Academy Dashboard › Forum › Production › Mixing › Can we talk about the master bus chain, please? › Reply To: Can we talk about the master bus chain, please?
face (chris) JantonI use Logic.
My "mains" are "Stereo Out" in Logic terminology. The LR channels that actually get "printed" or played.
My mains have the Logic "Adaptive Limiter". "Out Ceiling" set to -1 dB, "Gain" set to 0.0 - whatever shows up in the WAV files will not be above -1.0 dB. I also have metering (post limiter) which I use to study the output.
I have a "mixBus" that I place all sorts of things on. Most buses/tracks go here. Routed to mains.
I have a "dryBus" that I route loops and samples through. Anything that has already been "processed" with ambience, reverbs, etc. Routed to mains.
Normally I leave the mixBus empty until I am through with balancing and rough mixing. All of the hard work is done on busses like DRUMS, GTRS, VOX, KEYS.
When I share songs I share the "mixBus"/mastered version of things, dutifully previews in iTunes before I send it out.
My biggest issue is making sure that I don't send audio through my room correction software when I print it. I have mostly solved that problem by "correcting my room" on a system-wide level (ARC2+Audio Hijack, could use Soundworks) so it's always "right" for the monitors. I do have to futz a bit when switching monitors, but it's not a burden.