I've watched the excellent vid by Steve H on mastering in logic. Very well done. I'm also using Ozone 4 and like it. My question is this: I've loaded an AIFF file from James Taylor's Covers (figured it wouldn't be mastered to loud and I like the Mix) into Logic, just to see where the meters end up. Can't help but notice that while the track is Avg about -3.7 to lets say -.5 it does show the meters in logic in the red at +1.0 on the peaks. What does that mean? Is ther still head room in logic past 0 dbfs. Thanks FL

On the input channels... yes! On the output channels... no. Which channels are you looking at AND are their faders set to 0dB? There may also be an issue with the Pan Law which can be found in the Settings audio menu. If it was recorded with a 0 dB pan law, playing it back with a -3dB compensated setting could produce some peaks. See below: The Laws of the Pan If you haven't explicitly set a Pan Law in Logic, then I *strongly* urge you to try this one out. A pan law is the algorithm a DAW uses to pan an audio signal between the left and right outputs. By default, Logic uses a 0dB pan law. If you've been using Logic prior to 7.1, you will have been using a 0dB pan law in all your mixes, as it's the only pan law Logic had. With a 0dB pan law, Logic does not change the signal level when you pan a signal, which means that when a signal is dead centre, it is actually louder than when it is at the extreme left or right. Think about it - when panned fully to the left, you're hearing one channel at the fader level, whereas in the centre you're hearing two channels (left and right channel), each at the fader level - therefore the combined signal is 6dB louder. 7.1 finally introduced some pan law options, letting you choose between 0dB, -3dB, and -3dB Compensated. You'll the option under File -> Song Settings -> Audio. The -3dB and -3dB Compensated algorithms actually reduce the level of a signal when it's in the centre (or increases the level when it's fully panned), so the centre doesn't appear louder. These two settings are effectively the same apart from a 3dB volume adjustment: -3dB setting: Left 0dB, Centre -3dB, Right 0dB -3dB compensated setting: Left +3dB, Centre 0dB, Right +3dB -3dB: Reduces a signal by 3dB when panned to the centre -3dB comp: Increases the level of a signal by 3dB when panned fully to the left or right.

I'm looking at the output meters. But now I know what you talking about with the pan law. I've never checked to see what the pan law was set at. What should I set the pan law for in my own mixes? Thanks Oscar

Pick one of the -3 pan laws. Both the -3 and -3 compensated sound the same. Effectively the center of your mix is reduced in level. Just don't change it in the middle of a production and watch your levels throughout to insure a proper mix!

Thanks Steve .