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One of my all time fav track has a terrible mastering, how to correct it?


Manuser

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Hi,

 

I have zero knowledge in sound engineering but anyone can tell this track sounds bad:

 

 

Yet it is an amazing track (near perfection story telling for me).

 

I have a free software that I downloaded a while ago, it is called Audacity. I would love to have a better version of the track, of course no miracle expected but something that sounds a bit better.

Where to start with such a basic software? is it something possible ?

 

296393Untitled.jpg

 

Or even better if someone can do a good job with the track I am willing to pay a few euros for it. Or perhaps there is no hope?

Cheers.

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sounds fine to me. is that an mp3 or wave , in audacity? Also the wave looks very healthy compared to what i have seen return from mastering:)

Bad, for me is when i can hear crackling in the lows and distortions on the the highs

this one does not have it , the highs sound clear. Why do u say it's bad? I reckon if u do anything in audacity it may ruin final output if the has already been

compression and limiting applied, there there.s no clipping. You could always lower the threshold of the leveller in audity, then apply a moderate

limiter setting afterward , to make louder, u can also stick an eq inbetween, or before dunno if it makes a difference, you'll have to

try different combinations., The Modern plugins usually work well in audacity, and just pick a preset

that u like.

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To me this track sounds like average 90's  goa, no better no worse (I mean the sound quality, not the music). What exactly you don't like about it? I guess, you may not like some synths, e.g. synth lines starting at 5:40 or  8:22 or 8:50 sound screechy and unpleasant, but there is hardly any way to fix it in a stereo file. This is how the patches were made on the synths. 

 

Bacisally the only thing that can be done with a stereo file is to make it stightly louder and fatter, add some bass, maybe slightly tune down some nasty frequencies but don't expect the result to be drastically different from the source file.

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I love the mastering:

the (sub)base is so fucking amazing and wonderful present. Like everything floats on this fluffy deep mellow context where the trippy trance drive gets it's full energy from. Pumps like crazy.

 

What strikes my mind the most, is that the sound is very dynamic and NOT loud at all. Something that's really been missing in the modern (goa) scene today (cf. maximal mastering for out door sound systems).

Maybe this youtube user compressed the sound to make it louder and that is why you get the not good youtube sound.
Seems like that?! Or what is your source, the original disc?

 

For a test, put up the original disc on play now.

I trust my Equators on this: badly produced music they tare apart and badly mastered music sounds always too loud and pains the ears.

 

 

Edit: track 4 has issues I think: over steer on the high tones.

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but there is hardly any way to fix it in a stereo file.

exactly. the synth patches are the main problem. the rest is just the not quite professional mixing you'll have in many 90s goa (and also modern) tracks. mastering seems to be more or less fine.

you can turn down some harsh frequencies with an equalizer, but without the original source files and without actually remixing the track, replacing a few single elements, there's not a lot that can be done.

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Ah-ha !!!

 

So, with your post you helped me ID (sorta) a very old nn track i had for years now !!

Tho the version i have is a wee bit more energetic and kicking.

 

here's a link ! :

 

 

Beautiful track, both versions. 

 

Thanks for sharing ! :)

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Haha U.F.Orb happy coincidence!!

 

psychasm, RL and all the others, I realized what happened. The mastering is actually fine like you said, yesterday I was trying to make a compilation and by doing so adjusting the volume of every tracks, and Nuclear ramjet - Minas Morgul sounds very low.. that's why when I put the volume to the max it sounds harsh, so I guess you are all right, nothing can be done. Thanks anyway.

 

(was also a subtle way to make some of you discover this masterpiece ... (jk))

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Agree, there's nothing wrong with the mastering. I guess your main issue is the long release on the kick - but that's an acquired taste, was pretty typical back then and you can't really do anything with it without gating the individual stems (separate tracks for instruments).

 

Great track, BTW! :)

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Manuser is a smart guy, he knows that nobody listens to the countless recommendations here, but he also knows that everybody wants to be the guy with last word on the mastering. Nice way to get us all to listen to a great track.

Worked fairly well apparently!

 

On a serious note, agree with your statement, I was actually thinking to post this track in your thread about less known old school tracks!

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U.F.Orb where did you get this version? It is not track 7 of this album https://www.discogs.com/Nuclear-Ramjet-Mission-To-Sedna/release/629796

 

 

I dont think its this version from his album, the version i have is almost 15 minutes long.

Got it from an old dat tape from my older brother, recorded at thailand @ around 99'-00'.

 

Will pick up some of his albums if i get a chance :)

Curious to hear more music by NR.

Again, thanks for posting :)

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Manuser is a smart guy, he knows that nobody listens to the countless recommendations here, but he also knows that everybody wants to be the guy with last word on the mastering. Nice way to get us all to listen to a great track.

 

Haha, best post of 2017 so far :)

Will be hard to beat :P

 

 

Agree, there's nothing wrong with the mastering. I guess your main issue is the long release on the kick - but that's an acquired taste, was pretty typical back then and you can't really do anything with it without gating the individual stems (separate tracks for instruments).

 

Great track, BTW! :)

 

Well, I don't agree fully.

Track 3 & 4 really have some (volume) over steer in my opinion.

High tones are a bit too loud in comparison to the sub base and low tones. I think :)

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I dont think its this version from his album, the version i have is almost 15 minutes long.

Got it from an old dat tape from my older brother, recorded at thailand @ around 99'-00'.

 

Will pick up some of his albums if i get a chance :)

Curious to hear more music by NR.

Again, thanks for posting :)

Nuclear Ramjet produced a lot of fillers (IMO) in their albums.

I can recommend some tracks from Aeon (solo project of one of the members of NR), the track "Osho" is quite well known (very good, key changes inside), and the track "contribution" is really excellent (will post it in acid-brain's topic).

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