Referencing with Metric AB Explained
Referencing professional recordings has been a common practice in studios for a while, as it offers you the chance to see how your tracks stand up against the pros. While your ears are certainly an integral tool in this regard, there are numerous plugins that can be extremely helpful as well, especially if you're new to the idea. In this course, studio expert Larry Holcombe takes a deep dive into Metric AB, a high-powered, full-featured reference plugin from ADPTR Audio that can help you produce better-sounding tracks and improve your mixes. These Metric AB videos are for new Metric AB users.
Videos
• Introduction & Interface (07:36) - This video introduces the series, covers the interface of the plugin, and explains its basic workflow.
• Loading Tracks & Latch/Sync Mode (09:08) - We focus on the playback modes next, which enable us to sync the reference tracks in different ways, including setting Metric AB to sync with our DAW's transport so we can flick between two different versions of the same track.
• Cues & Loops (10:14) - Explore cues and loops, which let us dictate exactly what portion of our reference tracks we'd like to use to compare to our project.
• Volume Matching & Filters (08:47) - Learn how to match the volumes of multiple reference tracks to our production and also introduce the filters to compare and contrast different frequency ranges.
• Spectrum View (14:05) - Next up, we cover the parameters of the Spectrum analyzer and introduce the filters. These features give us an invaluable insight into how our track compares tonally against our references.
• Correlation View (11:29) - This view allows us to visualize how in or out of phase the track is across the frequency spectrum. This can be viewed using real-time meters and/or a history graph, which can also be checked across the frequency spectrum.
• Stereo Image View (02:53) - We focus on the Stereo Image view next, which shows us a real-time breakdown of our stereo image across the frequency spectrum.
• Dynamics (07:22) - This video demonstrates the dynamics module and also explains the crest factor measurement used within Metric AB. We also explain the target PSR feature, allowing us to measure dynamics against a reference point. The pre- and post-filter options are also covered to finish off.
• Loudness (13:36) - Explore the loudness standards we can meter in Metric AB, including LUFS, LU, PLR, true peak, and RMS. We also talk about how to use loudness as a quality control for your production. We demonstrate visualizing this information using meters and a history graph, along with setting loudness targets for which to aim.
• Settings (02:24) - Learn how to create a custom setup so the plugin works in a way that suits our needs.
• Output Meters (03:33) - In this video, we cover the meters and also the ways in which we can monitor different aspects of the track, such as left, right, mid, and side signals. We discuss being able to monitor the left and right signals in place as well.
• Ideas for Using Reference Tracks in Your Workflow (12:17) - Here, I give you 10 different ideas for how to integrate referencing into your workflow as a learning and quality check tool.
• Pitfalls to Avoid (12:43) - Discover some of the pitfalls of over-referencing in this video, which will hopefully help you avoid making some common mistakes.
• Problems to Look For (13:43) - This video covers some common problems, including harsh top end, bloated lows, and de-correlated low frequencies, and demonstrates how they appear in Metric AB, providing you with practical examples of how to work with this plugin.