Things You Just Want One of
Posted on | August 28, 2008 |
On the heels of Things You Want a Lot of, there’s something a mastering engineer should just have one set of. Namely, one pair of mastering speakers.
A lot of amateur (and some professional and/or semi-professional) mastering facilities incorporate several speaker setups into their playback system. The theory is that the lo-fi speakers (or “alternate” speakers) will emulate how your sound will be reproduced in the real world. It sounds good on paper, but IMO it falls under the snake oil department.
The best mastering facilities have the sound of their playback system (converters, cables, amps, speakers, room) dialed in so tight that they’re listening in the most accurate, neutral environment possible. One where the system isn’t hyping the sound one bit. It’s in this place where the most objective, valid decisions can be made.
Second-guessing by running your music through cheap speakers is a flawed theory. One that I went into in a bit more detail in an article the Sound on Sound magazine published a few years back called The Sound of Science.
Unlike processing, where various textures can add options, an audio engineer’s playback system is the microscope they see through. The more consistent and focused the better.
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From Ohm to Om reflects the opinions of mastering engineer Paul Abbott, owner of San Diego's ZenMastering.
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