Mix vs. Master Levels | Are You Listening? Season 3, Episode 4

How do mixing levels impact mastering levels? Follow along as iZotope Education Director and professional mastering engineer Jonathan Wyner explores mixing and mastering levels, including the value of leaving headroom in your mix levels, what levels to pay attention to while you’re mixing before you master, and important considerations when comparing the level of your reference tracks to your mix so you can get the best results in your master.

Improve your mastering skills with Are You Listening? Seasons 1 and 2

Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:39 The difference between levels in mixing and mastering
1:28 What is headroom in mixing and mastering?
2:59 Considerations when using limiters in mixing and mastering
3:42 Using RX Pro to examine levels in your mix
5:00 Differences between the peak level and RMS level when mixing
5:41 Using Insight Pro metering to examine the difference between peak level and RMS levels
7:22 How the levels in your playback system can impact your master
8:36 How to monitor reference track levels when mixing and mastering
9:39 Outro

#mastering #areyoulistening #ozone #izotope

[seismixx]

This series is actually a marketing –but done in a really good way which benefits both parties! Hands down 🙌

[carlosrosendo]

I like how every episode has a bit of insight into the mastering world, I've taken in person classes and although they are good, professors go extremely fast and we do not have the luxury of rewind, to make sure we understood everything. Thank you for this Izotope I believe this definitely helps your current customers and potential customers be satisfied.

[MetiCudi]

hvis video should be included in every daw that you download

[liquiditey]

I gotta say .... He's really Level-headed when it comes to mix&mastering =~}

[teashea]

very good presentation with good information

[sirvaant]

Can we get an episode where you master a heavy 808 record and the challenges an engineer faces while trying to make that record loud while still having weight in the bottom end

[joejurneke]

Great discussions. Johnathan is terrific

[OriginalRaveParty]

Excellent education and presentation. Thanks Jonathan.

[luxuriousfir]

Honestly I would love to hear some comparisons of a pushed mix after mastered versus a low mix aftermastered. Let our ears decide;)

[ezstproductions_]

First of all let address the elephant or cat in this case lol love the shirt Jonathan 😂 Second of all I would like to say I usually walk away with at least two new perspective that I can adapt from these series. Thank you for doing this and please don’t stop. Would love to meet up and talk shop with you.

[MikeDeanOfficials]

I want to hear that tap dancing track! 💃🏼

[mrpaman_Kwon]

this AYL? (a.k.a. Are You Listening?) series, really really great and helpful.

[zachn]

Said it throughout Season 1. I would pay damn good money to grab a beer and pick this mans brain.

[noisekrux]

I want a T-Shirt of Jonathan Wyner and a cat in the studio w/iZotope logo. J.W. is the Bob Ross of Mastering.

[shavnore]

The biggest thing I took from this is to stop mixing at mastering volume, don't drag you reference tracks into your DAW at their mastered volume, bump them down.

[ronmoes]

My experience is that there is no set difference, meaning the older music genre's have more dynamics and the contemporary music has less difference in peak and rms. But as I have also seen some R7B hip hop music of today have alot of peaks compared to the intergrated level. It has been good to me to keep the difference under 6Db difference and I am aiming to get a 3db difference because is you want to have a loud mix that does well on all devices you must have to loudness in order for people to like it. It sounds modern. Though there is a catch, when you see the audio clip of your mix in your DAW, I would not like a mix that is just a solid brick, the best scenario is to see small peaks that are well incorperated in the rms level, they usually won't excede 3db. Look at modern EDM music and you will see what I mean! This is somewhat a hot debate for mastering engineers, because imo they are redundant for most of the people who make great songs. That is not to say that well known people use mastering engineers, but then they obviously know who can master their songs to get absolute levels and keep the song intact.. BUT then again you can't send a mix to a mastering engineer and expect him to carry the song to the next level if you don't understand mastering right!? 😖 *At any rate...* I personally think people are overrating the mastering process, and the way their song needs to sound...I know it is a touchy subject and this is just what it is.. You make a song, either it is good or not, mix it well give it your own spice, master it for yourself and live with it, you will be looking back in 10 years and think wow, I have become so much better, BUT that was the sound I was looking for or of that time. The message in the song and the melody etc are much more important, that is what listeners will remember. PLUS the fact you will keep alot of money in your pocket that you would otherwise spend on a mastering engineer that is probably going to do it in the box anyway... you are not that important and the high profile customers will get more time... that is how it works, he might even ask a friend to do it.. that is the reality.. Cheers

[Skimatik_DnB]

Always listening 👂🙌✌️ thanks for the insight 👀😂🤦‍♂️😎 ✌️

[Joseph-otrc]

This is interesting, but I still don't really know what values to aim for when mixing..

[tgentertainment]

THANKS FOR INFO KEEP THE MIX LEVEL LOW AS POSSIBLE...

[Janneeraker]

Hello mister Wyner, I'm a tap dancer, about to record an album, and I'm very curious which tap dance album you've worked on? I want to hear it! :) Thanks.