This is why it’s ever so important to calibrate your mastering level and stick to it. However, they can (and will) work as a supplement to your hearing, but nothing more than that. Measuring EQ, dynamics, and loudness are not things you can rely solely on meters for. Peak headroom (space between peak value and 0 full scale) doesn’t matter so much. If you would like a general guideline, around 14 dB of difference between peak and RMS in the loudest moments in the mix is a good place to start.

Just make sure there is an appropriate amount of dynamics in the music. The gist of it is that it doesn’t matter, as you can adjust gain in the mastering session anyway. With regard to peak headroom, here is an article I wrote about it. You might even to choose to take up to a week between mixing and mastering the same song, without once listening to the mix in between. Give your brain time to forget about it for a bit!

Then master the wav mix in a brand new session another day with fresh ears. If you are confident in the sound of the mix then just bounce it down to a 24 bit wav file. There are many articles and cheat sheets out there that tell you things in absolutes like needing 6 dB of headroom and such.Īll you need to do is make sure you have a great mix that isn’t clipping. You can also download a FREE PDF version of this guide so you always have it to hand! I’ve broken it down into a series of actionable steps. This article should help you get going, so you can confidently make great sounding masters for your music. Not because they don’t know, but because they don’t know what they are aiming for. Mastering in Logic Pro X is absolutely possible, even with just stock plugins!

Track mastering software