I'm pretty new but after 6 months I've got 3 songs to as good as I can get them. I was going to "self master" them by putting a waves L2 and play with an eq on the output bus.(I know theres so much more involved). A knowledgable friend says eq should be done on the individual channels and leave the output bus alone. Is there a general rule here? mosly I just wanted to tweak the high end and boost the bass ever so slightly . does this sound right?

There's nothing "wrong" with that, but it should be looked at from the track level to see IF it's related to individual tracks. You don't want to add "sparkle" to things that don't need it.

But if you're looking for an "overall" adjustment that just doesn't work at the track level, a touch of EQ on the buss isn't illegal or anything...

So the Mastering police wont be raiding the place any time soon! Seriously I'm learning tons from these forums and am pretty happy and proud of what I,m turning out. Thanks

One of the things I have found works really well is to put the UAD-1 Pultec on the master buss.
Not actually doing anything with the settings - just left on default.
It seems to do something almost indescribably subtle but very definite to the sound.

One of those rare tools that can make a mix sound, well, smoother & warmer just by being on.

Sounds great , but where do I find a uad-1 putec . I'm using nuendo 2 and have the waves platinum bundle. is this an insert? I'd like to try it.I've just finished song 4 and still rolling. They ought to label this hard recording business as highly addictive.

Sounds great , but where do I find a uad-1 putec . I'm using nuendo 2 and have the waves platinum bundle. is this an insert? I'd like to try it.I've just finished song 4 and still rolling. They ought to label this hard disk recording business as highly addictive.

www.uaudio.com

You need the UAD (PCI) card - If you can find a used one, look for the one marked "Mackie UAD-1" (Mackie used to distrubute them).

The Mackie version came with the Pultec stock. Hell, the others might also... The Pultec Pro (with the midrange EQ) is extra...

http://www.uaudio.com/products/digital/projectpak/index.html

There are 2 versions, the Studio Pak and the Project Pak.
Both come with the Pultec EQP-1A as standard, and for smooth highs there is nothing quite like it.
It also adds something special just being inserted & on.
The Studio Pak is a bit more money, but comes with the LA2A/1176LN/FairChild 670 compressors, the Cambridge EQ and DreamVerb also included.
These extras can be authorized for up to 4 cards, so buy one Full price card, and add DSP power with additional cards at thecheaper price.

Well worth the money.