mixing and mastering category

Ride vocals, solos, and transitions; mix comes alive beyond static balances. more

Faders first: achieve a solid rough mix without EQ or compression to ensure source and arrangement work naturally. more

Target sibilant bands (5–10 kHz); split-band preferred for minimal lisping. more

Short slap/tempo delays to add depth and stereo without wash. more

Frequency-dependent compression that tames harshness or sibilance only when triggered. more

When overlapping instruments compete for the same frequency band; solved by EQ carving, panning, or arrangement choices. more

Target consistent channel headroom (e.g., peaks around -10 dBFS) into buses & plugins. more

Managing levels across the mix chain to maintain headroom and avoid plugin distortion; aim for -6 dBFS peak on the stereo bus. more

Leave -1 dBTP true peak and mix around -16 to -9 LUFS short-term before mastering. more

HPF non-bass elements to reduce mud; sweep to just below source body. more

Target average loudness (e.g., -14 LUFS for streaming) to preserve dynamics and avoid platform limiting. more

Separate mid (center) and side (stereo width) signals for targeted EQ, compression, or widening. more

Gentle compression, EQ, and saturation on the master to unify elements; minimal if mastering engineer will handle polish. more

How a mix sounds on different playback systems. Reference on earbuds, car, monitors, and mono to ensure consistency. more

Comparing tonal balance and loudness-normalized reference mixes to avoid being misled by level differences. more

Shared aux reverbs (plate/room/hall); EQ/duck returns; predelay to keep vocals forward. more

Serial compression shapes transients in stages; parallel adds body without squashing. more

Key vocal or kick to duck pads/bass for clarity; musical release times matter. more

Analyzing mix energy per frequency range to ensure balanced spectrum across playback systems. more

Mastering from grouped stems (drums, vocals, instruments) for finer control while retaining mix integrity. more

Export grouped stems with embedded headroom and consistent start; facilitates revisions. more

Use M/S EQ/compression to widen or tighten; avoid hollow mid by over-widening. more

Removing offending frequencies before boosting others; promotes headroom and cleaner tone shaping. more

Cut problems before boosting; notch resonances and boxiness. more

Enhance or tame attack/sustain without EQ; useful for drums and plucked instruments. more

Check on phones, small speakers, car; commit fixes, not compromises. more

Limiting with oversampling to catch inter-sample peaks above 0 dBFS that can distort on conversion. more