What Is Mastering? The Final Finishing Step of Home Recording
Mastering is the work of finishing a song after the mix is done into a "finished product."
You even out the volume. You also even out the tonal balance.
You get it to a state where it doesn't feel off when heard on streaming or CD.
In home recording, many people run out of energy at the mix.
But if you skip mastering, the sound seems small.
When you upload to a streaming service, it has less punch than other songs.
Key point
Mastering is not a step to "remake the sound." It is a step to even out volume and tone without breaking the good of the mix.
About Total Studio 5 MAX
You can follow this procedure with the T-RackS in "Total Studio 5 MAX" too. Prices and sale details change, so always check the product page before you buy.
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Total Studio 5 MAX V2 Explained: What Changed from 4 MAX, MAXgrade and Prices
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What to Do Before Mastering
Before mastering, review your mix.
If this is sloppy, mastering can't fix it.
- Is the volume balance of each part appropriate?
- Is the low end too strong?
- Is the sound breaking up (clipping)?
- Is the left-right balance natural?
I explain the basics of putting together two guitars, bass and drums in this article.
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What Is Mixing? Why Is It Needed?If you stack recorded sounds as they are, problems like these happen. The guitar is too loud and you can't hear the bass The whole thing is "muddy" and doesn't cut through Only the drums sound like they're floating You don't need to overthink it. Once you have the basics, it comes together well. The Basic Mixing Steps | Follow This Order and You Won't Get Lost The steps are simple. First, turn off EQ and compression on all tracks. Build a balance that works with raw volume alone. Spread the instruments left and ...
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The Mastering Steps [5 Steps]
1. Check the volume (loudness meter)
First, check the volume of the whole song as a number.
If you judge by ear alone, it can feel quiet when you listen later.
What you need
- A loudness meter (a plugin or one that comes with your DAW)
- A reliable monitoring environment
- A reference song (such as a recording by an artist you like)
2. Even out the overall balance with EQ
Listen to the whole mix as a single sound.
Check whether the low end is too much and whether the highs are harsh.
Cut only the bands that bother you, just a little.
Watch out
With mastering EQ, the basic rule is to "cut" rather than "add." If you move it a lot, the good of the mix falls apart.
3. Glue the sound with a compressor
Reduce the volume differences across the song a little.
Bring the gap between quiet and loud parts into a comfortable range.
If you overdo it, the song loses its drive.
4. Raise the loudness with a limiter
Finally, set the ceiling of the volume.
With a limiter, you raise the loudness without clipping.
If you push the loudness too far here, the sound gets hard.
Watch out
If you push loudness too high, listening fatigue shows up before punch. Streaming services automatically even out the volume, so pushing it too high can even cost you.
5. Export and check
After exporting, listen on a phone and earbuds too.
Checking in environments other than studio monitors makes problems easier to notice.
For more on monitoring environments, see these too.
"My home-recording mixes just don't come together on headphones..." If you start feeling that, it's time to get studio monitor speakers. For a guitarist recording at home, headphones alone tend to lead you to wrong judgments. In particular, the "only my guitar sounds loud" problem becomes much easier to see once you put speakers in. In this article, I cover how to choose studio monitors and introduce 8 models by budget. By the time you finish reading, you should have decided on one that fits your room and budget. What you'll learn in this article The difference between ordinary speakers ... "I mixed on regular listening headphones, and when I played it on my phone the low end was hollow..." It's a failure every guitarist who starts home recording experiences at least once. The cause is simple. Ordinary headphones have their sound flavored to make music "fun to listen to." If you mix using that sound as the reference, the balance falls apart when you hear it elsewhere. That's why you need monitor headphones. In this article, I'm ryo, 13 years of guitar and 8 years of DTM, and I explain how to choose monitor headphones and recommended models from the ...
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Best Studio Monitor Headphones for Home Recording | Closed-Back vs Open-Back and 9 Picks for Guitarists
Common Mastering Mistakes
Checklist
- Pushing the loudness so high that the sound is crushed
- Moving the EQ too much and breaking the mix
- Judging in only one environment
- Finishing without comparing against a reference song
Recommended Tools for Mastering
Using a plugin dedicated to mastering makes the work easier.
A set that includes EQ, compressor and limiter is convenient.
About Total Studio 5 MAX
"Total Studio 5 MAX" includes T-RackS for mastering. Prices and sale details change, so always check the product page before you buy.
Check out Total Studio 5 MAX now
I summarize how to buy at Plugin Boutique and its perks here.
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Key point
Before buying expensive tools, it's also a good idea to learn the steps with the EQ, compressor and limiter that come with your DAW. It isn't too late to move to dedicated tools once the steps are in your body.
Summary
You don't need to overthink mastering.
Just remember this order: check volume → EQ → compressor → limiter → check the export.
Start by running through one song to the end.
