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DIY Audio Mastering Vs. Professional Mastering

Audio Mastering is very important in electronic music, it can make your music go from good to great. However, there is a big debate if you should master yourself or if you should get it professional mastering!

First of all, what are the differences?

Professional audio mastering means going to an external company (professional recording studio) and paying them to mix and master your tracks, while DIY mastering is when you master your own tracks.

Benefits of DIY Mastering

You are in complete control of the end result
You don’t need to depend on anyone else
Inexpensive (only real cost is plugins and time)

Drawbacks of DIY Mastering

If inexperienced, it will result in a poorly mastered track
Could sound unprofessional
Will need to pay a lot for professional plugins and gear

Benefits of Professional Mastering

Will result in a professional sounding track
The whole mastering process will be done by a professional mastering engineer
Don’t need to pay for plugins or hardware and doesn’t cost you your own time

Drawbacks of Professional Mastering

End result might not sound like you want
Could take weeks for your track to be mastering if its a busy studio
Higher costs for you

Some people argue that if you don’t master your own tracks, you aren’t a real producer. I disagree with this but I tend to master my own tracks. This is because I am in complete control of the end result, but I also have more than 10 years of experience in musical production. For those at the beginning of the road I recommend them to call someone else to make their master or learn as much in this field until it can get quality results. Hopefully, the end result will sound exactly like you want.What do you prefer? Feel free to leave your comments below.

You may also like to read: 8 Steps To Master Your Tracks Within Your DAW