I'm getting an overall better, smoother sound and waveform now. The multiband compressor was boosting then crushing the peaks...well, that's what it looked like to me anyway.
I'm using a Focusrite "Midnight" Compressor for mastering now, it seems really lovely...and whilst it costs, you get it free when subscribing to the UK "Sound on Sound" magazine (which I love). Women don't just read clothes/shoes magazines....lol
Not sure about the dithering... Yes, I've got "artifacts" (or maybe not) now, but they're more sibilant/tambourine high peaks that were previously being crushed... So I'm going back to the mix to fix.
I've kept the 16/96 master right until the final CD or mp3 stage though... am learning! But is "dithering" built into Mixcraft, or is there a separate plugin VST needed? (I couldn't find a freeware one, although I admit I didn't look much...)
