Mastering Style
We differentiate between three general mastering styles, Broadcast, Dynamic and Natural. Each style is linked to a set of unique sonic characteristics.
Broadcast is the common style used in western pop music. The music is heavily compressed and driven to the maximum perceived loudness. Depending on the final medium and personal taste, this mastering style is the best choice when the aim is perceived loudness over sound quality. As audiophiles ourselves we do not believe in "louder is better", but if you are looking for loudness we can sure deliver hot masters.
Dynamic as the mastering style can be found more often again in alternative and popular music. This style provides powerful and energetic sound, audible dynamics and truthfulness, but does not lack in loudness at all. With this mastering style you get the best of all, dynamics and loudness.
Natural as the mastering style is best suitable for acoustic or classical music. There can be some amount of compression and limiting present, but the natural dynamics of the recordings are predominantly left untouched. This mastering style offers an open, lively and dynamic sound.
File Preparation
Often regarded as a minor aspect, file preparation, in fact represents a major element of the mastering process. For us to work effectively and have all necessary files quickly at hand, we ask you to sort and name the files in a logical order. This is especially important for stems of certain mixes. The best approach is to set up a folder structure in your file browser. Later this entire folder can be dragged and dropped and uploaded to our server as it is.
For the folder structure, the parent folder should be named after the project ("artist name" - "album title"), the subfolders should be named after the song titles or in case of a compilation again after the artist and song title ("track number" - "artist name" - "song title"). Inside each song folder should be the versions or stems of the song. The single files should provide details of the content, such as version name or stem name ("track number" - "song title" - "version or stem name"). A file name could look like this then:
"03 Empty Trash-Watch Out-TVMix.aif"
Once you have set up the folder structure and named the files accordingly, it is a good idea to create an archive of the files. The archive can be furthermore compressed using .zip, .rar, .gz, or .sitx file archiver, saving you precious upload time. The just named compression formats are lossless formats, meaning that the files after compression are still identical copies of the originals. No loss of data or sound quality occurs.
The Mastering Process
We first listen to your material using a calibrated monitoring system in a acoustically treated room. We then formulate a plan for the finished project, taking into account any issues noted during the initial evaluation. Each song has a unique personality and may require different methods of processing in order to achieve the optimal final sound. The list that follows describes some of the mastering services that we provide:
Consultation
It is important for us to understand your vision for the project before manipulating a single bit. We want to ensure that the mastering process will provide the results you desire. You are welcome to submit a reference mix from another artist demonstrating the type of sound you hope to achieve after mastering. If a submitted mix exhibits any problems which would limit the quality of the final master (such as excessive distortion, noise, or effects processing), we will advise you on any mix adjustments which will yield a better result.
Tonal Balance
A spectrally balanced track translates favorably to a wide range of playback systems and does not cause listener fatigue. We apply equalization to achieve an appropriate tonal balance for your track and provide the most pleasureable listening experience.
Overall Loudness
Whether you desire competitive loudness or more dynamics, we use a combination of limiting, compression, and other techniques to bring the volume of your tracks to an appropriate commercial level.
Dynamic Processing
Compression is an important tool for enhancing the power, presence, and punch of your mixes. Over-compressed or lifeless mixes can regain vitality through transient enhancement.
Spatial Processing
Subtle enhancement of the stereo image of your song can help bring it to life on full range speakers. Mixes with an unbalanced stereo image or phase issues can be corrected.
Noise Reduction
Obtrusive clicks, hiss, crackle, hum or other noises can be removed from your mix without noticeable digital artifacts.
Dither
Dither is applied at the end of the processing chain. This final step eliminates distortion caused by digital quantization errors when reducing the audio bitrate (usually to 16-bit resolution CD audio format). Low-level musical details (such as fade-outs, reverb tails) have greater clarity after dithering.
Fade-Ins, Fade-Outs, Transitions
We can apply smooth fade-ins or fade-outs or track crossfades according to your specifications.
Other Services
Punch Recordings provides a host of other audio services (e.g. restoration of old recordings, creating high-quality MP3's of your songs for internet distribution, etc.). Please feel free to contact us regarding any audio-related request.