CPU load and audio degradation ?

[jonetsu]

Just re-read a bit in Mike Senior's excellent "Mixing Secrets" first edition quoting mix engineer Justin Niebank saying that as plugins are piled up and CPU load augments, a mix tends to feel "smaller". I reckon that this might not be exactly measurable in metering terms, but has anyone also felt a similar thing ? Must be difficult to gauge without comparing snapshots are we 'grow' into a mix as its being done.

Cheers.

[doncolga]

That's an awesome book that I must get back to and complete. I can't say I've heard this myself, but I'd definitely agree with the principle. With all the digital tools we have, it's very easy to through everything at something and it's completely unnecessary. Regrettably, some people feel totally obligated to do just that. I totally roll my eyes when I see have a dozen or more plugins on one channel. Granted I have that I add on my MB32C master bus, but one is for referencing and one Izotope Tonal Balance, just as a check that I've not gone nuts on something. They don't actually change the sound and get turned off for the final render. On Studio One I have I think I have six, again, two don't change any sounds.

Donny

[jonetsu]

I do use plugins here and there although I find the key is in knowing them well and finding where they can be used exactly for what they can do in making the sound better. I tend to follow Mike Senior closely and as such I always aim for a balance first, w/o any plugins which are sweetening. Sweetening is good but too much sugar is not.

Knowing what a plugin does and how it can be put to good use in a mix is not that easy I find but worthwhile to gauge in the long run. I might take months of use on tests and such for me to get somewhat of a handle on uses although right from the beginning it must be clear that it can be put to creative uses, the the possibility exists.

Here are two plugins that's on the radar now. I find CurveEQ to be able to bring out subtleties on a sound and I like that it works as an envelope that can be shaped using three curves. Points can be grouped and moved. Each point cannot be configured. There are no high/low/peak/notch/bandpass choices. It is strictly an EQ that works with an envelope shaped using three different curves. Moreover it can also use 4 different audio groups, each with three shaping curves. It can take snapshots of different tracks and take one track as a reference and apply the EQ envelope to another track. I'm looking forward to put that to use if I decide to make an EP or something so that the tracks will be much in the same ballpark.

The other one is MSaturatorMB. With all the talks about how saturation can enrich a sound, this avenue has to be explored and this one does it with a certain number of bands each can have its own saturation configuration while the crossovers themselves can be a bit wild, from traditional crossovers to level, mid/side, panorama and spectrum crossovers. Lots to ponder about in there.

   
   

[doncolga]

Hey, I'm actually trying out that MSaturatorMB. I'm really interested in that one.

[jonetsu]

You might have seen it, there's a Melda tutorial specifically on the crossovers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHdRyb-2vzo

This week all plugins are %50 off. MSaturatorMB is ~$30