December 2018 Mavis Staples Live In London

For the last month of 2018 we will pick a brand new release from someone who has been around and making good music (as opposed to most of the older blog picks) for many years.  This is the first track released from the new album.  This is the iTunes version and the numbers look like this.

LKFS/LUFS                         -11.7 dB
Clipped Samples Left           0
Clipped Samples Right         0
DC Offset                          +.000%, +.000%
Dynamic Range              10.8 dB
RMS Level Left              -11.34 dB
RMS Level Right            -12.31 dB

The LUFS is -11.7 dB, which is not bad considering what we are used to seeing.   There are no clipped samples, which is a small miracle these days.  Also the DC Offset is 0, again a rarity these days.  The dynamic range is excellent for a modern recording. As far as the Left- Right balance, the left channel is 1 dB hotter than the right.  The EQ is not bad, so overall this is much better than the average mastering job out there.

​Here it is...(zoom your browser in to see the numbers)

This is almost perfect, so what would it look like if it was about perfect?  It would look like this...

This is very similar except you would see the following differences.

Keeping the LUFS the same, the true peak is a slightly safer -1.0 dB.
The left - right balance is 0 dB difference.
The dynamic range is actually better by .2 dB.
There are less phase rotation problems.
The EQ has a more solid bottom end (60 Hz) and less 'mud' (200 Hz).
The high end is bit clearer.
The sound is therefor better.
These are not big issues, but that is what Mastering is about...
​little issues that come together to make it sound better.