Alex DaCosta on SoundBetter

As an artist myself, I understand what it means to desire a quality mix on indie budget. Let me be the engineer that helps you maximize your budget and get your songs sounding fresh, modern, saturated, punchy and transparently smooth! Credits: Bailey Jehl (30+mil -Spotify), Taylor Acorn (35+mil -Spotify), The Highly Unlikely, Drew Smith, Lex.

Hey! I'm Alex DaCosta and I've been a mixing / mastering engineer for the past 7 years. I have worked with a wide variety of clients that have helped me develop a fresh perspective. I absolutely love hearing a rough mix and bringing my technical and creative perception into the mix (to make it more sonically attractive while maintaining the integrity and emotion of the original sounds).

Over time I've built up my studio with fantastic equipment and tools to allow me to deliver you a very high quality mix for an extremely affordable rate! My goal is to help independent artists have a mix engineer they can trust but also afford on a regular basis.

My favorite genres of music are commercial Pop, Country/singer-songwriter, and Electronic.

I love getting artist feedback and we can continue to revise each mix until it's exceeds your expectations. I'm excited to give your mixes that "RADIO READY" sound!

Let's get to work!

I'd love to hear about your project. Click the 'Contact' button above to get in touch.

Credits

4 Reviews

Endorse Alex DaCosta

by Drew S.
Verified
Alex really delivered on this one. The production quality and style blew me away. The mix sounded amazing as well. Alex delivered in a timely manner and was an excellent communicator throughout the whole process. Will definitely be using him again in the future. Stoked to release this track!
by Larry J.
Verified
Alex sang the song perfectly--would use him again
he has a great voice.
only negative was he took 5 days longer then promised
but I did not have a deadline so I could wait
by Scott C.
Verified
Alex is a real pro. Delivered more than expected. He has a great voice and is easy to work with. Demonstrated some impressive production skills as well. Will do it again no prob...

Scott
by Leonard E.
Verified
This was a very professional demo of my song and a fast turnaround on this. Great work!

Interview with Alex DaCosta

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: My studio is an acoustically sound treated mix room consisting of the following gear: - Monitoring; Adam Audio T7V, Yamaha HS8 - Interface: Universal Audio Apollo Twin - Hardware: Rupert Neve Designs 511 500 Series Mic Pre, DBX 560A Compressor - Microphone: MikTek CV4 - DAW: Pro Tools 12 - Plugins: Waves (all plugins), Universal Audio (all plugins), Slate Digital (all plugins), Fab-Filter Suite, Ozone, Melodyne, Autotune, RX, soothe Valhalla Verb, SoundToys (entire effects rack)
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: To be honest, the knowledge I have translates over analog and digital worlds, allowing me to tap into either depending on the desired outcome. With that being said, I love working in the box (digital). I have wide variety of plug ins and tools that I feel extremely confident in that have truly enhanced my workflow. Personally I love how much control and endless options come from a heavy digital mindset.
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: My promise to clients is to deliver them a high quality mix that will compete in the modern landscape of the music industry. It's also my promise to clients that I'll always value every artists goals regardless of career positing, genre, skill level, etc.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: A misconception about the job of a mix/mastering engineer is that it mainly relies on technical skill. While technical skill is important, I believe that a sense of musicianship and sonic taste is where the magic lies. Sometimes mix moves that may seem technically "incorrect" end up sounding incredible when used in the right context (an overly distorted bass).
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: I love working on commercial music including pop, country and electronic!
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: My strongest skill as a mix engineer is balance. Ensuring that all elements in an arrangement are accounted for and properly treated to work in unison. I like to break a mix down into two main focal points, feel and perception. Feel: With every mix, it is my goal to enhance the emotional performance/feeling of every element. This ranges from: making a percussion section hit dynamically, creating mid range glue in the keys/acoustics, compressing vocals to feel present and tamed, and using tasteful effects to add 3 dimensional depth. Perception: A large value of mine is making sure that source sounds are not lost in the process of mixing. Especially when working with solid rough mixes, there is an integrity to the captured sound that should never be lost. It's within this focal point that I spend time shaping tones and frequencies to create a cohesive but authentic sounding mix.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: Typically I like to connect with an artist prior to mixing and get an idea of what the project looks like and what the goals are. It's also great to get an idea of other mixes a client loves and what we can pull inspiration from.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: The most common type of work that I do for my clients is mixing and mastering!