How to Master Rock and Metal – Complete Video Tutorial [Start to Finish]

Need help mastering your music to get it as loud as your favorite albums? This tutorial shows you how to master rock and metal music, step-by-step! 

 

Watch Bobby from Raytown Productions master a song by the band Hellvoid. Quickly learn all Bobby’s tricks to make your music loud, crystal clear, larger than life, and sound great anywhere it is played!

Each part of the mastering process is thoroughly discussed step by step. Bobby shows you his plugin settings and strategies to conquer any difficult and dense metal or rock mix.

WHAT THIS MASTERING VIDEO COVERS:

► How to set a compressor to give a mix movement
► Enhancing transients to add impact
► Mid/Side EQ to open up a mix
► Tempo timing tricks to enhance the song’s groove
► Using saturation to increase the volume
► Why clipping is better than limiting for mastering metal and rock
► Taming harsh frequencies
► Adjusting kick/bass relationship with a multiband compressor
► What to listen for when checking your final master

This video provides an hour of step by step mixing techniques, plugin settings, and strategies to get your next pop song sounding huge and powerful.

By the way, if you need help getting your songs sounding the best for your next release, why not send us a quick message and take a look on our website? We’ve helped 100’s of artists from around the world. Even better would be to check out our before and after player so you can hear, for yourself, what we can do for your music.

=====TIME STAMPS=====

00:50 – Adding compressor to give the mix movement
02:10 – Setting attack to enhance transients
02:46 – EQing to widen the mix
03:08 – Trick to visually analyze song EQ curve
04:50 – Mid/side EQ to open up mix
07:21 – Adding shimmer and air to top end
10:02 – EQ In and Out
10:19 – Adding sub harmonics to fill out sound
11:26 – Dialing in a linear phase multiband compressor
12:58 – Tempo timing trick
14:27 – Increasing volume through saturation
16:20 – Clipping the level louder
18:20 – Trying to minimizing pumping
19:17 – What is “pumpy” music?
20:37 – Adding fairy dust with spatial enhancers
23:23 – Turning up volume of sides using waves center
24:25 – Pushing up limiter for more volume
25:28 – Taming harsh frequencies
28:19 – Setting final limiter
29:05 – Using mid-side EQ to tighten up the mix
31:11 – Adjusting multiband to tighten up kick/bass relationship
32:03 – Fine tuning master after increasing volume
33:59 – A/B master to original
35:00 – What to listen for when checking final master

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If you have thoughts on the video or questions, please leave them below!