Mastering for streaming, vinyl and CD

When to get your music mastered

Book mastering once the mix is finished and you are happy with balance and arrangement. It is the right step for:

• a single you are releasing to streaming platforms through a distributor;
• an EP or album whose songs were mixed in different sessions or even different studios;
• a vinyl pressing, where low end, sibilance and side length all have technical limits;
• a CD release, where the pressing plant needs a ready-made image;
• music for film, games or advertising that has to sit alongside other material.

Not sure your mix is ready? Send it over and we will tell you honestly whether a change in the mix would gain more than mastering. Mixing is available here too, see mixing.

Loudness: how loud is loud enough?

Streaming platforms normalise playback volume: a track mastered very loud simply gets turned down, so the benefit of extra loudness disappears while the lost dynamics stay lost. That is why we master to a level that suits the genre and dynamics of your music, not to the highest number achievable.

These are starting points, not fixed rules. Our guide on loudness in mastering explains what the readings mean and why a heavy rock song and a piano ballad are handled differently.

What happens during mastering

The work comes down to a handful of processes, each applied with care:

Corrective EQ

A bloated low-mid or a harsh vocal is nudged by a fraction.

Dynamics

Gentle bus compression to glue the mix, sometimes per frequency band.

Stereo image

We keep the low end centred and let the top end open up a little.

Limiting

The final stage that controls peak level and reaches the agreed volume.

Noise shaping and dither

When converting to 16 bit for CD, we add dither to avoid distortion.

Every step is compared at matched volume with the untreated mix. If a move only sounds better because it is louder, we leave it out.

Albums: running order, transitions and cohesion

On an album, mastering is also an editorial job. Together we settle the final running order, the gaps between songs and any crossfades or tracks that flow into each other without silence. We make sure a quiet acoustic number next to a full band track does not suddenly drop away, and that the record plays as one story from start to finish.

For an album, send a list of titles, running order and, if you have them, the ISRC codes from your distributor or label. We embed them in the metadata of the CD image and the files.

What you receive

• Streaming master: WAV, 24 bit, at your mix's sample rate, accepted by all common distributors.
• CD master: a DDP image at 16 bit / 44.1 kHz with running order, gaps and metadata, plus a check file for the pressing plant.
• Vinyl master: separate files per side, with processing adapted for low end and sibilance.
• Reference: an MP3 for quick sharing with your band, label or publicist.

Masters are ready within 7 working days of receiving your complete mix. We keep the mastering session for 6 months, so a later version, say a vinyl master after a digital release, can build on the same settings.

Revisions and the limits of mastering

After the first master you have 2 revision rounds: a touch more or less level, more clarity, or a different gap between two songs. If the mix itself needs changing, for example because the vocal sits too low, your mix engineer supplies a new version and we master that again. In mastering we only have the stereo mix, not individual tracks, so turning up one instrument on its own is not possible.

If your mix can be split into stems, such as vocals, beat and instruments in three groups, we can discuss stem mastering. It gives more control, but it also takes more time.

Price per track or per album

Mastering a single track costs €70. An album of up to twelve tracks is €540, including running order, gaps and a streaming master. Prices include 21% Dutch VAT; excluding VAT that is €57.85 per track and €446.28 per album.

Extra format versions, such as a separate vinyl master next to the streaming one, or stem mastering are agreed with you beforehand. Not included are mixing, applying for ISRC or EAN codes and the fees of a pressing plant or distributor.

We start after a 30% deposit. All arrangements on payment, delivery and use are in the terms and conditions. Questions about your project? Get in touch through the contact page.

What you get

• Listening session and analysis of loudness, peaks and frequency balance
• Mastering in an acoustically treated room
• Matched-volume comparison with the untreated mix
• Streaming master as WAV at your mix's sample rate
• Running order, gaps and metadata for albums
• Revision rounds on the master as set out in the terms
• Session archived for later format versions