mastering Archives - Adrian Milea

Why AI Mastering Sounds Flat (And What Actually Fixes It)

Adrian Milea / mastering, mixing / October 2, 2026

AI mastering sounds flat more often than people expect. Here is the technical reason why, and what a human mastering engineer does differently to protect depth and dynamic range.

Why AI Mastering Sounds Flat (And What Actually Fixes It) Read More »

A navy blue infographic titled "It's Not Volume. It's Balance." showing a headroom budget comparison. A "Balanced Mix" bar shows a small cyan bass/high-end segment with plenty of room before the white target loudness line, labeled "Reaches target cleanly." An "Imbalanced Mix" bar shows a much larger orange bass/high-end segment that already extends past the target loudness line, labeled "Hits the ceiling before target." Below, a "Why This Happens" card explains that excess bass or high end eats headroom before the limiter starts working, so pushing harder clips those frequencies instead of adding loudness. A "The Fix" card explains that the fix happens in the mix, not the limiter, by building midrange presence between 1 kHz and 5 kHz, with a closing note that a limiter can't rebalance a mix, only make an already-balanced one louder. The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

Why Does My Mix Sound Quiet? The Real Reasons and How to Fix Them

Adrian Milea / mastering, mixing / September 29, 2026

A quiet-sounding mix is almost never a volume problem. It is a balance problem, and pushing a limiter harder on an imbalanced mix just makes it distort before it ever gets loud.

Why Does My Mix Sound Quiet? The Real Reasons and How to Fix Them Read More »

mastering mixing

A navy blue infographic titled "Five Plugins Tested vs Real Hardware." A history strip shows four facts: 1976 SSL 4000B (first bus compressor), 1979 E-Series (industry standard), 1980s G-Series (most cloned today), and 83% of 1996's number one hits made on an SSL desk. Below, five plugin rows each show the plugin name, its console basis (G-Series, B-Series, or Native SSL), and a verdict: SSL Bus Compressor 2 and Brainworx bx_townhouse are marked as winners with star icons, while the SSL Stereo Bus Compressor, Waves G-Master Compressor, and Slate Digital VBC FG-Grey are marked "great on tracks, not on the mix bus." A "Key Difference" section explains that all five work well on individual stereo tracks, but only the two winners keep enough stereo space on a mix bus. A settings card shows the winning bx_townhouse settings: 4 dB gain reduction, 4:1 ratio. The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

SSL Bus Compressor Plugins Compared: Which One Actually Gets Closest to Hardware?

Adrian Milea / mastering, mixing, music production / September 27, 2026

Five SSL-style bus compressor plugins tested on a simple drum loop against real SSL Bus+ hardware, with a short history of the SSL bus compressor and which plugin actually got closest.

SSL Bus Compressor Plugins Compared: Which One Actually Gets Closest to Hardware? Read More »

mastering mixing music production

A navy blue infographic titled "A More Stable Way to Get Paid," comparing two income models. The Project-Based card lists a new price negotiated every time, income resetting to zero each month, more flexibility with no lock-in, and being best for occasional clients. The Retainer card lists one fixed monthly fee, a predictable income floor, pricing as a discount off the normal rate, and being best for consistent clients. Below, a "Who to Actually Pitch" section shows Good Fit (artists releasing every few weeks, labels with steady schedules, podcasts or creators needing regular work) with a checkmark icon, and Not a Fit (one-time clients, annual bookers, no established pattern) with a minus icon, each with a closing takeaway line. The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

Retainer Agreements: A More Stable Way to Get Paid as a Mixing or Mastering Engineer

Adrian Milea / marketing, mastering, mixing / September 25, 2026

A practical guide to retainer agreements for mixing and mastering engineers: what they look like, who to pitch one to, and how they complement project-based pricing instead of replacing it.

Retainer Agreements: A More Stable Way to Get Paid as a Mixing or Mastering Engineer Read More »

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A navy blue infographic titled "Protect Your Mix Decisions." A prominent rule box reads "45-50 MIN WORK" with an arrow pointing to "10-15 MIN BREAK." Below, two warning sign cards read "Lost Depth" (the 3D space between elements flattens) and "Dulled Top End" (the shine on cymbals and vocals stops registering). A 2x2 grid below covers four recovery techniques for when a break isn't possible: Alternate Volume ("Different level, different perspective"), Check in Mono ("If it still works in mono, trust it"), White Noise ("A clean slate for tired ears"), and Close Your Eyes ("Less input, sharper focus"). The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

Ear Fatigue: How to Protect Your Mix and Mastering Decisions

Adrian Milea / mastering, mixing / September 14, 2026

The warning signs of ear fatigue most engineers miss, a practical break routine, and real recovery techniques for the sessions where stepping away is not an option.

Ear Fatigue: How to Protect Your Mix and Mastering Decisions Read More »

mastering mixing

A navy blue spec-sheet infographic titled "Compression Starting Points by Instrument," showing a table with columns for Ratio, Attack, Release, and Gain Reduction across eight rows: Kick Drum (4:1, 10-30ms, Auto, 3-6dB), Snare (4:1, 5-15ms, Auto, 3-6dB), Bass Guitar (3:1-4:1, 10-30ms, Auto/Fast, 3-5dB), Lead Vocal (2:1-3:1, 5-15ms, Auto, 2-4dB), Acoustic Guitar (2:1-3:1, 10-20ms, Auto, 2-4dB), Bus/Group (2:1, 10-30ms, Auto, 1-2dB), Mix Bus (1.5:1-2:1, 10-30ms, Auto, 1-2dB), and Mastering (1.5:1-2:1, Slow/Auto, Auto, under 1dB, highlighted in orange). Below the table, a "Golden Rule" callout with a star icon explains that the compressor plugin matters more than the settings, and that a weak one can damage a mix on the bus or master regardless of correct numbers, recommending 2:1, 10ms attack, auto release, under 1dB reduction when unsure. The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

Compression Settings by Instrument: A Practical Starting Point Chart

Adrian Milea / mastering, mixing / September 3, 2026

A practical compression settings chart by instrument, paired with the mistakes that actually wreck a mix: the wrong plugin on the bus, poor gain staging into emulated hardware, and overcompressing before a track needs it.

Compression Settings by Instrument: A Practical Starting Point Chart Read More »

mastering mixing

A navy blue chart titled "Where Every Platform Sets the Target," showing integrated LUFS targets on a shared scale from -18 to -12. A legend marks cyan dots as platforms that boost quiet masters and orange dots as turn-down only. Spotify sits at -14 LUFS (cyan), Apple Music at -16 LUFS (cyan), YouTube, Tidal, and Amazon Music at -14 LUFS (orange), Deezer at -15 LUFS and SoundCloud at -14 LUFS (neutral, minimal or varying normalization). A shaded band highlights the -16 to -14 cluster zone where most platforms sit. A separate dashed row for TikTok reads "NOT NORMALIZED," marked as an exception. The footer reads "Save & follow for more mixing + mastering tips" and "adrianmilea.com."

LUFS Targets by Platform: Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and More

Adrian Milea / mastering / September 1, 2026

A complete, verified chart of LUFS and true peak targets across every major streaming platform, plus why chasing a flat integrated LUFS number instead of short-term loudness and dynamic range is the wrong fight.

LUFS Targets by Platform: Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and More Read More »

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