FAQ

Simply put – it’s a process of preparing a complete mix for distribution. Mastering is the final stage of sound processing. It’s taking a premastered and mixed track and improving the tone, timbre and strengthening the volume to a desired level. Professionally mastered material should sound good on every sound system ranging from MP3 players, small computer speakers, Hi-Fi systems up to powerful club PA. While working on an album a sound engineer should also remember to keep the tracks sounding as a coherent whole. Material edited this way is ready for download, or can be delivered on a data carrier in the form of a “master” file. Next, it is possible to make a copy using methods such as pressing, replication and duplication.

It is possible to listen to a free sample of a mastered track for new customers. I can provide a 3 minute long sample in MP3 (320kbps) format. The rule is simple – if you like the end result – you make a payment and get the finished material. If you are not satisfied – there are no hidden costs. It should be noted, however, that especially if you are a new customer it is crucial for me to understand your expectations so that I can make the required corrections (at no extra charge). A good way to avoid unnecessary confusion is by uploading a reference track. This track should be in the same genre as yours.

Acceptable formats are WAV or AIFF files with 16 bit depth minimum and sample rate of 44.1kHz. Preferred bit depth is 24bit. MP3 file format, due to the loss in quality during compression, is not acceptable. If you work with higher resolution and greater depth, you can export files with the same parameters such as 32bit/88.2kHz or 96kHz or more. Such a file will be significantly larger and the difference in the quality, in the final product will be inaudible to most customers. If you want to provide the material on a CD, burn it as a data disc, and not as as an audio CD (when burning an audio CD the files automatically are converted to 16-bit).

The standard format in which we send the finished material for CD or digital release is 16bit/44.1kHz WAV. If you’re planning to release your work on DVD or on vinyl you can order the 24bit version. I will also send a free copy in MP3 format (320kbps).

The peak level should not exceed-3dBFS. It’s best when it’s set at -4dBFS to -9dBFS, which gives 4 to 9 db headroom for the mastering engineer. It should also be remembered that none of the tracks should peak above 0dBFS, as this will cause clipping (particularly undesirable during digital sound processing). A good way to lower the volume on the main channel is to select all the tracks together and reduce them to a desired level.

It is recommended not to use any effects/plugins on the master bus. Make sure that before you export a music file the mix has no effects on the Master Bus. If you don’t want to get rid of your chosen plug-ins send me two versions – one with no effects and the other with the chosen effect applied (please describing what processor has been used).

Do not use dither. Dither is the last stage of audio editing when mastering.

Do not normalize the mix. Normalizing will increase noise level and the track volume, raising the peak levels to 0 dB, thus reducing the headroom for the mastering engineer to work with. The final track volume level will be set in the mastering process.

Obtaining a well-balanced premaster is a process that require a lot of knowledge, experience and reliable monitoring in an acoustically adequate environment. Here is a list of the main principles and techniques that will help you get better results with your music. Also remember to select the right components from the very beginning. If sounds don’t work well with each other from the start, don’t count on fixing this later in the mix. After finishing the arrangement, give your ears a break and get back to your track the next day. During several hours of work your hearing has adopted to possible errors in the mix, so you’ll be able to evaluate it more critically introducing necessary changes after you get some rest. Always try to mix having the best possible balance between individual tracks as your main goal and if you care about the volume level leave it to be set by the mastering engineer during the mastering stage.

• Foundations: The foundation to each track in electronic music, is the right correlation of a kick and bass line. These components contain the most energy, and an improper balance between them can ruin a song. In most cases it’s a good idea to begin your mix from those very elements. First of all, find the right kick for the right bass. If you use a very low and powerful bass choose a kick which has more energy in a higher register. If you decide to go with a kick having a stronger impact or attack in a higher register, it will be easier to adjust the sub-bass with lower frequencies. Try raising the desired frequency in a kick, gently cutting the same frequency within the bass using a narrow notch filter. Get rid of all resonances in these tracks – if you can’t hear them, you may need to use a spectrum analyzer. Frequencies, that can often be cut out of a kick are 130Hz and 200Hz (but every kick is different and this rule can vary from kick to kick). Experiment, and above all, listen carefully in order to estimate the right balance. A commonly used technique, aimed at controlling bass drums and bass’ is sidechaining (triggering a bass with a kick, making the kick break better through the mix). Just play around with it. Thanks to this a kick and bass will cooperate with each other. At the end you can try grouping them, compressing them together and even amplifying their volume with a limiter.

• Equalization: The Golden Rule – Cut, rather than boost. You can achieve better results by cutting a low audible tone frequency, instead of boosting a desired one. If such actions don’t give sufficient results you can try finding the so called “sweet spot” of an instrument by gently boosting it, keeping in mind that the higher the frequency – the more musical the broad setting (low value) of “Q” will sound. On the other hand a narrow “Q” (high value) can be used to cut across the whole sound spectrum, and in this way you can also get rid of possible resonances. It’s a good idea to make some room for the kick and bass by using a high-pass filter on tracks that do not have their key information in low frequency’s. The most natural and musically sounding filters are those with a gentle slope, eg 12dB/octave. You should think of the mix as a big puzzle. Tracks, in order to fit, must overlap. If you add 1,5kHz, it may be worth to cut the same frequency on other track. Each instrument should occupy its own place in the mix. However, always use an equalizer in a mix because that’s where things need to sound good – no one else is going to be listening for the perfect hi-hat in isolation. Watch out for to many high frequencies. It is the mastering engineer’s task to give your tracks that “sparkle” using high quality tools. Getting rid of shrill frequencies is more invasive for the feel of an entire work, so it would be better to export a darker mix rather than a brighter one.

• Grouping: This technique gives you additional control over creating the sound, and energy of a track. It is one of the techniques by which we can get a powerful yet clean and coherent mix. You can achieve better results when using enhancers, saturation or compression of any kind on multiple devices with subtle settings on separate tracks and further on groups, rather than using extreme settings of these effects on a single track. An good example of a division of subgroups could be as follows: Low End (bass and kick) / Drums / Synths / Pads / Leads / Vocals etc.

• Levels: When setting the levels of individual tracks it might be useful to focus on how they affect the whole mix rather than how they sound in the mix. In other words, when setting a track level, listen to the whole mix, and it’s mutual relation to the rest of the tracks. Focus your hearing. You will be able to get a much better balance between all the components. If possible, perform a full mix down at one volume level (around 80dB) (there are many reasonably accurate SPL meters for smartphones with Android or iOS platforms ). 80dB is a level at which we hear the entire frequency spectrum according to the definition of isophones. Human hearing is deceptive and louder signals are perceived as “better”. The same principle applies to brightness, which when increased also gives the impression of sound improvement. After pre-mastered mixes, check your studio monitor’s potential (and your neighbor’s patience) by turning the volume up so you can make sure whether or not you “overcooked” the low end of your track, or you still have enough space to utilize it. Similarly, you can also check a mix at a barely audible level. This technique can help you determine whether an individual track stands out drastically from the rest.

  

  ISOPHONES

• Panning , Mono/Stereo: Try to keep all instruments playing at low frequencies in the middle of the mix (preferably in mono). The higher the frequency – the wider it can be set. A lead vocal, should also be set in the middle of a mix (to strengthen it – duplicate it at least once, and gently spread out the pan). Unless you want to get a particular effect, spread it out about 30 – 40 degrees to the left and right. This way you will gain space for other tracks playing in the middle. A good technique is to check each track one by one. Set those that don’t carry any interesting information in mono. Compare the individual sounds, listening to them first in stereo and then in mono. If it turns out that there’s no significant difference in the stereo signal, change it to mono. This way you can minimizing phasing issues. You can use a phase correlation meter to check the entire mix. If the meter’s chart is on the right side of the scale (heading to “+1”), the correlation of the left and right channel is fine. When it’s aiming towards the left side (heading for “-1”) that’s an indication that there is something wrong. Signal oscillating anywhere between “0” and “+1” means that the level is ok. You should also check effects such as reverb, which is often responsible for expanding the mix too much. At the very end, listen to the whole mix in mono. If you have set everything correctly your track should not be missing any elements.

• Compression: This tool is used for different purposes and in different ways depending on the style of music. A good starting point is 3dB attenuation. Keep in mind that extreme settings can permanently deprive the track’s dynamics. If heavy compression isn’t intended, better set this tool carefully. If you reduce 4dB, compensate the output of the compressors main volume by about 4 dB. Compare (A/B) to check whether you got the result you wanted. If you are not sure how to set a compressor for a particular track – let me know and I’ll be happy to help you out.

• Nasty transients: Sometimes commercial samples/loops, have been subjected to drastic treatment (compression, EQ, limiter, saturation). Abnormally high “peak levels”, which increase the average volume of a track are not good. It’s possible to prevent such a situation in many cases. For example you can activate two compressors – one with a fast attack and fast release, set to be triggered by the peak transients, and another running smoothly. Here is a simple way of how to manage with such a situation. If you work on any DAW supporting VST you can download a free clipper plugin: “GClip” https://www.kvraudio.com/product/gclip-by-gvst If you work in Logic you can use the Clip Level option in the device Bitchrusher. An oscilloscope will be useful in both cases, and necessary with Logic. Free to download at: https://www.kvraudio.com/product/s_m_exoscope_by_smart_electronix. Set the oscilloscope after the peak cutting tool and adjust the level influencing the peaks until you get rid of the signal that stands out too much,. Make sure this doesn’t affect the tone of the track. This technique can only be applied when you are sure that the transient is abnormally high, and should not be used to control the dynamics of a track. As I mentioned before, this phenomenon occurs most frequently in the case of heavily edited loop/samples (mostly percussive) and this type of editing is acceptable mainly for electronic music. If you are not sure whether samples requires this type of editing – send me a message and I will try to give you some advise.

  
  
  
  

• Reference listening: Reference listening: If possible, check your mix on multiple sound sources. Additional monitors, headphones, home Hi-fis or car sound system will give you a better picture on how your music actually sounds.

Before exporting a file, set at least 1 bar of space (silence) before the beginning of the song, and a few bars at the end (for effects such as reverb or delay to sustain). Export tracks in WAV or AIF with bit depth of 24 bit (16bit is also acceptable. MP3 is not acceptable). In most cases, a sample rate of 44.1 is sufficient. Make sure that before you export a music file the mix has no effects on the Master Bus. If you don’t want to get rid of your chosen plug-ins send me two versions – one with no effects and the other with the chosen effect applied (please describing what processor has been used). Make sure that when you export your file there is no active dither option. Dither off! Don’t normalize tracks.

Make sure that the peak level does not exceed -3dBFS (best quality when set at -9dBFS to -4dBS). A sound engineer will have enough headroom to work with. Use the full, correct file names. Compress the song/songs into ZIP/RAR format before uploading.

• If you are looking for a specific sound heard in someone else’s music production please attach the song/file, or write the title, so that your mastering engineer will have a reference.

Decide how many subgroups (stems) you want to divide the track into. If you are not sure how to do this, please send me a message and I’ll help you out . A typical division in electronic music may look as follows:

Kick & Bass / Percussion / Synths / Pads / Vocals / FX

Select the tracks that will make up a subgroup, and set them to solo mode (or mute the rest of the tracks) and then export the track. Repeat for additional subgroups remembering to start exported files from the same point in the project. Finally, check the new project if all imported audio files are time-synchronized, and whether everything is in place. Check if the parameters of exported tracks are the same as described in the How to prepare a track for mastering ? (Premaster). Name the tracks correctly and pack them into ZIP/RAR before sending. If you send a few tracks throw various groups to directories with full, correct names of songs and then pack it all together.

Before exporting individual tracks, set at least 1 bar of space (silence) before the beginning of the song, and a few bars at the end (for effects such as reverb or delay to sustain) Remember to set the whole track consistent in time so that when you import everything all the components are evenly and properly positioned. Export in WAV/AIFF 24bit/44.1kHz parameters. If you use the send effect, export the given track without the send effects, then mute the track and export only the effect track in solo mode. Repeat this if you have more than one send effect. Name the tracks properly and pack them together into a ZIP/RAR file before sending. If you send a few tracks throw the individual components of the track to directories with their names, then pack everything into a single file.

Everything depends on the amount of uploaded material (and type of service). Approximate waiting time is given in the section Prices. The duration of more complex orders is determined individually.

At the moment, the studio offers digital sound processing with the highest quality software from companies such as Universal Audio, Slate Digital, Waves, Plugin Alliance, iZotope (and many more). It is my plan to expand the offer with analog devices in the future.

We accept classic bank transfers, credit cards and Paypal payments. You do not need a Paypal account to make a payment through this service. When you place an order, you can choose to pay by credit card, debit card or Paypal as a guest. In case of payment by bank transfer, finished tracks will be sent to you after the money has credited on our account (this can take up to 5 business days).