The digital revolution has changed the creative ecosystem so much that major record labels and radio stations are now struggling to stay relevant. Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music all provide a platform for independent musicians to reach a global audience. Additionally, many of the most famous musicians in the world work with independent labels and distributors (Distrokid anyone?).
With the amount of competition in today’s market, it’s getting harder and harder to differentiate yourself, especially for an independent artist. You can’t rely on social media, streaming platforms or even music blogs or magazines to spread the word about your new music as these platforms are too saturated today. So, what’s left?
Musicians have to rely on their creativity to find new ways to be heard and get known. Luckily, it’s not so much of a burden because of the power of mixing and mastering tracks.
In this article, we’ll shed some light on the importance of mixing and mastering tracks. Read on below to learn more.
Mixing vs Mastering
The two are often confused as the same because their processes often overlap. Their
definitions are as follows:
Mixing
The general definition of mixing is that it’s the act of combining many layers of audio to make a
whole, complete track. The mixing process may involve any of the following:
- Adding effects such as reverb and delay
- Balancing levels
- Compressing
- Equalizing
- Improving harmonics
- Fixing wrong frequencies
- Panning instrument positions in the stereo field
Mastering
In essence, mastering is the process of taking an audio mix and preparing it for distribution. The distribution, in this case, refers to retaining excellent quality sound regardless of where a track is heard from. The mastering process aims to balance and enhance specific sound characteristics.
The mastering process involves the following:
- Applying compression
- Equalization
- Increasing the volume with minimum side effects
- Stereo enhancement
For a more in-depth break down check: What is the difference between mixing and mastering?
Why Mixing and Mastering Is Important
The only way to make your music stand out is to make it the best it can be. That takes time and effort. If you’re on a tight schedule, you might find yourself exhausted and with no good tracks, or you can get your songs mixed professionally at a time when you can afford it. The best way you can fix these issues is by investing in a decent pair of studio monitors.
In a nutshell, excellent-quality studio monitors let you hear what you’re producing. Their frequency response is balanced, providing you with a clear insight into how your music would sound on a sound system or pair of headphones. The result is better mixing and an overall higher quality of sound.
Finding Mixing and Mastering Engineers
If you can’t do mixing and mastering on your own, that’s also fine. It’s also not that big of a problem because you can always find them everywhere. If you want to find an audio engineer, you can do any of the following:
- You can attend music-oriented events because they will be there looking for new artists
to work with. - You can also attend local gigs, such as bars where there are often musicians playing.
Like in music-oriented events, they’re always looking for new artists whenever they
attend them. - If you have a manager, they can get you connected with record producers and mixing
and mastering engineers. - If you’re well-connected, you can ask your fellow local musicians if they have any
recommendations.
Conclusion
The best way to get your music to be heard is to mix and master your tracks. If you can’t make time, you can find engineers. You’ll want nothing but quality, so the ones you should work with are people who have a good track record.
ADG Mastering offers top-quality mixing and mastering services. We understand that a song must always have a high sound quality, so we use only cutting-edge technologies to achieve this goal. Contact us today to learn more!
