Mastering services

There are fancy studios that will charge up to $2K for a full length album, and most of us can find someone that will do it for $200. I aim to fall right in the middle of those two options; professional equipment and an experienced ear at a more reasonable price.

$50 Per project |  a standard set-up fee for every project

$50 Per song | (under 10 mins) individual digital files delivered in your preferred format

+$10 Alt versions  | stem mixes, alternative song versions, or songs over 10 minutes

+$75 Vinyl master | two digital files (Side A and Side B) delivered in your manufacture’s preferred format

Submitting your music

Step 1. Give me the details of your project by filling out this quote form. I will contact you shortly afterwards and we can further discuss the current shape of your songs, what you want them to sound like, your time frame, etc.

Step 2. Once a cost and timeline is agreed upon, submit your tracks using WeTransfer or another online upload tool. These instructions will help: Submission Guidelines

Step 3. Get your tracks back beautifully mastered, get famous, and credit me on your album:

‘Mastered by Daniel McKenzie @ fairfaxsoundmachine.com’ 

Evaluating your master

I ran across a great article on the Pro Audio Files website, and it’s full of tips on how to best listen to a master. Here are a few of them:

• Check your playback settings; if you hear distortion, it could be an EQ boost from your player or some other settings affecting the sound.
• Listen in a predictable environment that you are familiar with.
• Always check on headphones as well; usually problems are more easily heard.
• One good way to simulate how most online players will process your song is to apply the “sound check” button in iTunes, and then compare your songs to others of a similar genre. This will give you a closer idea to the ‘perceived volume.’ But, ya know, a big budget major label album will always sound louder, so use with caution.