{"id":12752,"date":"2017-12-15T16:52:27","date_gmt":"2017-12-15T21:52:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/syncsummit.com\/?p=12752"},"modified":"2017-12-15T17:21:25","modified_gmt":"2017-12-15T22:21:25","slug":"mastering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/syncsummit.com\/mastering\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Good Production and Mastering is Key to Sync Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

By <\/em>Mark Frieser<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Founder, <\/em>SyncSummit<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

One of the most important conversations last week at our 2017 SyncSummit Hollywood<\/u><\/strong><\/a> wasn\u2019t on the agenda (though it definitely will be in the future) \u2013 and that\u2019s the importance of making sure any music you submit to a project is well produced.<\/p>\n

Many times, production quality is going to be the difference between a music supervisor or coordinator outright rejecting a track for further consideration or including it for possible usage.<\/p>\n

Think about it this way \u2013 someone in charge of music for an ad, a brand, TV show, film or other project like an App or video game has hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of tracks they have to go through to find the right music for a project.<\/p>\n

And, in doing so, to some degree, their work is a process of elimination \u2013 as they are looking for the best possible music for a project from a creative and process standpoint, at the same time, they are looking to quickly narrow down the choices they submit to their team.<\/p>\n

Bad Metadata? Eliminated.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Not following the creative direction of the brief? Eliminated.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Unconfirmed ownership or unknown IP? Eliminated.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The amount of music that\u2019s simply thrown in the trash due to the three factors above by music supervisors and coordinators is staggering.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why, much of the time, we focus on these issues in our blog and in the conversations at SyncSummit<\/u><\/strong><\/a> \u2013 what is good Metadata<\/u><\/strong><\/a> and why it\u2019s important, doing your research and delivering music that supervisors want<\/u><\/strong><\/a> and knowing who owns what and if you have the right to represent it<\/u><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

All of the above factors are important, but when all is said and done, if your music isn\u2019t at a basic level of production that matches that of the broadcast, film, ad or other professional use, most music supervisors and coordinators won\u2019t give your music another thought because it\u2019s literally unusable<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\n

The Basics of Good Production and Mastering<\/strong><\/h2>\n

So at the point, you\u2019re likely thinking, well, Mark, that\u2019s great advice of what not to do, but what does \u201cGood Production\u201d mean, and how do it get it?<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s a fairly difficult question to answer beyond a pithy \u201cwell, find a good producer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kind of stating the obvious.<\/p>\n

And really, a lot of elements of good music production, like rhythm, melody, feeling, etc. are very subjective and based on the type of music and the type of producer, so I\u2019m not going to get into those purely creative elements here.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the subject of a future article best written by a great producer, not me.<\/p>\n

That said, even if I cannot give you all the ins and outs of what makes a great production from a creative standpoint, I can at least provide you with some baselines of what you should do before submitting a track to a music supervisor, sync agent or anyone else involved with a project.<\/p>\n

\n

1.\u00a0Record your music in properly set up home or professional studio.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Music recorded in a bedroom or a garage sounds like it was recorded in a bedroom or a garage.\u00a0If that\u2019s the kind of environment you\u2019re recording your music in, don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Except in very rare cases (like a TV show where the character is a musician recording a song in their bedroom), this quality of recording will be deleted.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why, you should record music you want to submit to projects that were either recorded in a professional studio or a home studio in a dedicated room<\/em> that\u2019s properly set up.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a great resource to know what\u2019s needed if you want to set up a home studio:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/ehomerecordingstudio.com\/recording-studio-equipment-list\/<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\n

2.\u00a0Noise Reduce<\/strong><\/h2>\n

No one wants to hear a chair squeaking, hissing amps or footsteps in a track they\u2019re evaluating.\u00a0If it\u2019s not a deliberate creative choice, get rid of it.<\/p>\n

\n

3.\u00a0Mix Down<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Mixing is an art worth its own post, but for now, it’s important that you or someone who you\u2019re working with understands and applies fader balancing, panning, equalization, reverb, compression and automation to give the music the right feel.<\/p>\n

\n

4.\u00a0Re-Record to a single file<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It sounds obvious, but it needs to be said \u2013 after the mix down, the file needs to be bounced, or re-recorded to a single file.<\/p>\n

\n

5.\u00a0Mastering<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Personally, this is where I think most people submitting fall short.\u00a0Someone with a good ear (read all of the people you submit to) can tell when a track wasn\u2019t properly mastered or not mastered at all.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My advice is to go pay a little extra money to get someone who knows what they are doing to master your music \u2013 it\u2019s not an easy thing to do, and it makes a huge difference. You really should outsource this job if you can afford it.<\/p>\n

In any case, make sure that, at the very least, someone (you or a producer) maximizes loudness, balances frequencies, widens the high end to give you a better final sound.<\/p>\n

The bottom line: Get your music mastered properly. Pay for it. It\u2019s worth every penny.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0Music Delivery.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is an important point.<\/p>\n

Though there\u2019s no problem with submitting music (initially) as a 192 kbps MP3 for streaming\/download, you MUST have a high-quality version available for the actual usage.<\/p>\n

I would suggest a CD Quality WAV File at a minimum of 44.1 Khz\/16 Bits.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

In Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Good production in music submitted for projects is every bit as crucial as any other element \u2013 the song\u2019s greatness from a creative standpoint, and process points like ownership and good metadata.<\/p>\n

If there is one takeaway from this article, it’s this:<\/h1>\n

PAY SOMEONE TO MASTER YOUR MUSIC
\n<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

Don’t skimp on that \u2013 it makes all the difference in the world. I\u2019ll put a link to Landr \u2013 which is a great cloud-based mastering solution if you want to DIY, but really, go get a professional to master your tracks, k?<\/p>\n

Here’s some links for you to explore further resources:<\/strong><\/h2>\n