Mastering

Magic Garden Mastering is a boutique facility in Atwater Village, Los Angeles, run by accomplished mastering engineer Brian Lucey. Credits include Michael Bublé, Elvis Costello, Shania Twain, Chet Faker, Lucinda Williams, Depeche Mode and The Black Keys, as well as the soundtrack to many hit movies and streaming series. Last week his client Juanes won the Best Latin Rock or Alternative Grammy for “Origen”, which is the 7th time he’s mastered a Grammy winner. Continue reading →

Based out of Miami, Florida, Ricardo Sangiao is one of the hottest names in mastering at the moment. Known for his work in the Latin, hip-hop, and dance genres, Ricardo has had a hand in many platinum releases in the past few years and shows no signs of slowing down. He's mastered records for Rick Ross, Danny Ocean, and Diljit Dosanjh, just to name a few. Working under legendary engineer Bob Katz, Ricardo has learned from the best and is now applying his knowledge at his own studio, World Class Mastering. Ricardo recently sat down with Vintage King for a Five Sounds With interview to talk about a number of records he has worked on, his process and the gear he uses. Continue reading →

Serge Espitia is a mastering engineer out of Maplewood, New Jersey. With over a decade of experience in the music industry, he has spent time working in some of the most recognizable studios in the world, including Blue Jay Recording in Boston, and East Side Sound, Stratosphere Sound and Masterdisk in New York. In 2011, Serge began putting together his own Brooklyn-based studio space under the banner of Tiny Thunder Audio. Eventually, he headed to New Jersey and shifted focus from tracking and mixing to predominantly mastering. Recently, we sat down to talk with Serge about the history of Tiny Thunder, his philosophy on mixing vs. mastering, and some of the gear choices that he’s made for his studio. Continue reading →

Kim Rosen is a mastering engineer based out of Ringwood, New Jersey, where she owns and operates her own studio, Knack Mastering. Over the course of the past decade and some change, Kim has put together an impressive resume of records, including Grammy®-nominated releases from Bettye LaVette, Bonnie Raitt, and The Milk Carton Kids, in addition to a win for Aimee Mann's Mental Illness. We had the pleasure of talking with Kim as a part of our ongoing 20 Questions series in which we interview top engineers and producers about their careers and day-to-day lives. Continue below to learn more about how Kim got started in the industry, find out what song defines her mastering work, and get details on the tube amplifier she created with her husband. Continue reading →

Mastering is a mysterious and often misunderstood element of the record-making process. However, it’s also one of the most crucial. In an era when producers and engineers are working on songs from the very first note to the final mix, having a second set of ears to provide a professional opinion can be worth its weight in gold-plated cables.An essential element of success in collaborating with a mastering engineer is to prepare your sessions in the proper way. While it can be intimidating sending off your production to a mastering engineer the first time, the simple act of preparation will make for a good rapport with whoever you are working with and allow your tracks and albums to shine. Continue reading →

Over the years. engineers both amateur and professional have grown to love the great mastering tool that is Izotope Ozone. New for 2019, Izotope has announced the roll-out of the last version of the software, Ozone 9. So then, what has changed in the suite, and what can Ozone users expect from the new iteration? In Ozone 9, you’ll find a similar layout and design that users of the recent versions of Ozone will recognize immediately. The Equalizer, Maximizer, and Imaging tabs remain, as well as the familiar and much loved Mastering Assistant control. With that being said, old and new users will find this new version is easy to navigate and get better results faster. Let's get into what's new... Continue reading →

A great audio engineer understands the importance of learning their craft from the masters. Books and magazines have always been a great resource, but the explosion of podcasts on engineering, mixing, and mastering has made quality information more available than ever. In this blog, we’ll break down some of our favorite podcasts for audio engineers, including gear-driven tech talk, podcasts on how to run your own studio, and behind the scenes interviews with artists and producers. Continue reading →

Pete Lyman is a world-renowned mastering engineer who has worked on records for Jason Isbell, Chris Stapleton, Weezer, and Fall Out Boy, just to name a few. More recently, Lyman mastered Brandi Carlile's 2018 album, By The Way, I Forgive You, which received Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Album of the Year. The importance of converters to the workflow of a mastering engineer like Lyman cannot be emphasized enough. So when his friends at Rupert Neve Designs sent over the RMP-D8, Lyman immediately began working the eight-channel Dante mic preamp and mastering-grade 24-bit 192 kHz converters into his chain. Continue reading →