How much longer will people pay for mastering?

[rumimusic]

Best post ever. I have noticed similar things, which prompted me to start doing my own...

I am happy with the decision.

[jdg]

hopefully until i can pay off this f***** yacht

[adamgonsa]

Originally Posted by jdg

hopefully until i can pay off this f***** yacht

I hear you. my faberge egg habit is getting BAD. These little bastards don't pay for themselves.

[Jonathawkes]

It's more about getting a fresh set of ears in a different room.

[dietrich10]

Are you mixing and mastering on the same speakers in the same room?

Is your final result same as if you sent your mixes to a good Mastering engineer when you master yourself?

Do you just want your masters to be your mix LOUD?

[I.R.Baboon]

I think we need to differentiate between electronic music and "band" music.

Although not "doomed", i think there's a logic progression towards electronic (and under electronic i mean the wide range of styles: dance, some pop, rap etc.) producers taking it all the way themselves.

But this is quite different from band music (and by 'band" i mean music based on musicians playing together - be that jazz, indie, metal or whatever). These bands can't master it themselves. So is the mix engineer / producer going to do it? Possibly, but there are a plethora of reasons why they either a) can't or b) don't want to. "a" reasons are well understood while "b" reasons include being able to draw a line under a project rather then having an endless open-ended "tweak" period. And that's not to mention all the semi-pro home recordists (in non-electronic styles) that want to have a final pro stamp of approval (i.e. trip to their local mastering emporium). (I'm not, by the way, saying that there aren't a multitude of talented producers / mixers who can't do a great job mastering their own music, because of course there are)

So basically, what i'm driving at is that if your customer base is mostly electronic producers / styles, then indeed you should be worried. But if (like me) the lion's share of your work is musician-based material, then you need not (IMO) be too worried, as long as you keep churning out good product.

[Franco]

Originally Posted by daguv

I notice a lot of the dance producers are going it alone..

I'm not very familiar with the genre, but if this type of musician never needs to leave their studio to sell records and spend their money on other things besides what it takes to have a mastering setup (i.e., travel to shows/conferences/guest appearances for other artists/etc.) then, uh...yea, it's pretty much a wrap.

[Ace_TX]

people convinced now that slapping some common plugins on your recording is mastering

personally i like someone unattached from my music to master it

[Jerry Tubb]

Originally Posted by jdg

hopefully until i can pay off this f***** yacht

post of the month!

JT

[StarfishMusic]

Originally Posted by I.R.Baboon

So basically, what i'm driving at is that if your customer base is mostly electronic producers / styles, then indeed you should be worried. But if (like me) the lion's share of your work is musician-based material, then you need not (IMO) be too worried, as long as you keep churning out good product.

Hey bub! What are you tryin to say about us keyboard players?

[Ben F]

Originally Posted by daguv

Is the mastering industry doomed? Or will there always be a needed for the third party master-er?

I notice a lot of the dance producers are going it alone..

A lot of the electronic music is single based.

People that do albums, 12" and EPs still happily come in for mastering. But for singles on Beatport the quality is so inconsistant you may as well DIY- some artists can do it well, others would rather have another set of ears. Most lables still pay for mastering in order to have some sort of quality control. Some people like the sound of analogue mastering on ITB productions.

[PureArtist]

the third party master-er will always be needed, come on a one man do it all wont complete a dateline.

[Masterer]

Originally Posted by rumimusic

Best post ever. I have noticed similar things, which prompted me to start doing my own...

I am happy with the decision.

Best post ever?

That bar must be awful low.

[inflater]

There is lot of dance music label here in Europe who take on board new artist only if they music is mastered in a professional mastering studio,or some label also pay for mastering.

[Masterer]

Originally Posted by editronmaximon

FWIW, a lot of what are considered to be "great" records have been "mastered" in rooms that would not be considered "properly treated" [or treated at all].

Name one.

[bleen]

Originally Posted by Masterer

Name one.

Hell, name "a lot".

[jonathan jetter]

for me....as a mixer...i will continue to send things out for mastering.

i like getting another set of ears in for that final QC step. and a good ME with top-dollar gear can probably get things a couple notches louder than i can, while doing somewhat less damage. and a serious ME will quite likely have a more accurate room than i do.

having said that, though, i have progressively gotten better at mixing, and there have been a few projects over the past year where i'm not convinced the master was definitively better than my mix.

i'm pretty sure Andy Sneap masters a lot of his own productions.....and for me, at least....that dude owns the metal world.

[RedTuxedo]

Well, you can also represent yourself in a court of law.

A team of people will generally out perform an individual.

Also...

[Charliewonder7]

Originally Posted by Jerry Tubb

post of the month!

JT

I know! Amazing!

[shani haider]

today I received my master from abbey road studios the first ever mix I sent to some mastering engineer, the results are great and I could never get this result on my own and now I have decided to send my every mix to a professional mastering engineer.

then I log in GS and find this thread?

[dcdiscs]

Why go to a guitar store and buy a $1000 guitar when you can go to best buy, target or a toy store and buy a guitar for $70. Either one is a guitar and they sound the same..right?

Jokes aside, a mastering engineer will always be relevant.
If you are not sure pick a few mastering engineers and send them your mix. I do free demos as do many others. Compare those to your own master and decide which is better.

[IIIrd]

Well we've been making masters, mastering for nearly 80 yrs...no sign of it subsiding. That also goes for the recording and mixing side.

[Joe_caithness]

I started 3 years ago.

My business deals mostly with dance music.

I turn over more profit every quarter. Touch wood.

Go figure.


REMEMBER just because people say something is happening, doesn't mean it actually is. Sometimes the "truth" comes from the mouth bleeting the loudest... not from within the industry.

[Surbitone]

Originally Posted by Joe_caithness

I started 3 years ago.

My business deals mostly with dance music.

I turn over more profit every quarter. Touch wood.

Go figure.


REMEMBER just because people say something is happening, doesn't mean it actually is. Sometimes the "truth" comes from the mouth bleeting the loudest... not from within the industry.

Definitely!! The last 6 months have been great, and work has only been on the increase, both with electronic & band music - I hope it continues for sure

I swear, a lot a people who shun mastering are actually quite intimidated by the process / engineer , and the fact that someone else might do a better job or know more about the subject than they do. They're only shooting themselves in the balls at the end of the day.

[SCDBM]

Depends on what you're prepared to settle with:

All my customers return, because I can do something with their tracks they can't nail themselves. The've tried, with all VST's available, but they come back over and over.

For me, that's what EDM mastering is all about: OUTPERFORM the artist and deliver VALUE with competence and investments.

If one finds no value in mastering in general, he's either a very talented mastering engineer, or deaf, or has been dealing with the wrong mastering houses up until today.

With a good engineer with decent room and gear, you WILL find value.

Originally Posted by daguv

Is the mastering industry doomed? Or will there always be a needed for the third party master-er?

I notice a lot of the dance producers are going it alone..

[Nathan Vinall]

Always Room for Everyone! Or is it everyone just needs "Room" or a good acoustical treated/balanced room??

But i will agree that Dance music in general will start using Mastering less and less. The main reason why is because most labels are releasing Mp3 these days. We have no choice but to use Mastering when cutting to vinyl is needed. Don't see many bedrooms housing a lathe.

Dance music is general has to work in the clubs and not ROOMS, so who better to know how that translates than a Dj/Producer or one that attends live venues often. Not all mastering engineers have this reference point knowledge or understanding. This knowledge comes from years of playing out over 100's of different club systems.

Also a Q to all the Mastering engineers out there, when you give your clients an demo clip to hear your work. Do you match you RMS or Peak levels to the original song or are you always tempted to give them a slightly louder version?

For the record I love Mastering, I love the whole chain in the recording process! We all learn from each other in the audio world. Its an awesome culture to belong. Long live all sonic dwellers!!!

[Nathan Vinall]

Originally Posted by IIIrd

Well we've been making masters, mastering for nearly 80 yrs...no sign of it subsiding. That also goes for the recording and mixing side.

Im afraid everything evolves over time or if it doesn't, it becomes extinct!

Everything is becoming more accessible and achievable in the modern world. There is an information overload and we all have access to it. So yes people will become more skilled and more capable of great results with out others.

Not for everyone of course, but most people will I believe be producing, mixing Mastering and releasing their own music with in the next year or two.

It's gonna happen, just a matter of when. Embrace change!


PS: I think it should be mandatory on GS for everyone to post under their real names and also have work to back up any statements made!! I stand by my name and my work.

[SCDBM]

that's already happening, a lot, look at iTunes, Tunecore, Beatport.....

Not sure where u coming from, but from my perspective 320MP3's need mastering as bad as full WAVs. Also a good engineer will know how a tracks translates in a club, as well as having a lot of reference material.

So yes there might be the bunch of cheapskate teens with their pirated copies of everything they could gather from the net, trying to be produca, promota, DJ and marketing manager at the same time. Those are not my customers, those guys are not prepared to pay for value full stop. They spend their pocketmoney on paying their smartphone subscription and the aggregator for getting their track online and that's it, that's all they spend. This phase will pass, either they will finish their education, find a job and stop producing, or they will find succes and evolve as artist. It would be very tunnel visioned to see this group of producers as the current status quo.....

But they are merely an artifact of this moment in time, just a reflection of current coolness, looking beyond that you still have the more serious artists who are willing to spend on value.

Originally Posted by Nathan Vinall

Not for everyone of course, but most people will I believe be producing, mixing Mastering and releasing their own music with in the next year or two.

It's gonna happen, just a matter of when. Embrace change!

[Nathan Vinall]

Originally Posted by SCDBM

So yes there might be the bunch of cheapskate teens with their pirated copies of everything they could gather from the net, trying to be produca, promota, DJ and marketing manager at the same time. Those are not my customers, those guys are not prepared to pay for value full stop. They spend their pocketmoney on paying their smartphone subscription and the aggregator for getting their track online and that's it, that's all they spend. This phase will pass, either they will finish their education, find a job and stop producing, or they will find succes and evolve as artist. It would be very tunnel visioned to see this group of producers as the current status quo.....
.

Hey here's a "crazy" thought... Maybe some people can't afford yours or other mastering services or just simply don't feel its needed in their situation! Let the audience be the judge of what sounds good or not. One thing is for sure, it will all even itself out. Nature has funny way of doing that! freshflow

Brace yourself as everything is about to become free real soon, its almost there already!! One thing I would ask yourself more than worrying about others, is how will you fit into that new world with no money?

I can't wait for that day TBH. Only then will the real art surface and we can all just getting on with doing what we all love the most!!! MAKING MUSIC & PLAYING WITH SONICS!!!