gear that has aged very well. Warren 2 knows his stuff for sure!
Thanks Amoth!! I am a big fan of the HEDD!! Excellent converters & the harmonic emulation has yet to be beat in my opinion! Does so much so subtly & simply!! Love it! Did you know that you can have the DAC upgraded to Cranesongs new "Quantum DAC" that's in the new Avocet's & the Solaris? The DAC in the Avocet is by far one of the best I've ever heard!! I am waiting to do the upgrade on my HEDD until he is done designing the Quantum ADC though, so I can have them both upgraded at the same time. The current HEDD DAC beat out pretty much every other one we tested, so it certainly has held up!! Cheers!
Some of what Warren was sharing was over my head to be honest, but it was good to hear some one articulately talk about mastering from years of experience. If you get another chance Warren, I guess I'd like to see a bit more of his decision making process at the console where we could hear what he is doing. The gear review was great, but I found myself wanting to hear him use the gear and explain his decision making process. Thanks as always for the great job!
Maor Applebaum also used the Titan compressor. These two mastering videos helped me decide that it's a sound investment. Great discussion here about clipping, about dynamic range, about EQ. Thanks to both.
Totally awesome. I am now completely discouraged but recognize that at home, I will never be able to do what Warren Sokol does - not even close. It seems the more I learn the more I recognize how much I don't and probably won't ever know or be able to do alone. Oh, well - never give up being the motto - I did learn some stuff and will try to put the principles into practice.
Thanks Warren and Warren Sokol, I got so much from that walkthrough. Really appreciate the sharing and hearing how you got into mastering. Your interview really highlighted the skill of the craft.
From PASSEQ manual: There is basically only one type of filter used in the PASSEQ: The bell-filter or peak-filter. But since the center frequency of the peak-filter, concerning the HF and LF bands, is only marginally within the perceptible hearing range, these filters auditorily and visually rather correspond to shelf-filters. 😉
I also went to The Recording Workshop in Chilicothe!! for me circa 1987 :D Great to see a fellow grad doing so well! Really cool video and gear. Great information! Thanks for posting this!
I experienced the clipping track issue the other day. For some things I will record guitar and bass direct through my interface. I tend to leave the cable plugged in and switch guitars while recording. The bass level had to be a lot higher than the guitar and for a couple of dubs I forgot to turn the level down when I switched back to guitar. Needless to say the dubs clipped like mad but I didn't realize it through my headphones while recording. So when I went to mix the dubs in... I realized pretty quickly that I had to rerecord them yet again. Live and learn. Love this mastering vid! Looking forward to more.
This was a great vid, thanks Warren....and I made it to the end! :) Warren Sokol was very well spoken and really helped to demystify the "dark art" of mastering!
Wow, I went to The Recording Workshop in Chillicothe way way back around the early ‘80s. They’ve been going a lonnngggg time! Good to hear they’re still around - had a good experience with them and learned a lot.
Re. "don't use high pass filtering, if the mixer is referring to the Mixbus TV video, the guy instructs you not use multiple high pass filters on the same instrument. Just use one at the end of your fx chain. Layering hpfs on top of each other will cause phase problems, but you still need one on your drum bus, bass bus, guitar bus, etc to clean them up.
Hi Adam, definitely have to use EQ and High Passing properly! Important to listen and not to look! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This is one of the most informative videos I have watched on your channel. I am now wanting to know more about how my gear actually works(technically) in comparison to each other. Thanks.
Hi Sylvester, thanks for watching!! I would be happy to do a demo for you & discuss our rates! If you'd like to send me an email at: warren@unitedmastering.com I will fill you in on the details! Cheers! WS
So, I just realized how little I know about sound. I've always known I had a lot to learn, but wow. I wish I had the time to go to a workshop like Chilicothe. Great information on all of Warren's videos.
Great informative vid. As someone, bound by finance, who has to record, mix and master his own work it is so helpful to find the same principles being demonstrated at the highest level.
Only really put this on as background but got immediately hooked and stayed til the end. The part where Warren H says "is that an antelope I see?" I was expecting a wild animal to have wandered in to the room
Warren's Squared. Thank you very much for this impressive conversation and very much needed discussion and outlook on sound. In all things there are two sides of the coin, this being inspiring, welcoming, engaging, and powerful. This is a gem. Thank you both and sharing, this goes much further beyond the scope.
It was really nice to hear someone talk about exactly what the different oddities these mastering eqs have, like the bell widening instead of jumping to center frequency. That's something that you might hear is odd (in a good way) but have no idea what its actually doing, other than making things sound good. I love knowing the science behind my gear. I've been producing and engineering rock music for almost 15 years and just know when i hear something good, but always curious as to whats happening in the magic boxes. Also nice to hear some tricks being told, especially why he used specific gear for the reasons he does and not others. Honestly its fantastic information for someone just starting out, or even someone who has been at it for many many years like me, you always get to learn something new. I've been meaning to ask if you could include something going forward in your series, which seems to be overlooked mostly in your studio tours and interviews, and thats AD/DA converters and what sample rates are being used and why, for any given studio/producer. I personally hear such huge differences between different AD/DA boxes, it would be lovely to know what some places use what they do, and why. Also the debate on tracking 44.1 vs 96, and anything in between is always brought up online, and it would be great to know from these guys who are producing the stuff we hear on the radio, what they tracked/mixed at, and why. Cheers!
Hi Josef, thanks for watching!! I like to learn why certain gear sounds one way & another piece sounds different & to be able to visualize what is happening while I work! I've found that when I understand how & why a certain EQ sounds the way it does, when I run into problems that need fixing but are difficult to track down within a 2-trk mix it helps me to find & fix the problem faster when I can visualize the problem & the solution in my head! Although when I am working on a good mix, I am more focused on how it is making m e feel throughout my body. When I feel it effecting me the right way, I know it's done "cooking"!! Cheers! WS
Hey there "other" Warren, thanks for replying! Welcome to youtube, don't get sucked in haha. Thanks for sharing info on here and opening your place for us to see. It's such a small community of professionals in this industry, so its always nice to see us come together and talk shop. Also this introduced me to those active bass traps, that tech boggles my mind, and now I'm looking into see if thats a solution I might want to use for my mixing space. Was your space designed originally by an acoustician and then tailored to you after? Was bass an issue when you got in there or was there a passive trap that was removed for the active? Thanks, cheers!
Hi Josef! The AVAA's were definitely a surprise to me when they actually did what they claimed to do!! If you have low freq room modes they would probably help once you find the most optimal place for them in your room...which take a bit of time some science! the room we are in was not originally designed as a studio, although it has been being used for producing music in multiple ways over the years. But never to the level of detail we needed. So we did have to do some work to get the freq response flattened out. Mainly in the bass, which is usually the case in most rooms. Thanks for watching!! WS
Probably the best technical video so far Warren, even my girlfriend( I prefer womanfriend) loves your videos, ...you also have this reminisance in your core, and you bring that out in your interviews... A question has a thousand explanations, it's about how you ask the question....
Great video! I bit overwhelming with specific HW concepts, since I was more oriented learning to master in-the-box, but plenty of great general tips on audio processing! Thanks!
He seems like a pretty awesome mastering engineer and also fairly flexible and understanding upon receiving a mix you know going through school being told that mastering Engineers will turn you away for typos and not enough Headroom at least -6 DB that would be a deal-breaker typically for hard up mastering Engineers but I like how he has an optimistic attitude about it and wouldn't even mind getting in there to creating a Better Mix level before he bounces it down to a stereo file in which he could Master with plenty of Headroom I think that's very Noble humble and awesome great video.
Thanks for watching Troy! With digital mixes, it fairly transparent to adjust the gain down in the DAW before going out to my analog chain & I also have the option of using analog attenuators as the first step in my mastering console, so as long as the signal isn't clipped, it can easily be brought down to whatever level sounds best hitting any analog gear being used! I've never felt like it was my place to say this or that mix is worthy or not...I operate more under the idea that it is my job to educate my clients about the these things so we both continue to grow & get better & better results! I receive mixes of all quality's, from mixes that are so good that all I am doing is bringing the level up to where it needs to be & doing it without messing up what I was given. To mixes that are so bad that there isn't anything I can do that doesn't just make thing worse! So when I get mixes with problems I always try to go back to the artist and/or mix engineer & discuss changes they could make in the mix that would fix any problems. I can sometimes fix them on my side, but it is always better to do it on the individual tracks where the problems exist, rather than trying to isolate them within a finished mix where no matter what you do, you are going to effect everything, not just the track(s) with the problem! But there are times when the answer I get back is: "we don't have the session anymore", or "we don't have the budget or time to go back to the mixing stage & make changes". So when that happens I am more than happy to do what I can to fix things...if it is possible...and as long as they understand that I can only do so much with specific issues when I only have the 2-track mix. Unfortunately there are times when I just cant fix a bad mix & then only option is to say "this is not ready to be mastered", but if I can give the client what they are wanting I try to do it. But if they can do better & in the end that will make ME do better work, thats the way it should go, so we do that! Every session is different & I am being paid to make the sound in my clients head come out of the speakers, so whatever technique is going to make that happen, is the correct technique for that session! Cheers! WS
Is it spam to just say this was amazing and that Warren Sokol was great in this interview? Thanks for taking the time to make and post this! I got a lot out of it even though I have to work with digital tools - still lots of good info.
awesome video, I'm now getting into mastering and found this quite helpful for like an overall view of a professional setup, I definitely want more of these, and Warren(s) if you have any suggestion about what to study and how to learn this craft, please let me know!
Wow! Best video I´ve seen on youtube. I learned so much and I´m not even done with this video. This is priceless. I love to see and feel the passion you guys have and I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your knowledge, you just pushed my hunger for more, you guys just really influenced me exercising the profession as an audiologist.
thank you very much for a fantastic video ,listening to those who polish the end product give much insight into how to record and prepare a good mix .thanks again for allowing us to gain knowledge, that may well of never been obtainable otherwise. I always learn much from professionals like yourself and those you interview.
I love that feeling when I see a new video from this channel and I know it's going to a be a high quality video with legitimate tips from professionals and not just random tutorial videos. Thanks for bringing in great people to share their knowledge.
Thanks very much Klubz Productions! That's very kind of you! I definitely want people who work on music every day so we can ALL learn from them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
+1 a truly enlightening video. Great channel.
Thanks very much Yblig! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
@@Producelikeapro I just sent this video to my partner on a record. Preparing our once rehearsal studio, now recording basement home sound factory. Just wanted to take the time and tell you congratulations on this video and all the hard work and obvious dedication to music we both share . Sincerely, J.
Agreed! Warren has done more for audio than most have “said they have”. @ProduceLikeAPro for the win!
Quote of the day: 'Yeh we got perfect levels! The red light is on the whole time!'
Haha I know genius!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I laughed hard at that. I'm definitely gonna use it in the future!
yeah that can be a sign of saturated quality sound. Maybe not with cheapo pre amps ;-)
I cannot begin to express how I love the in-depth explanations about the inner workings of the gear here. Unlike most videos where people claim "this is magic," here we have a guy who went down the technical rabbit hole and listens and therefore can put words on what the tools allow you to do. I love that. In a world full of snake oil salesmen it's good to have facts. Not alternative facts (that would simply mean lies), but actual facts. Thanks, Warren and Warren!
Hi noisesoundtonevibe, I agree! He was able to really break things down for me to understand as well! I love learning! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for the kind words noisesoundtonevibe!!
Cheers!
WS
Warren Sokol - you are great ! Thank you for the details. Detail is everything for us mixers/ producers.
discovering and watching this video is like walking through a door in a polluted traffic tunnel and coming out into a fresh, clean alpine forest. Thanks Warrens.
I really like this guy! Now, I know there are only so many hours in the day and Mr. Sokol is probably a very busy man, but something like a "Mastering Basics" video with him using one of your mixes (or maybe even a mix from a PLAP academy member!) would be amazing.
What an exceptionally good idea..! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching!!
Cheers!
WS
Hi Friends,
I hope you're doing marvellously well and had a great start into the new week!
Being able to master your own songs has become a crucial skill to mixing engineers, producers and home studio recordists:
Often, budgets don’t allow to hire an external Mastering engineer anymore. So in order for our music to compete with songs on the radio, Spotify or I-Tunes, we have to learn how to master music ourselves.
Today, we are blessed to sit down with the insanely talented Warren Sokol from United Mastering: In this video, Warren breaks down his complete mastering chain and explains his favorite tools - digital as well as analogue.
All the way from Acoustic Room Treatment and picking the right Speakers, to Signal Flow, Converters, Clocks, EQs, Harmonic enhancers, Compressors, Limiters and Dithering. Warren goes into great detail on each of his processors, explains their unique characteristics and how you can use them to achieve full and punchy masters.
You’ll also learn how to prepare your mixes for mastering and Warren points out common mixing mistakes to avoid in order to achieve a great master.
I hope you enjoy this interview and it helps you to craft big, radio-ready masters!
Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Marvellous makes me think of Arnold J Rimmer.
Hi Pinkney Vs_Robots hahah I Red Dwarf reference!! Nice! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
How do you know the best places to use a high pass?
@Jason Simmons if the instrument you are mixing, doesn't need much bass, like guitar and vocals, it works very well. It keeps the mix from getting too much unwanted lower frequencies built up, making the mix muddy. I hope this helps, 3 years after you asked.
I am a home studio guy strictly for my own music. This has been the best video I have seen on mastering! Thank you!
I really did enjoy Sokol's approach to listening to music...trying to hear the sounds between the tracks. I could tell Warren (Huart) really valued what Sokol had to say - he was unusually quiet! Sokol really does have a lot of great tips.
Thanks for watching Yuda!!
Cheers!
WS
Hi Yuda, yes, indeed! Warren S. is amazing! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Prolly the best equipment breakdown ive heard in a while
I wouldn't often listen to a full 45 minutes of an interview but this was super interesting all the way through. Especially the parts where Warren (S) is talking about what he's thinking about at various stages of the master or when using pieces of gear. Invaluable! Thanks again Warren (H)!
Aw shucks thanks very much! I'm really glad you enjoyed the video!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I posted a comment before reading any of the others, now after reading some of the others I see that I am not the only one to feel this way. Well done!
this is possibly the best interview I've ever seen...
Wow thanks ever so much Sam Be Mixing!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
There's always 40something complete Einsteins of music production who dislike videos with valuable information handed out freely for enthusiasts and even people already working in the art of recording and producing music. I wonder why ? Is it because they don't like it being freely handed over to the general public ? What? Thx for the great videos Warren!
Thank you Warren squared! I stayed til the end and it made me realize how my poor attempts to master on a DAW are woefully inadequate!
Mr. Sokol, it is engineers such as yourself that inspire me, in all my years of study, i have never encountered someone who could so eloquently explain the complexities of mixing. Mr. Huart, i must thank you for sharing this experience with the public. I wish the both of you continued success.
Thanks very much Airrion! Yes, Warren S. Rules! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks so much for the kind words Airrion!!
Cheers!
WS
Hi Warren Huart, I watch all your video's. this one makes me feel so humble and my god how little I know. I really liked Warren Sokal and what he had to say. Like you he's forgotten more than I'll ever learn. Please keep them coming . Thanks Dave.
Again as one of the few beginners that watch your videos ( I can tell by the comments most of your viewers are professionals as well ) I love that fact that , you go into great details and I can still follow along . Your channel is truly great . So glad TH-cam algorithm suggested it .
The only 30+ minute instructional video I've watched in its entirety 2018. Dunno if that's a testament to this video or a jab at YT these days. Probably both...
Hi Joshua, I hear you! When I was looking at doing my Mastering Video I realised that there were 20 minute videos just on just one of the 5 ideas. So in this series I wanted to make sure I gave a lot of information to people! I've been running an Academy now for a year and a half and I get the same questions and issues to deal with from all of us, so I have a pretty good idea of what to pinpoint in a discussion! Thanks for your great comment! I really appreciate it!
I have watched at least a hundred of your videos and learned something new every time thank you for what you do for the engineer community
Thank you ever so much my friend!!
The best ever video i have watched on mastering, so much information explained in such an understandable way, i learnt so much from this.
Please more from this guy i could listen to him all day.
Thanks ever so much! Yes, warren Sokol Rules!!
I'm impressed with his ability and confidence to explain what and how the gear works in different scenarios. I'm not a techie and he gave even me a kind of understanding of how to use this gear. If ever I needed a mastering engineer he would be one of my first consideration.
13 min into this and have gotten so much out of it. Awesome interaction.
Thank you Warren!!
I've seen this one but I'm watching again because that is the best Mastering thumbnail of all time.
Are you kidding me? Heck yes I stayed till the end! Very informative! Thank you Warren for the insight.
Aw shucks thanks ever so much!! You Rock! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Probably the best informational video on mastering / music production I have seen. Thank you for bringing this content for everyone to enjoy.
Wow thanks ever so much Wesley!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Very good presentation; and I especially like the comments from Sokol about getting into the spaces between the performers and bringing the overall loudness up without causing harm to the mix. Very helpful in offering an understanding of how the mastering is approached. Thank you for this interview!
Agreed 100%! What an amazing comment! Warren S. is wonderful! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
A great 45 minutes. Makes me confident that my mixes being sent to be mastered are going to be relatively easy to master because I did things good upfront in the final mix down. Great great explanation of the gear!
That was incredibly informative. It really helped me to understand the compressor/limiter difference and also gave me more grounding in eq from a mastering perspective. I was definitely overdoing it before now! Thanks to you both!
This is really inspiring to make music!!!
The information is excellent!!!!
The 16 bit dithering button to hear dithering is wicked....
Hi Keith, yes I agree! Great button! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
It is something I believe everyone of the digital/analog monitor controllers on the market could use!! Although the 16bit format is really disappearing quickly, so I don't know how relevant it will be in even another year.
I would really like to see a bit rate & sample rate indicator on these types of monitor controllers! Since they will usually accept any bit rate & any sample rate & then upsample to 192K (or above), which is a 32bit process in most modern DAC's. So it would be really great to have a simple LCD, or even indicator lights to show the actual bit rate & sample rate feeding into the monitor condroller/DAC!
anyway....too much to much info...? ;^)
Cheers!
WS
Warren Sokol is such a cool and friendly person. Good one! Thanks!
I agree 100!%!!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching imaginarytube!!
Cheers!
WS
Thanks have just finished a Degree in Sound Engineering and Music Production at Point Blank University in London - it’s amazing that I thought I was getting closer to understanding EQ, Compression and Limiting - this wowed me the depth !!
Hi Warren. Thanks very much for this video. Warren S. certainly knows his stuff and it was a delight to see him so enthusiastically share his knowledge. I started out on a second hand Yamaha mt100 4 track tape recorder, progressed to a secondhand Boss portastudio, then in the early 2000s when computers really became the norm I couldn't afford it and working on a pc didn't appeal anyway so I bought a secondhand ADAT and a 16 channel desk. It's perfect for live recordings. The cost of my set up was only a few hundred pounds but I figured that I couldn't hear any difference between 90s recordings on tape and 00s recordings on computer so the only difference must be the way of working rather than the quality of the recording. Seeing Warren explain how he goes about using his gear helps a great deal from the point of view of preparing a mix for mastering and it is interesting to see how one process informs the other. Great work and thanks again for the video.
Man this is one of the best Mastering videos I have seen on youtube. I have other favorites but this 1 is definitely topnotch. So much useful and detail info I already watched it 4 times. Good job man and thanks!!!!
Thanks very much Sebatian! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks Sebatian!! glad to pass on the info & there will be more coming in the future!!
Cheers!!
Jump to 27:00 for the video
I loved this video. I can't afford one piece of equipment in that room, but I learned enough to improve my mixes immensely. Thanks!
Glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great stuff. Watched from start to finish. Felt like 5 mins :) Keep up the good work.
Thank you ever so much! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
So much useful, well delivered information passes through Produce Like A Pro it is shocking and very comforting at the same time. I am sure that I am not the only one that loves all that you do! Thank you Warren an thank you PLAP team!!!!
Hi Michael Vealey aw shucks thanks ever so much!! You are very kind! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great stuff Warren and Warren. Thank you for taking the time to share you're incredible amount of knowledge with us.
Man! I would listen to him all day! So much knowledge have this guy! LOVE THE VIDEO!
Thanks ver so much Ivan! That's very kind of you! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I got to the end! I really learned a lot- and it was really interesting listening to how the HEDD works and adds the harmonics in an additive fashion instead of affecting the entire signal. It's a piece of gear that has aged very well. Warren 2 knows his stuff for sure!
Thanks Amoth!! I am a big fan of the HEDD!! Excellent converters & the harmonic emulation has yet to be beat in my opinion! Does so much so subtly & simply!! Love it!
Did you know that you can have the DAC upgraded to Cranesongs new "Quantum DAC" that's in the new Avocet's & the Solaris? The DAC in the Avocet is by far one of the best I've ever heard!!
I am waiting to do the upgrade on my HEDD until he is done designing the Quantum ADC though, so I can have them both upgraded at the same time. The current HEDD DAC beat out pretty much every other one we tested, so it certainly has held up!!
Cheers!
i'm currently in the market for a ADC and DAC and the HEDD and Forssell are on my lists.. might just get the HEDD
Wow, Mr. Sokol is a next level mastering engineer.
Some of what Warren was sharing was over my head to be honest, but it was good to hear some one articulately talk about mastering from years of experience. If you get another chance Warren, I guess I'd like to see a bit more of his decision making process at the console where we could hear what he is doing. The gear review was great, but I found myself wanting to hear him use the gear and explain his decision making process. Thanks as always for the great job!
Thanks Karl! Yes, Warren S. is amazing! Great guy and knows his schnizzle! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for watching Karl!!
Cheers!
WS
Maor Applebaum also used the Titan compressor. These two mastering videos helped me decide that it's a sound investment. Great discussion here about clipping, about dynamic range, about EQ. Thanks to both.
After years of development, the TH-cam algorithm knows me and works fine already, recommends me the right stuff I need. :D
Totally awesome. I am now completely discouraged but recognize that at home, I will never be able to do what Warren Sokol does - not even close. It seems the more I learn the more I recognize how much I don't and probably won't ever know or be able to do alone. Oh, well - never give up being the motto - I did learn some stuff and will try to put the principles into practice.
Thanks Warren and Warren Sokol, I got so much from that walkthrough. Really appreciate the sharing and hearing how you got into mastering. Your interview really highlighted the skill of the craft.
From PASSEQ manual: There is basically only one type of filter used in the PASSEQ: The bell-filter or peak-filter.
But since the center frequency of the peak-filter, concerning the HF and LF bands, is only
marginally within the perceptible hearing range, these filters auditorily and visually rather
correspond to shelf-filters. 😉
Super interesting!!!! Loved it. I used to have to hang out in a studio for weeks (70s) to be able to do this.
I also went to The Recording Workshop in Chilicothe!! for me circa 1987 :D Great to see a fellow grad doing so well! Really cool video and gear. Great information! Thanks for posting this!
Fantastic to hear that Brian! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
A great insight into the mastering world, thanks SO much for this one Warrens!
Hi AJay, you're very welcome! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I experienced the clipping track issue the other day. For some things I will record guitar and bass direct through my interface. I tend to leave the cable plugged in and switch guitars while recording. The bass level had to be a lot higher than the guitar and for a couple of dubs I forgot to turn the level down when I switched back to guitar. Needless to say the dubs clipped like mad but I didn't realize it through my headphones while recording.
So when I went to mix the dubs in... I realized pretty quickly that I had to rerecord them yet again. Live and learn.
Love this mastering vid! Looking forward to more.
We like this guy Warren!🎉
Glad to hear it! Ha
This was a great vid, thanks Warren....and I made it to the end! :) Warren Sokol was very well spoken and really helped to demystify the "dark art" of mastering!
Thanks very much! Agreed Warren Sokol rules!!
JUST WOW!!!
Hi Tadeo, definitely more mastering coming soon!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This chap is a genius
Thanks for watching Kris!!
I don't know about genius...I just love making music for a living!!
Cheers!
WS
Hi Kris, I agree!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Wow, I went to The Recording Workshop in Chillicothe way way back around the early ‘80s. They’ve been going a lonnngggg time! Good to hear they’re still around - had a good experience with them and learned a lot.
Unlike many I hear on this topic this was really informative and engaging the whole way trough. More videos with Mr. Sokol please.
Re. "don't use high pass filtering, if the mixer is referring to the Mixbus TV video, the guy instructs you not use multiple high pass filters on the same instrument. Just use one at the end of your fx chain. Layering hpfs on top of each other will cause phase problems, but you still need one on your drum bus, bass bus, guitar bus, etc to clean them up.
Hi Adam, definitely have to use EQ and High Passing properly! Important to listen and not to look! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Wonderful interview! He's extremely well-spoken and articulate. Thanks!!
I know im a bit late to the party but I love the Mastering Stuff ❤️ thanks for being consistently amazing, year after year
Thanks ever so much Ryan! Glad to be able to help
This video shows that mastering is truly an art in it self . Great content.
Really amazing tips, presented in a friendly manner and atmosphere !
Great stuff, thank you Warren(s)!
This is one of the most informative videos I have watched on your channel. I am now wanting to know more about how my gear actually works(technically) in comparison to each other. Thanks.
Great video i would love to hear one one his mastering before and after and to know his rates
Hi Sylvester! Maybe Warren S. can answer this! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Sylvester, thanks for watching!!
I would be happy to do a demo for you & discuss our rates!
If you'd like to send me an email at: warren@unitedmastering.com I will fill you in on the details!
Cheers!
WS
So, I just realized how little I know about sound. I've always known I had a lot to learn, but wow. I wish I had the time to go to a workshop like Chilicothe. Great information on all of Warren's videos.
Great informative vid. As someone, bound by finance, who has to record, mix and master his own work it is so helpful to find the same principles being demonstrated at the highest level.
Only really put this on as background but got immediately hooked and stayed til the end.
The part where Warren H says "is that an antelope I see?" I was expecting a wild animal to have wandered in to the room
Warren's Squared. Thank you very much for this impressive conversation and very much needed discussion and outlook on sound. In all things there are two sides of the coin, this being inspiring, welcoming, engaging, and powerful. This is a gem. Thank you both and sharing, this goes much further beyond the scope.
I plan on going to the recording workshop as soon as I graduate!
It was really nice to hear someone talk about exactly what the different oddities these mastering eqs have, like the bell widening instead of jumping to center frequency. That's something that you might hear is odd (in a good way) but have no idea what its actually doing, other than making things sound good. I love knowing the science behind my gear. I've been producing and engineering rock music for almost 15 years and just know when i hear something good, but always curious as to whats happening in the magic boxes. Also nice to hear some tricks being told, especially why he used specific gear for the reasons he does and not others. Honestly its fantastic information for someone just starting out, or even someone who has been at it for many many years like me, you always get to learn something new. I've been meaning to ask if you could include something going forward in your series, which seems to be overlooked mostly in your studio tours and interviews, and thats AD/DA converters and what sample rates are being used and why, for any given studio/producer. I personally hear such huge differences between different AD/DA boxes, it would be lovely to know what some places use what they do, and why. Also the debate on tracking 44.1 vs 96, and anything in between is always brought up online, and it would be great to know from these guys who are producing the stuff we hear on the radio, what they tracked/mixed at, and why. Cheers!
Hi Josef, thanks for watching!!
I like to learn why certain gear sounds one way & another piece sounds different & to be able to visualize what is happening while I work! I've found that when I understand how & why a certain EQ sounds the way it does, when I run into problems that need fixing but are difficult to track down within a 2-trk mix it helps me to find & fix the problem faster when I can visualize the problem & the solution in my head!
Although when I am working on a good mix, I am more focused on how it is making m e feel throughout my body. When I feel it effecting me the right way, I know it's done "cooking"!!
Cheers!
WS
Hey there "other" Warren, thanks for replying! Welcome to youtube, don't get sucked in haha. Thanks for sharing info on here and opening your place for us to see. It's such a small community of professionals in this industry, so its always nice to see us come together and talk shop. Also this introduced me to those active bass traps, that tech boggles my mind, and now I'm looking into see if thats a solution I might want to use for my mixing space. Was your space designed originally by an acoustician and then tailored to you after? Was bass an issue when you got in there or was there a passive trap that was removed for the active? Thanks, cheers!
Hi Josef!! Thanks ever so much for the great comment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Josef!
The AVAA's were definitely a surprise to me when they actually did what they claimed to do!!
If you have low freq room modes they would probably help once you find the most optimal place for them in your room...which take a bit of time some science!
the room we are in was not originally designed as a studio, although it has been being used for producing music in multiple ways over the years. But never to the level of detail we needed. So we did have to do some work to get the freq response flattened out. Mainly in the bass, which is usually the case in most rooms.
Thanks for watching!!
WS
Great, thanks for the info, and enjoy your room!
Your channel is amazing, Warren! So much invaluable information. Thank you so much!
Thank you for this video, Warren. Your videos were extremely valuable as I put together my latest album. much gratitude
You're very welcome!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Excellent descriptions and discussion of the gear! Thanks Warren & Warren!
He looks 21, blimey. Brilliant vid, learning so much.
Thanks!! ...but add about 20 more years! ugh!
I wish I did Craig! Haha Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
You must use a great moisturiser then.....
You look......rock n roll Warren
By far the best mastering gear and techniques uide I've seen so far thank you.
Excellent video from two very knowledgable guys. Thanks.
This was a fabulous video! BIG thanks to the Warrens!!!
Extremely helpful again, wish I understood all of it. Thanks so much.
Marvelous video!!! Compliments to the Warrens!!!
Thanks for this, Warren! Super informative...really helped demystify the intricate process that is mastering...and what a cool guy!
You're very welcome!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Probably the best technical video so far Warren, even my girlfriend( I prefer womanfriend) loves your videos, ...you also have this reminisance in your core, and you bring that out in your interviews...
A question has a thousand explanations, it's about how you ask the question....
Great video! I bit overwhelming with specific HW concepts, since I was more oriented learning to master in-the-box, but plenty of great general tips on audio processing! Thanks!
So much talent, so much knowledge, so much fun!
Fascinating. Learned some things about mastering that I've never heard.
Thanks very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
He seems like a pretty awesome mastering engineer and also fairly flexible and understanding upon receiving a mix you know going through school being told that mastering Engineers will turn you away for typos and not enough Headroom at least -6 DB that would be a deal-breaker typically for hard up mastering Engineers but I like how he has an optimistic attitude about it and wouldn't even mind getting in there to creating a Better Mix level before he bounces it down to a stereo file in which he could Master with plenty of Headroom I think that's very Noble humble and awesome great video.
Thanks for watching Troy!
With digital mixes, it fairly transparent to adjust the gain down in the DAW before going out to my analog chain & I also have the option of using analog attenuators as the first step in my mastering console, so as long as the signal isn't clipped, it can easily be brought down to whatever level sounds best hitting any analog gear being used!
I've never felt like it was my place to say this or that mix is worthy or not...I operate more under the idea that it is my job to educate my clients about the these things so we both continue to grow & get better & better results!
I receive mixes of all quality's, from mixes that are so good that all I am doing is bringing the level up to where it needs to be & doing it without messing up what I was given. To mixes that are so bad that there isn't anything I can do that doesn't just make thing worse!
So when I get mixes with problems I always try to go back to the artist and/or mix engineer & discuss changes they could make in the mix that would fix any problems. I can sometimes fix them on my side, but it is always better to do it on the individual tracks where the problems exist, rather than trying to isolate them within a finished mix where no matter what you do, you are going to effect everything, not just the track(s) with the problem!
But there are times when the answer I get back is: "we don't have the session anymore", or "we don't have the budget or time to go back to the mixing stage & make changes".
So when that happens I am more than happy to do what I can to fix things...if it is possible...and as long as they understand that I can only do so much with specific issues when I only have the 2-track mix.
Unfortunately there are times when I just cant fix a bad mix & then only option is to say "this is not ready to be mastered", but if I can give the client what they are wanting I try to do it. But if they can do better & in the end that will make ME do better work, thats the way it should go, so we do that!
Every session is different & I am being paid to make the sound in my clients head come out of the speakers, so whatever technique is going to make that happen, is the correct technique for that session!
Cheers!
WS
Is it spam to just say this was amazing and that Warren Sokol was great in this interview? Thanks for taking the time to make and post this! I got a lot out of it even though I have to work with digital tools - still lots of good info.
Thanks ever so much!!
a truly "master"ful video. Such a detailed view - rare to get that.
Thanks ever so much!!
I have no idea what they were talking about when it came to bass traps, but it's quite amazing.
Haha Daniel! Me too! No experts here! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
awesome video, I'm now getting into mastering and found this quite helpful for like an overall view of a professional setup, I definitely want more of these, and Warren(s) if you have any suggestion about what to study and how to learn this craft, please let me know!
Great stuff Tutatis! More coming from Warren Sokol very soon! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
As usual, another great vid! Mastering can be so mysterious. Wonderful info! Thanks!
Mr. Sokol, you are awesome! Keep up the good work.
Excellent info from Warren Sokol.. thanks for sharing your skilled insight.
Agreed! Warren Rules! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
As always it was my pleasure!!
Thanks for watching!
WS
Warren, you took that thumbnail just before introduction? So cool, W.Sokol is a great Engineer!
Really interesting discussion, throughout. Thanks, Warrens!
Wow! Best video I´ve seen on youtube. I learned so much and I´m not even done with this video. This is priceless. I love to see and feel the passion you guys have and I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your knowledge, you just pushed my hunger for more, you guys just really influenced me exercising the profession as an audiologist.
Very nice love all the info he knows what he is doing with the gear he has now I got to check his work out ! Thanks for the info sir keep it up
Thanks Matthew! Yes indeed! Warren S. knows his schnozzle! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
thank you very much for a fantastic video ,listening to those who polish the end product give much insight into how to record and prepare a good mix .thanks again for allowing us to gain knowledge, that may well of never been obtainable otherwise. I always learn much from professionals like yourself and those you interview.
Hi Darren, thanks very much! Agreed, thanks very much to Warren S!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This was a great video. Thankyou to both Warren's.
The 'bring the life back knob' is something even doctors might want to have!
😂😂😂true