{"id":10482,"date":"2020-05-08T13:34:51","date_gmt":"2020-05-08T17:34:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/?p=10482"},"modified":"2025-10-08T13:25:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T17:25:21","slug":"mastering-ozone-elements-eq","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/mastering-ozone-elements-eq\/","title":{"rendered":"Mastering basics with iZotope’s Ozone 9 Elements: EQ"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Splice has partnered with iZotope to offer the mastering plugin Ozone 9 Elements (a $129 value) for free to all Splice users until June 5th, 2020. <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At Splice, we understand that these are challenging times for many music creators, and are committed to getting through this together by providing resources and educational material to improve your music production skills. To get Ozone 9 Elements, all you need to do is log into your Splice account (you can create an account for free here<\/a>) and simply download the plugin.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

iZotope’s Ozone 9 Elements is a beginner-friendly mastering plugin that anyone can master (pun intended), consisting of three modules: EQ, Imager, and Maximizer. iZotope is known for making various high-quality mixing and mastering plugins, many of which are available on Rent-to-Own<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this upcoming series of Mastering basics with iZotope’s Ozone 9 Elements <\/em>articles, we’ll go through each module of the plugin, building our own master along the way. Feel free to download the plugin and follow along. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, before we dive into mastering a track, let’s answer some essential questions about mastering and why we master in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is mastering?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mastering is the process of finalizing a song by applying subtle technical touches that allow it to compete commercially with other songs in the market. It’s usually the final ‘polishing’ step before releasing your song to the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When should I master?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In most cases, you\u2019ll master when you’re ready to distribute your songs to streaming platforms. However, it’s not uncommon to apply a quick master to your demo track before sending it to other producers or friends for feedback. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why master?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the primary goals of mastering is to make sure that your track is up to commercial loudness. Have you ever noticed how your mix in your DAW is almost always softer than a track on Spotify? Mastering solves that. That said, mastering is also about applying the icing on the cake \u2013 achieving good tonal balance and making the mix sound better, regardless of level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that we have a basic understanding of mastering, let’s dive into how Ozone 9 Elements can help take your mastering to the next level. One excellent feature in Ozone 9 Elements that’s great for beginners is Mastering Assistant<\/strong>. This feature listens to your mix and intelligently suggests a starting point for each module. If you’re lost or unsure at any point, give Mastering Assistant a try and go from there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mastering basics: EQ<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the mix we will be working with for this series: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Make sure the bass is balanced<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the song above, you\u2019ll notice that the mix is pretty bass-heavy. The bass notes hit pretty hard with a lot of sub undertones that tend to muddy up the mix at some parts. This can easily be solved by using a high pass filter to remove some of the super-low frequencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Using<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the image above, I applied a high-pass filter at around 60 Hz to pull back some of the heavy sub frequencies. This is a very easy trick that can do a lot without much EQ wizardry. Take a listen below and hear how the bass is less pronounced, increasing the clarity of the overall mix:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Make sure the mix isn\u2019t too harsh<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When a mix is harsh, it usually means that there\u2019s some mid to high frequencies that are annoying to the ear. In this mix, I noticed that the vocals are sibilant in certain parts, so I decided to do a 6 db EQ cut at around 7.4 kHz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Using<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hear the difference:<\/p>\n\n\n\n