Andy Miles is the guy who put the finishing touches to the latest DCI release ‘Take Me With You‘ in the mastering studios Super Audio Mastering, based in Devon, UK… you may be wondering what goes on in these mysterious, allusive and magical studios… read on!!!!

What is your job exactly Andy, introduce yourself.

I am the Assistant Mastering engineer at Super Audio Mastering. SAM is a world class Mastering facility based in the Dartmoor National Park.

How did you get in to the dark art of Mastering.

Funny story really, I met Simon Heyworth (Super Audio Mastering Director/CEO) through my degree with Plymouth Uni. We were fortunate enough to have a day out at his studio finding out some of the things that are behind the dark art.

Simon offered a few days work experience to a student on the Sound and Music Production course at Plymouth Uni. Luckily I was chosen as that student. The funny part of the story is that nobody told me about it. I graduated in September 2009 and bumped into one of my old Uni lecturers on the way to work in Plymouth. He asked how the work experience went and I stood there looking very puzzled. He explained that I had been chosen to go to Super Audio MAstering and have a few days work experience. I immediately got in touch with Simon and he has not been able to get rid of me since December 2009.

Mastering is still a pretty specialist area, did mastering ‘Take Me With You’ give you any new challenges?

Mastering has its place in the production line in the music industry. Unfortunately nowadays many people don’t think Mastering is essential or try to accomplish it ‘on the cheap’. With the advent of DAW’s and affordable plug-ins one can achieve rather desirable results but it still won’t sound like a ‘finished record’. And that is what most of our clients say after receiving their Master, ‘Now it sounds like a record!’ Every new project is a new challenge which is one of the great aspects about MAstering. You don’t know what you are doing from one day to the next and every project has its own signal path which gives it the ‘sound’

What did you use to Master this record?

On this record I used a hybrid signal path digital front end (to tweak) and analogue EQ, Compression, Limiting amongst other things. The signal path is the core of every project. Working out the best sounding path can be rather frustrating as it differs depending on the music.

Whats a quick fix for self mastering?

Some people still use Finalisers but they have a very distinct ‘Finaliser’ sound. Others slam it through a limiter to boost the level with a little EQ. The things to remember are, that it is not only the equipment but how you use it and a Mastering Engineer is a fresh set of ears. A fresh perspective on a project can be an invaluable tool to creating a finished sound.

What music is rocking your world on a professional level at the moment and what music is on your iPod at home? Can you switch from being a fan to being a pro again?

My tastes vary so much with music that it is very difficult to pick just one thing. What I enjoy listening to the most in the studio at present is Porcupine Tree – ‘In Absentia’. It is a great example of a ‘loud’ record that isn’t too fatiguing and retains dynamics. The first track, the title track, has an amazing drum sound at the beginning and really rocks when the guitars kick in. It is Prog Rock bliss!

Find out more about Andy at Super Audio Mastering (SAM), Devon, UK. SAM WEBSITE