Download the preset HERE

This is a recreation of one of the presets that was commonly used for mastering happy hardcore tracks back in the mid-2000s. You will need T-RackS 6 (any edition will work, it only uses the classic modules). It will not sound EXACTLY the same as the old preset, but I think this is as close as I can reasonably get it

Tips for using the preset

  1. The preset is very sensitive to input gain. Make sure your unmastered song has some headroom, or tweak the volume of the input as needed because it will absolutely smash the compression if you're not careful!
  2. For best results mix the kick louder than you normally would. I've found having the kick about 2-3db louder than normal works well.
  3. Expect it to color the sound a lot, and be a little more compressed than you might normally do. That's just kinda how it was back then.

Breakdown of the preset

If you're curious what's going on or want to give a similar thing a go yourself here's what the preset is doing.

Stage 1: EQ

The EQ is adding a lot of color, this kind of "scooped mids" profile was, and still is pretty popular. It's also raising the overall volume by quite a lot, which is the second biggest part of why the whole chain is so sensitive to input volume.

Stage 2: Compressor

This is fairly subtle compression I think, the one thing that stands out to me is how low the input drive is. One thing to mention: the "Sidechain HPF" knob was added in later versions of T-RackS. For maximum accuracy I think it should be set to as low as possible, but I didn't really notice a difference so I left it at default.

Stage 3: Limiter

Yup, limiter before clipper. This thing is sneaky, it's a "multiband limiter" with values that aren't exposed. Compared to a normal, single band limiter it makes things brighter, and really just has its own character. The input drive into this is VERY high, and is the main reason that the chain is so sensitive to input volume. Most of the color is coming from this and I haven't been able to replicate it with other limiters, if someone more capable can do that please hit me up!

Stage 4: Clipper

Not much to write about here. It's boosting the volume a little bit and making sure no peaks get through. This wasn't actually a separate module on the old system and was just part of the output section, so that kind of makes sense.

How did you make this?

I was given the old T-RackS 24 preset. It can't be opened in any other version, but luckily the data was stored unencrypted as midi data with values between 0 and 127. I was able to determine what percentage value should be set using that and set each module up accordingly. Big big thanks to the IK Multimedia support as well, who were able to help me test this against the very old version of the plugin.

Why even do this?

I think it's neat. My goal making hardcore is to make a song that wouldn't sound out of place in 2007, and being able to use the actual mastering chain from back then is fun!
Realistically this sort of thing isn't useful past being a piece of history, it's not going to instantly make your songs sound like the 2000s, but I think it's undeniable that it is fun to poke at, and the people who let me do it and put up with me obsessing over it for a while (you know who you are) have my eternal thanks.

Looking for help!

I'm not perfectly happy with this recreation, it's not exact and it's only one of the no doubt several that existed at the time. If you have an old T-RackS preset from back in the day I'd love to take a crack at re-creating it. Also, if you have an unmastered version of a classic song and a mastered version to compare against, that would really help make this recreation perfect.