| I'd be happy to make one as hot as yours (probably still sounding similar to what I had) but I feel I should try and give you a frame of reference for why I chose the 'hotness level' I did.
Here's a graph of the RMS levels of 'American Idiot', followed by my first try at your song and your own. Each vertical line is 3 db, so that 'red zone' on the metering is between -6db RMS and -9db. I wasn't referring to American Idiot when I mastered your track, but what I did ended up being very similar to its 'loudness potential', differences being mostly down to the very different arrangement and the fact that Idiot's mix has hotter drums by almost 3 db, I'm guessing.
You've made your mix at least 2 db hotter than American Idiot, and some effects are as follows- look at the bits sticking up out of the top of mine, first a red one (right channel event) and then a green one later and a few more. Because of the hotter level, the contrast between these sonic events and the body of the song goes away.
I can go 2 db hotter than yours again- if that's what you REALLY wanted, and if it was a proper gig. I might not want to put my name on it if I did, because there's a reason American Idiot isn't louder than it is- the music is better served by allowing contrast to delineate musical events. My track is hardly 'clean'! It's actually at Sterling levels. It's just that you cannot exceed the loudness potential of a track without being pretty unhappy with the result.
If you wanted REALLY fine sounding, go two db below mine and still allow the biggest dynamic events to go as hot as they are. That would knock you on your butt :)
If I've convinced you to back off a couple DB my time's been well spent even if I haven't got the gig... your music deserves a proper hearing, not one mastered beyond its loudness comfort zone.
Fair enough? :) |