Mastering Articles
This is where I write about mastering. The gear, the technique, the decisions behind the work. Some of it is practical. Some of it is what I needed to get down.
What Is Mastering?
A Grammy-nominated mastering engineer breaks down what mastering actually is: quality control, fine-tuning, and deliverable assembly.
How to Give Feedback on a Master
Most revision requests fall into two categories: specific and actionable, or the kind that sends both of us in circles for a round or two. Giving feedback on a master is a skill, and nobody teaches it.
The Long-Term Mastering Relationship for Producers and Studios
The first record we make together is the most work. By the third, I know the difference between your choices and your habits, and the sessions get easier for both of us.
Mix Preparation and File Delivery for Mastering
What you send and how you send it sets the ceiling for what mastering can do. Format, headroom, plugins, communication: cover these before you deliver and the session starts from the strongest possible place.
From Single to Album: What to Expect at Mastering
Building an album from previously released singles comes with real decisions: remaster or match, pre-masters or finished files, cohesive record or accidental playlist. I walk through how I handle each one.
Loudness, Dynamics, and Translation in Mastering
If everything is loud all the time, nothing feels loud. Loudness is a tool. Dynamics are the material you are working with. Translation is how you find out whether your decisions survived contact with the real world.
Mastering Loudness Targets for Streaming: Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music, and Bandcamp
Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, and Bandcamp all normalize loudness, and the LUFS numbers are worth knowing. They aren’t mastering targets. Here’s what happens to your master after it leaves the room, platform by platform.
dBTP vs dBFS Explained: True Peak and Inter-Sample Peaks
Your mix looks clean, every sample sits below 0 dBFS, and the meters are happy. Then it hits Spotify and something sounds distorted. The trouble is between your samples, and it has a name: dBTP.
What Is a Vinyl Pre-Master?
Someone is going to ask you for a vinyl pre-master. What it is, what goes into it, and how it affects the way your record gets cut.
The Vinyl Record Pressing Process
How a record gets made, from lacquer cut to test pressing. Who handles each step changes what your vinyl sounds like, which is why I care about every one of them, and why vinyl brokers are almost never the right answer.
How to Sequence an Album
Sequencing is a compositional choice. Track order, energy, key, and where the side break falls all shape how a record plays, and they deserve the same attention as anything else on it.
Mastering for Cassette: A Complete Guide
Most people only ever heard cassette at its most abused. A well-recorded tape on a good deck with quality stock deserves a fair hearing. I cover plant duplication, home transfers, and mastering from cassette to digital.
What Is Apple Digital Masters?
Apple Digital Masters is a delivery standard, and a discipline. What you signed off on is what the listener hears, with nothing lost along the way.
Mastering Deliverables: DDP, ISRCs, Vinyl, and QC
The master is only part of what leaves the studio. DDP, PQ codes, ISRCs, vinyl pre-masters, and the quality control that makes sure the release arrives exactly as it was approved.
Minimum Phase vs Linear Phase EQ and the Time Domain
Every EQ makes a decision about time. Minimum phase and linear phase EQs make different ones, from phase shift to pre-ringing, and none of it shows up on the curve in front of you.
Lossy Codecs in Mastering
What MP3, AAC, and Opus do to your transients, stereo width, and top end on the way to the listener, and how to master so the encoder has room to work.
Dither in Mastering: Why I Add Noise on Purpose
The one topic guaranteed to clear the room at any party, explained properly: quantization error, TPDF, noise shaping, and the one rule. Dither once, at the end, at the final bit depth.
Mid-Side Processing in Mastering
Mid-side processing splits stereo into what the channels share and where they differ. When the center of a mix needs attention and the sides don’t, or the reverse, I can fix one without touching the other.
What AI “Mastering” Services Actually Do (And What They Don't)
In today's fast-paced, ever-evolving music landscape—where every master is a testament to your vision—AI mastering isn't just a tool—it's a game-changer. Let's delve into what these services do—and unlock a rich tapestry of possibilities. Here's the thing: the choice is ultimately yours. I hope this helps!
Synesthesia in the Mastering Room
I have synesthesia. When I hear music, I see it. It comes up in almost every conversation about my work, so I wrote down what it’s actually like in the mastering room.