Optimized export settings from ableton for traktor
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  1. #1
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    Default Optimized export settings from ableton for traktor

    Sorry to restate this thread but it has been a while and I thought I should put a fresh thread up.

    Anyways, a while back I was having problems getting a good recording out of ableton on the mashups that I made in arrangement view.

    The recordings came out sounding really weak (flat) and the gain needed to be turned way up in traktor (IE the waveforms were hardly visible and did not cover the majority of the vertical space of traktors screen like most professionally mastered tracks).

    What are your export settings for ableton in order to have good quality for traktor and in general?

    I assume since I am just making mashups that compression, EQ'ing, etc...shouldn't be necessary to get a good recording.

    Any help is appreciated

    B-Rukks

  2. #2
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    bump

  3. #3
    Tech Guru AllDay's Avatar
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    Compression and eq ing is always necessary. The tracks that are at a proper level in traktor are mastered.. which is done after u have finished the mixdown on your track.

  4. #4
    Tech Guru deevey's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rukks View Post
    I assume since I am just making mashups that compression, EQ'ing, etc...shouldn't be necessary to get a good recording.
    Even moreso IMHO as you are dealing with multiple pre-mastered elements.

    Start with your channel EQ's so bass / drums / synth freq's don't clash and finish with whatever mastering tools you need on your master channel before export, everyone has their own way of doing that.

    Basically deal with exporting your mashup as a fully mastered "finished" track if thats the way you want it to sound when you play it alongside other tracks in Traktor.

  5. #5
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    Will do, I'll need to look at some refreshers for mastering but at one point I was getting decent at it.

    I have links bookmarked somewhere but if anyone has ableton specific mastering tutorials feel free to post them.

  6. #6
    Tech Mentor crakbot's Avatar
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    If you are mixing up professionally mastered tracks, you rarely want to add more compression. EQ'ing will make the parts sound better together, but they won't effect the problem you are saying you are having which is a weak sounding track with a small waveform.

    Working with mash ups is different from normal producing in Ableton. A lot of the "rules" don't work well in practice.

    I found I have the best results if I try to get the main track at zero db then adjust the rest to taste. Throw a limiter on the master channel so you don't have to turn tracks down so far. If you adjust all the tracks so you don't redline, you're final track will be very weak.

    I know people will say that is wrong, but when dealing with mash-ups, that's how you avoid having the track coming out sounding weak and the waveform will look like a professionally mastered track.

    Of course, the more work you want to put into it, the less you can depend on the limiter.

  7. #7
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    As someone already said, you're dealing with tracks that have been mastered before, so you shouldn't compress/limit them any further as a lot of today's commercial releases already are highly compressed.

    In opposition to crackbot I'd say: leave enough headroom when producing you mash-ups. You can always make things louder later.

    An easy trick that works quite well is to put a limiter on your master track when you're done with your work, and set the gain so that there just is no gain reduction (or at least not more than about 1-2 dB on the loudest parts of the track). This way you make sure your track is as loud as possible without further compression/limiting.

    Make sure the box for the normalisation is ticked in the export settings as well.

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