Step-by-step Guide to Mastering Pop Music | Are You Listening? Season 6, Ep 5

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Learn how to master a pop song from start to finish in this step-by-step mastering guide. In the fifth episode of Season 6, professional mastering engineer and Berklee professor Jonathan Wyner teaches you how to master a pop song with iZotope Ozone, covering key aspects of pop music like level and low end before diving deeper into limiting, automation, dynamics processing, and stereo imaging. By the end of this video, you’ll be able to confidently master a song with a commercial pop sound.
Watch all seasons of ‘Are You Listening?’: www.izotope.com/en/lp/are-you...
Get 50% off mastering tools used in ‘Are You Listening?:’ www.izotope.com/en/shop/deals...
Learn more about mastering with free tutorials: www.izotope.com/en/learn.html...
Learn more about Jonathan Wyner: www.izotope.com/en/learn/jona...
The song being mastered in this video is "Give it Time" by Braden the Young: www.marmosetmusic.com/browse/...
Chapters
00:00 - Intro
00:29 - Mastering in genres
01:33 - Prepare your track for mastering
04:04 - Listen to your track
06:54 - Validate your decisions with visualizer
13:11 - Using the Master Assistant
17:30 - Start by adjusting for tone
23:26 - Setting the limiter
26:33 - Automation for emotional impact
30:01 - Dynamics processing in mastering
35:53 - Excitation in mastering
37:48 - Stereo imaging in mastering
38:27 - Final thoughts
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#iZotope #AreYouListening #Mastering

Пікірлер: 81

  • @jayburd1875
    @jayburd1875 Жыл бұрын

    "Tickle the threshold with that long release time... " this is a life lesson.

  • @statespace
    @statespace Жыл бұрын

    Excellent idea to put on a limiter first and find out the problematic areas before any processing. Wow! Thank you for that guys

  • @joshuawallwork6678
    @joshuawallwork6678 Жыл бұрын

    This guy's even cooler than I thought! He listens to Stromae!!

  • @kelvinfunkner
    @kelvinfunkner10 ай бұрын

    really really awesome peek behind "the curtain" and I especially loved the thought processes behind the moves....having it "talked out" along the way in order to see the "why's" behind the changes was what made all the difference!

  • @skymakai
    @skymakai Жыл бұрын

    I love this series and really appreciate having Johnathan provide so much wisdom. I'd really like more 'electronic', 'dance' and 'bass music' examples. Maybe it's just me and that these genres are 'less difficult' to master, but it's the genre I'm most involved with.

  • @olkid5076

    @olkid5076

    Жыл бұрын

    Same!

  • @iZotopeOfficial
    @iZotopeOfficial Жыл бұрын

    Are there any tips for mastering a genre like pop that we might be missing? Let us know in the comments!

  • @rogercabo5545

    @rogercabo5545

    Жыл бұрын

    Hi Mr Wyner, how do you get high frequencies above 13kHz up to 17kHz under control? Nearly everyone above 60 or much sooner loose it's ability to hear above 12kHz.. Did you have hints or tricks how to get the top end under control?

  • @KingGrio
    @KingGrio Жыл бұрын

    It's hilarious. At 7 mins or so he basically explains in very polite and professional terms that modern pop music is basically bass drones and sub-kick impulses with clicky robotic sampler style high hat hits, and a vocal. It's really devolved into the most minimal components. He also points out these high hats annoy the hell out of everyone hearing this come out of small speakers, or worse yet: crappy earbuds while riding the public transports. Verse is basically a telephone effect as the gimmick to contrast this chorus section, because honestly what else can you do that has less things happening than the chorus. I'm not even sure you can still talk about arrangement under these circumstances. And then he goes on to explain how he is going to master that. He must be the most professional guy I've ever seen, for being able to express in such terms and while keeping a straight face that this is a cool tune that is interesting to master. Don't get me wrong, I think Jonathan Wyner is great. But modern pop music ? I can't believe I was complaining about it in the 90s, it's become so much worse.

  • @lashtal

    @lashtal

    11 ай бұрын

    lol, love what you said.

  • @Reixmusic
    @Reixmusic Жыл бұрын

    What a Masterclass!!! Thanks izotope!!🔥🙌🏻

  • @baselinesweb
    @baselinesweb Жыл бұрын

    I like the insight you give about the tool design. For instance, it was great to get the knowledge that the tube setting on the limiter has a long release time of 2 seconds. Well done!

  • @itwontstopprods
    @itwontstopprods Жыл бұрын

    I use Partition too as a reference for how ridiculously heavy (sub) bass can be in a track! "Down to 30 hz or even all the way down to DC, in the center of the earth" 🤣🤣

  • @hape.
    @hape. Жыл бұрын

    Great and insightful content! Thanks Izotope and Jonathan!

  • @AutPen38
    @AutPen386 ай бұрын

    Another masterclass from Jonathan. Superb stuff.

  • @waldemarvogel7657
    @waldemarvogel7657 Жыл бұрын

    Great video. Thanks. Nice to see a professional engineer explaining the software.

  • @monkmusic5994
    @monkmusic5994 Жыл бұрын

    Best and most informative/detailed mastering clip ever seen. Thank you.

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    Appreciate it 🙏

  • @mrfrankdamsax
    @mrfrankdamsax Жыл бұрын

    Great series! Very informative. Thank you

  • @kovoliver
    @kovoliver Жыл бұрын

    This video was very useful, thank you!

  • @Barncore
    @Barncore Жыл бұрын

    Wow this was great. Super useful. Thanks

  • @rickbiessman6084
    @rickbiessman60843 ай бұрын

    5:58 Gotta give this video a like purely for the fade out already. Thanks a million times for that

  • @angusbabb4913
    @angusbabb49139 ай бұрын

    brilliant ! ..i learnt so much , thank you!😀

  • @Soundguydan
    @Soundguydan Жыл бұрын

    Great stuff. Thanks!

  • @ddutchofficial
    @ddutchofficial Жыл бұрын

    Very good video. Thanks

  • @QueMusiQ
    @QueMusiQ Жыл бұрын

    I want that song! So dope!

  • @dextercon
    @dextercon Жыл бұрын

    thanks you izotope ❤

  • @jamespingel8730
    @jamespingel8730 Жыл бұрын

    It was really cool to see how you'd tackle a mix like this. As I was watching along I was thinking to myself "I wouldn't want a static EQ on that hihat because then the verses are going to be missing top end, so I would've reached for a dynamic EQ there", and then you go and automate the whole EQ out instead. It was a much more dramatic move than I usually make, but insightful. If it's not too much trouble I'd love to see more like this.

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    Interesting to hear about your go-to method. More is coming for sure. Thanks for the feedback!

  • @etcot8220
    @etcot822011 ай бұрын

    I agree that low end bass is bit too wonky, glad you had the same observation roughly. Interesting video for sure, great content in other words, many 👍 thx for the upload

  • @lameraviglia
    @lameraviglia Жыл бұрын

    great video as usual. i wonder, how do you adjust volume when you´re working with headphones? (since you can´t measure it like you would do with speakers)

  • @seldom23
    @seldom23 Жыл бұрын

    Jonathan your are wonderful instructor! If I may make a small suggestion - relative loudness between narrated instruction and musical examples - I find I'm riding the volume as it goes back and forth (in this video and others in the series), bringing the volume up a bit for the music treatment (particularly for low end examples), and then quickly have to dial back when we return to narration - typically say +/- 3 bars on a macbook volume slider (yes, I'm listening on can :) Best regards

  • @VonnieVonVonX2
    @VonnieVonVonX2 Жыл бұрын

    Thank You ✔️

  • @user-se8gp7cr2x
    @user-se8gp7cr2x4 ай бұрын

    So do you have one instance of Ozone for each part of the song? One for the chorus, one for the verse... Thank you!

  • @janarefin4744
    @janarefin4744 Жыл бұрын

    after setting the limiter does he mix into it the time after that?

  • @FusedMusic
    @FusedMusic Жыл бұрын

    Great stuff, but I'd appreciate more an 'electropop' 'synthpop' example. So many tutorials lean into that base heavy hip/hop area, but a more pure electro 'pop' area would be really appreciated.

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    Many thanks for sharing your feedback 🙏

  • @bradleypower4803
    @bradleypower4803 Жыл бұрын

    Can someone explain why you would bring down the threshold instead of just increasing the input to the plugin itself? Thanks!

  • @GloveBunniesVideos
    @GloveBunniesVideos Жыл бұрын

    I always wondered if it would make mastering easier to give the engineer stereo stems (drums, bass, vocals, synths, etc.) instead of just a stereo track, but that would most likely make the mastering process much, much harder. Great video!

  • @TokyoSpeirs

    @TokyoSpeirs

    Жыл бұрын

    That's called Stem mastering, a common practice!

  • @GloveBunniesVideos

    @GloveBunniesVideos

    Жыл бұрын

    @@TokyoSpeirs Thanks!

  • @pawel9450
    @pawel9450 Жыл бұрын

    Great Video

  • @pawel9450

    @pawel9450

    Жыл бұрын

    but please keep before/after listening- parts a little longer ;)

  • @horriblemind
    @horriblemind Жыл бұрын

    Is that MOTU Track 16 on the desk?

  • @Ein-Stuck
    @Ein-Stuck Жыл бұрын

    Will Audio Lens ever work with Tonal Balance Control 2? It would be a nice..

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    The target curves created by Audiolens are not officially compatible with Tonal Balance Control unfortunately, but many thanks for the feedback!

  • @dgunzbeatz
    @dgunzbeatz Жыл бұрын

    My question is for the high end why not use iZotope transient processor to bring bring down the hi hat that disturbs the mix to avoid tampering the clarity of the Voclas

  • @vitaliano1978
    @vitaliano1978 Жыл бұрын

    what headphones exactly are these guys ?

  • @danemusic5242
    @danemusic5242 Жыл бұрын

    after finding out my ozone 8 vst wasnt compatible with my os update I thought wow that really sucks i bearly bought it 3 years ago for what i thought was a high price for a vst, after a to b without ozone i really feel stupid for using ozone on so many tracks all i needed to do was balance faders and i had much more dynamics and less saturation oh well somtimes i have to learn the hard way .

  • @rogercabo5545
    @rogercabo5545 Жыл бұрын

    Hi Mr Wyner, how do you get high frequencies above 13kHz up to 17kHz under control? Everyone above 60 loose it's ability to hear above 12kHz.. Did you have hints or tricks how to get the top end under control?

  • @AutPen38

    @AutPen38

    6 ай бұрын

    As a guy in his fifties with diminished high-frequency perception, I rely on the visual feedback from Tonal Balance Control and spectrograms in EQ plugins. I mix top end with my eyes, not ears!

  • @united100
    @united100 Жыл бұрын

    which Audeze headphones are you using?

  • @guillaumetiger-isothesis5791

    @guillaumetiger-isothesis5791

    Жыл бұрын

    Looks like the LCD-MX4

  • @thesoulbelow7324

    @thesoulbelow7324

    Жыл бұрын

    I just wanna know where he gets hot amazing cat tshirts🙀

  • @Enice43
    @Enice43 Жыл бұрын

    What headphones are you using for this

  • @ramonaguayo7281

    @ramonaguayo7281

    Жыл бұрын

    I found i another comment saying LCD MX 4, but from what I could find online it looks closer to LCD-X by Audeze

  • @jordanmiles106
    @jordanmiles106 Жыл бұрын

    Where do I get this shirt

  • @Faithaven
    @Faithaven Жыл бұрын

    So want to see you master a rock mix

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    👀

  • @stephenmcnamara9928
    @stephenmcnamara9928 Жыл бұрын

    Excellent video, as always Jonathan. Quick question -- is there a way to make the default "Learn Threshold" in the Maximizer to be something other than -11.0 LUFS?

  • @iZotopeOfficial

    @iZotopeOfficial

    Жыл бұрын

    Hey! For any questions about Ozone, feel free to get in touch with our product support team directly here: bit.ly/izo_prod

  • @itwontstopprods

    @itwontstopprods

    Жыл бұрын

    Yes, just click and drag up/down on that value

  • @stephenmcnamara9928

    @stephenmcnamara9928

    Жыл бұрын

    @@itwontstopprods I realize that -- I meant setting a default of, e.g., -14LUFS when the mastering chain is prepared.

  • @itwontstopprods

    @itwontstopprods

    Жыл бұрын

    @@stephenmcnamara9928 oh sorry - then just adjust and save it as your default for the limiter?

  • @stephenmcnamara9928

    @stephenmcnamara9928

    Жыл бұрын

    @@itwontstopprods No apologies necessary, and I'm not sure how one sets -14.0 LUFS in the Maximizer limiter as a default. I thought I checked the settings for this and didn't find it but maybe I missed it. If a default of -14 LUFS can be set, that would very helpful because when I run the Master Assistant with the -11 LUFS default, it's higher than I'd like it to be to start. Thanks for the help.

  • @docteurgreene
    @docteurgreene Жыл бұрын

    Unfortunately KZread's compression killed me. I used a good headphone to watch this video but I almost hear no differences between the "before and after" comparisons :( Is it possible for a next video to go deeper in how to select the crossover points for multiband comp or exciter? I still don't understand this part very well....

  • @davidasher22

    @davidasher22

    Жыл бұрын

    There’s a feature on all the multiband processors that selects the best crossover points for you. But from what I have come to understand, to do this manually you should be trying to find where the energy distribution changes significantly. I usually start with something similar to how Tonal Balance divides the frequency spectrum. And then related to how the program material sounds while being effected by the processor I’ll change it accordingly by ear.

  • @itwontstopprods

    @itwontstopprods

    Жыл бұрын

    Agree, a lot of the differences are very, very subtle even on great headphones and video playback on 4K

  • @atta1798
    @atta1798 Жыл бұрын

    Ok what is enough headroom and how do you know it is an artifact?

  • @stallmak8

    @stallmak8

    Жыл бұрын

    Enough headroom can typically be around -4 db. which is the variable between the highest peaks and the digital ceiling which is 0 db. Artifacts are sounds that are not natively part of the music. Unlike harmonic distortion, artifacts are usually subtle noises that are off key in the mix, artifacts are mostly created by a lack of processing power, or a sampling rate that is too low.

  • @Bxndoben
    @Bxndoben Жыл бұрын

    Couldn’t help but notice that all the frequencies you attenuated when adjusting the tone were out of key notes, considering the songs key is A♭ Minor . NOTED

  • @waliddeui6725
    @waliddeui67252 ай бұрын

    5:56 Be my father

  • @brexistentialism7628
    @brexistentialism7628 Жыл бұрын

    Here is a great guy who is great at using great software to validate what he's hearing 😬 He's not really demonstrating a mastering approach.

  • @schulze007ify
    @schulze007ify Жыл бұрын

    Keep it simple and forwards and cut all the crap

  • @IWOKEAGIANT
    @IWOKEAGIANT Жыл бұрын

    Love these videos! Usually the music is great, but this song is SO boring and uninspiring I can't stand it 😅

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