Acora Acoustics: Mastering Engineer Demonstration

Have you ever wondered just what a mastering engineer does? How their work affects the music you hear? Dave McNair will select some of his favorite recordings, play the “finished mix” version, then “final master”. Afterwards he will take us through the process and what occurs during the mastering. This may include how he is able to make certain things louder with the least amount of damage, and comparing the vinyl specific files (no limiter) to the streaming versions. Some of these recordings have been mastered using the Acora SRC-2s currently in his studio system. Come visit Dave and Acora on Friday or Saturday evening in the Eisenhower room. We’re sure you will enjoy! Dave McNair has been a professional recording engineer, mixer, producer, audiophile, and for the last 20 years, a multiple Grammy-winning mastering engineer. Since his earliest days, music has been a constant. Starting with seeing The Beatles live on Ed Sullivan to studying classical guitar from age 11, then later a series of rock bands, his love of music, sound, and tech, lead him to a career in music recording. Concurrent to beginning his engineering career, Dave sold high-end home audio in several locations including Innovative Audio and Sound By Singer in NYC. After years of residence in NYC, Los Angeles, and Austin, he now resides in Winston-Salem, North Carolina where he operates Dave McNair Mastering and spends his free time listening to records, reading, meditating, cooking vegan food, hiking, riding road bikes, and swapping out hi-fi gear in search of a better sound.