What is Mastering ?

Mastering is the art of capturing the most of a musical performance and thereby faithfully rendering the artist’s vision. Mastering helps bridge the distance between the artist and the listener.

Moreover, mastering makes music compatible and competitive for the consumer market, so that each title sounds right on any kind of stereo system.

How is Mastering done ?

Mastering (aka Premastering) brings the various frequency levels of a music title into perfect harmony. Sub-bass, mid-range, presence, and hi-end are individually edited.

Multi-band compression, limiting and SPL maximizing are used to obtain the optimal sound level and perfect volume level (subjective audible volume level) of the different frequencies. The human ear hereby proves itself a particular challenge because it perceives various volume levels differently strong.

Mastering can also influence the stereo signal. Stereo balance, stereo spread and stereo phase are edited. This is to guarantee that nothing is erased, such as in the bass level, or when a title is heard in mono, or with a very large stereo base.

Noises are eliminated. A special analysis can separate noises from the original signal. They are removed through noise reduction, de-clicking, de-cracking. De-essing removes disturbingly strong "s" or sibilants.

The beginning and ending of a title is cut exactly, or edited to turn a maxi into a single version.

The mastering of a CD additionally generates P/Q data which is needed to mark the individual titles and their specific identification (ISRC code).

Our Competence Mastering according to Industrial standards

As the last creative part in the chain of recording mastering has an especially high level of responsibility. With more than 10 years of experience and over 25,000 masters (mostly for Arcade, Virgin & Universal) we can say we are truly committed to take this responsibility seriously. Our employees have the competence and passion to make music sound its best.

Register free of charge and without obligation in our customer area. Upon registration your personal access data will be sent to your email address.

After login in the customer area you can upload your audio files to our server. No additional software is required. Your data will be treated strictly confidential.

In the customer area you can check the status of your uploads and mastering or production orders. After payment through credit card with PayPal or bank transfer your order will be issued.

The cost for a mastered title depends on its duration. As soon as the file has been uploaded, the price will be automatically calculated and displayed. The price per minute decreases, the longer the total running time is.

If your order comprises several titles, we will calculate the lower total running time price.

“Do you also require your own Music Video, a visual presentation for your company or Ballroom introduction in top quality? Just Let us know!”

Your mastering or music production orders will be processed as quickly as possible, usually within 24 hours, but no later than 3 business days. The mastered files are accessible as downloads in the customer area.

If there are any problems with the upload, download or with the payment please give us a message to Magellan_Entertainment@hotmail.com

We'll be happy to help you.

This offer refers mainly to comercial costomers.
All prices are therefore net prices. Customers from Germany and private individuals from the EU have to add 19% VAT. There are no additional costs beyond the indicated minute prices.

Some extra Information about the work….

Mastering, a form of post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio to a data storage device (the master); the source from which all copies will be produced (via methods such as pressing, duplication or replication).

This cohesive audio program, in a tonal context, is fine tuned through equalization and audio level compression. More tasks such as editing, pre-gapping, leveling, fading in and out, noise reduction and other signal restoration and enhancement processes can be applied as part of the mastering stage. Program material is also usually put in the proper order at this stage.

The specific medium varies, depending on the intended release format of the final product. For digital audio releases, there is more than one possible master medium, chosen based on replication factory requirements and / or record label security concerns.

A mastering engineer may be required to take other steps, such as the creation of a PMCD (Pre Mastered Compact Disc), where this cohesive material needs to be transferred to a master disc for mass replication. A good architecture of the PMCD is crucial for a successful transfer to a glass master that will generate stampers for reproduction.

Noise reduction

Noise reduction is the process of removing noise from a signal. Noise reduction techniques are conceptually very similar regardless of the signal being processed, however a priori knowledge of the characteristics of an expected signal can mean the implementations of these techniques vary greatly depending on the type of signal.

All recording devices, both analogue or digital, have traits which make them susceptible to noise. Noise can be random or white noise with no coherence or coherent noise introduced by the devices mechanism or processing algorithms.

In electronic recording devices a major form of noise is hiss caused by random electrons, which are heavily influenced by heat, stray from their designated path. These stray electrons influence the voltage of the output signal  and thus create detectable noise.

Visual Mastering

In the case of photographic film and magnetic tape, noise (both visual and aural) is introduced due to the grain structure of the medium. In photographic film, the size of the grains in the film (more sensitive film having larger sized grains) introduces noise. In magnetic tape the larger the grains of the magnetic particles, usually ferric oxide or magnetite. The larger the grains, the more prone the medium is to noise introduced by the grain.

To compensate for this, larger areas of film or magnetic tape may be used to lower the noise level to an acceptable point.