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I'm preparing a simple comedy cd to sell at gigs. For now do don't want to get into fancy mastering until I see how well it sells. When I hear the tracks in real band they sound great. But when I mix down to an mp3 they sound muddy and lose their quality even after boosting them in audacity.
Is there a better way to prepare for a cd than to mix down to mp3 and burn? Or is there a way to ready the mix such as adding eq. that will avoid the muddy mix.
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CD burning programs are converting your .MP3s back to 16/44.1 before burning. You should not be working with compressed files at all if you're burning to CD; use your .WAV files.
As for the MP3 files, what bit rate are you using?
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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I have been using the compress to mp3 in Real Band so I can burn to cd.
How do you put all the files into one wave file and what program can burn that file to a cd?
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'audio - merge audio and DXi tracks to stereo wave file'
You have been using 'merge audio and DXi tracks to compressed file' (apparently)
Most CD burning programs (many free) can burn multiple wav files to an audio CD.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Quote:
...For now do don't want to get into fancy mastering until I see how well it sells...
Boy, that deserves a rethink, Ed.
It is like saying that you don't want to include all the ingredients in the recipe for the bake sale until you see how the chocolate chip cookies without any chocolate chips in them will sell...
Why not just send the files to rharv and let Mastering Matters make the files good in the first place?
THEN see if you have product and thus sales.
--Mac
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Quote:
How do you put all the files into one wave file ...
You don't. The CD burning program allows you to select the individual .WAV files for each song, and set the order that they will be burned to the CD.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Quote:
Quote:
...For now do don't want to get into fancy mastering until I see how well it sells...
Boy, that deserves a rethink, Ed.
It is like saying that you don't want to include all the ingredients in the recipe for the bake sale until you see how the chocolate chip cookies without any chocolate chips in them will sell...
Why not just send the files to rharv and let Mastering Matters make the files good in the first place?
THEN see if you have product and thus sales.
--Mac
your not on commission with those guys Mac are you lol.But in all seriousness I agree.Im actually looking at a site called fiverr.. here some recording guys offer a one even 2 song mastering for $5.Yeah I know they could sound terrible but the comments on some are 100% complimentary.And if they sound crap then all Ive lost $5.Frankie 
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Don't know about them, but I do know about service stuff and at a certain point I would be thinking that you get what you pay for.
There are always pricepoint considerations in anything like this, my way of thinking is that it is smart to avoid either extreme. Too little and too much as well...
Go for the ones in the middle of the two extremes as they are most likely to be in the mainstream both quality and pricewise.
Also consider doing it yourself. The cost of a dedicated Mastering Software with Presets to give the noob some starting points as to settings may be the better way to go for those who are prolific in output. T-Racks or the like.
--Mac
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Thanks Mac. I know Rharv does a great job. He did my last cd. I think I may have mislead you. I am going to be doing some short comedy gigs (as a side act for tips only) over the winter and I want to see which songs get response. When it comes to comedy, some songs just don't fly. When I see which ones I want to put on the cd I'm going to have Rharv do it in the spring. I just want to do a sort of sample cd so I can at least have something if someone says I'd like that on a cd for now I can make a few bucks.
Many of my comedy songs are parodies and I find it's not the same as doing original work even though I did write the lyrics. This is sort of an experiment right now.
Doesn't make sense to spend a lot of money until I know exactly what works.
I'm thinking of getting bbe sonic maximizer plug in. It's on sale for $19 bucks right now. But you have to spend $30 minimum. Is there another plugin that would compliment it so I could get get a decent mix for now?
Last edited by edbulmer; 12/16/10 10:10 AM.
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Ed,
If you are talking MIX, then you need to work on the mix, not the master.
Clarity can often be had by even broad-stroke EQ rules of thumb.
First rule of thumb that I use: With vocal tracks, and almost any instrument besides kick drum and bass guitar; high pass filter those tracks starting at 150 Hz or so and go up from there until you start to hear the instrument or vocal get too 'thin', then back off the frequency a little from that point.
Just start with that single rule of thumb.
You'll be amazed what can happen to a mix once you then put the whole thing through some kind of mastering plugin.
If you haven't already done this with your individual tracks, I lay a challenge out before you to do this.
I think you'll like the results.
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I have. Like many of my colleagues who have tried it, I loved it for an hour, and then started to wonder why my ears felt fatigued.
If you use any of these mastering effects plug-ins, use them with restraint.
I haven't even installed that BBE plugin on my newest music computer, and I don't miss it.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Mac Ive just listened to a company who does mastering(before and after)and it was unbelievable the difference even though the mix before mastering sounded great to my ears.They charge £65 per song would you say thats the mid price you were referring to.Cheers Frankie
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I would say that's fair
FWIW
(I give discounts to PGMusic members/users)
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Where's the OP, Ed Bulmer? Ed, you never responded if you tried some simple EQ adjustments before rendering to .mp3.
Here's one of the things I suspect could be happening:
The compress to .mp3 that you refer to may have a normalization aspect to it, which can highlight low frequency mud if you are auditioning it against a non-normalized recording like in BIAB or PTPA or RB.
For spoken word, you really have no need of any content below 150-200 Hz.
Did you first try to apply a high pass filter and adjust the cutoff frequency to taste, THEN compress to .mp3 (which if you are selling a CD, you don't want to compress at all - mp3 is not the format for selling a CD.)?
I didn't see that question get asked by any of the previous respondents. Why are you compressing to .mp3 when you are selling a comedy CD? You should be rendering to 16 bit 44100 Hz .wav files.
-Scott
Edit - now I get it, this thread is ages old and resurfaced so someone could sell mastering. Oops!
Last edited by rockstar_not; 10/09/13 07:24 AM.
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My Time Machine must be actin' up again, this thread is from like 2010...
Must be time to go behind the front panel and squirt some Deoxit into all the switches and controls on that thing.
--Mac
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Yes, this one is a blast from the past. Too bad the first new post is an advertisement, because at least it is related to the thread.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Don't ya just hate it when the OP disappears after starting a thread asking for advice?
I was going to offer some but .........
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.comAdd nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both. The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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IIRC, edbulmer didn't 'disappear' on this subject, at the time, it got carried on rather thoroughly in other simultaneous threads.
Again, this is a "resurrected" thread from way back in 2010.
Apparently resurrected by a spambot, no less.
--Mac
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