Welcome to SafeandSound music mastering, 1 Track £28.00 / 2 Tracks £50.00/ Album 15 tracks £210.00.
Audio mastering will ensure your tracks are sounding as best as they possibly can before release. Music mastering engineer
Barry Gardner is highly experienced and has 100's of clients. After mastering your music will translate properly
to all sound systems.Music mastering adds value to your tracks. At SafeandSound music mastering we can make your music punchy,
clear, deeper, louder and more expensive sounding. Using high end analogue equalization
and compression plus the ultimate in digital tools.We use high end PMC IB1S monitors, not small book shelf speakers like
others at this price point.
If it's your first time looking for music mastering
I suggest choosing with care, as part of my plan as a full time dedicated online mastering studio I need to be aware of who
and what my competition is doing. This is typical of any industry and it has benefits of course to the operation of any small
business venture. During research it has come to my attention that anyone choosing music mastering online should do so with
great care. There are a number of reasons.
1)Some of the people operating 'music
mastering' studios clearly demonstrate a complete lack of basic audio engineering knowledge. It is shocking to see some
of the beginner type posts on some audio forums from people who supposedly master audio and operate at rates similar to myself.Audio
mastering is my full time professional work, I am not a part timer, studying or using this as a supplementary income, the
studio is specifically designed and equipped for music mastering full time.
2)If you don't
see the analogue equipment listed appearing on the website in photo's, assume it does not exist. That is the safest thing
to do. Why would a serious music mastering studio be unwilling to show their equipment ? These sites are easy to spot, they
are text and graphics based only, no photo's of equipment will exist. (or they will be stock manufacturers photo's)
You want to see them in a rack, in situ, in the studio. Another "curiosity" that some online mastering studios use
to impress the unwary is to add a picture of a flashy mixing console to the front page. It is rather strange because such
mixing consoles have absolutely nothing to do with mastering a stereo audio file. Mixing, yes - music mastering, not at all.
3)Monitoring makes a difference. Large scale, high resolution monitoring is fundamental
in being a master of audio. The physical size of a loudspeaker system to a large degree determines the low frequency output.
A small bookshelf type speaker is not going to produce deep, accurate low frequencies. You cannot correct that which you cannot
hear.
I am using PMC IB1 monitors, professional 3 way speakers with carbon fibre 10 inch bass drivers, built uncompromisingly
for the job of music mastering. Coupled with 200 Watts RMS per channel of high end amplification.
4)Check the engineers background, check recent client list and professional engineering experience.
5)Get yourself a free preview, this gives you a clear indication of the quality of work you can expect. Do not judge purely
on perceived volume (loudness). Listen to space, depth, clarity, tonal balance and punch. Try and listen to the master preview
on a variety of sound systems such as in car, good quality hi-fi, good headphones and your home studio etc. If at all possible
a large scale loudspeaker as well so you can get a feel for the translation onto a PA type audio system.(I am happy to provide
a single free preview time permitting) Free preview does not apply to stem mastering work.
6)Some
music mastering websites have some "before and after" previews, whilst it might not be the best way to choose mastering
it does demonstrate the confidence of the mastering engineers abilities. I cannot think of any valid reason why a mastering
studio would not wish to demonstrate some of their music mastering work. There are mastering previews at the bottom of the
"online mastering" page on this website.
7)I suggest speaking
to the mastering engineer on the phone, this will give you an indication of the engineers competence and confidence, why not
discuss your project requirements. Just because the music mastering service is online based it does not mean that all communications
must be online, this will give you a feel for the engineers knowledge related to music mastering.
You have to ask yourself why you would compromise with your music mastering when you know there is a studio with all of
the factors in place. Choose online music mastering with your eyes wide open and apply common sense.
Music
mastering seeks to enhance your musical mix downs and ensure that they can sound as good as possible, it is highly recommended
that you choose a music mastering engineer who has a lot of professional audio engineering experience and is correctly equipped
to produce the desired results. Online music mastering can save money but it is very important to make a prudent decisions
when making a choice of studio for your track or album.
