Don't sell yourself short. Invest in an audio engineer who will invest in you. I want your music to sound unique. Us building a relationship will accomplish that. The more you stretch and strengthen, the more you grow! I will take time to hear what makes your music special, highlighting your strengths and giving you a professional product.
I got my start as an assistant engineer working at the world renowned Chicago Recording Company in downtown Chicago. During my time there I was fortunate enough to not only work under some legendary engineers, I also got to participate on many projects with pop stars such as Jeremih, Wiz Khalifa, Rick Ross and more.
I also have a great and extensive record working with many top brands like Miller Lite, Kellogg's, SC Johnson and more. I've also worked with New York Times best selling authors such as Kathleen Kent and Jon Finkle to name a few.
Last but not least by any measure, one of my greatest joys is working with unsigned artists. Helping someone discover their sound feels amazing!
I look forward to joining your team!
Thank you
- Please ask me to send more relevant examples of my work, I can only put one up here.
- I always allow for as many revisions as needed; I will keep refining until everyone is happy. To keep things efficient I do put a time limit of 20 business days from delivery of first pass. I welcome feedback and a collaborative process.
- Rate includes final 44.1k 24b WAV master & unmastered full-resolution mix with headroom. Can include 2 alternate prints (inst + acca) free of charge; additional mixes incur cost. Can provide stems for $30/song.
- I am open to all-in discounts for multiple-song projects
Click CONTACT above
Click the 'Contact' above to get in touch. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Credits
4 Reviews
Endorse Steven The Mixing GuySteve is incredible at what he does and always gives his absolute best. You immediately sense that he is passionate about providing the best sound and shows extreme care and interest in every single project. I have played for several of his projects and I’m looking forward to him recording my own worship album next year!
Steve is an amazing engineer and producer with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Very easy to work with, both professional and friendly with great communication. He has the skills to take your project to the next level and beyond!
Steve is a fantastic engineer. He not only handles the technical side but is a true consultant and will help you fine tune the creative side as well. I was also very impressed by the sheer amount of equipment he had to fine tune my project.. and more importantly had the experience to make my vision real.
incredibly professional, easy to work with, quick to respond, creative, compassionate and courteous. Steven took the time to learn what mattered to me, shared insights on how to bring my vision to life, and the end result exceeded my expectations.
Interview with Steven The Mixing Guy
Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: I was an assistant engineer for Jeremih Late Nights mix tape. That was special because that was the first project that I've ever been part of that reached the masses and played on the radio. It was cool sharing that experience with my friends and family.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: A 80's retro pop album. Its a ton of fun! Trying to be honest to the 80's while making the songs sound modern if exciting and challenging. It pushes my creativity which is good for the soul.
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Both! I loovvvvveeee the sound of analog and I use analog gear everyday. But digital does offer a level of convince and flexibility that necessary to mix a project in a timely manner.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: Yes! My buddy Jason
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: Every song is different so they should sound a little different. But I promise to make each song sound uniquely great.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: Hearing new music by far!
Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A: Have you worked with any famous people before?
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: That we can take a poorly recorded song and make it sound like a million bucks. Its true, we can do a lot at time to enhance and clean up a poorly recorded song but there are limits.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: The big question is what is your goal for this project? That matters because how you mix a mixtape my vary in some ways from how you mix a hit single for radio. So getting there vision is very import. We also want to make sure the vision is in alignment with the budget.
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: I will tell them to be themselves. Don't over think the process. Im very grateful that they chose me and I do not take your business lightly. Give details of want you want. But leave some room for a little creativity on the engineers part.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: My computer, my hd system. my U87, my 1073 preamp/eq and my headphones.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I started off at chicago recording company. When I left there I opened up a studio in Dallas Tx for a few years. I freelance out of luminous studios here in Dallas Tx. Ive work with big brands, major recording artist, New York times best sellers and more.
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: My style is very organic. I like to create mixes that have a lot of separation so all elements have there own space to occupy. Mixing this way usually helps in the mastering stage especially if the artist prefers a lot of compression. It helps maintain the balance of the mix even while being over compressed.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: Justin Timberlake for sure. I think he brings the perfect combination of pop and soul for a male vocalist.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: The biggest tip is also the simplest. When tracking vocals, gain staging properly is so important. Its the difference between having a big open vocal siting perfectly in the sweet spot of a mix. Or having an over compressed vocal that just can't seem to cut through the mix.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: I most commonly work on all forms of popular music to soul and rap. I think thats largely because more people record at home nowadays and those genres are really vocal driven.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: My strongest skill would have to be listening and communicating. Being good at those two things allows me to identify problem and build confidence in my clients.
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I bring a detailed relationship to a project. I like to treat each song like it could be the next big song on the radio. I always tell clients that in order to have a consistent sound. You need to build a relationship with and consistently work with the same engineers. The more familiarity we have with our team. The more free head space we will have to be creative.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: I always ask the artist to give me notes stating whats important to them because those elements are usually the nonnegotiable. I also ask for an reference song and I share any feedback based on my knowledge and experience. Once the project is in motion I typically start by just listening. While listening I take notes and match my notes with the artist request and then I start making adjustments. I love taking notes because it gives my clients confidence because they can see exactly what I done to the song if they have any question. Its been a great tool in building long term relationships. Balancing levels and getting the proper loudness may very from genre to genre so its important to communicate the difference in loudness to customers if they haven't specified.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: My setup was inspired by the studio where I got my start.(Chicago Recording Company) The room I was most familiar with was centered around the SSL 9000 so I gravitated towards the next best thing in my price range was the SSL Sigma. I operate an pro tools ultimate system with the best converters and clocking on the market. I also have loads of analog gears from Neve 1073 eq's, vintage tube gear and ultra fast analog compressors. All in all my setup is close to 100k. I wanted my sound to be as close to a major studio as possible. Many of my clients feel that it is.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: Im inspired by everything Motown. I love 80's 90's and 2k's pop, rock and hip hop. I use to have favorites. Now I just seek out whomever's having the special musical moment when everything seems to come together.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: The most common work I do for clients is mixing and mastering EP's. Clients typically have a collection of 5 songs that all need to sound like a radio ready single. Because everyone has a different idea what there songs should sound like. Its important to get notes and song references from clients before beginning.
I was the Mixing & Mastering Engineer in this production
- Mixing EngineerAverage price - $200 per song
- Mastering EngineerAverage price - $80 per song
- Post EditingAverage price - $200 per track
- Post MixingAverage price - $250 per minute
- Vocal TuningAverage price - $40 per track
- Dialogue EditingAverage price - $300 per minute
- Pro tools HD system
- SSL Sigma
- Apogee Symphony
- Universal Audio Apollo
- 10's of thousands more in high fidelity analog gear. And over 10 thousand dollars worth of plug-ins.
Get $100.00 off an 5 or 6 song EP - Willing to work with new clients and earn your business, open to repeat business discounts if budgets are tight. I'd love to negotiate and earn your business!