Pre-mastering advice needed

Thanks. I typically bounce to 24 bit WAV and ship files to an engineer for mastering. Admittely, I'm not a mixing (or mastering obvioulsy) guru. I add EQ here or there - compression on various instrument tracks - maybe some other effects - reverb, panning, volume etc.. I do "OK"...
Problem is my work at that point, when played on a car stereo or home system, seems to always come out either muffled or too heavy on the low end (or both so when the engineers get hold of it, I'm not sure if they're getting the best output I can give them off the start line.
What "pre-conditioning" can I do in my mixes, if anything, to better prepare my tracks for off loading to a sound engineer? Normalization? Bounce individual tracks to audio files (rather than a single file)? Adjust EQ's within individual instrument tracks? ?
Thanks again...

Hi mmurray,
No, I'm not saying that the bell curve should peak at around 250. My 250hz analogy was an example of a tricky range that could cause the muddiness you describe. A bass, by its very nature, is bassy, right? But it is not alone in this song, there are lots of other tracks too. Careful management of this lower mid range (anywhere from 150 - 350ish) can cause you problems.
Your job, as a mixer, is to decide what lives and what dies down there to give your mix enough weight but no muddiness. Take a bell curve on your EQ, not too narrow but not uber wide, turn off the analyser, solo the bass track. Maximum cut, db wise and put it right up to 20k (yes 20k). Now close your eyes and sweep slowly down through the frequency range and listen at what is being pulled out. Now, it may be that there is nothing on this bass track you want pulled out. Similarly, boost the same band by a lot (but mind your ears) and sweep down from 20k again. Hear something nasty? Cut it, but maybe not quite so drastically. Now you can hear what that sounds like in solo, do it in context, with the rest of the tracks playing. Maybe you WANT your vocals lower middy on this song, this is your taste and your decision, but if you do you should watch what is happening on the other instruments in the same frequency.
In all lower mid frequency fights, muddiness wins. Your headphones are probably not helping but we all have to use what tools we have. Listen to all your tracks both individually and in context. Soloing when you suspect something is wrong or contibuting in a way you're not happy with, but remember, in the end everything is in context.
A guitars lower mid is quite high for a bass but there is cross-over. This is often good but sometimes bad. This is what mixing is, all those 100's of tiny decisions on each track to make a seamless whole.
PS Just seen your screenshot. From your analyser curve there's not that much above 200 here. You have a bump cuz you're boosting by 8db @ 82hz, but again, there's nothing inherently wrong with this. What do your ears tell you?

Similar Messages

Mastering advice

Hi all:
I was hoping for some basic mastering advice using Logic Pro inclusive plug-ins. Knowing that mastering is its own HUUUGE animal, I am simply looking to establish some basics to help make my song standout a bit more.
Basically my plan was to bounce my track down to 24bit split and put it into a new clean session. I was planning to start first with the multipressor then EQ then fininsh with the limiter.
-Is this chain ok or should the EQ be before the multipressor?
-Should I use the Linear phase EQ opposed to the channel EQ due to the manuals stated high quality, more intensive cpu characteristics? Im assuming this all means it’s a better EQ...
-For basic EQ, I was planning to simply roll off below 50Hz, cut some at 400 Hz to remove any muddiness, and slightly boost above 10KHz for some brightness. Shoud I use multiple LP EQ's doing these separate? Im a bit concerned about delay compensation and artefacts.
-Should I use the regular or adaptive limiter or both?
-The manual states that Tracks "normalized" to 0dB will sound 2 dB louder with adaptive limiting. Where in Logic do you go about "normalizing"? Is it possible to normalize the entire 24 bit split files or should I have normalized each separate track (how does this affect instrument tracks?) as I produced the song?
I know theres a lot to ask here so if anyone would like to answer one or two based on their expertise I would appreciate it very much.
Thank you

Whoa dude... I'm on your side!
If you think you're being scolded for wanting to use plug-ins, please re-read it. No one is chiding you for using plug-ins (I use them when the song dictates). The question was, how do you know you need them? If it's because you read it in a book, or a course, then read Bob Katz's Mastering Audio (I believe that someone already suggested it as well), and he'll give you some reasons why you don't need them.
Regardless of whether a mix is really bad or good, mastering includes some level of final compression, EQ, and limiting...right or Wrong?
Right, if you believe that it will help your track sit well with the rest of your tracks on a CD.
Wrong, if you believe that it will make a bad mix sound good. Also wrong if you believe that plug-ins are a magic bullet that will all of a sudden turn any mix into a hit or give it the "professional touch".
Note carefully that this is based on the operative word: includes.
Like John stated, if you get it right in the mix, then the less you need plug-ins. Treating the sounds with EQ & compression is a part of mixing. Again, that is if it requires it as well. Helping them find their place in a mix is another part. There are also other little things that can only be done in a mix. If that certain something is not in the mix, no amount of mastering will put it there. No doubt, you have invested a lot of time in your mix. Does it pull you in? Does it make you want to shout "YEAH!"? Does it make you move? If any of these are a 'no', then revisit the mix (take a few days away from it completely, if necessary).
You're mentioning EQ and Compression as part of mastering. However, did you use any mix bus compression when mixing down? As well, did you apply any EQ on the output of your mix? For all you know, that may be all your mix needs.
By no means can I afford to go a mastering engineer either (almost all of the artists I produce/record out of our church have very little means as it is), which leave me doing the task. However, each song is different. Some require a bit of limiting; some require nothing; others require compression, EQ, limiting and possibly some harmonic exciters and reverb. However, it is to make everything sit together so that the listener can go through the entire CD without thinking something is amiss. If you were to pick any two songs off any of the CD's I've done, it's almost guaranteed that the processes were different on them. I can give you a process I use, but that would only apply to a certain song (thus, you'd have to hear the song as well).
Don't think you're being torn down for asking. Far from it. We both want the same thing: something that sounds professional.
jord

Best place to get pre-purchase advice from Microsoft? (UK)

Hi,
I'm trying to find a way to get in touch with an Azure Sales Representative to ask some specific questions about a project a client has asked us to work on for them.
I couldn't find any live chat or email options for pre-purchase advice, so if anybody could guide me in the right direction that would be great.
We have used Azure a number of times, but I'd like to ask some questions unique to this project, and directly to the sales team if possible.
If I have answered your question, please mark it as the correct answer. If I have provided helpful information, please mark it as so.

Hi,
This is technical forum, about this issue, I suggest you contact support directory, it's the best choice for you. Please contact support team by creating a support ticket at
http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/support/contact/
Or if that doesn't work because you don't have an active subscription you will need to contact general customer support to have them create a support ticket for you
http://support.microsoft.com/gp/customer-service-phone-numbers?wa=wsignin1.0
Best Regards,
Jambor
We are trying to better understand customer views on social support experience, so your participation in this interview project would be greatly appreciated if you have time. Thanks for helping make community forums a great place.
Click
HERE to participate the survey.

HI Masters , I need information for file upload program in web dynpro java

Hi masters,
i need some inforamtion and documentation on file upload program in web dynpro java

Hi surya,
You can follow this procedure to upload the file
i) Take One Context Attribute named as "D1" of Type "binary".
ii) Take one FileUpload UI Element in the Layout Tab.
iii) Bind FileUpload UI Element's data Property to the taken Context Attribute. Here it is "D1".
iv) Take one Button UI Element in the Layout Tab named "Upload" and in the Action of that Button write the following Code.
v) The following code Generates one Folder in the Server & inside that Folder given file is Uploaded.
File ff=new File("FolderXYZ"); // Creates One Folder with the given Name ( Here Folder name is "FolderXYZ")
ff.mkdir();
try
byte b[]=null;
IWDAttributeInfo objAttinfo=null;
IWDModifiableBinaryType binType=null;
File f=null;
FileOutputStream fos=null;
if(wdContext.currentContextElement().getD1()!=null)
b=wdContext.currentContextElement().getD1();
objAttinfo=wdContext.getNodeInfo().getAttribute(IPrivateAttachView.IContextElement.D1);
binType=(IWDModifiableBinaryType)objAttinfo.getModifiableSimpleType();
f=new File(ff.getName()+"
"+binType.getFileName());
fos=new FileOutputStream(f);
fos.write(b);
fos.flush();
fos.close();
objMessageManager.reportSuccess("File uploaded to server");
} catch (Exception e)
objMessageManager.reportException("Unable to upload file to server, error is:"+e,false);
return;
The Uploaded file is stored in the folder & that folder is stored in the Server's following Path.
<Your Server>\c$\usr\sap\J2E\JC00\j2ee\cluster\server0
You can access your Uploaded file from the following Path
<Your Server>\c$\usr\sap\J2E\JC00\j2ee\cluster\server0\FolderXYZ
Regards
Sagar Ingalwar

Advice needed on buying iphone as gift

I went to apple store, they do not want to sell iphone to me unless I sign AT&T 2 years plan. I thought AT&T has locked the phone and users must subscribe in order to use it. Why Apple store still not allow me to buy?
Please advice, if I want to buy online iphone for my brother, do I or my brother have obligation to sign out AT&T plan?
One more advice needed, I found the shipment takes weeks, do I have option to arrange for self-collection?
My brother birthday is coming soon, I need above advice urgently.
Thank you very much

Tamara wrote:
I'm guessing English is not your first language. It's possible that you misunderstood them. Apple Store employees won't refuse to sell you an iPhone and you don't have to sign up for service in the store.
Well that's not entirely true.
Apple Stores have been instructed not to sell you an iPhone if any of the following is true:
You state that you will not be signing up with AT&T.
You do not have an ID from a US state, also indicating you will not be activating with AT&T
You do not have a credit card
For example, I've seen US Apple Store managers refuse to sell iPhones to European residents because of the AT&T lock-in.

Video intensive work on Mac Pro? Advice Needed

Hi everyone,
I've been originally saving up for a while now for an iMac 24" as it offers the best specification price wise. But now I leaning on the Mac Pro and therefore need some advice.
I know that there are alot of posts on advice - need to buy mac etc. so therfore I would really appreciate if I am afforded some help.
I am mostly going to do ALOT of video encoding (via handbrake) and I am looking for the best configuration available to achieve lowest waiting time.

I think you should go back and look at the other threads with advice, your budget. There is "ideal" and "affordable."
Will it pay for itself in 24 months so you can afford the next revision at that time?
Start with an 8-Core 3GHz.
Add a Port Multiplier controller and two drive cases, 5 drives each, nearly 400MB/sec RAID.
Throw in 8GB RAM.
Add in costs for software upgrades, two sets of backups, four internal 500GB drives.
Seagate has 750GB, as does WD. Hitachi has their $450 1000GB monster.
Give yourself time to build, test, and optimize your setup, and expect to change it over time as you learn more.
Can't afford that? then trim the 8-core. But Apple has shown how efficient next generation applications already are for video when it comes to 3GHz 8-core Mac Pro.

Had to have a rebuild of my laptop....advice needed!

Had to have a rebuild of my laptop....have now lost all my music from my itunes, but I can't transfer back on from my ipod. Also had to register my laptop (same) as another computers, so now no music showing as purchased, though I have. Also have hours of uploaded music from my own purchased, legitimate CDs, but won't transfer from ipod...it says it will erase. So very frustrated....thanks mr technician! PLEASE ....help, advice needed!

I believe that if you do a clean reinstall from your HD's recovery sector (D) or Recovery disks, the hard drive sector C is wiped clean. Everything goes, apps, data, address books, music, pix, viruses
Is that what you did?

I am using InDesign CS5. I have a body of text which is ranged left with tabbed indents. My client now wants the copy to be justifed, keeping the tabbed indents. Help and advice needed please!

I am using InDesign CS5. I have a body of text which is ranged left with tabbed indents. My client now wants the copy to be justifed, keeping the tabbed indents. Help and advice needed please!

Hi
That screen grab helps a lot. There’s a much easier way of doing what you’re doing.
Remove all your tabs and set the text in justified paragraphs.
I’ve typed in dummy text in the example I made below, but after “19.1” put in a space and put your blinking cursor after the space and before the ’N’ of ‘Notices'.
Then hold down the Command key and hit Backspace (on Mac at least - it’s the key between the Inverted commas/ apostrophe key and the return key).
The text will jump into place the way you want it to.
Hope that helps
Paul
PS You can set a tab, instead of using a space, in the description I gave above. So, after 19.1 or 19.2 or 19.185 etc etc insert a tab, then hit the Command Backspace after every paragraph number and they'll all line up exactly together. You'll find that editing text within the paragraphs
after you've set it will be LOADS easier this way.
You can put the tab anywhere you want it to be using 'Command-ShiftT' and putting a 'left align' tab just after the number. Just type the Command Backspace after the paragraph number and it'll work

MOVED: Various advice needed to overclock cpu using my MSI k8n platinum sli

This topic has been moved to Overclockers & Modding Corner.
Various advice needed to overclock cpu using my MSI k8n platinum sli

what HSF for cpu/ cooling for the case do you use? And also, where are the flashing lights?

Advice - Non Technical - pre mastering preparation at Abbey Road Studios

I am now preparing for a mastering session at Abbey Road Studios on Tuesday for my fisrst album - very, very excited about this.
Today I discovered that I needed ISRC codes which get embedded on the master CD - this has shaken me a little as I was copmpletely unaware of this.
I am writing to you guys to see if there si anything else i need or any advice you can give prior to or for the mastering session.
I realise that this is off topic but given that this forum is populated by so many professionals I felt it might be a good place to start.
many thanks for reading
blessings
Ivan

Ivan,
Yes, this is no big deal. If you are your own label maintaining your own catalog then you'll want to register with the ISRC and they will issue you a registrant code. If your record is getting released under someone else's label/catalog, you could just get codes from them.
Another thing. You may, but it's not really necessary, also want to include the UPN retail bar code info in the DDP fileset premaster that Abbey Road makes. If they can't issue them, then check with your replicator for this. I've found their prices to be far more reasonable than the online shops offering this.
Hey, good luck!
FYI, here's the blurb from the email the ISRC sent me a few years ago when I registered for a US code:
The ISRC system is designed for creation of unique identifiers that
remain with the recording for the life of the recording regardless of
changes in ownership, licensing, territory or method of distribution.
Note that rights may vary territory by territory but the ISRC remains
the same. Please view the attached documents for information on
assigning ISRCs for your tracks.
You do not need to submit your ISRCs to the RIAA at this time. However,
you should keep a repertoire database of your ISRCs and other reference
information (metadata) relating to your sound recordings. You will
likely need to provide this information to on-line music services and
other business partners.
We strongly recommend that you become familiar with the ISRC Handbook,
as it contains valuable and authoritative information on the ISRC
system. The ISRC Handbook should always be obtained from the official
site:
http://www.ifpi.org/isrc/

Advice needed (College Grad)

I am very interested in SAP O&G! I have basic software knowledge (microsoft office etc). I want to learn SAP O&G, what kind of software exposure do i need. What path should i take that would best help me understand it. Are there prerequisites i need before I even attempt to learn it? I do not have any work experience (just internships and a couple summer jobs). I'm also currently enrolled in Supply chain management and logistics masters program. i also have a bachelors in petroleum engineering which is why i'm attracted to the idea of SAP O&G.
Any advice on how to proceed would be greatly appreciated!

Hi Dami,
Pleasing to know your interest in SAP and SAP IS OIL. As you mentioned that you are relatively fresh in the area of SAP, i would recommend you to start learning the basics of SAP first. Although this is not a pre-requisite, but it will definitely help you to start learning the specialized IS OIL solution. Otherwise it will be quite complicated to directly start with IS OIL.
For further guidance on SAP and Careers, follow the below space:
http://scn.sap.com/community/career-center

Mid 2010 MacBook Pro - Logic Board Failure - Advice Needed

Hello all,
I could really use some advice.
I have a MacBook Pro that I bought through the Apple Online Store roughly around September of 2010. A couple of weeks after buying it I had to take it to the Apple Store in London's White City due to a keyboard backlight issue. About a week later I collected the MBP and the following day had to take it back as the technician that worked on it had not tightened the display brackets up leaving it a bit floppy.
Now I have serious issues with it. Recently the MacBook has been suffering from freezing up, booting issues and the display randomly shutting off (going black, no pixelating or anything) to the point the machine has become unusable. 2 days ago I took the MBP along to an appointment at the Genius Bar at London's Regent Street Apple Store, I also took along a copy of an Apple knowledge base article regarding this very issue. The knowledge base suggests that on any OS below Mountain Lion a software update is required, for ML or Mavericks an appointment with a service agent is required. During the appointment the Mac Genius suggested it may be a software issue, they would wipe the system and re-install Mavericks then test the machine, I told him I had done this a few days earlier but I guess they have to follow process. He then went on to suggest the display may be faulty, I told him I had no reason to suspect that was the case and moved the screen forwards and backwards at varying speeds without a glimmer of a flicker. At this point after reading about this issue on various forums prior to the appointment I felt that the guy was trying to imply anything maybe at fault but deliberately steering clear of suggesting the logic board, this is just my gut feeling however and i'm perfectly capable of being wrong but I do not feel I am! Anyhow I then proceeded to demonstrate the issue whilst the machine was on, warmed up and right in front of him. I gently and slightly lifted the front left corner of the machine a little way off of the counter, just enough to obviously flex the logic board by a minuscule amount and immediately the display went into a frenzy of going off and on.
So I left the MBP with them for the guys to do their thing. Today I received the following email:
"We have attempted to repair your machine by erasing all the data off your machine and reinstalling the latest operating system, Mavericks. This has not resolved the issue of the screen going black when in use. The issue has occurred again for a very short and brief few times once the machine had fully turned on and after testing the issue did not appear again.
I'm sure the issue will more likely occur again, to repair the machine we would need to replace a part known as the main logic board. This repair is very expensive and will come roughly to £418.80."
£418.80 GBP, that's pretty much 25% of the original purchase price of the machine new, a Premium 'Pro' labelled machine just 3 years old at that. I cannot possibly afford to pay for the repair. I really despair.
This MBP has done no work hard enough for it to get stressed. It is used for some web surfing, online shopping, email, online flash based games but mostly for my kids homework. It has spent it's entire life on a table in our living room with the exception of it's Genius Bar trips.
I love Apple products, it's why as a family we own so many off them. Too many to list on a public forum as I don't want would be burglars inviting themselves around sometime. This issue has tainted my perception of both Apple and it's products. Not so much because of the fault, machines become faulty. No because it's a premium machine that cost me £2100 new and is little more than a paperweight at present just 3 years down the line. Some part of me if i'm honest was wishing but more than that expecting a company like Apple to say along the lines of "This has happened, it shouldn't have and will be repaired at no charge". There are many people suffering this kind of problem with this model and the existence of the knowledge base article must mean Apple knows it too. Just 3 years, £300 PCs last longer than that i'm sure. It does seem to be a very short lifespan for such a high end machine.
My apologies for droning on but I can neither afford the repair or do without the computer, my son is in his final GCSE year at school and my daughter in her pre GCSE year so a computer is critical for school homework research etc. I just do not know how to move forward, I haven't even picked the machine up yet!
This isn't a stomping Apple, one man crusade. I just need my MacBook fixed.
If anyone has had this problem and had it satisfactory resolved, knows who to speak to that may help resolve the issue please let me know.
Any other advice will be more than welcome.

Ive repaired 1000s of laptops over the years (translate: diagnose and replace parts).
Its not that old, Ive owned 100s of laptops (most were free) ....some I still have are nearly 13 years old and still perfect, ....some extremely expensive ones died in under a year.
other than becoming obsolete at some point, there isnt really any "will spoil on" data like Milk for solid state computer parts, ....alas.
You can have a $5000 laptop die in 4 months, and a junker one keep kicking after 10 years.... Ive seen that firsthand countless times.
Common logic dictates that "very expensive = long life" in computers,..... but all the repair people will tell you just the opposite.
I know you have a gripe, I get that all too well honestly .

Aperture Library Issues on NAS - Advice Needed

List-
Need some practical advice here. I've got a 90GB Aperture library that resides on a NAS (QNAP 419P II) that is experiencing major issues. Understood that having the library live on a non-HFS+, non-local drive is not advised by Apple, but it's been there for two years with no issues to speak of.
I had a power failure occur that seems to have done some damage to the library in some way. Upon opening the library, I got an error that said that there were inconsistencies with the file and that it needed to be repaired. I repaired it, and noticed something strange. In almost all files, the picture resolution was poor and both the camera and lens information was gone--in addition to the fact that the Adjustments capability was disabled.
I ran the Aperture first aid and ran all three processes--concluding with the full library rebuild. It looked to be successful and resolution, previews, and picture info returned--but halfway through the preview reprocessing the process just stopped and the beach ball of death ensued. I let it run overnight and it never recovered. I had to force quit and now if I reopen the file it say that there are inconsistencies and that the library needs to be repaired, which won't help.
I also tried to move the library off of the NAS an onto the local drive, but encountered an Error - 50 message--something that apparently is well known in the NAS world where Mac permissions get screwy when dealing with non HFS+ drives.
I have a backup of the original library, but it is sitting in a cloud repository (CrashPlan) that will take time and money to restore.
All of the masters are intact in the Aperture directory, and I have very few major adjustments made to any photos. Aperture is really just a repository for me.
So any practical advice would be appreciated as to how I can create a new local Aperture library and get all of the existing photo files there. I am pretty much giving up on the idea of getting the existing NAS-based library to work properly, so this is more of a real-world question on how to create a new library and eliminate whatever issues there are with the other Aperture files. It looks like everything in the Aperture package is in place, but the library itself is just malfunctioning.
I am also considering moving everything into iPhoto as well, as Aperture may simply be more than I need for my usage. If is is faster and a but simpler to manage, that could be the right answer as well.
Thanks in advance for any ideas or guidance.

The problem is most likely with the library itself being located on the NAS.
But you can have a hybrid solution where the library is located on your internal drive while the actual image files are located externally, eg on your NAS. Image files stored within the Apeture library are called "managed" while image files stored externally are called "referenced". Whichever approach you take, the process is the same:
If you try to make a new Library from your masters, you will lose your project structure. The resulting mess will be in accordance to how you created your projects. Basically, if you look at your Masters folder, that's what you'll end up with when you import your masters. If that isn't a problem, the process is simple
Step 1: Prep.
Move or copy your masters out of the library bundle to a folder (to make them more accesible in finder).
Step 2: Create new library.
Within Aperture, from the File menu "Switch to Library -> Other/New..." to create a new Library on your internal drive.
Set the preferences to indicate previews/faces etc. I'd turn these off for now as they will slow you down.
Step 3: Import your images.
Within your new library, File -> Import - Folders as Projects. This gives you a dialog where you specifiy what and where to import.
If you choose "Import folders as: Folders and Projects" you will get a folder structure that matches the Masters folder, with projects at the end of the chain with names like 20120213-200100.
If you choose "Import folders as: Projects and Albums" you will get a single Project called "Masters" with a folder and Album structure that matches the Masters folder.
Neither of these will look particularly great. If you want to avoid this mess, here's what I'd try.
Fix your library again like you did before. After the rebuild, go to the Aperture activity window (SHIFT + CMD + 0) and cancel the preview generation process before it has chance to hang. This should give you a sem-functional library, hopefully functional enough for the next step:
Select all images and use File -> Relocate Original to move your original files out of the library. During this process you can specify that the originals are stored in sub-folders that match the project name, within a parent folder if required.
This gives you a much neater structure for importing into your new library where the projects will get the folder names (which will be your existing project names). It may not be perfect, for example if you have the same project name in different folders and don't/can't segregate them, but it's a lot cleaner than just importing your masters folder.
Andy

Advice needed on Hyperion Job Opportunities

Hello,
I'm trying to venture into Hyperion Consulting and I need some advice on Hyperion Job Opportunities. I thought this would be a good place to ask.
Let me give you my background. I have a Bachelors degree in Computer Engineering, a Masters degree in Computer Science, and an MBA in Finance from a TOP 15 Business School in the U.S. I have been working as a Senior Financial Analyst for the past 5 yrs primarily doing Forecasting, Budgeting etc using Excel. I'm an advanced user of Excel proficient in vlookups, pivot tables etc. I've also used Hyperion sparingly to get budget and actuals numbers from the Hyperion system.
Now,I would like to get into Hyperion Consulting. I'm debating whether I should learn Hyperion Planning or HFM (Hyperion Financial Management) and I'm not able to decide. I want to base my decision on which one of these two systems (HFM/Hyperion Planning) has more job opportunities and pays a higher billing rate.
I've been told that job opportunities in HFM are much less than Hyperion Planning but the billing rates for HFM are higher than Hyperion Planning. Is this true?
I would really appreciate if anyone can advice me on this issue. It would be great if you could also provide me with the average billing rates for both HFM and Hyperion.
Thank you very much in advance for your help

Hi,
This topic is quite controversial for many consultants who chose to carry on with Planning. Let us be honest for a minute: As Planning consultants, we don't like HFM'ers much, but there is a reason behind it. They tend to perceive us like IT geeks. Well, you may argue that it's not particularly a bad thing but are we not more than that? Once I had a rather strange conversation with the head of HFM team in my previous firm. They were trying to hire someone to their team and interviewing a few people weekly but couldn't find anyone for a long time. I happened to ask him how it was going and he said: "well, you know, physical appearence and candidate's care for outfit is very important for us. We are not like you guys, we are dealing with CFOs and even CEOs s". I replied: "yeah, you are right, we do the design with janitors."
But on the contrary, most of the time Planning projects urge you to interact with a much larger community within the company than that of HFM's. I can say, for example, I have discussed with production unit heads about the processes involved in producing steel products, or petrochemicals. I have hands-on knowledge about telecommunication, insurance and government sectors. That's why it's so much fun for me and I love doing it.
About how well you make, it might be true that HFM consultants are paid little more than what Planning conultants are paid on initial grades. But as you move ahead in your carreer, the gap is closed. You can check monster or glassdoor yourself, Planning architects are paid more than HFM counterparts by a significant margin.
It's I think with little argument is a fact that, Planning requires you to be little more technical compared to HFM but in return you have more fun and gain more experience with it. It's a personal choice of course and I know people who does both. The world needs HFM'ers as much as it needs Planning consultants, well, maybe half as much.
Good luck.
Cheers,
Alp

Advice needed with Audio Punchin-in workflows for News

I'm testing a new FCP installation for a News Broadcaster and reached a major stumbling block with the recording of Voice Over in tight turnaround situations. Previously the broadcaster fully utilized the 'Audio Punch-in' functionality of Avid Media Composer but we are yet to find a satisfactory equivalent in FCP or Soundtrack.
The Avid workflow currently involves playing out our programme mix on Tracks 1 and 2 to our external mixer whilst simultaneously recording the Programme / VO mix from an external mixer on Avid Mojo i/p 3 and 4 onto tracks 3 and 4. They also record the clean VO from the external mixer via Avid Mojo i/p 5 and 6 to tracks 5 and 6. At any point the journalist could make a vo mistake so they would stop the vo recording and change the punch-in in point on the timeline and proceed to record over the required portion of vo with a defined playback preroll before the vo begins to record.
These tools ensure they can very quickly record vo and fix mistakes on the fly without the need for further editing. The broadcaster relies on this functionality for tight turnaround bulletins and without an equivalent toolset in FCP this could be reason enough not to make the switch to FCP :O(
To summarize they need the following features for voice over:
- simultaneous recording of 4 audio channels
- playing back the recorded track during pre-roll and then switching over to the inputs like a kind of EE operation
- defining the tracks for recording and overwriting the previously recorded material if you record the same part again.
Has anyone on this forum found a way to record VO like this on FCP or Soundtrack? Any advice would be gratefully received.
Independent Editor, Technician and Trainer
<Edited by Host>

Open the Help menu in FCP, and search the online user's manual with the words "Voice Over Tool"... FCP has something similar to Avid's tool... you can keep nat sound etc, and record VO right to the timeline window. Even do multiple takes. Video can be routed externally to a monitor in a VO booth too during the record. The talent can have a headphone as well.
Jerry

Pre-mastering advice needed

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