Hey guys, in this video we’re going to cover how to work with effects on the master channel
in Cakewalk, and finally how to export your track that you’ve completed and share it.
This isn’t an in-depth tutorial on mastering audio.
It’s more of an introduction to the plugins available that can be applied to the master
channel in Cakewalk.
Before we start this video, make sure you’ve checked out all our other tutorials on how
to use Cakewalk first, since this is the last video in the series.
Just like all the other tracks we looked at previously, the master channel in Cakewalk
has access to the ProChannel tools.
That allows you to use all those plugins such as the console emulator, compressor, equalizer,
and saturation tools.
We’ve already covered all of these in more detail in a previous video, so let’s skip
to the available effects that are specifically meant for the master channel.
For this video, we’ll be working exclusively from the console view.
The tools we want to use are through the FX chain.
From the console, press the plus button on the FX rack and select Insert FX Chain Preset.
This brings us to a folder on our computer where we can select what we want to add.
For the master channel, we’ll be using some of the presets under Mastering.
The first one is called A Little Louder.
In this case, the FX chain is basically acting as a wrapper for the Sonitus effects we saw
previously.
A common trick to use on the master channel is to add a slight amount of compression.
This is applied to all the tracks together, so it’s a little more cohesive than having
compression applied on all your individual tracks.
You can also use it to increase the loudness of your track if you want, but keep in mind
when you do that, you’re decreasing the dynamic range of the music you’ve created.
Bright and aggressive is the next tool.
It combines a multiband compress and a regular compressor.
The brighter knob is used to adjust the multiband compressor, the aggressive knob controls the
attack and release together, the louder knob increases the gain and the threshold sets
the level at which the compression is applied.
Next is Crushed.
This has two compressors to reduce dynamic range and to smooth out the mix.
There’s also controls to tighten the mix, and the aggression control like we saw previously.
Another setting is louder and scooped, which cuts out certain problematic frequencies that
can be messing up your mix.
As a general rule, I like to avoid using this kind of plugin on the master channel.
It’s often a lot better to be fixing these types of problems on individual tracks as
you are mixing, instead of just applying this one to everything at once.
Smooth is a tool that can be used to create a smoother sounding song, and the wider control
increases the stereo spread of the entire track out to 150%.
Last we have the wide FX chain.
This has a control for stereo spread, as well as two tighten knobs.
Tighten 1 is the subtle control, and Tighten 2 is a lot more aggressive.
So between the FX chain presets and the ProChannel, that’s all the options you have included
to master a track in Cakewalk.
Now let’s take a look at the export process and how we can create a file for sharing.
To export your track, go to the File menu and select Export and Audio.
Select a location on your computer where you want to save the file.
Then select a file name.
Next choose a file type.
Typically, you’ll be exporting as MP3, or a Wave file.
I’ll use MP3 for this example.
Usually for a final export, I’ll set the sample rate to 44100 and the bit depth to
16.
Since we are going from 24 bit recording to 16 bit, we want to set the dithering to triangular
instead of none.
Finally, make sure all the Mix Enables are checked off, that way the track is exported
exactly as heard in the program.
Once you’re done, press export.
We’re given a few more options when exporting as MP3.
First, I set the bit rate to 320.
Make sure stereo mode is set to stereo.
Don’t enable high or low pass filters, or variable bit rate encoding.
Set the quality to Better.
This increases the export time, but it’s not a big deal.
Last, you can enable ID3 info if you want to save metadata with the file.
Then click Ok for the file to export.
Once it’s done, you’ll have an audio file that you can share.
As of the making of this video, the Upload to SoundCloud option doesn’t appear to be
working, but you may have different results.
I’m able to log into my account, but get an error when trying to upload.
The SoundCloud integration with this program isn’t that important anyways.
All it’s doing is taking a file already saved on your computer and uploading it, so
you can do that through your web browser instead.
Thanks for checking out this video on working with the master channel and exporting in Cakewalk
by BandLab.
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