Frequently Asked Questions

Audio mixing involves blending and refining multiple tracks to create a cohesive and polished mix. Vocals, instruments, drums, and melodies are balanced to complement each other, resulting in a clear, deep, and well-rounded sound where every element shines while working together harmoniously.

Key steps in audio mixing include:

• Level Balancing: Adjusting the volume of each element so none overpower or disappear in the mix, creating a uniform and clear sound.

• Panning: Positioning sounds within the stereo field to generate a sense of space, determining whether a sound comes from the left, right, center, or somewhere in between.

• Equalization (EQ): Shaping the frequency range of each audio element, enhancing or reducing certain frequencies to make sounds clearer, warmer, or more defined.

• Dynamics Processing: Using tools like compression and limiting to manage the dynamic range, balancing loud and quiet parts, and preventing audio from becoming too loud.

• Effects: Applying effects like reverb and delay to add depth, space, and texture to the mix.

Audio mastering prepares your mixed track for distribution, ensuring it sounds its best on all playback systems and platforms. By applying various processing techniques—such as EQ, compression, limiting, saturation, stereo widening, de-essing, and more—the track is polished and made cohesive. A professional mastering engineer enhances the overall width, clarity, and control of your audio, ensuring it translates perfectly across any device.

A stem is a processed stereo audio track derived from the final song. Stems can be separated into individual elements like kick, snare, and hi-hat, or combined as a full drum stem. The more stems you provide, the more control and flexibility we have in mixing each sound within the overall track.

Multitrack audio recordings do not include any processing and are 100% RAW files that need to be mixed from the bottom up. My mixing services cover both stem and multitrack mixing for the same price. 

Stem mastering is the process of taking your mixed stems and using them to master instead of just a solo stereo .WAV file. This allows me to be able to have a bit more control during the mastering process. For example, you could send a drum stem, a bass stem, a melodic stem, and a vocal stem that are all separate from each other. I would have much more control over certain mastering processes compared to me mastering just one stereo mix bus .WAV file. When sending us the files for stem mastering, please send your processed stems with any master bus processing turned off.

I do not charge extra for stem mastering.

I do offer stem mastering services, which provide greater control over the final sound of your mix and master. Stem mastering involves breaking your mix into individual components or stem groups—such as drums, bass, guitars, keys, and vocals. By mastering each group separately, we can make precise adjustments to specific elements. Depending on your project, stem mastering can offer a higher level of enhancement and refinement compared to standard mastering.

Mastering is one of the most crucial steps in the audio engineering process. It can truly make or break a song. Unfortunately, many artists fall short at this final stage by relying on low-quality mastering with AI-based guesswork. A professional mastering engineer ensures your music sounds its best on all devices. There's no substitute for the expertise of a skilled engineer working in a precision-tuned room with high end equipment.

Yes, please do. I think reference tracks are very helpful for setting goals for the project. That is valuable information for me to help you get your desired result.

If you don’t have a reference track, no problem—we’ll choose a similar track that captures the vibe and style of your song.

My approach to loudness is to make your track as loud as possible without compromising its dynamic range.

Certain clients, tracks, and genres require different results when it comes to loudness.

If you have a specific loudness preference, feel free to let me know, and I’ll work with you to achieve the sound you’re looking for!

All services include 3 revisions. These revisions are to give you the peace of mind that the end result will be exactly as you want it. On the rare occasion you exceed 3 revisions, any additional revision will cost an additional $50 USD.

A 2-track mix & master will take roughly 3-7 days to complete.

A full stem mix & master will take roughly 4-9 days to complete.

A master will take roughly 3-5 days to complete.

I understand that some clients may need extra time to review the initial mix and make decisions. We never rush the process and encourage you to take the time necessary to ensure you're happy with the final result.

When you purchase a mastering service, you will receive the following:

• -0dBTP_2448.wav - High Resolution Master for Distributors

• -1dBTP_2448.wav - Apple Digital Masters

• Mastering for alternate mixes such as Instrumentals, TV Mixes and Performance Mixes.

• Stereo 320kbps MP3 for press kits

When you purchase a mixing service, you will receive the following:

• _2448.wav - High Resolution Mix for Mastering

• -0dBTP_2448.wav - High Resolution Mix for Distribution

• -1dBTP_2448.wav - Mix for Apple Digital Masters

If any other format is required please let us know!

Leave as many on or off as you would like. Please note that your mixing decisions will be the foundation upon which I can perform my service! I will embellish any decisions you decide to keep

. 

I prefer to start from the ground up with my own vocal chain, as they are often the most important part of the song.

Playback of your stems must be identical to your finished production.

It’s recommended to remove any plugins from your master bus that affect dynamic range, such as compression or limiting. While it’s best to remove all plugins, I understand some clients prefer to leave EQ or saturation in place as part of their signature sound. The reason for removing master bus processing is to ensure the mix retains its full dynamic range, allowing us to apply compression and limiting at the appropriate stage in the mastering chain.

Mix bus decisions can limit my ability to give you the master that your track deserves. Those decisions will be the foundation upon which I can perform my service.

Stem mastering: If you send of a set of stems for stem mastering, you MUST take off mix bus processing. Make sure to keep all of your processing on your stems and individual tracks. The only plugins you must take off are any master buss processing.

Playback of your stems must be identical to your finished production.

Please do. This is essential when working with an online mix & master engineer. The rough mix or demo mix will be used to establish that the stems you have sent playback correctly including all automation & processing.

It also helps establish the balance you want for each stem in the final mix. By listening to the rough mix, I can accurately determine the volume and positioning you intend for each sound in the mix.

If you have a vocal that requires editing such as, timing, artifacts, and other issues, I can take care of it for you. It will be a consideration for the quote to do your project.

I do ask that you take care of these things in the production side of the project if possible.

Before we begin the project, we will have a discussion about your desires and thoughts for it. I will ask a question of whether or not you want to me to apply vocal production and to what extent.

This means, for example, that if your vocals don’t have much in the way of creative production like reverbs, delays, special FX, stutters, etc. I can add these effects to add some ear candy to your song. If your vocals are completely dry I will take the liberty to add a tasteful amount of production to your vocals unless you tell me not to. 

I can also dig into the instrumental adding beat cuts, filter sweeps, and creative elements that add and enhance the production you handed me.

We will have more in depth communication about what this entails and what you want out of the project. I can add as much or as little as you would like.

Yes. Ideally, you would be able to do this in the production process.

But I have both Antares Autotune & Melodyne to be able to make sure the tuning on your vocals are the way you want it.

Additional tuning will be considered in the quote you receive.

Get in contact with us via email and I can simply replace the files. Please be sure to get in contact with us ASAP to ensure I have the correct files to mix before work commences. If work has already started on your mix and the entire mix requires new stems, charges will apply.

If you need to submit a new version of the mix or production after I’ve begun mixing/mastering, there will be an additional charge of $50 per song for minor changes. However, if the changes are substantial, a remix/remastering will be required, and the full fee will be charged again. Please take the time to thoroughly check your files before submitting to ensure you’re sending the correct version and that there are no issues.

While it’s not ideal, I can work with a limited or clipped mix. Mastering a limited mix follows a similar process but requires extra precision to ensure the song doesn’t become over-compressed or distorted.

If mp3s are the highest quality file you have and you are unable to obtain high quality wav files, I will be able to work with this.