How is everyone doing "quick CDs"?

For final mix checks?

With my Akai hardware, I’d mix at full rez…temporarily peak normalize…dither to 16 bit…burn. Then “undo” the normalize. But, it was all a very flowing process. I guess I could do the same here by exporting audio mixdown to a new project…but, closing/repopening projects takes exponentially longer with Cubase than hardware, so…

I can, of course, insert an L2 temporarily, set it to “eat remaining headroom” (taking the place of offline normalizing) and export at 16bit using it’s IDR dither…then just burn that file to disc. But, then, there’s no full rez copy if 100% “done”. Have to bounce again…so, maybe bounce without the L2 w UV22 set to 24bit…turn around and bounce with the L2 to 16bit.

I’ll experiment. Of course this seems nitpicky for a single song…but when you need to compile an entire album to disc for approval, it gets ehh…seems to be more time consuming than it should be. I’m just wondering how everyone else is handling “one off”/approval mixes? Doesn’t really even have to be CD…maybe you send an mp3–but, the file that makes the mp3 needs to have some normalization/level optimization prior to encoding…how are YOU doing it?

Whats a CD? :laughing:

Sorry, couldn’t resist!

Well, that’s why I threw in quick mp3…point is, approval mixes. :laughing:

Mix through my desk, record directly in Wavelab, pre-master and encode to mp3, upload to Soundcloud or whatever.

If you do that then how do you “copyright” your songs?

If you create something, you are the copyright holder by default. If you post to one of these sites however, your rights may change… read the fine print. Best getting your own webspace, its pretty cheap these days, like $60 a year or so… then you are not publishing on anyone elses’ terms ( but read your contract with the ISP carefully before signing up ).

Plus copyright, not really my issue…but, I email them for approval, generally…YouSendIt if they want a Wav. No reason to hang a client’s work out there…

I’ve been playing around tonight with the L2 and L3…using them as “headroom eaters” with the occasional <1db clip…probabaly OK for anything destined for mp3 based approval…but, what scares me is that they don’t sound the same…meaning, when set to do NO clipping-just gain, basically…I guess it’s because of the crossover matrix of the L3, but…it seems to sound MORE like just turning the master fader up than the L2, not less. Maybe I should print a file of both rising the gain by 5db or whatever without clipping, then one just raising the master 5db…and see if I can tell them apart in a new project. I know they don’t aound the same…and being multiband, the clipping should be more transparent on the L3…it would be nice to use one of those. Just turn it off once the rough is printed. One step. Just engage, export-either as mp3 or 16/44 for disc or project sample rate. All done the same way-different export settings.

It was just an example, you may read Wetransfer, Dropbox, FTP, Website, whatever.

You have to realize that any multiband compressor or limiter is also a form of EQ. Careful threading is needed in this area. If you just want to boost RMS levels, the L2 gives a quicker and more straight forward result, IMO.

I have a number of preset channel settings on my master channel.

A typical set up might be:

Tape simulator
Quad Comp
Brickwall limiter
TT Meter

Then I adjust the master’s gain trim to get the compression ‘bite’ about right, maybe adjust the compressor balance a bit. Check the DR (dynamic range) and output level - and I’m good to go. Obviously, a final mix and album mastering is another story, but as a ‘one size fits all’ quick fix for evaluation, this suits me well and takes seconds to set up.

P

For posterity…yes, L2 works better than L3. Doesn’t necessarily SOUND better…but, closer to “this but full scale”. That’s really all I was asking–not do you put a tape simulator…or what may be on your two bus for actual fidelity shaping…just how you get from ITB 32bit mix buss to full scale peak of -.04/5 at 16bit.

My experience since original post says still the transparent way is just to mix 24 or 32 bit…pull that into another project, peak normalize, and dither to destination. I guess I could use the same project…just bounce into the pool, now that I think about it. Then peak normalize, add UV22, and export from it’s channel out rather than passing the master again. Deactivate the track when done. Throw it into a folder.

That seems to be the quickest way to do it. Good suggestion…me… :slight_smile: