Headroom in a mix

[LCD]

How many dB of headroom is optimal for a mix to have when being sent to mastering? (hip-hop music, if that makes a difference) Is there such thing as too much headroom?

Thanks

[TLMUSIC]

generally i think its between 3-6 db but anything up to 12db isn't unusual..

[Greg Reierson]

A little it all it takes. A mix that peaks at -6 dBFS is not going to be much different that one that peaks at -0.6 dBFS. The only real difference is how comfortable you are approaching 0 dBFS without having to resort to distortion inducing limiting or clipping.

In general, you shouldn't have to use a safety limiter to try to maintain headroom in the mix stage. You also shouldn't have to drop your master fader below unity to prevent the mix from going over 0 dBFS. If you find that you are running out of headroom and need to drop the master fader or add a limiter, it’s a good bet that you are pushing the mix buss too hard and adding unwanted distortion. Back all of the individual faders off a bit. Driving the mix bus too hot is a quick way to run into trouble. Forget how much money you have invested in mics, pre amps, EQs, etc. It will all get turned to mush and hash in an overdriven mix bus.

In most cases, your mastering engineer wants a clean, unlimited and unclipped mix to work with. A few dB of headroom on the digital mix is all it takes. If I want more headroom I’ll just turn it down, but I can’t restore lost transients or remove the artificial harmonic content of distortion. As soon as I see flat tops in a source file I know it’s going to be an uphill battle. Trying to EQ an already distorted mix is a drag. It’s much easier to make a mix loud AFTER making it sound good, which is why limiting is usually done last.

Leave your peaks where they lay - as long as they are under 0 dBFS you’ll be fine. Don’t compress or limit the whole mix just for the sake of loudness. Compression, by definition and function, makes a mix smaller. That’s fine if you want to ad density, but it can be a giant step backwards if you want your mix to sound bigger. Make the mix sound great and let the mastering stage take care of final playback level.

Greg Reierson
Rare Form Mastering

[lucey]

on levels and limiting, see #3

[Darius van H]

To me, "headroom" in this context is a vague term.

You could have a rap mix where it's clipping (hitting 0dBFS - digital zero) on every kick and snare, yet will sound fine and will be fine for mastering.

Conversely, you could have a mix that never goes above -6dBFS, but has been heavily clipped or limited (in a bad way).

Of these 2 scenarios, i'd rather receive the first mix, although by one definition it has less headroom (although it has more headroom when comparing peak levels to RMS).

Ho-hum.

[lucey]

i agree darius, clipping at the initial tracking and internal clipping is way too common. as it's never intentional, it's never musical.