CD mastering is the final chance for creative input when you create a compact disc.
Cant I just do my CD and DVD duplication at home?
Youve just created an mp3 audio album that you want to make CD copies of, or maybe you have a collection of home video clips youd like to burn to DVD and pass out to your friends. As far as you know home CD album duplication and DVD duplication require just a couple of things; a computer with a burner, CD-Rs and/or DVD-Rs, and the proper software. I have all that, so why cant I just go ahead with my home CD/DVD duplication project?
Why is audio mastering important?
If you have read my last article, What does an audio engineer do when mastering music?, you already know what is involved in the professional mastering process. To re-cap what that article said to all who havent read it, the mastering process adds polish to your songs and makes them sonically cohesive. A lot of albums are recorded and then thrown on a disc, sans mastering. While this works fine, by no means do I recommend it. There are a few reasons why I wouldnt recommend doing this.
What is a Red Book standard audio CD?
When reading through the terms and conditions at your favorite CD and DVD duplication facilitys website, you come across a term you arent familiar with.
All CD duplication projects are done on Red Book standard audio media.
What is the Red Book of audio, what are the media standards it has set, and why is it so important?
What does an audio engineer do when mastering music?
So youre a musician that just recorded your first album. You probably went into a recording studio and played all of your parts a couple of times, with the audio engineer handling all of the technical stuff. As far as you know, they should be able to take all the parts they recorded, burn it to a disc, and then it should be ready to press.