Category: Pre-Mastering Tips

Mixing is the process of combining finished recordings together into a song. It often requires very in-depth, specific look into adjusting levels, EQ, and editing to get the best possible sounds before a song is ready to be mastered. Not every problem with a mix can be fixed during mastering, and these tips should help provide a solid starting point for your mastering engineer.

What is Automated Mastering Software?

Quick Answer Automated Mastering Software is in short, a computer program that uses algorithms to create a master of your music, ready for distribution. Automated Mastering Software is the foundation of any automated mastering service, and can be accessed online, usually for a small fee or a monthly subscription charge. What is Automated Mastering [...]

Professional Recording in a Home Studio

Quick Answer Creating a professional recording in a home studio comes down to setting up the room correctly, using the best introductory equipment, recording your signal to the proper level (at least -18dB), and recording your instruments in the correct order. To start, ensure your room is sound-proofed. Professional Recording in a Home Studio [...]

Mastering Dialogue for Podcasts

Quick Answer Mastering dialogue for podcasts is the process of preparing your dialogue for digital distribution via various streaming services. How you master dialogue for podcasts depends on the streaming service to which you're distributing, and the volume of the mastered dialogue will range from -20 LUFS to -16 LUFS. Mastering Dialogue for Podcasts [...]

Top 10 Free Mastering Plugins

MSED - Voxengo ISOL8 - TBProAudio BL Waves - Blue Lab Konsol - Analog Obsession Frontier - D16 Audio Group Bittersweet - Flux Overtone GEQ - Voxengo HPL2 Processor - Acoustic Field Loudmax - Thomas Mundt dpMeter4 - TBProAudio Finding the right plugins for mastering isn't always the easiest task. There's a lot of [...]

Mastering for Dance Music

Quick Answer Mastering for Dance Music is a process that prepares dance music for distribution while making it pronounced and detailed enough to be enjoyed on consumer-grade equipment. If performed correctly, mastering for dance music often includes louder levels that still retain transient detail and dynamic impact. Mastering for Dance Music in Detail Dance [...]

Top 5 Compression Techniques

Kick and Bass Ducking Full Mix and Vocal Ducking Parallel Compression Serial Compression Smooth Timbre & Transient Timbre Compression Compression can be an incredibly useful effect - its uses span from the purely technical, to the creative. Knowing how to use a compressor to its fullest potential means knowing some of the less obvious [...]

What is Online Mastering?

Quick Answer Online Mastering is an automated and algorithm-based mastering service now provided by various companies. Online Mastering services typically provide quick turnaround and a lower price, but at the expense of potential revisions, high-quality formats, full album mastering, and an ability to process a mix in a unique manner. Online Mastering in [...]

What is Dynamic Mastering?

Quick Answer Dynamic Mastering is the process of mastering a track in a manner to preserve transients and to retain the dynamic range of that recording. Typically, dynamic mastering is accomplished by emphasizing the dynamic range instead of loudness, all while reducing the use of compression and limiting techniques. What is Dynamic Mastering [...]

Best Practices for Mastering Your Song

Some of the Best Practices for Mastering Your Song are Avoiding excessive limiting and compression Using a True Peak meter to ensure peaking is not occurring Avoiding excessive equalization, distortion, and stereo imaging Mastering with a specific medium in mind Using the highest original bit-depth and sampling rate source file Leaving encoding and [...]

Selling Band Merchandise

If you're reading this, you have most likely sold merchandise. You probably already know the basics and the obvious aspects of selling it. These include but aren't limited to: Directing fans to your merch table during the show Having someone at your table at all times. If people don't know where your merchandise [...]