Perceived volume

At this stage it is important to check that there is no clipping and that there is enough head room to allow for changes in volume after other processes have been applied.

It is common at this stage to also apply a limiter. A limiter controls the dynamic range of a sound. It prevents the peaks of a sound from going above a predefined threshold. Its very similar to a compressor but it doesn’t allow anything to go over the threshold by applying an extremely high ratio.

Reverb

Adding very subtle reverb at the mastering stage is common. It adds space and also helps the sound be more coherent as you are applying the same effect to all the tracks/instruments.

Stereo width

At this point it is also common to increase the stereo width of the mix. This evenly stretches the mix further left and right which can result in the instruments in the mix having more space within the stereo field.

EQ

There are no specific ‘rules’ when it comes to EQ at the mastering stage because each mix will require different EQ filters being applied.

However, there are some standard practices:

• high pass filter to roll of low end rumble/muddiness.

• high shelf boost to accentuate the ‘shimmeriness’ of the high frequencies.

• low mid cut at 150-350Hz can reduce ‘boxiness’ and improve clarity.