{"id":3801,"date":"2017-10-05T11:04:18","date_gmt":"2017-10-05T15:04:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/?p=3801"},"modified":"2019-10-03T17:48:40","modified_gmt":"2019-10-03T21:48:40","slug":"mastering-with-ozone-8-compression","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/mastering-with-ozone-8-compression\/","title":{"rendered":"Mastering with Ozone 8: Compression"},"content":{"rendered":"

This blog post is part of a series on Mastering with Ozone 8 Standard. If you missed a tutorial, click on the topics below to catch up:<\/p>\n

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  1. What is mastering?<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Signal Flow & Metering<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. EQ<\/a><\/li>\n
  4. Compression<\/a><\/li>\n
  5. Limiting<\/a><\/li>\n
  6. Preparation<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Ozone 9 Advanced<\/strong><\/a>, the latest version of iZotope\u2019s mastering suite, offers even more powerful features \u2014 check out the guide here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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    There are plenty of tutorials and articles out there about compression, what it is and what it isn’t. In this tutorial, we’re going to focus specifically on compression for mastering and how we can approach it as you tackle your own masters.<\/p>\n

    \"mastering-101-ozone-8\"<\/p>\n

    What does a compressor do?<\/h2>\n

    A compressor reduces the dynamic range of a mix. This means reducing the difference between the loudest and softest parts of your mix.\u00a0The tradeoff here is that, with a smaller dynamic range, you can push the mix louder\u00a0by compressing.<\/p>\n

    That matters in mastering. Compression can do many other things, like make something more punchy, increase detail or make things sound fuller, but in mastering a<\/strong> compressor makes things louder.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Although mastering engineers use limiters to make mixes louder, solely using a limiter to do all the legwork will produce unwanted effects such as pumping and distortion. But splitting the work between a compressor and limiter will yield a more natural result.<\/p>\n

    Does the mix need compression?<\/h2>\n

    The majority of the mixes these days come in so hot that a compressor is not required. Use your ears<\/strong> when you get a mix. If you find that the mix itself is already pretty compressed, adding mastering compression probably won’t help it much.<\/p>\n

    Make use of Ozone 8’s metering to see if you’re hitting target levels without additional compression.<\/p>\n

    How much compression do I need?<\/h2>\n