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Mastering engineers have thousands of recording and mixing techniques to make top notch CD’s and Albums. CD Mastering is one of the best kept secrets of top producers today. As most everything is recorded in the digital realm, top mastering houses will do something called analog mastering. What happens is the digital version is converted into an analog version so it can be mastered through original analog processors, though in many instances it is also recorded to an analog two-track system to acheive the warmth that analog tape gives to the recording. It also takes the harshness away from all digital recordings, and can round out the low end giving the bass frequencies that nice analog sound.
Though CD mastering often does cost a little more than basic digital mastering, since it takes additional time and there are the costs for the analog tape, but for serious projects, it can be the final step in achieving the best quality for the album. Since digital recordings can feel ”cold” to a lot of listeners because no matter how loud the signal gets, digital gives you purely digital reproduction. Analog tape, on the other hand, softens as the volume increases in level, so peaks are rounded rather than clipped, which turns into a warm, rich sound as the harmonic series is balanced out. To the audience, this is more pleasing. In addition, an increased input signal will create a more exaggerated difference. Since the top ranges saturate first, this means that as the signal goes up, the highs naturally smooth out, creating a less harsh, and a nicer recording. This is the magic of layback mastering.
There are various mastering studios around the country that have the tools to do analog mastering, however, it also requires you have a mastering engineer with the background to get optimal results possible with the studio gear. I’ve tried out a few studios and one of the most impressive is www.stevethomasmastering.com. He is a top analog CD mastering engineer, yet he also has done thousands of albums as a recording engineer as well. In addition, his results is comparable to some of the most pricey mastering studios in the country. If you already have someone you’re working with there’s nothing wrong with that. But, I would certainly to look him up.
