Here is a list of frequently asked questions containing useful information on the subject of audio mastering. If a question you have about this studio or about the general process of audio mastering does not appear in this list, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

• What is the first step I need to take to initiate a mastering session with this studio?
• Why should I choose this studio over another mastering studio?
• What Is Mastering?
• What is Stem Mastering?
• What can I expect from a typical mastering session?
• What is a PMCD?
• What is FTP and why would I want to use your FTP service?
• Why are your rates so low/high?
• What types of audio processes do you use?
• What is an ISRC?
• What is a UPC?
• What is a crossfade?

Just shoot us an email at thomas@masterworksound.com or call us at (508) 468-8007 so we can discuss specific needs for your project.

Why should I choose this studio over another mastering studio?

Because we sit in a niche in the audio mastering field that accommodates the greatest number of musicians. By choosing us to master your project, you’re guaranteed to receive a product that is only of the highest fidelity at a price rate lower than all of our competition.  Also, unlike a lot of our competition who have low quality control and/or poor customer interactions, we are fully dedicated to making sure that you are completely satisfied with your project, and we will not stopping working until that point is reached.

What Is Mastering?

Mastering, also more appropriately called pre-mastering, is the last musical process in the creation of audio. It serves as the last checkpoint where your audio project can be tweaked by a seasoned professional who knows exactly how to achieve a commercial sound while totally maintaining the artistic vision of the client. Many different processes are involved in mastering, and the use of these processes depends on what a given project needs. The most well known process involved in mastering is compression/makeup gain addition, which when used properly, can thicken up a song while also adding more overall volume. Unfortunately, that process has often been abused by artists, record labels, producers, etc. This has forced many mastering engineers to hyper-compress material. While this gives material a high apparent loudness, it reduces the dynamic range of material and can often result in a constant “brick wall” sound. For more discussion of loudness in the mastering field, please refer to our article section.

What is Stem Mastering?

Stem mastering is the process of grouping individual tracks in a mixing session so that the different groups can be processed individually in the mastering stage. This can make a difficult mastering project much easier because the different stems such as rhythm, leads, and vocals can be processed according to what only that particular group needs. With a skilled engineer, this process can yield great results over normal, stereo mastering.

What can I expect from a typical mastering session?

We realize that for many, the chronology of the mastering process is somewhat mystified. The following list is what you can expect from a normal interaction with us:

• Initial contact via phone/email/mail.
• If requested, we provide you with a free, mastered sample of your project so you get an idea of what we can do.
  • You upload via FTP/mail a file of your choice to us.
  • We upload via FTP/mail file back to you with our mastering adjustments.
• Client reads, fills out, and submits applicable forms.
• Client uploads via FTP or mails project to our studio.
• Before our work begins on your project, half of the price quote, which we will generate based on the raw unmastered files, is required.
• Mastering work begins (takes usually 3-5 business days depending on work load).
• Mastered project uploaded (low-resolution files) via FTP or mailed to client for approval of editing, fades, track sequencing.
• If satisfied, the remainder of the price quote is required. If unsatisfied, client will inform us what needs to be changed and those adjustments will be made until full customer satisfaction.
• The final, high-quality, mastered product is then delivered – whether it's back to the client for personal/commercial use or to a manufacturing plant for replication.
  

PMCD stands for Pre-Mastered Compact Disc. This format of CD was the popular format that many mastering houses used in the early 1990’s to send the final mastered product to a manufacturing plant. A newer format, DDP format, has made the PMCD format obsolete due to the high frequency of reading errors associated with PMCD’s. DDP has a much more robust error correction built into its format. Also, a DDP image of a CD cannot be played back without special equipment so the master copy meant for duplication cannot be accidentally played back by an artist.

What is FTP and why would I want to use your FTP service?

FTP stands for file transfer protocol, and it is used to transfer files on a server between interested parties. In other words, by implementing FTP on a section in a website, you can download files that the website administrator has put in that section of the website. This is useful because the mastered audio for your project can be downloaded straight to your computer without the need for any reference CD’s to be mailed (and thus no valuable time or money is lost in the process).

Why are your rates so low/high?

Our rates are adjusted to accommodate musicians who want a high-quality mastering service at an extremely fair price. Our rates are competitive with similarly equipped studios, and our quality services rival even our highest costing competition.

What types of audio processes do you use?

The equipment used is always dependent on the material supplied to us, but for the most part, our processes include but are not limited to the following: paragraphic and shelving equalization. multiband compression, dynamic expansion/reduction, stereo imaging, M/S correction, and noise reduction.

What is an ISRC?

ISRC stands for International Standard Recording Code. It is a means of cataloguing different audio projects with unique codes for legal purposes – the most important of which is to identify who owns the project. We are a registered ISRC assignment agency and will assign an ISRC if one has not been provided already by another facility during the recording/mixing period. The ISRC is important also because it distinguishes a song from itself if there was more than one version of that song released. In other words, if a song was originally released and assigned an ISRC, it will need another one if it is remixed, remastered, or if it is placed on a compilation (in most cases).

What is a UPC?

UPC stands for Universal Product Code, and it is the label composed of black lines that is on nearly every product. It is possible to embed this code within a CD. Please contact the manufacturing/replication facility you wish to use for the UPC for your CD. We will include this directly on the CD.

What is a crossfade?

A crossfade is when one track’s ending is faded out during the fade in of another track’s start. The length of a crossfade depends on what it’s used for, and when done right, a crossfade can make the transition between two tracks natural and seamless.