Do you want to know how to master your own mixes? While the value of a professional set of ears, experience and perspective is not to be overlooked, there are a few things you can do to get your projects across the finish line all by yourself. Whether you’re just starting out or have been mixing for years and want to provide release-ready results, these five tips will have you well on your way to mastering your songs all on your own.
Pictured: FabFilter Pro DS, UAD Precision Equalizer & UAD Multiband Equalizer Software Plug-ins
Table of Contents
Setting the (Gain) Stage
5 Tips for Mastering Your Own Songs
Set Your Gain First
Control Problem Areas
A Little Goes a Long Way
Keep Your Gear Happy
Reference
From Start to Finish
Setting the (Gain) Stage
First thing’s first, let’s get you set up for success. If you’re looking for a starting point or wondering what tools you should use, check out our article on how to prep your mixes for mastering where we cover the best plug-ins that’ll help you get that professional sound.
There are considerations you should take into account during the mixing stage that will help you achieve a better sounding master, such as controlling sibilance, dialing in your low end and leaving adequate headroom.
But when preparing to master your mix, you’ll want to be sure your track is hitting your mastering chain at the right level. This means turning your song down so that none of your gear is distorting at the start of your chain, and gradually raising the level throughout your chain to achieve any desired loudness without distortion. This process is called gain staging, and it is a crucial component of the mastering process.
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What gear you choose to use as a gain stage will also affect how your track sounds. For example, turning up the output gain of a “gluey” SSL 4000 G Bus Compressor plug-in will sound different than turning up the output gain of a “mid-forward” compressor like the API 2500 Bus Compressor. They each provide their own flavor and tone. Get creative and mix and match them to color (or not color) your track beyond mere EQ and compression adjustments.
5 Tips for Mastering Your Own Songs
So, you’ve got your final mix all dialed in, and you’ve lowered its gain so that it is entering your mastering chain at a reasonable, distortion-free level. What comes next? Here are the top five tips for mastering your own songs.
Set Your Gain First
Getting your gain staging right is paramount to the mastering process, and there’s a scientific reason why you should do this before anything else. The human ear’s frequency response is different at differing volume levels. You hear “flattest” and most accurately between 81–85dB/SPL (as determined by the Fletcher-Munson curve which states that the human ear is more sensitive to midrange frequencies at lower levels, while low and high frequency information become more apparent at high volume settings). So, to faithfully determine if your mix is bright, dark or anything else, you need to be listening to it at the proper volume.
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You can achieve this by placing an SPL meter in the listening position of your studio and (while music is playing) adjusting the volume of your monitor controller until the average playback volume falls within this range.
Since you’ve previously lowered the gain of your final mix to a level that won’t distort your mastering chain, you might have to apply significant amounts of gain throughout your chain to raise its level so that your SPL meter is reading between 81–85dB/SPL. Once you’ve got your gain set, it’s time to address any glaring imperfections.
Control Problem Areas
It’s a good idea to fix any problems before you potentially attempt to enhance or improve upon the mix. This can include, but isn’t limited to, controlling sibilance; EQ adjustments to remove any “mud,” harsh frequencies or booming low end; multiband compression to balance any dynamic imperfections and limiting to remove unwanted distortion. Once you have any problem areas under control, you can continue to the more creative part of mastering: enhancing the track.
A Little Goes a Long Way
Since you’ll be treating the mix as a whole, it’s important to keep in mind that even minute adjustments can shift the listeners focus drastically. This isn’t to say that large EQ adjustments aren’t needed in some cases, but start by making small changes and checking them against the original mix to see if you’re positively affecting the track or negatively impacting (sometimes, “over-EQing”) the song.
Compression isn’t exempt from this rule either. Compressing an already compressed mix can lead to things sounding “squashed” or unexciting, so apply these techniques sparingly to start, and adjust accordingly.
Pictured: Universal Audio UAD Precision Equalizer Software Plug-in
Keep Your Gear Happy
This tip has to do with a process known as feathering. Large adjustments may be necessary from time to time, but they can become extremely audible and unnatural sounding. You can avoid this by divvying up the workload of your gear. If one compressor is doing 4dB of compression, and you can hear it, try using two compressors, each doing 2dB of gain reduction, and see if it’s less audible. The same goes for EQ. If your track is sounding “over-EQ’d,” try cutting 1dB at 250Hz with two EQs as opposed to 2dB with one. This technique is extremely common in mastering, and using multiple instances of the same plug-in is an effective way to keep your adjustments sounding organic and more transparent.
Reference
The golden rule of mastering is to “do no harm.” So, referencing your mastered track against the original mix to assure you’re only improving upon it is key. You should also reference your master against well-mastered songs in the same genre or style to make sure you’re “in the window” and that your work competes with other popular releases.
This can be taken with a grain of salt. The goal isn’t always to compete, but your client’s goal may be to sound similar to other songs or albums, and it’s important to keep whatever your project’s creative objective is in mind throughout the production process.
Pictured: Mastering Waveform
From Start to Finish
By keeping these five tips in mind when mastering your own songs, you’ll be able to improve your mix, realize your artistic goals and ultimately release your own music with confidence. Nothing here is meant to be a concrete rule, but more of a guideline. After all, every song is different and has different needs. It’s important to keep things like context in mind. So, do no harm, serve the song and always remember to check your work.