Disk Edits Mastering facility.
Yet another fascinating time in a pro studio. And this one was fascinating for very different reasons. I really enjoyed the contrast between Disk-Edits and Mixmasters. A few notable points of difference, for me:
Mixmasters
• Control rooms and recording space were designed in a relatively unscientific manner – based on what he’d seen work in other places, rather than being specially designed by an acoustic engineer (Sounded great, of course..)
• A combination of analog and digital gear – with analog being the strong focus
• A more casual approach to recording and mixing
Disk-Edits
• More obviously a mastering focus – more precision evident at various levels
• Precisely calibrated monitoring setup
• Precisely designed and built room – sounded pretty amazing too
• Combo of analog and digital gear – but with the precision of digital being more emphasised
Yes, all of those stereotypical pictures of people in white coats with clipboards doing mastering seemed to fit well with the Disk-Edits experience. And I certainly don’t mean that to be patronising or derogatory in any way. I found the different approach taken by the 3 facilities we’ve visited so far to be interesting and liberating.
All of their approaches to their work seem valid. And this serves to emphasise the depth to this process of doing audio: there’s science, there’s art, and there’s plenty of room for individuality.
On the down side, I also found the experience this week to be pretty discouraging. I had some tracks played that sounded TERRIBLE. I overcompensated and blew out my bottom end. I was pretty depressed about this little reality check – because it allowed me to grasp that I’m at least 10 years off being reasonably competent at this stuff. (My reasoning for this comes from my experience of professional development as a Social Worker – it’s taken me many years to get where I am today, and I can see some of the rookie mistakes I made in that field showing themselves in my little audio world… So I’m at the start of a long and interesting journey, I suppose.)
