Mastering Engineer for Hire: Alexander Almgren, Brooklyn
A mastering engineer takes your finished stereo mix and makes it ready for release: the right loudness for streaming, a tonal balance that holds up on every speaker, and clean files in every format your distributor or pressing plant needs. I have done that job for 20 years at 332 Rogers Ave in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, on 19 Billboard Top 20 albums and on music streamed more than 3.3 billion times.
I am Apple Digital Masters certified. You can sit in on the session in Brooklyn or send the mix from anywhere. Either way I am the person doing the work, start to finish.
What you are actually paying a mastering engineer for
Not the limiter. A plugin can make a song loud in ten seconds. You are paying for five things a plugin cannot do.
Translation
The master has to sound right on the phone speaker, the car, the club system and the good headphones, not just in the room where it was mixed. I check every master on several systems before you hear it. If the song falls apart somewhere, I fix it or tell you where the mix needs to change.
Loudness without damage
Streaming services turn loud masters down. A master pushed past the point where it starts to flatten gains nothing on Spotify and loses punch everywhere else. I set loudness for the lane you are in and stop where the song stops improving.
Sequencing
On an EP or album, the mastering engineer sets the order, the gaps between songs, the fades and the level relationships, so track three does not sound quieter or duller than track two. This is where a collection of singles becomes a record.
Formats
A distributor wants one thing, a pressing plant another, a broadcaster another. You get 24-bit WAV masters at the session sample rate, 16-bit 44.1k for distribution, and Apple Digital Masters, vinyl pre-master or stem versions if you order them, named correctly and checked before they leave.
The last set of ears
By the time a song is mixed, everyone involved has heard it hundreds of times. I have not. I hear the vocal that is a touch too low, the sibilance in the second verse, the kick that disappears on small speakers, and I tell you before it is printed. Most of the value of a mastering engineer is in that conversation.
How to choose a mastering engineer
Five checks. If an engineer fails any of them, keep looking. This applies to me too.
- 1
Hear their masters in your lane.
Credits in another genre do not transfer. Ask for two or three recent masters in the style you make, level-match them against your references, and listen past the loudness. If they cannot show you work in your lane, the first pass is practice on your record.
- 2
Ask what they will not do to your mix.
A good answer sounds like this: I will not turn up the vocal, I will not fix a muddy low end by carving the whole mix, I will not push it louder than the song can take. An engineer who promises to fix anything in mastering is telling you they do not know where mixing ends.
- 3
Reference call before the pass.
Ten minutes before any work starts: loudness target, references, what you are worried about, the release date. An engineer who starts without that conversation is guessing. I do this call with every client and it is the one step I will not skip.
- 4
Revision terms in writing.
How many rounds, what counts as a revision, what happens if the mix changes after the master. Get it in the quote, not in a text message after the first pass. My terms are in the written quote you get from the calculator, before you pay anything.
- 5
Delivery formats, listed.
Ask exactly which files you will receive: bit depth, sample rate, loudness versions, whether Apple Digital Masters or vinyl pre-masters cost extra, whether stems are an option. If the answer is one MP3 and one WAV, you are buying a limiter pass.
There is a longer version of this in how to find a mastering engineer you can trust, including where the good ones actually are and the red flags that cost artists money.
What it costs
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| Mastering, single (per song) | $200 to $250 |
| Album mastering | Rates on request |
| Apple Digital Masters version | Add-on, priced in the calculator |
| Stem mastering | Add-on, priced in the calculator |
The exact number for your project comes from the calculator at /rates. It takes about a minute, prices track count and add-ons, and sends you a written quote. No email thread and no call required to see a price.
If the record still needs mixing, I do both, and one engineer carrying the song from mix to master means nothing is lost in the handoff. The full breakdown is in best online mixing and mastering services.
How it works
Send the mix
A 24-bit WAV at the session sample rate, 3 to 6 dB of headroom, no limiter on the mix bus. Dropbox, Drive or WeTransfer. Add two or three reference tracks.
Reference call
Ten minutes on loudness target, references, what you are unsure of, and the release date. I tell you if the mix needs work before mastering will help.
The pass
Mastered on calibrated monitoring at the studio in Crown Heights. First master back in 1 to 3 days for a single, longer for an album.
Revise and deliver
Listen everywhere you can. Revisions on the terms in your quote. Final files as 24-bit WAV plus the formats you ordered, on a permanent link.
Attended in Brooklyn, or remote
If you are in New York, you can sit in on the session at 332 Rogers Ave in Crown Heights and approve the master in the room. Details are on the Brooklyn mastering page. If you are not, the online mastering service is the same engineer, the same chain and the same turnaround, and most of my masters ship that way.
Genres
Pop, hip-hop, R&B, indie, rock, electronic, folk, singer-songwriter and metal all come through this room, and each one has its own expectations for loudness, low end and brightness. A master that is right for a folk record is wrong for a club record. I check every master against current releases in your lane, not against a single target number, and if you work in a lane I have not mastered recently I will tell you so on the call.
Who is doing the work
Alexander Almgren. 20 years producing, mixing and mastering. 19 Billboard Top 20 albums. Music streamed over 3.3 billion times. Apple Digital Masters certified. One studio in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and I am the only person who touches your master. Read what clients say on the reviews page, then book the call.
Mastering Engineer FAQ
What does a mastering engineer do?
A mastering engineer takes a finished stereo mix and prepares it for release. That means setting a loudness that competes on streaming without crushing the dynamics, correcting tonal balance so the song holds up on earbuds, car speakers and club systems, sequencing and spacing the tracks on an album, and delivering clean files in every format a distributor, pressing plant or broadcaster asks for. A mastering engineer is also the last set of ears on the record before it goes out, which is often the most valuable part of the job.
What is the difference between mixing and mastering?
Mixing works on the individual tracks inside a song: vocals, drums, bass, guitars, synths. The mixing engineer balances them, places them and shapes them into one stereo file. Mastering works on that stereo file. A mastering engineer cannot turn the vocal up or fix a muddy bass, but can set the final loudness, tonal balance and stereo image, make an album play as one record, and prepare the formats. If the mix has a problem, a good mastering engineer tells you instead of hiding it.
How much does a mastering engineer cost?
At Freshly Baked Studios, mastering a single runs $200 to $250 per song. Album rates are quoted per project, and Apple Digital Masters delivery and stem mastering are available as add-ons. Across the market, mastering ranges from about $30 per song for automated services to $500 or more for the most established engineers. The exact number for your project comes from the rate calculator at freshlybakedstudios.com/rates.
How long does mastering take?
Typical turnaround for a single is 1 to 3 days from the day I receive a mix that is ready to master. EPs and albums take longer because sequencing and matching the tracks is part of the work. If you already have a release date locked with your distributor, say so before the pass and I will tell you whether it fits.
What should I send a mastering engineer?
Send a 24-bit WAV of the final mix at the session sample rate, with 3 to 6 dB of headroom and no limiter or loudness maximizer on the mix bus. Leave the mix bus compressor on if it is part of the sound, because removing it changes the mix. Do not send an MP3, and do not send a mix that is already pushed to streaming loudness, since there is nothing left for a mastering engineer to work with. Include two or three reference tracks in your lane and a note about anything in the mix you are unsure of.
Is AI mastering good enough?
For demos, rough references and checking how a mix sits against streaming loudness, AI mastering is fine and it is fast. For a release you care about, no. An automated master cannot hear what the song is trying to do, cannot tell you that the low end is the problem rather than the master, cannot sequence an album, and applies the same logic to a ballad and a club record. A mastering engineer listens to the song, asks what you want, and makes decisions. That is what you are paying for.
Hire a mastering engineer
Run the calculator for an exact price, or book a free call and I will tell you whether the mix is ready to master.