HANDS-ON (Click image for larger version.)
1. Cosmetically, Ozone 4’s main user interface takes its predecessor’s look up a few notches — it’s prettier than ever.
2. As with Ozone 3, the dynamics, stereo imaging, and exciter do up to four discrete bands, so you can tailor the amount of each effect to specific frequency ranges.
3. In addition to displaying the crossover points for the multiband processing, the upper display includes realtime spectrum analysis.
4. New mid-side processing lets you apply effects like exciters and reverb to either the center or the edges of your song’s stereo field.
5. Each processor now has its own slider for changing the overall amount of a given effect, rather than digging into the individual parameters.
6. A Global Amount slider serves as a macro for all effects in a given preset at once, so new users can make sonic changes first and learn the ingredients that go into them later.
OZONE'S PRESET WINDOW (Click image for larger version.)
Ozone’s preset panel is now detachable, so you switch between previewing presets and editing them with fewer mouse clicks. Each preset now has its own set of relevant macros in plain English for working quickly. At the bottom of the panel, you can see which processors are active for each preset.
NEED TO KNOW
What is it? A full suite of high-end mastering tools in a single plug-in.
What tools are included? Loudness Maximizer, Paragraphic EQ, Multiband Dynamics, Multiband Stereo Imaging, Harmonic Exciter, Mastering Reverb, and Dithering.
How good are the factory presets? They cover a lot more than mere mastering applications, with well-designed reverbs, plus EQ that delivers both linear-phase accuracy and analog coziness.
Sound compared to Ozone 3? Bigger, wider, and much more precisely controlled.
What does it run on? Power PC or Intel Mac with OS 10.4 or later; Windows XP, x64 or Vista. AU, DX, MAS, RTAS (Pro Tools), and VST plug-in formats.
Is it worth upgrading? Absolutely. The macro-based global and module amount controls allow even non-engineers to quickly customize complex presets to suit the needs of almost any track – and the mid/side stereo functions deliver some very clever new mastering options you’ll be hard pressed to find elsewhere.
PROS
Learn function takes guesswork out of multiband mastering. Mid-side processing adjusts center and edges of stereo field separately. Macros and global sliders are extremely easy to use for broad adjustments. Transparent and powerful loudness maximizer.
CONS
With all of its processes running simultaneously, Ozone is a tad CPU hungry.
INFO
$249.99 list/approx. $200 street. izotope.com
As a DJ who routinely tests new remixes-in-progress at my gigs, having a top-notch mastering tool isn’t just a “would be nice” but an absolute essential. Few things are more embarrassing than being up in front of a crowd, fading out of a commercial release and into your own latest gem, and it sounding small and amateurish by comparison.
For years, I’d subsisted on the factory effects that came with my DAW’s bundled CD mastering software package. At the beginning it was fine, but as the stakes got higher, I started to wonder why even my students’ tracks were sounding so big. I asked around and one answer kept coming back: iZotope Ozone.
So last summer, I made the switch to Ozone 3 and fell in love. This multipurpose mastering plug-in made even one-day demos sound like finished releases. That’s absolutely no exaggeration. When Ozone 4 arrived, I was eager to dig deeper into its new features. Is version 4 a ho-hum semi-improvement — or a full-on game changer?
THE OZONE COLLECTION
Ozone comes with pretty much every mastering device required for delivering professional results. Paragraphic EQ, multiband dynamics, loudness maximization, saturators, exciters, and stereo imaging tools are all present and accounted for, along with additional amenities like reverb and multiple dithering options for making your tune sound ideal in the usual 16-bit listening formats. The nifty thing about how Ozone’s implements these tools is that many of them — the harmonic exciter and stereo imager included — are multiband-enabled. This means you can use just one or two frequency ranges of (for instance) the exciter to gently give the upper mids some presence without shredding the highs. Another example is that you could really widen the stereo field of the high-end “air” in your tracks while leaving the lows untouched.
The six-band paragraphic EQ is also a standout, with both an analog mode and digital linear phase correction. It also has a “matching” tool, which lets it sample the frequency curve of a reference recording and apply that curve to the signal to be mastered. While other applications also include this type of “spectrum matching,” it’s particularly well-suited to the mastering stage, and Ozone’s implementation is solid. With thoughtful track matching done by Ozone’s premium EQs, the results can be impressive.
For many producers, the true test of a mastering software suite is how much and how transparently it maximizes loudness. For the uninitiated, loudness maximization is a process that elevates the technical principles of limiting to high art, letting producers squash a mix into a solid brick of full-assault audio. Good loudness maximization maintains the illusion of dynamic differences between loud and soft passages in the music. Apple Logic’s Adaptive Limiter is an example of this technology, as is Waves’ legendary L1 and its successors. I’m here to tell you that I’ve tried the majority of the tools out there —both included with a DAW app and third-party — and Ozone’s loudness maximizer is the among the best I’ve ever used. Its Character slider and “Intelligent” release modes make it possible to compress the bejeezus out of a track while keeping it big and punchy. Elven magic, methinks.
STANDOUT FEATURES
At the highest level, Ozone 4 is easier to use than any other mastering tool that’s graced my hard drive. With its Macro Presets feature, single sliders control several settings at once, so new users can shape overall EQ, dynamics, and stereo character — basically skating over Ozone’s surface while skeeping the option open to customize its presets, thanks to Ozone’s easy-to-grasp terminology. One level deeper are Module Amount Control sliders that let you increase or decrease the general depth of any active processor. Let’s say you love a preset, but want to widen the stereo field a bit more, then back off a touch on the loudness maximizing. Just nudge each module’s slider accordingly. Even for seasoned engineers, this can measurably speed up mastering workflow.
On the opposite end of the programming spectrum, Ozone 4 includes some really deep new features for massaging just about any mix into something really special. Probably the coolest new amenity is mid-side processing in several of Ozone’s tools, specifically the EQ, harmonic exciter, mastering reverb, and multiband dynamics. If you’re new to the concept, mid-side processing can apply different amounts of an effect to the center and “edges” of the stereo field.
For example, using the exciter, you might add a bit of tube warmth to the low-mids in the center of your mix, while making the highs sizzle only at the far left and right sides of the stereo picture. If the description sounds incredible to you, wait until you hear it in action. Speaking of analog warmth, in addition to Ozone 3’s tube, tape and retro modes, Ozone 4’s exciter now sports a “warm” mode, which performs sort of like a blend of the three.
The crossovers in each of the multiband-enabled tools have also improved in subtle yet nifty ways. While iZotope’s website touts Ozone 4’s new Hybrid Crossover as combining “analog character with perfect reconstruction characteristics,” the Learn function is the upgrade that caught my attention. If you’ve ever wrestled with selecting frequency ranges for a given track, wrestle no more. Just feed Ozone your mix, right-click the bands, and select “Learn.” From there, you can watch each band resize automatically as it analyzes the signal for the perfect crossover points in real-time. It’s a great-looking animation, and best of all, it does a darned good job at making the right decisions for you, so your ears can stay focused.
OTHER AMENITIES
In addition to the above highlights, Ozone 4 includes a slew of little touches that go a long way toward improving the overall mastering process. There’s an exhaustive list on iZotope’s website, but here are the improvements that directly helped my workflow.
What used to be the mute function on each crossover band is now a solo control, which makes infinitely more sense in the context of setting up a multiband exciter or compressor. The new mid-side processes are similarly solo-enabled, so you can isolate specific processes within the stereo field for meticulous tweaks.
The Automatic Bypass Gain function transparently adjusts the relative volume of the unprocessed signal when comparing, so A/Bing a track doesn’t constantly require having a finger on your master volume fader.
Many of the tools, such as the EQ and crossover functions, include CPU optimizations, which I definitely noticed when working on my 2GHz Core2 Duo MacBook — not a slowpoke, but not Vin Diesel’s street racer either. Thse optimizations aren’t made across the board with every effect, so the amount of performance boost depends on what you’re using at a given time. Speaking of the EQ, you can now drag multiple nodes simultaneously. While admittedly minor, once you get used to this, you’ll wonder why everyone doesn’t implement it.
THE GREAT RESTORATION
Being an Ozone fan, I already knew how great it sounded on modern productions, so as I was kicking the tires, I decided to unearth a few old demos from 2002 to see how much Ozone could improve them while keeping everything sounding relatively natural. Since the original material was end-to-end digital, this was a perfect opportunity to tinker with Ozone 4’s exciter’s saturation options without adding obvious distortion.
I started by boosting the lows slightly with the paragraphic EQ. Nothing major, just a dB or so, centered at 80Hz with a wide Q (bandwidth), using Ozone’s “analog” mode, which I generally prefer. From there I activated the multiband dynamics, then used the Learn function to optimize the crossover points. Since the track evolved over time, I selected a dense part of the arrangement to analyze. I simply cannot overemphasize how genuinely useful this feature is. Previously, I had to dial through presets until I found something that was close, then tinker from there. Now I just click, enjoy the animation, then adjust the dynamics of each band until I’m satisfied.
From there, I applied a touch of multiband exciter in mid-side mode. Using the exciter’s “tape” mode, I warmed up the midrange in mono, then added a bit of sizzle to the edges of the top frequencies. It sounded great, so I moved on to the multiband stereo imaging, narrowing the width of the lows, then spreading the upper mids slightly and the highs significantly.
Finally, I slapped on Ozone’s loudness maximizer in “Intelligent II” mode, lowering the threshold until I could hear the effect kicking in, then backing off a tiny bit so as not to overdo it.
I was quite pleased with the results until I A/B’ed the track with the original and realized that the harmonic excitement was a tad extreme. Rather than go back to the exciter’s editing panel, I decided to simply use that processor’s global slider to back it off. A few moments later, I compared the two versions again and was surprised by how much Ozone was able to improve the mix without making it sound overprocessed.
CONCLUSIONS
I generally don’t gush unless a product truly blows me away. Last year, Ozone 3 became a staple of my production process, and I was completely satisfied with it in its previous iteration. Now, it’s indispensable, and includes a great-sounding reverb to boot. If you’re in the market for mastering tools that deliver professional results for a street price of about $200, then you’ve found a Key Buy-winning solution.