How do I prep my mix for mastering?

Once you fill out the booking form and we start talking about your project, I’ll be there to answer any questions you might have. Here’s a brief overview of the basics:

• Make sure that what you are sending is absolutely, really, totally your final mix. Check and double check for clicks, pops, bounce errors, missed crossfades, unwanted hiss/signal noise, etc. Mastering tends to bring out all of the details of a mix, and things that may be very subtle in the mix stage can become noticeable and unpleasant during mastering.

• If possible, please send your song with any fade-in/fade-out that you like. If not possible, please include any notes/wishes you have for fade-ins and fade-outs on your booking email. If your song begins abruptly, please include one or two seconds of silence before your bounce starts. (Sometimes songs starting right at the 0:00 mark of an export can have a click/pop)

• Please send songs as .WAV files, and export them in whatever sample rate/bit depth you have been working in. No need to up-convert or down-convert.

• Please send songs with an output below 0 db (aka not clipping). If you want an extra gold star, mixes with a dynamic range of -8 or more will leave lots of headroom for mastering to do its work. (Note: a dynamic range of -8 does not mean peaking at -8db. Dynamic range is a separate measurement that can be found using many different metering plugins. If you’re not sure what your DR is, that’s ok!) Your masters can be as loud and proud as you want, but leaving some dynamic range to work with before mastering will ensure that loudness can be achieved in an artistic way.

• If possible, please remove any final limiter (particularly if the limiting was only to listen at a reference volume) from your mix bus before printing the mix. If you feel like your limiting is part of the actual sonics you are going for, please send me a version of the mix with and without the limiter on. This will allow me to hear the song as you’ve been hearing it and choose the route that will allow the best end result.

• Make sure any room calibration software has been turned off before you export your final mixes (We’ve all left on Sonarworks before, right?)

• It’s fine for you to do mix bus processing. That’s a huge part of the art of mixing, and I will always do my best to honor the work that’s already been done and start from there. However, if you’re uncertain about whether your mix bus processing is helping or hurting, feel free to reach out to me before sending files. I’m happy to listen to your mix and offer feedback that could help the mix reach its full potential in the mastering phase.

• Send me full resolution files via a file transfer service of your choice (Dropbox, WeTransfer, Google Drive, etc.) Please send a download link, not an invitation to share/collaborate on a folder

Do you offer revisions?

Yes! I want you to love your masters and to love the process. Part of my job is communicating well and understanding your vision for the song. If we don’t nail that the first time around, I’ll keep asking questions and working with you until you are 100% happy with your master.

Do you charge for additional versions (instrumental masters, tv masters, etc.)

As of right now, the rate includes printing all standard versions of the mix (instrumental, TV, a capella, clean version, radio edit, etc.). If you have considerable more versions than that, we’ll have a conversation about any appropriate additional rates.