Mastering: Sonic Equilibrium!

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Most music these days is provided to me in a digital form. Occasionally I do still get a tape master, but that is rare. However - for me mastering will always be better analog so I do 95% of each mastering session outside the digital domain. My analog signal chain is amazing and I know its sound intimately. That said, it has to go back to digital eventually, so the final process in my mastering chain is digital.

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: Haha! How loud will it be! How loud do you want it??!! But seriously, there is a limit on how loud we can go and remain sonically acceptable. Music is dynamic, and it sounds better that way. So for me it's about giving the client the loudness they want, whilst making sure their music is still dynamic and sounds great.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: Mastering can sometimes seem like a mysterious and misunderstood process that can cost a lot of money. Also how much mastering can actually fix problems in a mix. That is not what mastering is about. Good mastering will lift your track much higher in sonic & dynamic quality & value, and help reveal all those details you've worked so hard on when recording, mixing and producing a song. It's also a technical and quality assurance process.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Predominantly I work with independent artists and labels. I really enjoy helping them achieve a level or quality with their music that they would never expect. I love hearing their feedback "Is that really me? It sounds amazing!" - that gives me the greatest pleasure.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Communication with my client is paramount to my workflow. I work directly with every client before mastering even begins, initially to make sure I know exactly what they want, and they know what I can do for them and what to expect. For me it's all about listening and communicating with my client, discussing any issues with their mix that they can fix before we start master. This degree of care for my clients music is what gives me the opportunity to provide the best result. Mastering is an objective process and it starts with understanding the genre, then the tonality, then the dynamics, then the medium the music will be finally played from. Revisions are rare, however if a client wants a revision to their master, then they get it at no extra cost - every time.

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Give me a go, you won't be disappointed! I have so many clients that I've developed long term working relationships with, some as long as decades, and many are now also my friends. Longevity in this business is a tough gig, and there is a reason those of us who have been at it for as long as I have are still going strong and growing. The level of professionalism and the respect for my clients music & creativity is what separates pros from the rest.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I'm an easy going person, but I'm intensely focused when I work. So maybe easily-intense-focused-going? I'm a bit of a dag in the fashion sense. Is that the style you mean?

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: I'm new here! I'm sure there will be sooner or later!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Meeting people, working with great artists, and listening to music. What a job!

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: Oh no...I can't answer! I'd probably just stay in my studio and slowly drown...

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I started in the mid '90s in a small country town studio in Tasmania, the southern island of Australia. In the late 90s I moved to Sydney, began an internship in a larger studio, then worked my way up the studio chain in various other studios until I opened my own facility in 2003, and still going strong!

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: I wish it could have been Prince. His focus in the studio was legendary.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Less is more. The best sounding productions always sound so big with so little.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Listening and my ear/hand co-ordination! I'm also a pretty good cook!

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My mastering studio is a dream come true for me. It's an extremely accurate listening environment, with high end monitoring and it's full of my "desert island" pieces of equipment. I'd need a big island! The analog processing path is the best of class-A and tube EQs and Dynamics, and it enters and leaves the digital domain through pristine AD/DA convertors.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: To always give every mastering project my 100% focus, use my best gear, make it the best it can be. I do not work for myself, I work for my client! No one else matters.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Firstly, I need to hear their songs. From that there are a number of questions that I would ask, depending on the project. I also really enjoy hearing the direction and vision clients have for their music, and who inspires them, and what other artists they aim to sound like etc.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: My years of experience has honed my listening and understanding of music and audio, which I apply 100% to every mastering project I do. The project I am mastering each day is the most important project I have ever mastered.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: I'm inspired by music professionals who dedicate themselves to their craft, but who are never too good, too busy, or too proud to impart their wisdom, their inspirations, and their guidance onto others. I've been very lucky to work with, be mentored by and associate with some awesome musicians, engineers and producers in my career. These people have pushed me to continually strive to be better at what I do.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: As a mastering engineer, my job is usually the last 1-2% of a song or albums production process, yet it is the final 15-20% of the end result. It's the final gateway to ensure that the music is sonically the best it can be, and can compete with all the other great sounding and dynamic yet loud music out there. My job is to analyse the music under a magnifying glass, with a musical yet scientific ear, and give it that final expensive gold dust that makes it stand out.