Mastering is the last step before your music reaches listeners. It is also the step that determines whether your track sounds competitive on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, YouTube, and physical formats. At MIX Recording Studio in Los Angeles, our mastering engineers focus on one thing: making sure your final master hits the right loudness, tonal balance, and format specs for every platform you plan to release on.

We master in acoustically treated rooms through calibrated Yamaha NS10 and Dynaudio LYD 8 monitors with a KRK 10S Powered Subwoofer for low-end accuracy. Every decision our engineers make references back to how the track will sound on earbuds, car systems, club PAs, and laptop speakers. The goal is translation, not just volume.

Streaming platforms normalize audio to specific loudness targets, and a master that ignores these targets loses dynamic range for no benefit. Our engineers deliver masters calibrated to each platform's spec: Spotify normalizes to -14 LUFS, Apple Music to -16 LUFS, YouTube to -14 LUFS, and Tidal to -14 LUFS. We measure integrated loudness, true peak ceiling (typically -1.0 dBTP), and short-term LUFS throughout the session so nothing clips or pumps after encoding.

If your release targets vinyl or CD, we adjust the loudness ceiling and dynamic range accordingly. CD masters typically land between -9 and -12 LUFS depending on genre. We have delivered DDP image files directly to pressing plants and replication houses.

For projects that need more control than a stereo bounce allows, we offer stem mastering. You send us grouped stems (typically vocals, drums, bass, instruments, and effects), and our engineer processes each group independently before combining them into the final master. This gives us the ability to address frequency conflicts, adjust vocal presence, or reshape the low end without affecting the rest of the mix.

Stem mastering is especially useful when the mix was done in a less controlled environment or when a label asks for a different vocal balance after the mix is locked. Online stem mastering is available at $139 per song through online.mixrecordingstudio.com.

Our primary mastering suite is iZotope Ozone 9, which handles multiband dynamics, harmonic excitation, stereo imaging, and final limiting in a single chain calibrated per session. Surgical EQ work runs through FabFilter Pro-Q 3, where we address resonances and tonal problems with linear-phase precision at specific frequencies rather than broad strokes.

The Empirical Labs EL8X Distressor handles parallel compression on tracks that need additional density without sacrificing transient detail. For console-style color and saturation, our engineers use UAD Powered Plug-Ins running on Universal Audio Apollo 8 and Apollo x8 Thunderbolt interfaces, including tape emulations and transformer models from the UAD library. Additional processing comes from the Slate Digital Bundle and Waves Plug-Ins.

A complete list of available hardware and software is on the gear list page.

Every mastering session includes delivery of the final master in WAV 24-bit/44.1kHz (streaming standard), WAV 16-bit/44.1kHz (CD standard), and a 320kbps MP3 for preview and submission. If you need additional formats (48kHz for video sync, DDP for CD replication, or Apple Digital Masters encoded AAC), we deliver those in the same session at no extra charge.

Revisions are built into the process. After the first master, you listen on your own systems and come back with notes. Most projects finalize within one to two revision rounds. We keep your session files on our system so returning to a project weeks later takes minutes, not hours.

MIX is one of the few independent studios in Los Angeles offering Dolby Atmos mastering. Our 7.1.4 monitoring configuration allows us to verify spatial placement, object panning, and bed levels before delivery. Atmos masters meet the delivery requirements for Apple Music Spatial Audio, Amazon Music, and Tidal.

Dolby Atmos mastering is $399 per song. The Atmos plus stereo bundle (one immersive master and one stereo master) is $599 per song. Full details on the format, workflow, and ordering are on our Dolby Atmos mixing and mastering page.

In-studio mastering sessions are booked at our standard room rates. MIX II starts at $55 per hour, with reduced rates of $49 per hour for sessions of four or more hours Monday through Wednesday. Overnight sessions (midnight to 9 AM) start at $16 per hour Monday through Wednesday and $20 per hour Thursday through Sunday. Full pricing for all rooms and session types is on the pricing page.

For artists outside Los Angeles, online mastering is $70 per song with one revision round included. Stem mastering is $139 per song. Upload your files at online.mixrecordingstudio.com and receive your master within 48 hours.

Our mixing services are available as a complement if your project needs both stages handled in the same facility.

MIX Recording Studio is at 539 S Rampart Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90057, in the Westlake neighborhood. We are minutes from Koreatown, Downtown LA, Echo Park, Silver Lake, and Hollywood. The building has on-site parking for clients. We are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Call (323) 218-7475 to discuss your project or book directly online.