In-depth look at Futureworks Mastering Studio.
The studio’s prime function -
The purpose of a mastering studio is to provide a place where a mastering engineer can apply finishing touches to a record, in order for it to be ready for distribution to the public. Not only does a mastering studio need to contain equipment capable of altering the tone of an audio recording, it must also contain specialised software, capable of applying and creating data that is used by consumer playback devices. This is especially important for CD creation, where PQ Codes, Track Gaps and track markings need to be sent to manufacturers. A mastering studio also needs to be acoustically transparent, in order to ensure that the engineer is fixing issues within a mix and not compensating for problems in a room. Due to this, a mastering studio will usually feature an array of acoustic treatment as well as high quality monitors and audio converters. It should also be noted, that the mastering suite at Futureworks serves a dual purpose, as it must also work as an educational facility. Due to this, compromises may have had to be made to the design and layout of the studio.
Installed Equipment -
Eclipse 384 Stereo AD/DA Converter
The Eclipse 384 is a multi functional audio converter which offers the mastering engineer a number of routing options, up to 384 Khz sample rates and two independent 64 bit word clocks. The front panel of the 2U Sized box features two large LED Meters, Mute, Dim and Mono Buttons, Control Knobs for the main and headphone outputs, 5 preset buttons and an LCD screen which details the current configuration of the device. For a mastering scenario the preset buttons allow for greater functionality, allowing the engineer to save their desired set up’s to be accessed at the touch of a button. At Futureworks the Eclipse preset 1 is used to playback the digital Domain, preset 2 plays back the analogue domain and preset 3 adds a -10dB pad to output material being sent to the tape machine. These presets allow the engineer to quickly see the effect that the analogue processing is having on the audio signal and set levels to tape. The rear of the Eclipse is split into 4 main sections - analogue connections being at the top, digital connections at the bottom with the Inputs on the left and outputs on the right. Overall there are 14 inputs and 16 outputs all of which are displayed below. One of the benefits of having a high quality converter is that the word clocking provided by the device will ensure that issues such as clock jitter don’t occur when converting between analogue and digital audio signals. If the word clock is unstable, this will cause samples to be measured at the wrong time and therefore with the wrong amplitude. This imposes a slight vagueness or loss of focus in the stereo image, as well as making the recorded acoustic environment appear less real. As well as a range of routing options and the stability of the word clock, the higher sample rates that the eclipse offers will also prove beneficial for a mastering studio setup as converting audio files to a higher sample rate will allow DSP Plugins to produce greater results, due to the extra data available to process.
Dangerous Master
The dangerous master is a unit featuring circuitry designed by Chris Muth. An electrical designer that created mastering consoles for sterling sound. The purpose of this device is to tie together all of the equipment in the studio. On the front of the panel are left and right input volume knobs, three functions buttons that allow the engineer to bypass the effect of either the entire unit, the M/S processing or inserts 1-2. Below this are three more buttons that can be used to bypass the effect of each insert processor. There are then three knobs that dictate the volume offset level, the amount of width provided by the M/S processing and the output volume of the unit into the audio converter. The routing options that the dangerous master provides to the engineer make this an important tool in the studios setup. In addition to this, having the ability to dictate the volume offset level ensures that comparisons between processed and unprocessed audio signals aren’t affected by differences in volume, which may affect the engineer's judgement. The Mid Side processing available on insert 2 is one of the reasons this device is found in many professional studios, turning the feature on by activating the M/S Button will perform an encoding and decoding of the stereo signal which will allow the engineer to process the centre and sides of a stereo mix independently of each other. The width knob can also be used to either decrease or increase the volume of the sides of a stereo mix. This is a useful effect which can be used to increase the stereo width of a narrow mix or can be used to decrease the stereo width to tighten a mix. The Connections on the rear of the device connect to analog outboard processors and the audio converter via balanced XLR cables. The dangerous master at Futureworks is currently set up with an Avalon VT747SP hardwired on insert 1 and a Sontec EQ hardwired on insert 2 with insert 3 being left free for compression processors or the tape machine to be patched in by the engineer.
Compression Processors
Here at the Futureworks mastering suite there are a number of different compression processors that the engineer can send the audio too. all of which provide a slightly different character and tonal qualities. The compression devices currently in the studio are a Fairchild 670, TG Zener Compressor/limiter, DBX 160, AMS Neve 33609 compressor/limiter and an Avalon VT 737SP . Having the ability to choose between different forms of compression is beneficial to a mastering scenario, as each project will require something different. Although the effect of compression is typically quite suitable at the mastering stage, it can help glue a mix together. Also, simply passing the audio through the analogue circuitry can create musical sounding harmonics which benefit the sound of a mix. A number of analogue hardware processors is important as a mastering engineer will usually prepare a few different sounding masters for the client. The setup at Futureworks has patchable compression units racked on the right of the desk and the hardwired Avalon compressor situated on the left. Although these are all dynamics processors the features they provide means that one might be suited for a certain track more than another. E.g The Avalon VT 736 features a sidechain option that could be used by the engineer to perform frequency dependant compression. Weras the fairchild 670 has the ability to implement a ‘lat vert’ function which is a form of Mid/Side processing, allowing the engineer to compress the middle and side of a stereo track using different settings. The AMS 33609 and TG Zener compressors also feature a ‘limit’ option, This would come in handy if a master was being created for a vinyl release as a digital limiter may provide too much volume. Above the compression rack is the patchbay which can be used to send audio from the dangerous master into the dynamics processors. The patch bay is connected via 3 pin XLR Cables with the inputs at the top and outputs at the bottom. These are hardwired in and labelled accordingly. This allows the engineer to link compressors in a chain if needed by taking the output of one device and connecting it to the input of another.
Tape Machine
At the future works mastering suite there is a Studer A80 Tape Machine. Using analog tape is a technique that some engineers will utilise, and it will have beneficial effects on certain recordings that have been recorded and mixed entirely within a digital audio workstation. The effects of sending a stereo mix to tape machine may give the impression that the recording has been tracked within the analog domain, for some instruments, or styles of music, this may enhance the recording in a positive way. Another product of placing a mix onto tape is a reduction of the dynamic range in the recording. Tape is an analogue recording medium and so is limited to a dynamic range of around 90dB, on the other hand digital recordings can reach upwards towards 120dB. This reduction will apply a natural sense of compression which may help the mastering engineer deal with issues in a mix. The Tape machine at futureworks runs on ¼ inch tape and is fixed to work at 15ips. Although 7 ips is available on the machine, this function currently doesn’t work. There is also a speaker built in which allows the engineer to monitor what's going onto the tape. Due to the poor noise floor of analog tape, the mastering studio also features a Dolby 363 noise reduction unit, without this turned on it’s impossible to record to the machine. This Device improves the dynamic range of tape by 25dB. And offers the engineer two types of noise reduction, Dolby SR and Dolby A. Although both are considered professional standard noise reduction formats, Dolby SR is the more aggressive of the two, which attempts to reduce noise at all sections of the track. Both will exhibit a different characteristic on the audio recording. Therefore, it’s up to the engineer to choose which they feel sounds best.
Sontec EQ
The Sontec 432 is largely considered the ‘standard’ in mastering EQ’s and features two EQ channels in a 2U rack format. The circuitry used in the 432 doesn’t comprise of any transformers, which leads it to its transparent sound. This device is used by a large number of mastering engineers and has provided the main EQ on countless releases over the years. As each of the sontec is built by hand by Burgess Macneal and each is often built to the custom specifications of the mastering engineer, sontec EQ’s are quite rare. The Sontec at Futureworks has 3 parametric, one shelving and one shelving/parametric EQ. In addition to this, there is also a switch which allows the engineer to adjust the shape of the high shelving filter from 6 to 12dB Octaves. The layout of the 432 features the controls for the left channel on the top and the controls for the right channel on the bottom of the unit. There is also the ability to switch the EQ in and out via a switch on both channels. Although the 432 is intended for Left-Right EQ Processing, when used in conjunction with the Dangerous Master in Mid-Side Mode, This is a powerful tool for the engineer. As it allows the top channel to be used to process the centre of the stereo image and the bottom channel to be used to process the sides. This technique is something that is considered a mastering engineer's ‘secret’ which allows them greater control of a stereo mix. And can be highly effective in order to fix common issues in a mix; such as the vocal not being loud enough, the snare drum being too loud, or the sides being too dull. The 432 is hardwired onto insert 2 on the dangerous master, which means that the effect of the EQ can be quickly taken out of the signal chain in order for the engineer to see exactly how their processing has changed the mix, and decide if they have improved it. At the Futureworks mastering suite, the Sontec 423 is the only dedicated EQ unit. However, there is also a 6 band EQ available on the Avalon VT-747SP processor.
Barefoot Micromain 27
In a mastering studio it is essential that the listening environment is critical and can reveal issues in a mix that traditional recording studios can not. Due to this, high quality speakers are needed. The MM 27 monitors have a high frequency response of 30hZ to 40Khz, and each is made up of one tweeter, two mid bass drivers and two subwoofers. These speakers are designed to be nearfield monitors, and offer enough resolution to be used in both a tracking, and mastering scenario. The front the MM27 speaker contains 3 of the 5 drivers, and is configured using a D'appolito method, meaning that the mid range drivers sit each side of the tweeter, which is in the centre of the speaker. The reason for this configuration, is to optimise horizontal dispersion. The Midrange drivers both measure 5.25 inches, and the tweeter measures 1inch. In addition to this there are two 10 inch subwoofers and these are situated above and below the mid range drivers and the tweeter on both monitors, attached to the side walls of the cabinet.In order to improve the sturdiness of the design, these drivers are driven in phase, so that both cones move in and out together. The subwoofers are enclosed in a sealed cabinet configuration. Which means, unlike ported speaker designs, these monitors are free from low frequency resonances. This allows the engineer to judge the low end without having to deal with issues being created by the monitors. The back panel of the MM27 monitors is quite bare, in comparison to other nearfield monitors, connections to the playback system are achieved through 3 pin XLR’s, and there is an input attenuator which can be used to match volumes across systems. In addition to this, there are 4 recessed push buttons, 3 of which enable the engineer to mute any of the 3 front drivers, and the fourth allows the engineer to alter the crossover voicing, which effectively puts the monitors into ‘hi fi’ mode. This is an interesting feature which when initialised, introduces a ‘smiley curve’ to the audio signal, reducing the upper midrange by around 1dB and gently boosting below 100 Hz by around half a dB. Allowing the engineer to have an idea of how their processing will translate to a consumer's hi fi.
Mac Mini
The mastering studio at Futureworks uses a Macbook Mini computer in order to run the various software needed to format final mixes of a music project. The specifications for this computer detail that is has - 16 gigabytes of ram, a processor speed of 2.6 gigahertz and one terabyte of hard drive space. The large amount of ram and a fast processor enables the computer to successfully run mastering DAW software and a large number of DSP plugins within a session, it also ensures that the self noise made by the unit is kept to a quiet level. The connections available at the rear of the mac mini include, a gigabit ethernet, firewire 800, HDMI, thunderbolt, four usb 3 connectors, an SDXC Card Slot and 3.5mm mini jack audio in and out connectors. This allows a number of ways in which outboard audio processors can be connected to the computer and the HDMI Output allows for a large screen independent of the computer to be used. The software installed on the computer in order to carry out mastering tasks are Avids Pro Tools 11 and Pro Tools 12, mainly used for recording in analogue processing, Sonic Studio Soundblade HD, specialised mastering software which can be used for CD DDP and PQ list creation. In addition to this Waveburner is available to be used, this carries out similar functions to Soundblade. In addition to this there are a range of DSP and VST Plugin’s which can be used both within Protools and Soundblade. Manufacturers include, MC DSP, AVID, Izotope, Sonnox and Slate Digital.
