Mixing & mastering
MIXEDAND MASTERED
You produced it. Send the stems, get back a record that translates anywhere.
A mix is not a volume balance. It is the last pass of arrangement, done with faders: what the listener hears first in each section, the space a vocal needs, a chorus made bigger without simply being louder, a bass part you can feel on a laptop speaker that cannot reproduce it.
It starts with your rough mix. That is where your intent lives, however technically rough it is, so it is treated as the brief. From there: cleanup, a low end that stays tight on small speakers, a stereo field where everything is audible without being carved hollow, and the vocal where your references put theirs.
Streaming already decides how loud your record is. What it cannot decide is whether it breathes.
Mastering is the last pass — tone, loudness and consistency across a single or an EP. Streaming normalises loudness, so the goal is not a volume war: it is a level that keeps the dynamics and still hits as hard as everything around it in a playlist.
Book them together or separately. Together is more coherent, because the master is made by the person who knows what the mix is doing. Mix-only is completely normal if you already have a mastering engineer you trust.
Every mix includes revision rounds — and if something in the source needs re-recording you will be told plainly. Nobody benefits from polite silence about a take that is not working.
What is included
Mix from your stems
Any DAW, any number of tracks.
Streaming master
Levelled for Spotify, Apple Music and the rest, dynamics intact.
Alternate versions
Instrumental, a cappella, TV mix, louder club master.
Revisions
Agreed rounds included, notes listened to rather than argued with.
Honest source notes
If a take is holding the song back, you hear what to redo and how.
Delivery
24-bit WAVs, DDP for an EP, MP3s for the band.
Hear the difference
Behind the Glass
Sally's Candy Shop · Production, mixing and mastering
The Job of Life
Sally's Candy Shop · Production, mixing and mastering
Tempo
Francesco Sisch · Production, mixing and mastering
Stasera Guida Tu
Francesco Sisch · Production, mixing and mastering
The practical part
What you send
- Stems from the same start point, 24-bit WAV at the session rate.
- Your rough mix, so the intent is clear.
- References, and what bothers you about the current version.
What you get back
- The mix, and the master made from it.
- Streaming-ready files and any alternates you asked for.
- Revision rounds, and a note on what was done and why.
Selected work
- Francesco SischTempoProduction, mixing and mastering
- Francesco SischLa Stessa CanzoneProduction, mixing and mastering
- GabohTor Marancia MeccanicaProduction, mixing and mastering
- Matteo CalannaTu Lo Chiamavi AmoreProduction, mixing and mastering
- Matteo Calanna3 PeroniProduction, mixing and mastering
- Sally's Candy ShopThe Job of LifeMixing and masteringsallyscandyshop.com.au
- Sally's Candy ShopBehind the GlassProduction, mixing and masteringsallyscandyshop.com.au
What artists say
“Paolo has mixed and mastered every song I have released. I send him rough recordings made at home and they come back sounding like records — the vocal sits right, the guitars have space, and nothing is lost. He is also honest about what is not working, which is worth more than the polish.”
“Sample review — replace with a real one. Shows how a production credit reads in this layout.”
“Sample review — replace with a real one from an artist Paolo has recorded.”
About mixing and mastering
How do I export stems?
Same start point, one file per part, no master-bus processing, 24-bit WAV. There is a full guide in Notes, and you can always just ask.
Can you master something you did not mix?
Yes. Send the final mix as a 24-bit WAV with a little headroom and no limiting on the master bus.
How loud will my master be?
Loud enough to sit beside your references after streaming normalisation, without squeezing the life out of the chorus.
Send me your project
I'll tell you what it needs and what it would take. It costs nothing to ask.
Free, no obligation