Vocals that contain a lot of “SSSS” sounds (sibilance) will also cause a distorted sound on your master recording if not properly treated.īefore reading further, again, we reiterate how important it is for you to consider hiring a professional engineer who is familiar with vinyl mastering, instead of trying to master yourself. ![]() Instruments such as hi-hats, cymbals and tambourines often cause distortion if all high end is allowed to pass through to the cutting lathe. The vinyl medium does not “like” a lot of high frequency information - brightness/hotness of certain high frequencies are the most common issue we see on the audio masters we receive. The actual settings for these filters vary dramatically, depending upon the program material being cut - there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and if a particular master has been prepared very well for vinyl, these adjustments may not be required at all. A high cut filter is also frequently placed to help control high frequency information in the audio. This keeps the grooves from slamming into one another and helps fit your audio into the space provided by the lacquer disc. Typically, a low cut filter is used at to control and maintain the bass frequency information of the audio. That being said, a couple of things generally happen when your audio is cut to a master disc – particularly if you are going to submit digital audio files as the source (most of the information on this page refers to digital audio sources). Whether you are submitting analog tapes or high resolution digital audio files, we work from the assumption that your master is “vinyl ready”. This point cannot be accentuated enough – we have an open door policy, so please have your mastering engineer contact us and/or provide specific notes when submitting masters. This simple step can lead to the most favorable results, and is much more productive than submitting audio to us, and then contacting us after you have received test cuts, reference lacquers, and/or test pressings. We also have some referral sources with whom we regularly work.įor jobs where we are cutting lacquers in house, we find that it is most productive for both our customers and us if your mastering engineer contacts us directly with any specific concerns regarding masters in advance of any work we perform. ![]() Someone who professionally masters specifically for vinyl at least 50 releases annually will probably be knowledgeable and beneficial to work with. We cannot accentuate the importance of this step enough - a good source master makes a great record, every time. A record that is professionally cut may not sound how you expected it to when you submitted your digital masters. A record that is professionally cut may still “skip” on a poorly adjusted or “cheap” turntable. At the end of the day, listening to records is a mechanical process and therefore many variables are at play. The ONLY way to make sure your master is ideally suited for the vinyl format is by hiring a professional mastering engineer to pre-master your material for vinyl. ![]() In no way should any of such information be taken as a “guarantee” of playability of your record on all systems, or an endorsement of the masters you submit. LACQUER CUTTING / MASTERING TIPS FOR THOSE NEW TO THE VINYL FORMATĭISCLAIMER: All information on this page and elsewhere on the GGR website are intended to guide and assist you in the process of making a record – and is extremely basic in nature.
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