Question about Master level

Simply D.

Polysonic
Joined
Jun 19, 2010
Location
Southern California
Hey all.

okay so lets say im working on a track. everything is more or less mixed down and sitting at the level its going to be sitting at.

when i play it back, my master channel peaks at about -1db.

if i wanted to lower this, would it be acceptable to just turn the master fader down? or would i have to go through and lower the volume of all of my instruments one by one until the master level i want is achieved?

thanks in advance ^_^
 
no dont turn down the master, coz it will still clip when you render it, group select all your channels and bring them down instead, or if you cant do that, add something (transparent, like EQ/Stereo Positioner/etc) that has a Gain control to the master channel and drop the volume with that, keep the master peaking around -9 to -6db, then if you want to give it a boost to preview, use a touch of compression at 1:3 to even it out, then nudge up a limiter until it just gently flickers under 0db (i usually have limiter set to about -0.3db cieling)
 
no dont turn down the master, coz it will still clip when you render it, group select all your channels and bring them down instead, keep the master peaking around -9 to -6db, then if you want to give it a boost to preview, use a touch of compression at 1:3 to even it out, then nudge up a limiter until it just gently flickers under 0db (i usually have limiter set to about -0.3db cieling)

Thanks ^_^ but theres another thing.

the audio isnt clipping whatsoever. its just too loud. everything sounds fine and plays back with no hiccups/glitches.

would it still clip in the mastering stage?
 
Thanks ^_^ but theres another thing.

the audio isnt clipping whatsoever. its just too loud. everything sounds fine and plays back with no hiccups/glitches.

would it still clip in the mastering stage?

ok i didnt read the -1db, not sure why haha anyways.

yes -1 will be fine, although its better to be around -9 to -6db, for headroom in the mastering stage, but do it on the channels, or using a Gain on the master, dont turn down the master volume
 
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Apparently a lot of engineers advise against turning the master fader down anyway because it'll get you into a better method for mixing with, rather than trying to cram everything in with no room to do what you want with the mix. It'll give you better control over compressors etc too that won't leave you much leeway if they have a particularly loud signal going through them. I'd go from scratch with most mixes anyway - turn it all down, bomb it on group channels if you want to, and start mixing from there, but that parts entirely up to you.
 
Apparently a lot of engineers advise against turning the master fader down anyway because it'll get you into a better method for mixing with, rather than trying to cram everything in with no room to do what you want with the mix. It'll give you better control over compressors etc too that won't leave you much leeway if they have a particularly loud signal going through them. I'd go from scratch with most mixes anyway - turn it all down, bomb it on group channels if you want to, and start mixing from there, but that parts entirely up to you.

Ya thats a good idea.

Ive got mostly everything Bussed together (Percussion, Hats, Synths) so it wont be too hard to turn everything down and re mix.

Thanks for all your help everybody.
 
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