Mastering A Song For Radio | Is Your Song Radio Ready?

14 song ready for radio

Here's another popular question I see online, always with the wrong answer! "There's no such thing as radio ready mastering!" REALLY? Read more....

Let me explain how this works. If a record label, after paying them millions, submits a new release to the radio stations and it's very poorly mastered (distorted, over-level, super bright, heavily compressed) it will be REJECTED. They will not play it on the radio. They'll tell the label the quality of the song is terrible and will request a re-master (maybe even a remix).

Technically, it would never even go this far because an executive working for the record label would reject the poor master and get it corrected before the radio station even heard it.

Two Facts -

1. Some songs aren't ready for radio play and are rejected by management for poor quality reasons. This happens very often in the music industry.

2. Songs that are playing on the radio, are radio ready!

If songs are rejected for radio play, then there has to be a radio ready mastering quality standard. There is! There's your answer. Read more....

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The Music Production Secrets Series
by John Rogers

My Best Mixing & Mastering Articles

What Does Mastering Do To A Song?

10 what is audio mastering

What does mastering do to a song? Your main goal in audio mastering is to replicate the sonic qualities of a well professionally mastered commercial song, in the same genre and style as the song mix you are working on.

Can You Master A Song That's Already Been Mastered?

Can I master a song that's already been mastered? Yes! Every month I master songs that have already been mastered. Read more....

Audio Engineer Hearing Loss And Tinnitus

5 sound engineer prevent tinnitus

Millions of people suffer from tinnitus. A new study shows around 10% of the U.S. population suffers from it in some form, but many have never even heard of it until they get it! Unfortunately, I was one of those people. It can happen quickly and it lasts a lifetime...

Why Does A Mix Need Headroom And Dynamic Range?

16 why do songs need mastering

Why does a mix need headroom and dynamic range? In one sentence, it gives the mastering engineer more room to work with.

Can Anyone Become A Great Sound Engineer?

11 become great sound engineer

I would say YES, most people can become a great mastering engineer. I say this because most of the mixes I receive from clients are pretty good and I know the audio engineer (the band member with a computer) has only minimal training. He could easily be great if he put a little more study and practice time into it. And if he had this book to teach him what took me over 17 years to learn! Ha!

Best Free Redbook CD Burning Software

Yes, burning your own redbook master CDs is very easy! Here's how to make your own redbook CD masters for free!

Monitor Speaker Placement For Your Home Recording Studio And DAW Setup

4 speaker placemnt daw home recording studio

Here's the monitor speaker setup I use for my DAW, and the setup I recommend for your home recording studio.

Learning And Calibrating Your Speakers For Your DAW In Audio Mastering

3 calibrate speakers audio mastering daw

Learning and calibrating your speakers for your DAW in audio mastering is a very important step in the audio mastering process. When I first start out with NEW speakers (though I never change them now), I listen to my favorite hit songs in every genre and style. Songs that I know from my years of experience have X amount of bass, X amount of brightness, etc. I know how these songs are "supposed" to sound.

Top 20 Audio Mastering Tips, Techniques, And FAQ

Here are the top 20 audio mastering tips, questions, and answers that I've been asked over the years.

A/B Comparison In Mastering

In this video I do a quick A/B comparison of a few songs. In my audio mastering secrets video series, I get a lot more in-depth into exactly what you are trying to achieve sonically for your genre/style of music.

Mastering Compression Techniques

This video shows one of the more imptotant compression techniques I use in audio mastering. In my audio Mastering Secrets Video Series, I explain everything you need to know about audio mastering.

How Much Should I Charge For Mastering?

I've mastered over 40,000 songs since 1999. I've charged $10 a song, $20, $30, $50 even $100! Some prices worked better than others. Here are a few facts to consider when deciding on what prices to charge. Read more....

#1 Best Website Hosting For Musicians, And Music Recording Studios

If you're looking for the best website hosting for musicians, bands, and music recording studios, here's my own personal experience with website hosting companies.

How To Master Pop Rock, Punk, Alternative, And Country

In this article I will discuss how to master pop rock, punk rock, alternative rock and country songs. Every genre (style) of music has its own set of sonic qualities that are unique to the genre. These sonic qualities are a "must to know" if you want to audio mastering your own pop rock, punk rock, alternative rock and country songs music. Read more ...

My First Music Video!

Here's the first music video I directed, Mahalin Muli by JAI, released on July 10th, 2018. I also wrote more than half of the script.

What Is Reverb Effect In Music | How To Use Reverb

This article discusses what is the reverb effect in music and how to use it? The reverb effect is used to simulate space. When reverb is applied to a dry vocal or instrument track, it will sound like it was recorded live in the space size that was selected on the processor. Common space size options include a small room, vocal plate, large hall, etc.

How To Prepare Your Songs For Mastering

preparing mixes for mastering

In this article, we'll show you how to prepare your mixes for mastering.

How Long Does It Take To Master A Song?

How long does is take to master a song? There are several extra song mastering procedures I offer that other mastering engineers will not do.

How To Mix And Master Songs

If you're into "do it yourself projects" my mastering book will show you EXACTLY how I mastered every style of music on this website. Get it here Audio Mastering Secrets!

Should Your Mix Sound Close To A Mastered Song?

13 mix sound like master

Note - This section is basically a tip for those of you working with clients or if you plan on submitting your mixes to a mastering engineer.

Why Do Songs Need To Be Mastered?

12 why need audio mastering

Why do songs need to be mastered? I've seen this question on the Internet many times. The answer I always see is "Because all songs on the radio have been professionally mastered, yours should be too." This is a true fact, but not an answer.

How To Master A Song In Only 5 Minutes!

Would you like to know how to master a song or how to master your own music? So many people think just making the volumes the same level for every song is "mastering" their CD. Well, mastering is a lot more than just that!

What Is Audio Mastering?

9 what is audio mastering

What is audio mastering? I've seen a lot of different answers on the Internet to this simple question. Some were pretty technical and confusing.

Audio Mastering Software Processors

Here are the series of audio mastering software processors I've used on the over 30,000 songs I've mastered since 1999. In this video, I use mostly izotope ozone plugins because it's easier to explain using them. In real-life, I do mix in a few hardware pieces, and a waves plugin.

Stereo Widening Techniques | How To Use Stereo Widening In Mastering Music

Here are a few great stereo widening techniques and how to use them in music. When you listen to music on a car radio, you want that wide stereo sound that extends from the left door to the right. Not just two feet wide right above the stereo!