T-Racks....

[dirty_bass]

To be fair, T-Racks is not very good.

It is just another example of a plug-in that promises more than it can deliver...

The summing on it is very obvious and the results are easily bettered by your own efforts with individual (decent) plugins on each channel.

Actually T-Racks is really good, if you know how to use it.
I know of many top end producers who use T-Racks now.
Most agree the tape simulation is amazing.

Sure there are other plugs, but if you are used to older mastering hardware, you should be able to get very good results from T-Racks.

[loopdon]

not heard to much negative (if any) stuff about t-racks, either.

it surely has a lot to do with the person that is operating the tool, imo.

[loopdon]

^^^ agreed

Best bet is to do it in your sequencer and use the waves plugins. but of course you need to know what your doing.
T-Racks is nice for the people who dont know and just run things through the presets

the 'waves' plugins. the older ones? because from a technical standpoint they are at least dated. if not just weak. and overpriced.
weak and overpriced. the old ones....err

waves really did a good job on the new stuff, admitedly. and i must say i like/love the way they look/usability. but that's an entirely different matter. i really am getting sick of people advertising waves everywhere. poor workman blames his tools.

and stealing software and then complaining is just sick, imo.

general observation over

[FILTERZ]

got to agree that t racks aint all that either

can make a bad mix sound better

but not to clever on an allready good mix

[dirty_bass]

got to agree that t racks aint all that either

can make a bad mix sound better

but not to clever on an allready good mix

Really don`t understand these comments at all.

If it`s making the mix sound worse, then you are simply not doing it right.

A good mix needs more subtle mastering, so maybe you are overdoing it.

MAstering is an artform all to itself.

[TechMouse]

MAstering is an artform all to itself.

I'd say it's half art, half science.

Perhaps craft is a better term?

It's certainly something that gets better with practice.

[FILTERZ]

Really don`t understand these comments at all.

If it`s making the mix sound worse, then you are simply not doing it right.

A good mix needs more subtle mastering, so maybe you are overdoing it.

MAstering is an artform all to itself.

Well i can manage ok with other tools , my focusrite mastering processor for instance , i can manage to get a great sound with this or my friends tc finalizer or blue tubes plugs
but t racks aint so great IMHO so there ya go .
I didn`t really want to post negative comments but as a few other people did i thought i might as well chuck in my few penneth so they were not out on their own so to speak .
If it works for you then use it , personally i wouldn`t reccomend it .

Having said all this i have not used it lately and i may be commenting on an old version with less developed algorithms.

[Jay Pace]

Usually go for the wavez tools myself, using the tried and tested chain of EQ->multiband compression->EQ->multiband limiting

Tried t-racks but didn't really know what to do with it. Same with ozone - get put off by all the presets. Very distracting.

Personally feel more comfortable with a seperate tool for each stage.

[dirty_bass]

Well i can manage ok with other tools , my focusrite mastering processor for instance , i can manage to get a great sound with this or my friends tc finalizer or blue tubes plugs
but t racks aint so great IMHO so there ya go .
I didn`t really want to post negative comments but as a few other people did i thought i might as well chuck in my few penneth so they were not out on their own so to speak .
If it works for you then use it , personally i wouldn`t reccomend it .

Having said all this i have not used it lately and i may be commenting on an old version with less developed algorithms.

It`s all horses for courses, but really, like anything, you need to get to know it to use it properly, ESPECIALLY with any mastering hardware or software.
Anyone expecting quick results will simply be disapointed.

I used to use pure vintage hardware for mastering, then moved into plugins for ease, and don`t really commit to any in particular.

Different plug ins are good for different reasons.

I find the waves stuff too plastic to get a nice warm mix personally, however, their limiting is great for transparency.

Vintage warmer is great, also the sonalksis EQ and Compression is particularly nice for warmth and presence.
URS EQ`s are really nice, as is the voxengo compression.

I think people are too succeptable to the waves marketing though, as I really don`t think they deserve the rep they get.
Maybe it`s cause I learned my trade in an old analog studio.

[loopdon]

as said before the OLD waves stuff isn't that fresh anymore. gui-wise they are great, though, imo. i have heard a lot of nice stuff about the new ones, though. the ssl things...

some people say URS are blinders...not as good as they look (esp for the price). i don't know.

i have never been to an analogue studio myself (i think) but i am pretty sure today we are spoilt for choices actually. i truely think you could put out excellent productions using freeware alone. but maybe that's just me.

[dirty_bass]

as said before the OLD waves stuff isn't that fresh anymore. gui-wise they are great, though, imo. i have heard a lot of nice stuff about the new ones, though. the ssl things...

some people say URS are blinders...not as good as they look (esp for the price). i don't know.

i have never been to an analogue studio myself (i think) but i am pretty sure today we are spoilt for choices actually. i truely think you could put out excellent productions using freeware alone. but maybe that's just me.

There is some very good freeware, but not really in the mastering field, unless you could educate me.

Posifopit is an exceptionally nice EQ however, and Endorphin is a nice warm compressor, but there don`t seem to be enough decent free mastering plugs.

[loopdon]

You might be onto something there, Steve.
I must investigate further. I know some but i want to present the best stuff in the freeware league. At least i can offer another excellent eq to start with, that most definetely can be used over a full mix and as a track insert as well. It is

Eliosound AirEQ



"Mixing, mastering, tracking - whatever your sampling frequency is - AirEQ always brings you the same high quality equalization in the entire audio range. And you can use it on every track, without overloading your CPU. Its quality, ergonomics and efficiency will make AirEQ an essential musical tool when excellent analog-like equalization, ease of use and low CPU usage are required."

http://www.eliosound.com/aireq

This might remind you of the analogue days. At least i have heard similar opinions.

I am talking about the (very generous, imo) demo of this plugin, which doesn't expire and has no volume drops etc. So it is very usable and offers the same sound quality as the full (and pretty expensive) version:

Limited AirEQ demo version features :

* Same sound quality than the full version
* No time limitation
* No preset creation, edition or save
* Parameters not saved in host, that's mean that equalization parameters are reset on each AirEQ launch
* No automation support
* No "Class Bands by Frequency Order" option
* No A/B Comparison
* Render is deactivated (this is not true; render DOES work, tested just yesterday)

http://www.eliosound.com/download/aireqwindemo

[dirty_bass]

tried it out and it`s a really nice eq.

Settings not saved in host though.:(

[Andy]

the 'waves' plugins. the older ones? because from a technical standpoint they are at least dated. if not just weak. and overpriced.
weak and overpriced. the old ones....err

waves really did a good job on the new stuff, admitedly. and i must say i like/love the way they look/usability. but that's an entirely different matter. i really am getting sick of people advertising waves everywhere. poor workman blames his tools.

and stealing software and then complaining is just sick, imo.

general observation over

Waves were just an example. Any high quality plugins would work the same.
What i meant was that you'll get much better results using a combination of high quality dedicated plugins for each process (EQ, Compression, Limiters and so on)
Rather than using a all in one program like T-racks

[loopdon]

andy: i know what you mean in a way. but can't you switch of certain modules in t-racks? and on the other hand, ok, but it all depends on who uses it (knowledge factor) and for what.. i reckon bob katz (insert favorite other name here) could out-eq/compress whatever a big part of the techno-community with basic tools and other's could be given the best stuff on earth and ruin stuff.

can't we agree on: try a variety of stuff, see what YOU like and then learn that/those tools thorougly?

[loopdon]

tried it out and it`s a really nice eq.

Settings not saved in host though.:(

i know. but wasn't it exactly like that until TOTAL RECALL came?
or am i way off?

[loopdon]

Nyquist eq came to my mind as well:



Parametric graphic equalizer with excellent response all the way up to Nyquist. It never clicks, and it handles deep bass well too. The Nyquist frequency is the highest representable frequency for a given sample rate. The trebliest of the treble. Most other digital eqs have great problems producing a natural sound here.

- 2005-04-09: It now displays properly in Cubase SX on Mac OS X.
- Now has 5 bands instead of 3 due to popular demand. The old 3 band version can be downloaded here (Windows VST).
- The song loading bug has now been fixed.

http://magnus.smartelectronix.com/#effects

http://www.smartelectronix.com/refer...2004-11-10.zip