{"id":5787,"date":"2019-01-07T11:17:21","date_gmt":"2019-01-07T16:17:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/?p=5787"},"modified":"2023-07-25T15:55:17","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T19:55:17","slug":"master-with-reference-tracks-izotope-ozone-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/master-with-reference-tracks-izotope-ozone-8\/","title":{"rendered":"How to master with Ozone 8 Advanced and reference tracks"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>We\u2019ve reached the final step of our music creation process: mastering.<\/h1>\n<p>In two previous articles, we\u2019ve navigated different preceding stages of music creation. At first we were in production, where <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/create-vocal-harmonies-izotope-vocalsynth-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">we created compelling vocal harmonies with VocalSynth 2.<\/a> Once we finished laying down our musical ideas, we explored mixing, learning <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/mix-vocals-izotope-nectar-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">how to mix our lead vocals with the rest of the track.<\/a> We\u2019re now ready to apply the final touch to our track &#8211; let\u2019s finish it off with some mastering, which we\u2019ll implement with iZotope\u2019s Ozone 8 Advanced.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>iZotope recently released <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/plugins\/38765941-ozone-9-advanced-vst-au-by-izotope\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Ozone 9 Advanced<\/strong><\/a>, which offers even more powerful features \u2014 learn more about them <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/how-to-master-izotope-ozone\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>here.<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ll be working with the same project we\u2019ve been using throughout <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/tag\/new-years-resolutions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">this mini-series<\/a> for demonstration purposes:<\/p>\n<div id=\"mp3jWrap_0\" class=\"mjp-s-wrapper s-graphic unsel-mjp \" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><span id=\"playpause_wrap_mp3j_0\" class=\"wrap_inline_mp3j\" style=\"font-weight:700;\"><span class=\"gfxbutton_mp3j play-mjp\" id=\"playpause_mp3j_0\" style=\"font-size:18px;\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span>&nbsp;<span class=\"group_wrap\"><span class=\"bars_mp3j\"><span class=\"loadB_mp3j\" id=\"load_mp3j_0\"><\/span><span class=\"posbarB_mp3j\" id=\"posbar_mp3j_0\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"T_mp3j\" id=\"T_mp3j_0\" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><\/span><span class=\"indi_mp3j\" style=\"font-size:12.6px;\" id=\"statusMI_0\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div><span class=\"s-nosolution\" id=\"mp3j_nosolution_0\" style=\"display:none;\"><\/span><script>\nMP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_0 = [\n\t{ name: \"\", formats: [\"mp3\"], mp3: \"aHR0cHM6Ly9zcGxpY2UuY29tL2Jsb2cvd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMTkvMDEvV2VsbC1UYWtlLU9uLXRoZS1Xb3JsZC1SZWZlcmVuZS1NYXN0ZXIubXAz\", counterpart:\"\", artist: \"\", image: \"\", imgurl: \"\" }\n];\n<\/script>\n\n<script>MP3jPLAYERS[0] = { list: MP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_0, tr:0, type:'single', lstate:'', loop:false, play_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pause_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pp_title:'', autoplay:false, download:false, vol:100, height:'' };<\/script>\n<p>Although it\u2019s just a small excerpt, the track sounds fairly polished &#8211; it\u2019s loud without being absolutely squashed, the stereo image is clear, and the mix nicely spans the entire frequency spectrum. Let\u2019s explore how we achieved this master using reference tracks and Ozone 8 Advanced.<\/p>\n<h2>Why use reference tracks?<\/h2>\n<p>Chances are you\u2019ve heard this cautionary advice before: \u201cdon\u2019t master your own song.\u201d There\u2019s a good reason why many people stand by this; if you\u2019ve spent countless hours producing any track, it\u2019s likely that you\u2019ve lost some perspective and objectivity along the way. A fresh pair of ears that hasn\u2019t listened to the track hundreds of times can help make less biased adjustments that you may have not considered.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s not to say that creating a good self-master is <em>impossible<\/em>. However, it means that you have to be extra mindful of using tools that help you stay grounded and objective. Metering and room treatment are key, but they can take time and resources to set up. Using reference tracks (professionally mixed and mastered tracks that you can measure your master against), however, is a habit that you can start practicing immediately. Ozone 8 Advanced\u2019s <strong>Master Assistant<\/strong> allows you to maximize the power of using references in just several simple steps.<\/p>\n<h2>1. Upload reference tracks to Ozone 8 Advanced<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5793 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-add-reference\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Add-Reference-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/>Start off by adding an instance of Ozone 8 Advanced to your master track. Before we pull up <strong>Master<\/strong> <strong>Assistant<\/strong>, let\u2019s first add some reference tracks by hitting the <strong>Reference<\/strong> button on the bottom right of the GUI. You want to ideally select tracks that are in a similar genre \/ style to yours, and the higher quality files you have, the better. For this track, I\u2019ve uploaded three songs that I want to emulate the masters of:<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5795 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-reference-uploaded\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ozone-reference-uploaded-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>2. Create a starting point with Master Assistant<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5792 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-what-are-you-going-for\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-What-are-you-going-for-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Now, go to <strong>Master Assistant<\/strong>, select <strong>Reference<\/strong> as your target, and choose one of your uploaded tracks. Once you hit \u201cNext,\u201d Master Assistant will prompt you to start feeding it audio. It\u2019s important that you play the loudest part of your song here &#8211; in my case, I\u2019ll play the second half of the excerpt, where the entire arrangement kicks in. As soon as you start playing audio, Master Assistant will get to work by implementing corrections and enhancements that bring your track closer to your reference track\u2019s loudness, spectral balance, etc.:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5794 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-Assistant-working\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Assistant-Working-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Once it\u2019s done analyzing, Master Assistant will offer you a mastering chain that\u2019s customized to your reference track. Mine looks like this:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5790 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-reference-done\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Reference-done-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>3. Enhance the master with your own creative decisions<\/h2>\n<p>Now that we have a starting point that\u2019s both intelligent and unbiased, we can go in and make creative adjustments as we see fit. I liked the EQ adjustments that Master Assistant made, but I immediately felt that the <strong>Maximizer<\/strong> (what Ozone calls their limiters) was doing too much work in bringing up the gain. As a general rule, you want to stage your gain at the mastering stage. Though it\u2019s admittedly satisfying to turn on the limiter and hear your loudness triple, this isn\u2019t good for your mix &#8211; you\u2019ll be prone to pumping and tons of transient loss due to the limiter chopping off large amounts of your signal.<\/p>\n<p>To combat this (and to add some additional color), I\u2019m going to stage my gain by adding a subtle <strong>Vintage Compressor<\/strong> and an <strong>Exciter<\/strong> before the signal hits the Maximizer:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5789 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-compressor\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-compressor-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Pro Tip:\u00a0<\/strong>Note that although loudness is important <em>to an extent<\/em> in creating a track that competes with commercial mixes, the rise of streaming services and the fall of CDs has made it less of a necessity (in fact, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.soundonsound.com\/techniques\/mastering-streaming-services\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">many streaming services\u2019 normalization standards will punish tracks that lack dynamic range<\/a>). Increasing loudness is undoubtedly still a part of the mastering process, but prioritize preserving dynamic range and crafting a final product that sounds exciting and clean, no matter what level it\u2019s played at.<\/p>\n<h2>4. A\/B with your reference tracks and keep making adjustments<\/h2>\n<p>The most important thing you can do with reference tracks is to A\/B them against your track. Ozone 8 Advanced makes this easy &#8211; simply return to the <strong>Reference<\/strong> window to select any reference track, identify a particular section in the waveform that you want to A\/B (Ozone intelligently places some adjustable markers for you), and hit the circular icon next to the Reference button to seamlessly go back and forth between your track and the reference.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5788 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare.png\" alt=\"Ozone-8-master-compare\" width=\"2336\" height=\"1428\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare.png 2336w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-400x245.png 400w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-355x217.png 355w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Ozone-8-Master-compare-2048x1252.png 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 2336px) 100vw, 2336px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 2336px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 2336\/1428;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Although Master Assistant is a trusty second opinion, mastering is ultimately an artistic process. Use it primarily as an intelligent suggestion that you can work off of, and don\u2019t be afraid to challenge its settings after you\u2019ve done your own A\/B-ing.<\/p>\n<p>To wrap up, let\u2019s hear how our track sounded before we mastered with Ozone 8 Advanced:<\/p>\n<div id=\"mp3jWrap_1\" class=\"mjp-s-wrapper s-graphic unsel-mjp \" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><span id=\"playpause_wrap_mp3j_1\" class=\"wrap_inline_mp3j\" style=\"font-weight:700;\"><span class=\"gfxbutton_mp3j play-mjp\" id=\"playpause_mp3j_1\" style=\"font-size:18px;\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span>&nbsp;<span class=\"group_wrap\"><span class=\"bars_mp3j\"><span class=\"loadB_mp3j\" id=\"load_mp3j_1\"><\/span><span class=\"posbarB_mp3j\" id=\"posbar_mp3j_1\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"T_mp3j\" id=\"T_mp3j_1\" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><\/span><span class=\"indi_mp3j\" style=\"font-size:12.6px;\" id=\"statusMI_1\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div><span class=\"s-nosolution\" id=\"mp3j_nosolution_1\" style=\"display:none;\"><\/span><script>\nMP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_1 = [\n\t{ name: \"\", formats: [\"mp3\"], mp3: \"aHR0cHM6Ly9zcGxpY2UuY29tL2Jsb2cvd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMTkvMDEvV2VsbC1UYWtlLU9uLXRoZS1Xb3JsZC1Vbm1hc3RlcmVkLm1wMw==\", counterpart:\"\", artist: \"\", image: \"\", imgurl: \"\" }\n];\n<\/script>\n\n<script>MP3jPLAYERS[1] = { list: MP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_1, tr:0, type:'single', lstate:'', loop:false, play_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pause_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pp_title:'', autoplay:false, download:false, vol:100, height:'' };<\/script>\n<p>&#8230;and how it sounds after we applied mastering with Ozone 8 Advanced:<\/p>\n<div id=\"mp3jWrap_2\" class=\"mjp-s-wrapper s-graphic unsel-mjp \" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><span id=\"playpause_wrap_mp3j_2\" class=\"wrap_inline_mp3j\" style=\"font-weight:700;\"><span class=\"gfxbutton_mp3j play-mjp\" id=\"playpause_mp3j_2\" style=\"font-size:18px;\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span>&nbsp;<span class=\"group_wrap\"><span class=\"bars_mp3j\"><span class=\"loadB_mp3j\" id=\"load_mp3j_2\"><\/span><span class=\"posbarB_mp3j\" id=\"posbar_mp3j_2\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"T_mp3j\" id=\"T_mp3j_2\" style=\"font-size:18px;\"><\/span><span class=\"indi_mp3j\" style=\"font-size:12.6px;\" id=\"statusMI_2\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div><span class=\"s-nosolution\" id=\"mp3j_nosolution_2\" style=\"display:none;\"><\/span><script>\nMP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_2 = [\n\t{ name: \"\", formats: [\"mp3\"], mp3: \"aHR0cHM6Ly9zcGxpY2UuY29tL2Jsb2cvd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMTkvMDEvV2VsbC1UYWtlLU9uLXRoZS1Xb3JsZC1SZWZlcmVuZS1NYXN0ZXIubXAz\", counterpart:\"\", artist: \"\", image: \"\", imgurl: \"\" }\n];\n<\/script>\n\n<script>MP3jPLAYERS[2] = { list: MP3jPLAYLISTS.inline_2, tr:0, type:'single', lstate:'', loop:false, play_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pause_txt:'&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;', pp_title:'', autoplay:false, download:false, vol:100, height:'' };<\/script>\n<p>This concludes <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/tag\/new-years-resolutions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">our mini-series<\/a> that covered <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/create-vocal-harmonies-izotope-vocalsynth-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">producing<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/mix-vocals-izotope-nectar-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">mixing<\/a>, and mastering a track with <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/plugins\/38599625-vocalsynth-2-vst-au-by-izotope\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">VocalSynth 2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/plugins\/1025-nectar-3-vst-au-by-izotope\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Nectar 3<\/a>, and Ozone 8 Advanced respectively. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn how to use Ozone 8 Advanced\u2019s Master Assistant to maximize the power of reference tracks in just several simple steps.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":5803,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1697,1696,1702,1704,1659],"tags":[159,679,1676,163,333,1473],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to master with Ozone 8 Advanced and reference tracks - Blog | Splice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Reference tracks (professionally mixed and mastered tracks that you can measure your master against) are essential to creating a professional-sounding master. Ozone 8 Advanced\u2019s Master Assistant allows you to maximize the power of using references in just several simple steps.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/master-with-reference-tracks-izotope-ozone-8\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to master with Ozone 8 Advanced and reference tracks - Blog | Splice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Reference tracks (professionally mixed and mastered tracks that you can measure your master against) are essential to creating a professional-sounding master. 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