SERVICES
Stereo Mastering
The technical and aesthetic finishing of your mix, prepared for the real world of playback.
Reel to Reel's mastering service delivers the professional finishing of your track, prepared for distribution on the major platforms. Your approved mix is worked on the overall behavior of the stereo file — tonal balance, dynamics, stereo image, loudness — without rebuilding the mix itself. Every track is analyzed and treated individually; there's no preset applied regardless of the music.
- Technical analysis of the mix: clipping, headroom, phase, mono compatibility.
- Corrective and tonal EQ, tailored to each track.
- Resonance control.
- Compression and dynamic control when necessary.
- Transient refinement and harmonic saturation when appropriate.
- Low-end control.
- Stereo image, width, and depth adjustments.
- Final limiting and peak control.
- Loudness adjustment based on the track's destination (streaming and club/DJ receive distinct treatment).
- Fade-ins and fade-outs, on request.
- EP and album sequencing, when contracted.
The process is meticulous and preset-free — every track is adjusted to bring out what's already there, not to fit a mold. The goal is to prepare your music for the major digital distribution formats, with high-resolution deliverables and no quality compression.
- Premaster in WAV or AIFF, 24-bit or 32-bit float, at the original sample rate (44.1 kHz or 48 kHz).
- No limiter, clipper, or maximizer applied just to raise volume.
- No normalization, no dithering before sending.
- Clear title and version identification.
- Rough mix or limited reference version, when available.
- Up to three commercial reference tracks.
- Notes on aesthetic intent and release format.
- If the files don't meet the minimum requirements, we reach out before starting — we may ask for re-export; we don't run a generic process over out-of-spec material.
- See the File Preparation page for the full export walkthrough.
- Clearly identify the track (title, version) and include notes on the desired sound or style.
- Reel to Reel doesn't generate ISRC codes automatically — when needed, the code must be provided by the artist, label, or distributor.
- Delivery follows the technical standards accepted by the major digital platforms; final acceptance depends on each platform's specific rules.
Ready to master your track?