MASTERING IN THE BOX

User’s Guide
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Table of Contents
Introduction.........................................................................................................................................................................3
System requirements ...................................................................................................................................................4
Installation ............................................................................................................................................................................6
Cubase ...............................................................................................................................................................................6
Reaper ................................................................................................................................................................................7
Studio One ......................................................................................................................................................................8
Logic Pro ...........................................................................................................................................................................9
Pro Tools ........................................................................................................................................................................ 10
How to use templates................................................................................................................................................. 11
Input Gain Adjustment ........................................................................................................................................... 11
Analyze your mix ....................................................................................................................................................... 12
Matching EQ ................................................................................................................................................................. 14
Matching Tips .............................................................................................................................................................. 15
Legal ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 16
Refund Policy..................................................................................................................................................................... 16
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Introduction

Thank you for purchase Mastering In The Box template!

Few words about Panda Sound…
We are international team of mixing engineers and developers. Our goal is to
show you how to get sound you always dreamed about. We want to share our
experience with you and open all mixing secrets for different music genres!
Now you don’t need to spend a lot of time watching tons of videos and
manuals! Learn and mix in the new way with Panda Sound!
Use our products and start to level-up your mixes!
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 4

System requirements
Digital audio workstation:
 Cubase 5.1.0 or higher
 Pro Tools 7 or higher
 Reaper 5.1. or higher
 Logic Pro 10 or higher
 Studio One 3 or higher
Plugins:
Alternative Session:
 Waves (http://www.waves.com/)
- NLS Channel
- LinMB
 Klanghelm (http://klanghelm.com/contents/main.php)
- MJUC
 A.O.M. (http://aom-factory.jp/)
- Invisible Limiter (If you don’t have this plugin you can download trial
versions from A.O.M.’s site.)

Heavy Metal Mastering:

 Waves (http://www.waves.com/)
- Q10
- SSL Comp
- LinMB
- KramerTape
- OneKnob Louder
 A.O.M. (http://aom-factory.jp/)
- Invisible Limiter (If you don’t have this plugin you can download trial
versions from A.O.M.’s site.)
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Rock Mastering:
 Waves (http://www.waves.com/)
- Q10
- SSL Comp
- OneKnob Louder
 Plugin Alliance (https://www.plugin-alliance.com)
- SPL TwinTube
 A.O.M. (http://aom-factory.jp/)
- Invisible Limiter (If you don’t have this plugin you can download trial
versions from A.O.M.’s site.)

Deathcore Session:
 Waves (http://www.waves.com/)
- Q10
- C4
- OneKnob Louder
 A.O.M. (http://aom-factory.jp/)
- Invisible Limiter (If you don’t have this plugin you can download trial
versions from A.O.M.’s site.)

Progressive Metal Mastering:

 Waves (http://www.waves.com/)
- LinMB
- OneKnob Louder
 FabFilter (http://www.fabfilter.com/)
- Pro-Q2 (If you don’t have FabFilter plugins you can download trial
versions from FabFilter’s site)
 A.O.M. (http://aom-factory.jp/)
- Invisible Limiter (If you don’t have this plugin you can download trial
versions from A.O.M.’s site.)
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 6

Installation
Cubase
Open .cpr from Cubase project folder.
Typical problem during the first run:
 Plugins could not be found

To resolve this problem, you need to install missing plugins. If you don’t have
some of them – try to download demo.
If you have installed plugin already but problem still don’t resolved. Make sure
that you installed .vst2 and .vst3 versions of plugin and specify right plugin’s path on
Plugin information menu. Also check names of plugins, they may differ. For example,
ProQ.dll or ProQ(x86).dll or ProQ(mono). Your DAW scans them as different plugins.
Important! Don’t save original project before you installed all missing plugins.
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 7

Reaper
Open .rpp file from Reaper project folder.
Typical problem during the first run:
 Plugins could not be found

To resolve this problem, you need to install missing plugins. If you don’t have
some of them – try to download demo.
If you have installed plugin already but problem still don’t resolved. Make sure
that you installed .vst2 and .vst3 versions of plugin and specify right plugin’s path on
Plugin information menu. Also check names of plugins, they may differ. For example,
ProQ.dll or ProQ(x86).dll or ProQ(mono). Your DAW scans them as different plugins.
Important! Don’t save original project before you installed all missing plugins.
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 8

Studio One
Open .song file from Studio One project folder.
Typical problem during the first run:
 Missing devices

To resolve this problem, you need to install missing plugins. If you don’t have
some of them – try to download demo.
If you have installed plugin already but problem still don’t resolved. Make sure
that you installed .vst2 and .vst3 versions of plugin and specify right plugin’s path on
Plugin information menu. Also check names of plugins, they may differ. For example,
ProQ.dll or ProQ(x86).dll or ProQ(mono). Your DAW scans them as different plugins.
Important! Don’t save original project before you installed all missing plugins.
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 9

Logic Pro
Open .logic file from LogicPro project folder.
Typical problem during the first run:
 Missing devices

To resolve this problem, you need to install missing plugins. If you don’t have
some of them – try to download demo.
If you have installed plugin already but problem still don’t resolved. Make sure
that you installed .vst2 and .vst3 versions of plugin and specify right plugin’s path on
Plugin information menu. Also check names of plugins, they may differ. For example,
ProQ.dll or ProQ(x86).dll or ProQ(mono). Your DAW scans them as different plugins.
Important! Don’t save original project before you installed all missing plugins.
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 10

Pro Tools

Open .ptf file from Pro Tools 7 project folder or .ptx from Pro Tools 9 project folder
Typical problem during the first run:
 Missing devices

To resolve this problem, you need to install missing plugins. If you don’t have
some of them – try to download demo.
If you have installed plugin already but problem still don’t resolved. Make sure
that you installed .vst2 and .vst3 versions of plugin and specify right plugin’s path on
Plugin information menu. Also check names of plugins, they may differ. For example,
ProQ.dll or ProQ(x86).dll or ProQ(mono). Your DAW scans them as different plugins.
Important! Don’t save original project before you installed all missing plugins.
 MASTERING IN THE BOX 11

How to use templates

Input gain adjustment

First mastering insert plugin needs to receive sound not clipping, so you need to be
sure that your mix is not clipping before start. Add Waves Q2 to insert before all of
mastering plugins and adjust the gain (either positive or negative) so that the output
is equal to 0db. To Trim the faders, simply click the Trim button once to automatically
move the faders by the value.

Before Trim – +4.8 db clipping

After Trim – No clipping, normalized audio

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Analyze your mix

For good results better use references, compare with references can give you a lot of
information about mix and ways what you need to change in master settings.
Most important things here: frequency response and amplitude metering.
For analyze frequency response we recommend to use Voxengo Span. (free plugin, link:
http://www.voxengo.com/product/span/). One of the coolest features of SPAN is the
ability to have the FFT of multiple sources displayed at once. You can see where the
sources are fighting at different frequencies and how your master matches against a
similar commercial references.

If you have never setup multiple sources into one plugin, setting up SPAN can be a
little daunting at first. However, after a run through or two you it should become
second nature!

 First add SPAN either to the source you want first or place it on an empty track
 If you placed SPAN on a empty track, use an AUX SEND to send your first source to
inputs 1-2 on the SPAN track.
 Next add another AUX SEND from your second source to inputs 3-4 on your SPAN
track. You should now have 4 channels of audio on one track.
 Inside SPAN, go to the Routing menu at the top.
 Once the Routing window pops-up, you should see a section called Input Routing.
 Inputs L-R (1 and 2) should read A-B, and In-3 and In-4 should be blank.
 Change In 3-4 so they are using inputs C-D.
 Back in the primary SPAN window, go to the Underlay drop down menu.
 Choose Underlay 2.
 You should now have both sources in one window!
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Upon loading SPAN, you should have your FFT (fast Fourier transform) window in the
center along with the amplitude meter on the right. The meters will default to a peak
style setting with the special white line indicating acting as a peak hold so you have
time to read the peaks.

At the bottom of the window you will also see the Statistics window. It gives you a
solid number read out of your peak RMS and overall peak levels. Knowing how loud you
got is always good information to have! Compare RMS of your mix and reference to
adjust loudness level using limiter input gain.

Also note the portion in statistics dedicated to Max Crest Factor. This handy little
readout is the difference between your RMS and your Max RMS. This measurement is
very good for seeing just how dynamic your track really is.
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Matching EQ

The matching EQ allows you to automatically equalize a mix based on the spectrum or
frequency response of references. Most powerful EQ’s that have matching function:
Izotope Ozone EQ, FabFilter Pro Q2, Voxengo CurveEQ. In our opinion most powerful
and handy is Izotope EQ, using it you can get really good results. But other EQ’s works
pretty good as well.

The Matching EQ works hand in hand with spectrum snapshots to "borrow" the
spectrum of an audio clip and apply it to another. Therefore, the first step is to take
snapshots of two spectrums - the mix you want to EQ and the recording that has the
spectrum you want to match.

1. Put Izotope EQ in the end of the master inserts list. Select the Matching tab in the
lower-left of the spectrum window
2. Bypass all master chain plugins besides EQ and load the reference audio to new
track.
3. Now, while the reference is playing back, hit the Capture button for Reference
Audio to begin capturing the spectrum and Stop when you have captured the
portion of the recording you wish to apply to another mix.
4. Now turn on master chain plugins repeat the previous steps for Target Audio (your
mix)
5. Enable Matching Mode and a new filter curve will appear which will conform the
spectrum of the reference to the spectrum of your mix.
6. Use the Amount and Smoothing tools to adjust how aggressively your mix will be
matched to the originally captured recording as well as the sharpness of the EQ
curves’ peaks and valleys.
7. Put Izotope EQ before limiter.
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Matching Tips

 A Matching amount of 100% and a Smoothing amount of 0 might be technically the

closest match to your “Apply to” mix, but in reality it's probably not the most
effective combination of settings. Those settings will try to capture every peak,
valley and level, which can result in extreme (unnatural) EQs.
 Instead, we suggest working with the Matching amount around 50%. If your
Matching EQ curve has narrow peaks and valleys, increase the Smoothing
parameter to smooth them out. Your goal is to capture the overall tonal shape of
the Source - an overall tone as opposed to an exact match.
 Adjust manually as necessary. Close the Matching tab, and you'll notice that you
can still use the manual EQ nodes to further adjust the equalization. It may not be
necessary, but feel free to further "season to taste" manually.
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Legal
All available products are copyright Panda Sound Store. By purchasing our products,
you hereby agree that you will not copy, modify, merge, resell, rename content or
transfer it in any manner.
Refund Policy
Due to the nature of Panda Sound products (non-tangible digital goods), it is not
possible to "return" a product therefore we DO NOT offer refund or exchange after
purchase is made. If you are having any issues with a file, installation, getting the most
out of your order, or have any questions, please contact support via contact form and
we will do our best to resolve the problem.