Mixing and mastering: a guide for pros
What customers ask, how to win the job, and what to put on your profile.
Offering mixing and mastering
Mixing and mastering clients want a finished sound that works on speakers, headphones and streaming systems. Show that you listen to the client's references first, explain your choices, and agree the delivery formats before you start.
What customers ask
- Can you make my mix sound professional?
- What reference tracks should I send?
- Will you master for streaming platforms?
- How many revisions are included?
- Can you deliver instrumentals and alternate versions?
- How long will the mix take?
How to win the job
- On the first call, ask for the song, the release platform, the reference tracks and the current mix, then say which problem you hear first.
- Ask for the session files or the stereo mix and the references, and send back a short sample of one section so the client hears your direction.
- Show a before and after of a mix you worked on, with a note on what changed and why.
- Put the number of songs, the tracks, the versions, the revision rounds and the master formats into the quote, so the client knows what is included.
- Confirm the delivery formats and the loudness the platform needs in writing before the master, so the file is correct the first time.
- Explain in your first reply how you give feedback time and when the mix will be locked.
What to put on your profile
- Before and after samples, with the genre and the client's permission noted.
- Genres and types of releases you mix and master, such as singles, albums or soundtracks.
- Your process: review, balance, effects, master and delivery.
- The monitoring setup and software you use, listed accurately.
Follow-up that helps the customer
- Offer to remaster a catalog track when the client wants a fresh version for a new release format.
- Suggest alternate versions for radio, video or live use, if the client needs them.
- Offer to mix the next song in the same style, using the same approach.
Licenses and permits
Mixing and mastering is not commonly licensed, so you usually do not need a license to offer it. Check with your state or local licensing agency for business registration, and keep a written agreement that names the songs, the versions, the revision rounds and the delivery formats.
Questions
How do I show I can mix and master well?
Share a before and after with the genre noted, and describe the choices you made. Clients can compare the result with their own references.
Should I promise a song will sound like a particular artist?
No. Describe the sound you aim for and the choices you make to get closer to it. Do not promise a result that depends on the recording and the client's tastes.
How do I handle a client who wants an extremely loud master?
Explain how loudness affects the sound and how the platform plays the file. Set the level to suit the release and say what you changed to get it.
Pro reviewers
Pros who offer mixing and mastering remotely can improve this guide, like Wikipedia. We check every edit before it goes live. Every approved edit is credited in the edit history and on the pro's profile.
Edit history
- Oct 29, 2026: Drafted by infinibell to our content guidelines.
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