Slate Digital FG-X Virtual Mastering Processor - Manual (Page 15)

15"
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Slate"Digital"FG-X"Virtual"Mastering"Console"
• Display(mode:"
o Absolute:"use"this"mode"to"read"the"absolute"level"on"the"meter"scale."
o Relative:"use"this"mode"to"read"the"level"in"a"relative"way."The"0dB"of"the"
scale"is"set"according"the""Reference"RMS"level""setting."
• Range:"select"the"range"according"to"the"RMS"dynamics"of"the"song.(
• Needle(Velocity:"adjust"it"to"slow"if"you"need"a"more"average"display,"and"to"fast"
if"you"need""
• Reference( RMS( Level:" You" can" choose" for" each" setting" to" use" the" Global"
Reference"RMS"Level"or"to"set"a"particular"Reference"RMS"Level."
VI. A N
OTE FOR
M
IXING
E
NGINEERS
The"FG-X"is"essentially"a"mastering"tool.""But"it"can"also"be"used"effectively"in"the"mixing"
stage,"either"as"a"buss"compressor"(using"the"FG"Comp"module)"or"as"a"powerful"tool"to"
give"your"clients"a"reference"mix"that"is"competitive"with"professionally"mastered"mixes.""
To"this"end,"please"be"aware"of"your"final"plans"once"the"mix"leaves"your"hands.""If"the"
song"is"intended"for"mastering,"you"should"remove"FG-X"before"sending"it"to"mastering,"
or"if"you"are"using"the"FG"Comp"as"a"buss"compressor,"you"should"bypass"the"FG"Level"
module.""Otherwise"your"mastering"engineer"will"not"have"enough"headroom"to"work"
with," since" your" FG-X" processed" mix" will" be" reaching" -10db," rather" than" the" -20" to" -
15dB"FS"preferred"level"of"an"unmastered"mix."
VI.1. RMS L
E V E L
RMS," or" “root" mean" square,”" is" considered" the" standard" for" measuring" loudness" in"
audio.""Typically,"a"mix"should"have"an"average"RMS"value"of"-20"to"-15"dB"FS"(FS"for"Full"
Scale,"i.e."0dB"or"16/24bits"digital"maximum).""This"leaves"plenty"of"headroom"for"you"to"
process"the"mix"further"in"the"mastering"stage.""By"printing"a"mix"higher"then"-15dB,"you"
are" not" leaving" enough" room" for" the" mastering" stage" processing." " Mixes" need" to" be"
MIXES," not" MASTERS." " If" you" are" comparing" your" mix" with" a" reference" of" an" already"
mastered"mix,"lower"the"mastered"mix"by"roughly"8dB.""Do"not"try"to"match"a"mastered"
song’s"level"during"the"mix"stage.""Leave(loudness(processing(to(the(mastering(stage.(
Mastered"songs"have"an"RMS"of"-11"to"-8"dB"FS.""Some"masters"are"pushed"louder"to"-7"
or"even"-6"dB"FS.""While"the"FG-X"can"certainly"make"these"types"of"loud"masters"sound"
better"than"typical"limiters"have"in"the"past,"there"is"no"way"it"will"sound"as"dynamic,"
punchy,"and"“big”"on"the"bottom"end"as"a"-10"dB"FS"RMS."