CD Mastering Services

The final process in preparing an album or EP for release is CD mastering. This is crucial step for a number of reasons. The goal of mastering is to is to enhance the overall sound, and create a defined listening experience for a song - as well as make sure that the individual songs are level-balanced to maintain a consistent sound and volume. In addition, correct mastering will ensure that your songs are frequency balanced and the level (loudness) is correct for digital distribution and radio play. In the simplest terms CD mastering / Album Sequencing is what makes a group of songs sound like a commercially released record. For clients who do not need a full album or EP mastered we also offer our per song online mastering service.

What Is Album Mastering?

Our experienced mastering engineers use specially designed equipment, software, and monitoring to reveal and correct any problems in mixes, and detail the over-all sound of each song. During the CD mastering process there are many adjustments that are made depending on the musical genre, production, instruments used, and mixed levels. Some of the functions our mastering engineers provide include:

• Adjusting Individual Frequencies
• Balancing Left and Right Stereo Channels
• Equalizing The Sound of Each Track
• Compressing and Limiting the Overall Sound Level
• Automating Compression and/or Equalization
• Adding Dithering
• Add or Correct Improper Fades
• Set Spacing Between Track
• Using Noise Reduction and Sound Restoration if Needed
• Adding ISRC Codes for Distribution Rights
• Adding CD-Text Information (Artist, Title, Track Names, etc)
• Create DDP, BIN, or CUE Files for CD Replication or Duplication
• Creation of a CD Master Disk

CD Mastering Online

Sage Audio Mastering clients use our online system to upload and manage their projects. In addition, we use the same system to upload finished masters and keep track of messages and song / album details. We offer a free mastering sample for artists who would like to preview our work. We'll master a one to two-minute sample of your song and send you back the result so you can hear what a difference our mastering services can make for your music.