And the other main benefit to me of having the Premaster > Master setup is that I can easily add whatever limiter I want easily at any point on the master without worrying about other effects or simply turn up the Gain/Fader to get -0.1db export whenever I want.
 
So basically I can toss a VST limiter in the FX Bin or use the Concrete Limiter or not use a limiter at all or use a Gain boost and just use a limiter as clip protection, etc to increase my levels to -0.1 without ever once worrying about how the limiter is going to affect my signal chain.
 
I don't master in the project though (I create a new project and import the -6db exports into it for mastering). It just makes firing off samples of my work to whoever may need to hear it quick and easy.

Hi everybody, first of all I want to thank for all the information. I think all the tips are great and will help to deal with reference tracks.
I’ve an absolute minimalistic setup. It’s the DAW, some analog synth stuff, and a MPC. For monitoring, I’ve to work with my studio  headphone (closed) and a second one (open) for comparing mixes. My interface has just one line input – but a big volume knob which is very nice in practice. Yes, it is a bad idea to mix without monitor speakers. But I don’t have the space for a bigger setup (WAF) and I decided that mixing with headphones is better than making no music at all. In this situation a reference track is really helpful.
Tonight I will check the plug-ins you recommended. Using external sources sounds promising, but I’ve to upgrade to a reasonable interface (io) first. I will do some notes about my experiences, because it seems to be a typical rookie challenge and some information could help others, too.

I was going to suggest the group function for the mute/solo button but someone already commented on that.
 
It's easy to set up, use, and then shut off after you're done.

And on a semi related note, here's something I'm presently investigating that appears quite good:

http://forum.cakewalk.com...ee-Trial-m3285695.aspx

I just rediscovered a flaw in the method I described earlier. I was aware of it but had forgotten and just got futzed up with it again today so I wanted to make sure I wasn't screwing anyone up.
 
If you have any sends on tracks (like going to a reverb or compression bus or whatever) those will remain audible even when you solo the ref track. That of course blows because you are getting the sound from those busses on top of the soloed ref track.
 
I am not certain (and now REALLY need to investigate it further) but I'm assuming there is a way to use Exclusive Solo to get around this problem.
 
So essentially if you use the method I described earlier in the thread be aware of any sends going to busses. Those busses will need to be muted otherwise you will get bleed from the busses on top of your reference track.
 
Sorry about that.

Like I said earlier the best approach is to not have the reference track anywhere near your DAW. It avoids all possible issues. I have attended a few mastering sessions with top mastering engineers and they all have the ref tracks feeding into other playback stereo inputs on the console.
 
For DAW people something like the Presonus Monitor Station is a good call because it has these extra external inputs and levels can be adjusted as well to match rms levels easily between your mix and the ref track.

IS this something to consider... i got it :

Magic AB

What I do is put a master FX (EZmix) on the master bus. That ca easily be turned on and of. That way I hear the Master mix kind os sound when I mix. But I guest they are just tools for this use. And for a great sound you should get help to do the master. And use real tools. Not just playing tools like EZmix.