Post Production
Post production includes everything after recording and mixing, such as: graphic design, mastering, manufacturing and promotion. Assuming Kate created the graphic design for you, the next steps are to select a mastering engineer, and then to get your production into the manufacturing stream.
Mastering
Mastering is an art and a science. Mastering ensures your new CD plays well on a variety of devices from top-end stereos to boom boxes. It also helps your CD sound its best in a variety of environments, such as restaurants and cars as well as living rooms. Mastering studios are not recording or mixing studios. A mastering studio has a single large listening environment free of obstructions. It has extremely high end speakers and amplifiers. Digital mastering software is quite distinct from recording and mixing software. It is designed to hold your entire CD in a seamless environment so the levels for every track can be evened out; the sonic character of every track adjusted for consistency; the gaps between songs adjusted artistically; and, all the fadeouts managed smoothly.
A completed mix may have several dozen tracks, but a stereo file has only two - the left and right channels. A mastering engineer starts with a high resolution stereo file "bounced" from the final mix. The mixing engineer prepares a file for every song in the project. The audio quality of these files is usually much higher than a normal CD, so they won't play on your stereo or even on the average computer. The mastering engineer uses these high resolution files to create the "master disc" in the standard CD format that will be sent to a CD manufacturing facility for duplication.
Constant Sound Studio has good working arrangements with mastering facilities in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto. We can help you choose the best approach for your project. If you wish, we can also continue as your consultants with the mastering engineers to ensure you obtain the results you expect.
Manufacturing
CD manufacturing factories will not deal directly with you. All factories use brokers. Brokers are highly experienced professionals who vet submitted material carefully before it enters the manufacturing stream. There are only a handful of factories, but there are hundreds if not thousands of brokers across North America. (Google CD Manufacturing to see a vast array of brokers.) In order to manufacture your CD, you must submit your mastered CD (usually two copies), and all the CD graphics to your broker of choice. All the graphics must conform to strict templates published by each broker. NOTE: Design templates vary in minor respects among brokers, so it is wise to select a broker before your graphic designs are fully developed.
The manufacturer stamps the requested number of CD's, screen prints the disc graphics, offset prints the graphic inserts and/or cardboard cases, and finally shrink wraps the completed CD package.
Constant Sound Studio has an excellent working relationship with EDT Media Inc, an Ottawa based broker who also specialize in CD mastering. David Cain (the "D" in EDT) is a superb mastering engineer.
A cautionary tale about CD-R's
Manufactured CD's are physically stamped like coins in an industrial process. CD-R's are burned on computers using a chemical reaction or phase-change initiated by a laser beam. Manufactured CD's play on all CD and DVD players, even really crummy ones. CD-R's don't play on some CD or DVD players. CD-R's age more quickly, skip more often and are more prone to sun damage. Also, and this is the kicker, CD-R's are more expensive per CD. If you are serious about your project, get it manufactured correctly.
