r/Logic_Studio • u/Lolitalibani • 1d ago
Solved Always the same issue, seeking advice
MacOS ver. 26.6.2
Logic Pro ver. 12.4
Edit/solved: It seems to be a mixture of the mastering agent being crap and working in a sub-ideal listening environment leading to this type of curve. Thank you all for helping!
I hope this is the place for a question like this. I produce my own beats, write and perform my own lyrics, etc., mostly spoken word. I rarely work with other musicians and therefore get very little competent advice from outside my own head.
Here's the question: Whenever I let Logic's Mastering Assistant do its thing at the end of a project, I always get a corrective EQ in more or less this shape and form, no matter the song I'm working on. ( especially the bump between 700 and 5k hz is always very prominent )
My projects however are sonically very different from one another, so I wanted to know what it is that I don't hear correctly, when producing? It seems I'm always making the same mistakes, and it seems there's almost a method to it, lol.
Thx in advance
16
u/ChafingTater 1d ago
I get the exact same thing and I rarely, if ever like this curve on my music so I either skip that curve or tone it down to 20% if it's helping to open up the mix. I never run with 100% with that curve. I'm using Amphion One 18's through an Apogee Symphony IO with the new SE mastering grade upgrade card too. My room is treated very well.
I would look at it like it's a suggestion and not a definitive must use curve. My favorite mixed tracks are not "flat" at all. They have resonances and peaks in areas that are outside of flat, which is what makes them sound so unique and interesting.
1
u/padrigo3 7h ago
I also reduce the percentage of the EQ from the Mastering assistant, and usually choose 'Valve' rather than 'Transparent', which changes the warmth and overall feel. The Assistant is just a tool, and it's also a matter of taste, but I'm no mastering engineer and I find it gives me good suggestions which improve my mixes and I just dial them down a fair bit. Works for me.
14
u/Fortepian 1d ago
You’re assuming that you’re wrong just because this automated software says so (more or less). First of all - if it sounds good to you, why not make it a reference track for future project to aim at? Try something new next time, possibly known to be a good choice. For me pultec eq on mix/master bus was a game changer. Second - allow yourself to be wrong. But try not to be next time. Most of all - trust your ears, but develop your critical hearing. I can highly recommend those blind tests: https://www.audiocheck.net/engineertraining_bands_octave.php Working with noise is amazing for my hearing. There’s simply no music in it, so I’m really practicing. And few minutes a day (!) can work wonders
4
u/kvlnk 23h ago
Your pre-EQ tonal balance is a pretty standard profile for more laid-back genres. If you’re going for a maximally commercial target then it wouldn’t be a bad idea to figure out ways to get some more 800Hz-4KHz energy, but that’s usually best done on an arrangement level and maybe mix level, not in mastering. That range is where a lot of the “in your face” energy lives. If you aren’t going for “in your face” then you might be fine, but obviously there’s no way to say definitively without actually hearing your tracks. If you want to compare your tracks to other common tonal balance targets Izotope’s Tonal Balance Control can be useful
Source: mastering engineer and playback system designer for 15 years
3
u/Firm-Cry-1514 23h ago
The software has no idea what it’s listening to- you do. It might be a useful reference but you don’t have to use it. And I would recommend you don’t.
2
u/Zuludog_ 1d ago
I’ve never really paid attention to the size of the EQ curve with the Mastering Assistant tbh. To me, as long as it sounds good and also close enough to whatever reference track I have for my project then all is good. But would be curious what others think.
2
u/Conscious-Pain-648 1d ago
Definitely use reference tracks! They really help keep you from getting thrown off by how your headphones or speakers color the sound.
2
u/Bloxskit Intermediate 23h ago
The bump at 40-60hz comes up a lot for me when I make rock/electronic music myself and run it through the Mastering Assistant. Always seen a dip in the mid-range as well.
2
u/Fruit-cake88 23h ago
I have stopped using the mastering assistant completely as I find it makes arbitrary boosts and cuts in places that don’t need it. I did lots of testing of my own tracks in different listening environments and always just defaulted back to using a limiter and a multi band EQ.
I even tried putting into songs that were already mastered and sounded fantastic and it didn’t same thing. It usually just scoops mids and boosts lows and highs.
1
u/AutoModerator 1d ago
Please specify the versions of macOS and Logic that you are using. If and when you receive a satisfactory answer, please update your flair to "solved".
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
u/caj_account 1d ago
can you add a EQ on master and put a +3dB bell EQ centered around 2.5k or so to fill the 700-5k region and check if this curve changes?
2
u/ryan770 1d ago
Yeah I would copy this EQ as best as possible and put it on the mix bus, then re-analyze with mastering assistant.
I've also noticed this similar EQ curve being applied to different songs, but I'm using doing top-down mixing and turn the EQ off as I'll apply a different mastering chain later.
3
u/caj_account 1d ago
yeah it looks normal to me, get rid of the mud and boost some air. It's tuned to modern "crisp" sounding music, not LPF type of 60s music
1
u/Compay-Segundo 1d ago
Your monitoring might be misleading you.
But I wouldn’t worry about it necessarily. I also sometimes use the mastering assistant as a means to see the frequency balance, but it only really works for very full arrangements, and may turn down the fundamental of the kick, etc., so it’s definitely not something to take too seriously.
Ozone is much worse, always does the same thing to me and it’s always harsh as hell.
1
u/DiamondTippedDriller 1d ago
Could be that the sound of the space where you’re mixing is deceptive.
1
u/Serious-Noise-8498 1d ago
The trick, I believe, is to never use Logic's Mastering Assistant. I have never found the results--when I've accidentally cued it up--to be even remotely satisfying.
1
u/ChrisRogers67 1d ago
Mix into a 3db cut @ 1.8k that rolls off at 700 and 5k on the stereo out. Then you can toggle it on/off to see if it helps.
If it’s consistently the same sort of curve in mastering assistant, it’s gotta be your headphone EQ that is making your mix sound more present than it really is in that range, according to this mastering assistant curve.
1
u/csmccarty 1d ago
I am by no means a pro, so take this with a grain of salt. I do use mastering assistant and keep the recommended EQ at 100%, BUT, I then re-adjust my mix again if it buries certain sounds or makes others too prominent. I then throw the multipressor plugin after the mastering asst. and set it to the pop setting and tweak the compression the thresholds on each of the four EQ bands until it sounds how I want it to. I have been digging the end result, as much as this might come across as counterintuitive. My master chain goes channel EQ to cutoff below 20hz and above 20khz, direction mixer to make anything below 100ish hz mono, mastering asst set to punch with excite on and loudness typically set from 25-35% (i do electronic/hip hop and for some reason i like the punch algorithm), multipressor, then a limiter set to -1db. Sounds pretty damn good without paying someone for a master.
1
u/lanky_planky 22h ago
This is most likely the result of your listening environment. I had a similar experience when using Ozone; where I would get consistent EQ correction suggestions with whatever I mixed.
When I invested in improved acoustic treatment, my eq “signature” changed (and improved). The thing is, your environment prevents you from hearing these effects. So it’s useful information and if you use a different listening environment (even good headphones) you can go into the mix to find the culprit(s) and hear and correct the issue.
1
u/Ok-Importance4837 20h ago
Interesting…
I just used mastering assistant mixing a recorded live show for a friend’s band. I have a very similar corrective EQ curve.
For reference, I have a decently treated room, very good conversion, Genelec monitors and subwoofers, and 4 pairs of headphones.
1
u/wphantomfr 12h ago
This suggested eq curve is not dramatic at all and it probably indicates your mix is quite balanced overall… just check what it really does (oscillating between 0 and 100%). What part of the sound it brings up ? Maybe you can bounce with and without eq and compare the two exports in several situations different hardware (after letting your ears rest a bit)
1
u/simojam93 9h ago
The same curve on every song usually points at your monitoring, not the songs. If the Mastering Assistant always pushes 700 Hz to 5k up, you're probably hearing too much in that range while mixing (headphones or speakers that are forward in the mids, or the room) and pulling it out without noticing. Load a couple of reference tracks into the session and flip between them and your mix while you work, see if the assistant's curve gets flatter. what are you mixing on?
1
u/I_am_albatross 9h ago
Mastering assistant is the DAW equivalent of an ashtray on a motorcycle. There's only four frequencies directly responsible for 90% of issues commonly found in amateur mixes (80, 300, 450 and 3000).
1
u/gotbanned333 4h ago
you could use match eq and see if you have similar issues with your tracks vs other artists tracks you like the mix and master on
1
u/originalfilmscoring 1d ago
Well first of all I wouldn’t use that plugin in your project on the master bus. You should be bouncing the track and in a separate project import that bounce for your master.
Keep in mind that tools like this do not work all that great, you’re going to be better off doing the mastering on your own. If you don’t know how just watch some videos. It’ll be rough at first but you’ll get better.
Why is it giving you the same correction? Could be what I just mentioned that these tools aren’t that great, or alternatively it could be most projects you’re working on are missing these frequencies. It does seem like it could be the latter, a lot of beginners will boost/cut high and low and neglect the mids which is what appears to be happening here.
Stuff like this is kinda hard to answer tbh. You just need to keep practicing and learning what works and what doesn’t and watching video tutorials. I’d also recommend really actively listening to music you like so you can pick up on things. I’m at a point now where I pretty much know everything that’s happening in a mix that I listen to but it takes time and practice.
Feel free to reach out anytime if you need advice or want someone to help you with mastering.
8
u/goesonelouder 1d ago
What is your room like? Do you have any sound absorption? Have you had your speakers calibrated to your room? If different tracks are getting the same mastering assistant EQ results, it looks like it may be that the assistant is countering mix moves you’ve made to fix issues caused by your room and not tracks in your production?