HOME - Hans DeKline Mastering (original) (raw)

What is mastering? Mastering is the intermediate step between your final mix and replication/distribution. Every commercially-released album or song is mastered regardless of the budget, label, or studio behind it. Mastering can dramatically improve the sound quality, clarity, consistency, stereo image, spatial depth, portability and volume of your mixes. It is both a technical process and an art form that relies on an individual’s skill, experience and good taste. No hardware device will automatically “master” your music; no plug-in preset or automated algorithm can craft the best results for your unique mixes.

What are your rates & lead time? My rates are à la carte but I’m willing to do package deals depending on your needs and payment method. For a custom quote, please contact me with the number of songs and any other incidentals you might need (i.e. instrumentals, radio edits, optimization for vinyl, Mastered For iTunes, DDP for CD manufacture, etc). I accept Paypal, Venmo, Square Ca$h, or check. My lead time is generally 7 to 9 business days but I do offer expedited service for an additional fee. Anything else, just ask.

What is MFIT or ADM? MFIT (Mastered for iTunes), now called Apple Digital Masters are 96khz 24bit masters that have gone through an extra step to ensure there is no distortion when they are converted to the AAC format for sale on iTunes. And yes, we are an Apple approved ADM provider.

Is it OK to have compression, limiting on the mix buss for the final mixes? Short answer, yes. I trust you. Long answer, if you’re worried about it or think I could do it better, send me 2 versions with and without so I know what you’re shooting for or are used to. Generally speaking, I want to work from the final APPROVED mix.

What files do you accept? Always supply a first generation bounce of your mixes in their original sample rate and bit depth (don’t do any conversions). To maintain the highest fidelity throughout the production process, I recommend beginning your recording sessions in 24 bit… but will work with anything including AIFF, WAV, FLAC, MP3 and CD Audio. Files can be any word-length (16-32 bit) or sample rate (44.1-192khz).

What’s the best way to send you files? You can send via any large file sending service (dropbox, hightail, wetransfer, googledrive) to hdekline@gmail.com. I will send the masters back to you via Dropbox. Please note that previewing the masters via streaming from the Dropbox app (instead of downloading) will introduce artifacts that are NOT in the masters.

Is it OK if I only have MP3s? MP3s are what’s called a “lossy” file format, meaning valuable parts of your audio have been “lost” in order to reduce the file size by a factor of 12 compared with the original CD standard of 44.1kHz 16-bit. The mastering process should be reserved only for the highest quality, earliest generation audio but if a lossy file format is all that exists, we’ll work from that.

What does “radio ready” mean & what about the “loudness wars”? Your music does not need to be the loudest thing out there to sound good on the radio or anywhere else… actually, the reverse is true. Radio and streaming both provide yet another layer of extreme compression/limiting (read: distortion) that makes everything the same relative loudness no matter the volume of the original source… In fact, quieter mixes actually maintain their sonic integrity and translate better, while still being just as loud as everything else in the broadcast or stream. Whatever you decide, the customer is always right… if you want LOUD, you got it.

What is a DDP and do I need one? DDP (Disc Description Protocol) is an error protected disc image of your final CD (including music and metadata) for the purposes of CD manufacture (aka replication). It is only needed if you are manufacturing a CD (usually making more than 500). If you’re duplicating (small batch, computer copies) or distributing digitally, you do not need a DDP.

What is “ISRC“ and where do I get them? ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) is a unique digital “fingerprint” for each track for the purpose of collecting online royalties. This information is encoded within the metadata of the song-file during the mastering stage (for manufactured CDs) or afterwards during the set up for digital distribution. All of the digital distributors (CD Baby, Tune Core, Distrokid) supply them for free if you’re using their services or you can pay for them here: https://usisrc.org