Friendly and Approachable Mastering. Get the final sound you deserve. I offer reasonable rates and a multitude of high quality mastering services. I am deeply passionate about local music and provide whatever help I can to help artists to grow. If mastering seems scary and you're not sure what to do, just say hi and we can chat about your project
I am committed to making high-quality mastering more accessible to all. I want to provide a friendly and approachable service that helps to nurture both local and global talent. I want to be someone you feel comfortable talking with when you need advice and clarity on your next steps.
I understand the value of your music. I appreciate the time, stress, anxiety and cost that goes into every song that you make. Whether you are an aspiring producer, a four-piece garage band, a singer-songwriter, a hip-hop beat maker or a solo artist I understand that your art is precious.
So why release it to the world unchecked and unprepared?
I aim to empower musicians and bands to achieve the highest quality final product. By sending your track to Mechanica Mastering, I will check over every small detail, talk with you, collaborate with you, and give you back a professional and polished piece of music that you can be proud of.
I'd love to hear about your project. Click the 'Contact' button above to get in touch.
Interview with Dean McCarthy
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: Firstly, I listen. I will go through your track and make sure it is actually ready for mastering. We will chat through any issues and ensure the mix is the best it can be before it comes to me. I'll then appraise the track against the tools I have and decide how much really needs to be done to get it to sound great. Often it isn't much, but the final 1% to make it really shine. Once happy, I'll export it to whatever format you and your distributor would like. This include Apple Digital Masters as I am an approved provider. You will have time to ensure you are happy with the track and if there are any revisions needed, we will talk over things and get you to a place where you are happy.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I have a treated and tuned room that is focused around getting the best sound out of my PMC iB1s, and which also sounds sweet with my Genelec 8040s. That's the most important bit. Secondly I use a Pro Tools system that spits out to a range of outboard, including an SSL Bus Comp, an Avalon 747, a magical TFPro P38 and a CLM Dynamics Expounder Dynamic EQ which is as rare as hens teeth (especially in white and gold). I have a bunch of great plugins from McDSP, Sonnox, Fabfilter and a whole heap of others.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: I am hugely inspired by the big players in the mastering world such as Bob Katz, Chris Gehringer, Bob Ludwig etc. I had the pleasure of spending time with Bob Katz who was ultimately responsible for me going into Mastering. He influenced my hybrid process and how I've set up my Digital+Analogue system.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: I typically work on stereo mastering for both labels and independant artists. I pitch myself as a friendly and approachable engineer, which sees me working a lot with local and upcoming talent who are needing to work with a mastering engineer for the first time.
- Mastering EngineerAverage price - $70 per song
- As Prices are in US dollars and I'm based in the UK, prices are a guide. Please contact me for actual UK pricing.
- PMC iB1s and Genelec monitoring
- coupled with a range of lovely outboard gear and a tuned room.
10% off your first track
