Nowadays, many high-quality application software, such as various plug-ins or digital audio workstations (DAWs) are fully available - some for free, others paid. With technological advances, mastering, traditionally carried out by a specialist engineer, has become more accessible to musicians and producers, allowing them to edit their music from the comfort of their homes. As a consequence, the overall body of work may sound incoherent and uncoordinated and may make you, as a musician, seem rather amateurish. Throughout this process, mastering will ensure that all the reproduced copies can be played back sounding the best way possible, regardless of the platform or medium used (CDs, DVDs, cassettes, vinyl records, music streaming platforms, etc.)Īs mastering aims to make an audio file be heard the way it’s intended, the lack of it may cause the audio to sound out of balance, inconsistent, or disjointed in relation to other tracks. The term mastering comes from the idea of transferring the final mix from a source into a data storage device, aka the master, from which all following copies will be made and produced using methods like replication, duplication, or pressing. Usually, mastering is done by using a variety of tools, such as limiting, dynamic range compression, equalization or stereo widening, and other stereo enhancement.

The goal of mastering is to add a final touch and polish the audio’s sound in order to convert the final mix into a ready-to-go release that the listeners can enjoy and experience in high quality on all possible devices - from dance club sound systems to home stereo sound systems to smartphones. Mastering is the final stage of audio post-production and can be defined as the process of balancing and harmonizing various sonic elements of a stereo mix and optimizing its sound across all media formats.

Master your track