Where most PC multitrack applications need extra help is when it comes to creating the final product, since you still need to add suitable CD track index points and then burn the final CD-R. This will also help you adjust relative track levels more easily using a compressor or limiter plug-in - if you've got rock anthems and ballads on the same album, for instance, the ballads may require dropping in overall level to sound correct in context. The obvious way to bypass this is to create a separate stereo track for each song, so that you can apply a chain of unique plug-ins to each one. Where this approach falls down is where any plug-in treatments are required, since these generally apply to the entire track. You'll also be able to adjust the order of the songs and the length of the gaps between them, add non-destructive fades in and out using the automation functions, and in many cases drag songs across each other to create crossfades. You're normally so used to hearing each one in isolation that it can be quite a revelation to hear them all together. This approach will work with simple projects where you can drag an entire album's worth of completed stereo songs onto this single track, and it lets you hear all the songs one after the other, which will expose any differences in overall EQ, level, and so on. For simple projects, you could simply create a song containing only a single stereo audio track, like the Stereo Mastering Setup template in Cubase SX. It's often possible to use your main PC multitrack sequencer to prepare your stereo masters for burning as a CD-R audio track. However, many PC musicians still prefer to adopt the DIY approach, pre-mastering their final mixes using PC plug-ins, and then burning their own CD-R that is then sent off to be glass-mastered and replicated. The combination of a fresh set of ears, a purpose-built studio with excellent acoustics, and a wide range of expensive equipment designed to get the best from your music should make your various tracks sit better in the context of an album, as well as adding some freshness and vitality. If you have the budget (and it needn't be that expensive if you shop around) you can take advantage of the services of a mastering engineer. There are various ways to translate your rough PC audio mixes into finely honed versions ready to be burned onto a Red Book audio CD. You can assemble an entire album's worth of completed stereo tracks in most modern multitrack audio applications for pre-mastering, although you'll usually still need a separate application to add CD track indices before burning a CD-R.

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