Square Cad: A Mastering Podcast

Jaakko Viitalähde of Viitalähde Mastering in Finland doesn't call himself an electrical engineer, but he's being modest. He's built equalizers, compressors, monitors, and tackles every project with DIY verve. I spoke with Jaakko about lessons learned from some of his builds, and why thinking about individual pieces of gear, isolated from the chain as a whole, makes no sense. Music: Brainstorm "Flat Earth" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

In 2009 the cutting room at Masterdisk in NYC experienced a renaissance, and one of the main people behind it was Alex Deturk. Alex is an young engineer at Masterdisk who took an interest in all things vinyl and since then has cut for Sting, Lou Reed, Ted Leo, Skip James, The Melvins, and many more. Alex and I spoke about how he became 'the cutting guy' at Masterdisk, differences between Scully and Neumann systems, and connecting with a new generation who are discovering vinyl for the first time. Music: The Legends "Breaking Time, Breaking Lines" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

For over 40 years Len Horowitz has been working on lathes and cutting electronics. First at Western Electric, then as a part of his studio tech company History Of Recorded Sound. Len spoke with me about the genesis of lacquer cutting systems, what it takes to maintain them, and why he thinks vinyl remains so popular. Music: Telekinesis "Dirty Thing" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

With the Grammy Awards just around the corner I decided to catch up with Maureen Droney, Senior Executive Director of the Producers and Engineers Wing of The Recording Academy to talk about what the P and E does aside from the Grammys. Maureen spoke with me about her engineering career, as well as P and E initiatives advocating for improved sound quality of digital audio, and attaching album credits to digital recordings. Music: A.C. Newman "Most Of Us Prizefighters" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Mistakes the major labels made when transitioning from the CD era to the digital age are often discussed. Steve Knopper wrote a terrific book about what was happening behind the scenes that puts those mistakes in context and illuminates some universal truths about the music industry. I spoke with Steve about the pivotal moment when most major labels screwed themselves, why the challenges artists face today are so similar to those they faced in the CD heydey, and why he's optimistic about artists making a better living in the near future. Music: Wolf Parade "Little Golden Age" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Part 2 of my conversation with Bob Olhsson, mastering engineer for Motown and Georgetown Masters. Bob and I discuss his return to mastering, differences between analog and digital, and the importance of capturing the feeling of live performance. Music: Gladys Knight and The Pips "Heard It Through The Grapevine" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Bob Olhsson started his career with Motown, mastering hits for the likes of Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, and many more. His career also took him to work with rock acts like the Grateful Dead, and for sound designers at Skywalker Sound. He's returned to mastering these days, working at Georgetown Masters in Nashville, Tennessee. In the first of our two-part chat Bob spoke with me about how his amazing career began, what it was like working at Motown, and why you can record and mix a song in three minutes if you have no other option. Music: Marvin Gaye "I'll Be Doggone" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Since 1981 Steve Hall has been mastering hits at Future Disc, working with such artists as Blondie, Pat Benatar, The Knack, Bobby Brown, Donna Summer, Green Day, Natalie Portman's Shaved Head, Department of Eagles, and many more. So what made him leave L.A., the music market where he made his name, and move his studio to a farm in McMinnville Oregon? I spoke with Steve about leaving MCA Records to start his own studio, the move from Hollywood to Oregon wine country, and whether he likes his alpacas more than mastering. Music: Silver Jews "The Farmer's Hotel" Square Cad is Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

This week Square Cad is checking the hype on the Fab Filter Pro-DS de-esser. Having a quality de-esser handy is crucial, and fans of Fab Filter's software have long clamored for them to offer a de-esser with their signature transparent sound and trademark ease-of-use. Does it live up to expectations and Fab Filter's claim of being everything that you need? To find out I spoke with Floris Klinkert of Fab Filter, who designed the intelligent algorithm at the heart of Pro-DS. Then I tested Pro-DS against my preferred method of de-essing. Music: Yellow Red Sparks "Four Steps In Corsets" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more! Square Cad is also Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Remastering is a tricky business. Especially when the original recordings have been heard by audiences for decades. How do you best optimize the music for a new format without changing what made it special in the first place? To find out I spoke with Alan Silverman of Arf Mastering in Manhattan. Since 1996 Alan has been mastering and remastering for the likes of The Kinks, Judy Collins, Dolly Parton, Cheap Trick, Keith Richards, Bebo Valdes, and many more. He's worked on over 45 Grammy winning and nominated albums. Alan spoke with me about the balancing act of remastering, why it sometimes requires some detective work, and the challenges a diverse clientele can bring. Music: The Kinks "Do It Again" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more! Square Cad is also Sponsored by Dangerous Music. Check out all the indispensable mastering tools at dangerousmusic.com!

Accurate hearing is a mastering engineer's most valuable asset. Hearing damaged on the job can have disastrous consequences not only on your career, but the quality of your life. To learn how to maintain accurate lifelong hearing I talked with Dr. William Martin, head of the Oregon Health and Science University's tinnitus clinic, tinnitus research lab, and the Dangerous Decibels program. Dr. Martin spoke with me about human auditory physiology, how engineers can protect their hearing, and what you can do if you think your hearing has been damaged. Music: Bloc Party "She's Hearing Voices" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more!

In 2004 Glenn Kuras founded GIK Acoustics with the mission of brining quality room treatments to engineers everywhere. Since it's founding GIK has provided absorption, diffusion, and whole room treatments to mastering studios around the world. Glenn spoke with me about broadband vs tuned trapping, the best starting points for tackling unwieldy bass, and why measurement should take a back seat to translation. Music: The Notwist "This Room" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more!

In addition to being a producer and mix engineer, custom API console designer, and Tape Op contributor Allen Farmelo is a man concerned with creating great works of art. As a sometimes-mastering engineer he has the perspective to translate artistic vision clearly at every stage of the process, and has done so for artists like Cinematic Orchestra, Ian Gillian (Deep Purple), Graph Rabbit, Elska, Sea of Bees, and many more. Allen and I spoke about burnout, why mastering is more than just EQ and compression, and Analog Commitment In The Age of Undo. Music: Sigur Ros This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more!

For over a decade Mike Wells mastered in San Francisco for artists such as Tommy Guerrero, Jet Black Crayon, Hot Buttered Rum, American Steel, The Paper Sons, Christopher Ferreira, and many more. During that time he became an outspoken advocate for comprehensively entering metadata during mastering, as well as an educator about the often confusing world of digital music metadata. Mike spoke with me about why metadata is important, what caused him to move from San Francisco to L.A., and what can end the metadata format conflict. Music: Ladytron "True Mathematics" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more!

Many people attempting to develop or expand their mixing skills are wading through a sea of misinformation. This is an important fact for mastering engineers to realize, since the mix is the foundation of what we do and many of these aspiring mixers will come to us. Fab Dupont is trying to help. He's created an online repository of mixing tutorials, and downloadable mix sessions, at PureMix.net. Fab is a mixing engineer, producer, and owner of Flux Studios in New York. He's worked for artists such as Santigold, Jennifer Lopez, Bon Jovi, Toots and The Maytals, Queen Latifah, Shakira, Issac Hayes, and many more. Fab spoke with me about PureMix, the importance of hands-on learning, and why major labels are useful. Music: Slick Rick "Teacher, Teacher" This episode is sponsored by Sweetwater.com. Call Sweetwater and use the offer code 'SquareCad512' to get $25 off an order of $200 or more!