In electronic music, the result of creative activity is a set of tracks in a DAW. This is a multitrack that can contain an unlimited number of different instrumental and percussion parts, several bass lines, SFX, vocal inserts and more. In the tracks of experienced musicians, the number of tracks can reach 100 or more, and each of them will sound good.
When the idea of a track seems good to a novice musician, but song mixing and mastering has not been done, the sound can disappoint the listener.
What are differences between mixing and mastering?
Mixing is the first stage of technical refinement of a track, immediately after the arrangement is written and samples are placed on the project timeline. In general, the task of self-mixing is so that all the instruments of the track are simply audible and not masked one after the other. In some styles of music this is enough, but the level of such mixing will still not be impressive. In order to achieve more, it is necessary to entrust the mixing by a professional.
Music mastering is the second and final stage of technical fine-tuning that follows the mixing. In a sense, it is just a fit of the sound to the generally accepted world standards that relate to a certain style of music. For example, many labels do not trust their musicians to master a track, but do it themselves with the help of highly qualified professionals. This is necessary so that all music placed within the label or radio station has one sound character and not a single track gets out of the general style. The second task that mastering performs is to ensure good sound on any speaker system, headphones, and even a radio receiver.
In other words, mixing is the combination of all musical parts into a complete composition, while mastering is bringing this composition to some standard parameters used in sound recording.
Professional mixing and mastering can solve both of these tasks with the greatest success.
Why professional mixing and mastering of your tracks are so important?
- The priority task of professional mixing is optimal placement of instruments in volume and panning. Music has become stereophonic long ago, but even now not all musicians use the huge potential that our familiar stereo base gives us. A properly aligned volume should create the illusion that the sound is in the air in front of the listener, and the instruments occupy a well-defined place. The volume is built through the use of reverbs with specific presets. They push the sound into the background, put it higher or lower and allow you to build volumes that do not exist in real life: space, incredibly high and at the same time narrow rooms, and so on.
- In addition to placement in volume, the tasks of professional mixing include fine work with dynamics and a range of instruments. This can be the highlighting of characteristic overtones in various instruments, and so on. Ultimately, mixing is the creation of a single soundscape from disparate instruments that initially sound flat and conflict with each other in terms of frequencies and dynamics. The resulting mix should correspond to the author’s idea in terms of volume, scene and parts readability.
- A good mastering engineer will make the material sound decently everywhere. This largely determines the success of the track – not all listeners have good acoustics, but everyone wants to hear high-quality sound from it. A musician who satisfies this simple desire will definitely get another admirer in his fan base.
- Professional audio mastering can perform artistic tasks as well. Often, with the help of STEM-mastering, the final adjustment of the track takes place, which does not work on the technical parameters of the sound, but on the artistic: the density of low frequencies, the width and transparency of the stereo in the middle and highs, the sharpness of dynamic transitions, and so on.
The listed possibilities are achieved using the most modern mixing and mastering software.
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How to find mixing and mastering engineers?
Professional mixing and mastering engineers work in dedicated studios. The choice of such a studio largely determines the quality of the sound recording after its processing. Signs of good mastering and mixing:
- the studio has a long experience of working with professional performers;
- mixing is carried out by one specialist, and mastering – by another;
- the possibility of online mixing and mastering is provided.
Instead of an afterword
After writing the first tracks and being disappointed in their sound, many begin to compare their music with the work of professionals who have already reached a high level. It seems that to achieve such readability and depth of mixes, the same powerful rhythm and everything else that attracts listeners in commercial music, something special is required from the artist. However, the secret of success lies in the correct, high-tech processing of music.
