arkansas studio mixing services
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Mixing & Mastering

Mixing
There's a lot of confusion surrounding the terms Mixing and Mastering. Briefly, Mixing is the combining of individual audio tracks with the goal of creating a two track stereo entity suitable for the creation of CDs, digital downloads or other modes of delivery to the listener. During the mixing process, various editing procedures and ‘fixes” may be employed as well as the addition of audio effects and dynamic manipulations. In short, it is the process of turning all the individual audio tracks into a product that can be played at home or on a mobile device...but...there's more...

How many times has a great multi-track recording died a slow death because of a poor mix? How many times has the best DIY home recording suffered because the “studio” acoustics were inaccurate?

No matter where a recording was tracked or how well the artist preformed, the project can end in disaster because of a bad mix. Most often, poor mixes are the results of inexperienced engineering or an acoustically inferior mixing environment. Creating a great mix is the results of hundreds of previous trials and errors. One doesn’t come up with stellar mixes by reading books or watching YouTube. They come about by recording and mixing hundreds of projects and listening to the finished mixes in every conceivable environment. This is why mixes that are a work of art in their own right usually come from engineers who have been at it for many years.

Nowadays, equipment manufactures would like artists to believe that they can save money by buying equipment and recording themselves at home. In a number of cases artists are actually able to pull this off until it’s time to mix. At other times, even the basic tracks can’t be laid down correctly because of acoustic limitations or the lack of proper engineering abilities.

If you are among those who are having difficulty getting “the right mix” at the studio were you have been working, give us a call. If you have been working at home but don’t think your mixes are cutting the mustard, give us a call. A short phone call could easily turn you project around. As in the case of tracking, our studio time for mixing is free. Our engineering fee is $60.00 per hour.


Mastering
Mastering should never be confused with Mixing. In simple terms, we like to compare a mastered recording with a finished painting. When an artist creates a work of art, he or she carefully mixes many colors and applies them to a canvas using a great deal of talent, technique, style and experience to create an image which communicates the artist’s massage to the viewer. After the artist has applied the last brush strokes and cleaned the pallet many would say the painting is finished. An experienced artist, on the other hand, would say the painting was not finished until it was properly framed, placed in a room large enough for the observer to view it from its optimal distance, hung at the right elevation on a correctly painted wall and lit sufficiently, without glare. In other words, a work of art isn’t finished until its presentation is complete.

Mastering of an audio recording is its presentation. This is the time for last minute equalization tweeks of the songs or to adjust their dynamics. It’s the time to pay attention to the sequence of the songs and level matching from one cut to the next. It’s when cohesiveness issues are addressed so that the product sounds like a single unit rather than a random collection of songs. It’s here that the polish, sparkle and openness are applied. In short, this is when a finished mix becomes presentable.

Winterwood would be honored to Master your project no matter where it was recorded. Go the extra mile! Email Us or call 479.253.5670.


Audio Mixing & Mastering

Audio Mixing Studio

Audio Mastering Services

Studio Mixing Services
 

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