TOWER STUDIO | Rock, Prog and Metal Mix and Mastering

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PRO STUDIO DEDICATED TO WORLD-CLASS
RECORDING, REAMPING, MIXING AND MASTERING
FOR PROGRESSIVE, ROCK AND METAL BANDS

Tower Studio Featured Artist 1 Tower Studio Featured Artist 2 Tower Studio Transparent Tower Studio Slide

ABOUT US

Tower Studio is not your ordinary metal studio, it's a world-class facility founded by French producer and multi-instrumentalist Brett Caldas-Lima in 2004, with a vast experience in progressive, rock, and metal music genres and a contribution to the production of over 713 records for more than 483 bands.

"As a musician and founding member of the band KALISIA, I understand the fears, expectations, and desires that come with entrusting a stranger with your creative vision. At Tower Studio, your art is in good hands. We speak the same language.

I'm here to serve, assist and help you fulfil your vision, reach your full potential, and develop your unique personality. I tailor my approach to each individual artist and do not apply templates, presets, or molds that could be detrimental to your art. I will bring out your unique sound and let the world Hear Your Difference."

So if you're after professional recording, reamping, mixing or mastering services, look no further and contact us today to learn more about how we can help you achieve your creative goals.

SOME BANDS WE HAVE WORKED WITH

Some Bands We Have Worked With: Ayreon, Devin Townsend Project, Samael, SepticFlesh, Cynic, Between The Buried And Me, Persefone, Pain Of Salvation, The Gentle Storm, Haken, Sacred Reich, Star One, Seventh Wonder, Megadeth, Morglbl, Jazz Sabbath, DGM, Threshold, The Prize, Adagio, Caligula's Horse, Damian Wilson & Adam Wakeman, Ram-Zet, Killswitch Engage, Iron Mask, Xerath, Chimaira, Damian Wilson, Freak Kitchen, Shumaun, Xaon, Amadeus Awad, Luna's Call, Our Oceans, Agora, Helion Prime, Thirteen Bled Promises, Martyrium, To-Mera, Abhorer, Impiety, Inferum, Forest Stream, Symbolum Satanae, Divine Disorder, Mantra Vega, Angelwings, Glass Mind, Shuulak, The Arkitecht, Tainted Nation, Power Theory, Dawn Of The Maya, BabySaster, Acyl, Aephanemer, Auspex, Benighted Soul, Detoxed, Elyose, Gravity, Hegemon, Highway, Hypno5e, Kalisia, Malevolentia, Malmonde, Manigance, Stephan Forte, Whysdom...

SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY

Adagio - Life

ADAGIO
Life

2017
France

Stem Master

Link to Adagio

Ayreon - The Theory Of Everything

AYREON
The Theory Of Everything

2013
Netherlands

Master

Link to Ayreon TTOE

Ayreon - The Source

AYREON
The Source

2017
Netherlands

Master

Link to Ayreon The Source

Ayreon - Into The Electric Castle

AYREON
Into The Electric Castle

2018
Netherlands

Master

Link to Ayreon ITEC

Cynic - Live In Baltimore

CYNIC
Live In Baltimore

2010
USA

Record | Mix | Master

Link to Cynic

Devin Townsend - Contain Us

DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT
Contain Us

2011
Canada

Record | Mix | Master

Link to Devin Townsend

Jazz Sabbath - Vol. 2

JAZZ SABBATH
Vol. 2

2022
England

Master

Link to Jazz Sabbath

Kalisia - Cybion

KALISIA
Cybion

2007
France

Everything

Link to Kalisia

Megadeth - United Abominations

MEGADETH
United Abominations

2007
USA

Ad. Engineer | Voice

Link to Megadeth

Our Oceans - While Time Disappears

OUR OCEANS
While Time Disappears

2020
Netherlands

Master

Link to Our Oceans

Pain of Salvation - On A Tuesday (Live at Hellfest)

PAIN OF SALVATION
On A Tuesday (Live at Hellfest)

2018
Sweden

Mix | Master

Link to Pain Of Salvation

Persefone - Truth Inside The Shades

PERSEFONE
Truth Inside The Shades

2020
Andorra

Reamp | Mix | Master

Link to Persefone

SepticFlesh - Titan (Deluxe Box Set Bonus CD)

SEPTICFLESH
Titan (Deluxe Box Set Bonus CD)

2014
Greece

Record | Mix | Master

Link to SepticFlesh

Star One - Revel In Time

STAR ONE
Revel In Time

2021
Netherlands

Ad. Engineer | 5.1 Master

Link to Star One

The Gentle Storm - The Diary

THE GENTLE STORM
The Diary

2015
Netherlands

Master

Link to The Gentle Storm

Rest assured that while we may only showcase a select few bands on our website, we hold all our clients in the highest regard, treating each one with fairness and equality, regardless of their size or project scope. Whether it's a single song mastering or a full album production, we are committed to providing up-and-coming acts with a sense of accomplishment and pride. We believe that today's small bands have the potential to become tomorrow's biggest acts, and we take pride in being a part, no matter how small, of their future success. At our studio, no client is overlooked or underestimated, as we hold a deep appreciation for the value of every project and artist we work with.

TESTIMONIALS

What They Say About Us

Devin Townsend

Devin Townsend Project, Strapping Young Lad, Steve Vai...

My friend Brett Caldas-Lima, who did sound for us on our first tour ever as the Devin Townsend Project (in the USA with BTBAM, Cynic and Scale The Summit) mixed one of the shows from that first tour. In listening to it, I kind of thought we sounded pretty good! Granted, it was the first tour and we were playing to a crowd that couldn’t have cared less, but really, all things considered, it’s not a bad recording.

Arjen Lucassen

Ayreon, Star One, The Gentle Storm, Supersonic Revolution...

If you’re looking for a dedicated guy with a good pair of ears and a lot of technical knowledge, look no further! And not just for mastering, there is a lot more this man can do. Brett has been mastering my albums for some time now, and I will never trust any other mastering engineer.

Pain Of Salvation

Pain Of Salvation

Second time we’re working with Brett on a live mixing and once again the job’s done perfectly, quickly and very efficiently (even on his vacation days). We really appreciate the fact that he’s listening to our directives and that there is a real communication between him and the band! The result sounds 'live' and 'true', which a lot of live albums lack today in our opinion. Thanks and ‘till next time!

Christos Antoniou

SepticFlesh, Chaostar...

Brett recorded us during our European tour with Amon Amarth in Toulouse and we were totally blown away by the final result. Everything went smoothly and professionally, from the recording to the mix and mastering. His enthusiasm, dedication and attention to details are second to none and his skill working with extreme symphonic music is a rare forte. We can’t recommend him enough and are definitely looking forward to our next collaboration!

Sean Reinert

Cynic, Death, Æon Spoke...

My drums have never sounded so good!

Leo Margarit

Pain Of Salvation, Epysode, Zubrowska...

Brett has been doing a live recording for us back in 2011 and he has shown a level of professionalism that you rarely meet on the road... Later when he delivered the mixes, the result was fabulous, he managed to transcend the energy of the show while maintaining the natural and raw sound that is so dear to us! I also consult Brett every time I need an expert ear for my own mixes and he always comes up with relevant and constructive advices that drastically improve them.

Adam Wakeman

Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Slash, Jazz Sabbath, Wilson & Wakeman...

Damian and I were very fortunate to have our album mastered by Brett. He is sensitive to such a variety of styles of music and brought along the sort of expertise that makes a proper difference at the final stages of the recording process.

James Hetfield

Metallica

Ooooooh yeah! *

* Although we reckon he might have not said that about "us" specifically ;-)

Damian Wilson

Wilson & Wakeman, Ayreon, Threshold, Arena, Star One, Headspace...

After Brett accomplished such exceptional work mastering the 'Ayreon Universe' live recording, I jumped at the first opportunity to work with him and once again he excelled. Looking forward to working again on future recordings.

Heather Findlay

Heather Findlay Band/Trio, Mantra Vega, Ayreon, Mostly Autumn...

Brett’s working style is both meticulous and methodical, making him highly trust worthy and because he doesn’t miss a trick, it’s easy to relax as an artist/producer and just get on with your bit! Fantastic all round. First class mixing and mastering and as a result, I’ve continued to work with Brett on my last two album releases. I highly recommend this man!

Carlos Alvarez

Dirty Viking Audio Production

Over the last 6 years or so I have worked with Brett on easily 10+ albums. Every time I take on a new client I immediately tell them they should have Brett do the mastering for their album. Brett has proven time and time again to be an immense asset to anyone looking to have a top level, professional sound. The man can turn chicken s**t into chicken salad and on top of that he’s super friendly, accommodating and easy to work with.

Stephan Forte

Adagio, Stephan Forte

We worked with Brett for the mastering of Adagio's latest album 'Life'. By choosing the stem mastering option he proposes, for the first time we managed to reach the sound we were exactly looking for. Each instrument or group can be fine tuned to blend perfectly, and while the usual way of mastering always slightly denatures your mix, here, what you hear is what you get.

RECORDING

Location

Montpellier

We are located in Montpellier, in the sunny South of France, isolated in the middle of a forest. A very peaceful and quiet environment, ideal for focussing on music, yet not too far from local amenities.

Bands on a budget will usually find that the cheapest way to record with us is to get Brett to come to them and either to book a studio in their area, set aside a room in their house or rent a space for the duration of the recording sessions. With his portable rig, he has made some pretty crazy places work and can always get the best out of any situation - garages, bedrooms, lounges, bars backrooms, churches... you name it. If there is electricity and talent, Brett can make it sound like a million dollar studio.

That said, if you can afford it, coming to our studio is obviously your best option.

When recording we use top quality gear from the finest companies: RME, Universal Audio, Audio-Technica, Audix, Neumann, Rode, Shure...

Prepare For Your Recording

Here's a non-exhaustive list of what you'll need to do to prepare for a productive recording session.

Get a professional to set up your guitars and basses (or do it yourself if you know what you are doing). An instrument with poor intonation simply will not sound, feel or play as good as that very same instrument coming fresh from a decent setup. Your instrument is the sound source, and that source needs to be in good shape before we capture it. Please don't skip this step and don't rely on studio gear to automagically make a badly intonated 49.95€ guitar with a chronic case of fret buzz perform like a guitar worth 3000€. That just isn't (really) possible.

Drummers should bring new drumheads, the best cymbals they can afford, and fix any rattling noises or other weird sound anomalies being caused by their pedal chain or moving parts. Fixing things like that during the actual recording sessions wastes time, and consequently wastes your money.

Remember, studio recording brings every instrument under the microscope, so get 'em fixed up. It's relatively cheap, and it's totally worth it!

If you come to record drums here with us, know that we have access to a huge backline of about 10 stunning drum kits (DW, Ludwig, Pearl, etc) and more than 50 snares (!!!).

Bring some spare drumheads, sticks, strings, picks etc. Having to call a halt to a session when there was a great vibe for a simple oversight like running out of sticks is always a downer, no matter how close the local music shop might be.

Headphones

We can provide some for you but if you have a set of headphones or your own IEM (in-ear monitors) that you particularly like or are comfortable with, bring them with you! This is especially true for you sweaty drummers ;-)

You need to do your homework. By this, we mean that you should know precisely what your role is (we can help with this if we're producing). Most importantly, you need to be able to play yours songs in your sleep! Our task is to capture the essence of your performance, so brush up on the technical aspects ahead of time until you feel like you know the songs inside out. We promise you, there is not much room for "is this the right note here?" or "what's the next riff there?" on a record that you'll be proud of in years to come.

Play with Attitude

PLAY WITH F**KING ATTITUDE even without an audience in the studio, because it does make a difference to the final result and to your listeners!

Yes, we can and will help if you're struggling, but we'd rather not do the job instead of you, you will feel much better if you achieve things yourself. There is a tendency today to believe a computer can fix every bum note and do the hard work for you. We'll admit that this is true to some growing extent, but music (at least, music that we work on) should be played by humans and should not sound obviously quantized, autotuned or so "fixed" that it has lost its essence (unless that's exactly the aesthetics we're after). Computers do not have a soul (not even Macs), they do not get goosebumps, they cannot love music like we do, so don't place the quality control of your music entirely in their "hands".

Plus, you will undoubtedly look like an idiot on stage if you can't play what's on your record anyway...

I'm not a Dictator

The above is just a 50/50 mix of common sense and advice that has built up over the years. But we obviously will not force you to do anything you don't want to. If your vision supports the sound of an out of tune guitar with rusty strings, that's what we'll record. Hey, something good might come out of it as well, as there's rarely only one right way to do things. Experimentation is the way to be new and fresh.

REAMPING

What is reamping?

Reamping allows us to take a pre-recorded dry, unprocessed, unaffected guitar or bass sound and send it through high-end amplifiers, resulting in a recording that sounds exactly as if the musician was plugged directly into that amp.

The artist must have recorded his parts by connecting the instrument into a DI unit (a Direct Input or Direct Inject buffer box) that was fed to a recording console or soundcard.

Some of the amps available for Reamping

The most obvious advantage to the reamping technique is that it gives the musicians access to real tube amps they couldn't have afforded otherwise. It also places the duty of recording said amps into the experienced hands of yours truly.

Killer tone isn't just in your fingers, so put it in the right hands.

Reamping your guitars

We're offering a guitar and bass reamping service for your music.

We have access to a VERY wide choice of amps from the most prestigious and best guitar amp companies in the world, including (but not limited to):

Mesa Boogie

Single, Dual and Triple Rectifiers
Mini Rectifier
Road King I & II
Mark IV
Mark V
Stiletto
Express 5:50
...

Peavey

5150
5150 II
6505
6505 +
Triple XXX
JSX
XXL
Valveking
...

Engl

Savage 120
Fireball
Powerball I & II
Invader
Blackmore Signature
Steve Morse Signature
Victor Smolski Ltd E646
E670 Special Edition
...

Diezel

Einstein
Herbert
VH4
...

Paul Read Smith

Archon

EVH

5150 Stealth
5150 III
5150 III 50w
...

Marshall

JVM
JCM 800
JCM 900
JCM 2000
Vintage Modern
1959RR Randy Rhoads
AFD100 Slash Signature
2203KK Kerry King
...

Randall

Satan
RM100 Kirk Hammett
V2
T2
RM100
RT100
...

Orange

Thunder
Dual Terror
Dark Terror
Rockerverb
Thunderverb
AD30
TH30
TH100H
...

But also Friedman, Fuchs, Bogner, Soldano, Revv, NOS, Fender, Vox, VHT, ADA...

MIXING

Please keep in mind that the guidelines below are just suggestions. They are presented as common-sense advice in your best interest to make working together as smooth as possible. They may be useful to anyone who may have not collaborated with an outside mixing engineer before and might not know what procedures to follow. In essence, these guidelines were meant to HELP you. We're probably not the monster you think... We might be worse, haha.

Prepare your files for mixing

So if you have already recorded, the next steps before sending your songs to mix are:

Edit your tracks: your tracks must be edited (for example if the drummer's performance needs tightening) before sending them to mixing. If vocal tuning is needed, we can do that here (but that's an additional service).

Clean up your tracks: remove unwanted noises, and send us the right takes. If it shouldn't be heard on the record, then you shouldn't be sending it to us without a very clear explanation of why it's been included.

If you used Virtual Instruments, bounce them to audio files.

Consolidate regions, items, clips or whatever your DAW of choice calls them, so that all files start at bar 1. That way, we'll just have to import the files and everything will be aligned perfectly in our DAW. This is the simplest way to transfer your material, even if some of the time it might mean that a guitar solo has 3 minutes of silence before it. You can use wav or aiff format.

Pro Tip: if you zip your files, all silences will be compressed to almost nothing, so you'll gain A LOT of space.

Export mono sources to mono and stereo sources to stereo. For every mono source you send as a stereo file (doubling its size and e-carbon print for nothing), a kitten dies.

Pro Tools

Name the files using a convention that will make sense for someone who is not in your head, and keep this format consistent throughout all your songs.

We can't stress this enough: please make sure that you've included only the correct files and that nothing is missing. You should test each song by importing the files into your DAW and check that everything is present and aligned. It may sound obvious to you but trust us, it's not so obvious to most.

If you recorded to a click, export the tempo map and any time signature changes as MIDI files for each song (and MIDI only, proprietary tempo map files from Cubase or others are of no use to us), and include those files in your project. If there's just one tempo for one song and it's all 4/4 then just make a note of the tempo value.

Create one folder per song, then place any audio files you want us to use in a folder called "Audio". Please don't put files in subfolders like "Drums" or "Guitars", just name the files mindfully.

If possible, include a rough mix of each song. we might want to refer to it to figure out what's the main line, the lead instrument, where the emphasis should be, etc. If you don't have rough mixes but know what you want or what you DON'T want, make notes for us in a text file.

Of course, you can just leave all that up to our interpretation. If we're wrong, don't worry, nothing is undoable. Feel free to include an extra folder containing some songs from other bands that you like the sound of. We'll keep that vibe in mind as we mix, but we'll always stop short of making you sound like a cheap clone.

Very complex

If your songs contain very complex choir parts, intricate 200+ tracks of samples, or heavily orchestrated sections, our advice (if you can) is to premix those and send us stereo stems. Put those stems in the main "Audio" folder and the original rough files in a separate folder called "Slave".

And finally, tell us which song you want us to mix first. Choose one that is representative of your music, one that sets the tone for the whole collection of songs that we'll be mixing for you.

Google Drive weTransfer iCloud

When you're ready, compress each song individually into a zip file (trust us it will save some space) and share them with us online (WeTransfer, Google Drive, iCloud Drive or whatnot, just please try not to use Dropbox, we hate it haha...).

If your internet connection is not reliable enough, put all of those files onto an external USB flash or hard drive and send it by mail. No matter what, always keep your own copy of those files in safe places (yes, you should always have several backups in different locations). Keep in mind that we will not send your drives back.

Once we receive the files, we'll work on the first song and upload a mix to our private server. It will then be up to you to tell us what you like, what you don't like, and what we should change. Some mixes can take a few trials and errors before they'll meet your expectations (especially if you know exactly what you want), so don't be afraid to give us your honest opinion during the process.

The advantage of this unattended mixing process is that you will be able to hear the mixes in listening environments that you know well (your home studio, your car, on your buddy's hi-fi...) as many times as you need. We'll systematically work through and hone each song to perfection in turn.

We generally master our own mixes as we go so you can hear what you fans will hear during the decision process of mixing your songs (and not have to second guess what it might sound like after mastering), but if you want to have your material mastered somewhere else, we will happily provide the unmastered mixes. Exported stems (separated mixdowns of your drums, bass, guitars, etc) are possible at a small additional fee unless we have been notified before mixing.

Before you record

If you're going to record in another studio or do it yourself, and you want us to mix the material, here are a few recommendations for you.

First, please read everything on the "RECORDING" tab as that advice is just as relevant here.

Record in 24 bits

Record in 24 bits. 44.1kHz or 48kHz are just fine, but you can record at higher rates if you want to.

Take pictures of the recording setup and send some to us in a folder. Any knowledge we can gain of where microphones were positioned etc will be a big help at this end, especially with drums. Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Drum triggers

If you have the possibility, record the drum trigger signal for the drum kicks, snare and all toms. Just put a trigger on each drum, and plug the XLR out into the mixer / sound-card / whatever device you're recording with. No expensive drum module is necessary here, we're only interested in the transducer signal (a click sound that occurs each time the drummer hits). Remember, sending us triggers doesn't mean that we'll automatically replace a kit sound you've worked hard to craft. It's simply that trigger recordings are always very helpful when gating individual tracks, and if we do HAVE to replace anything, we'll be able to do it efficiently. Aside from the additional technical possibilities they open up, it's always good to have an extra record of the performance for security. Plus, they work great as drums muffles.

Tune the drums

Tune those drums. This is very, very important! If your drummer doesn't know how to and nobody in the studio can help with that either, hire a pro to come and do it. Even another local drummer with knowledge of tuning can make a positive difference.

We highly recommend that you record and send us isolated hits for every elements of the drumkit. Don't think, just do it, you'll thank us later.

Please don't rely on us to fix dire tuning, pops, crackles, clicks, rattles or any undesired noise under the mixing microscope. Spend a little extra time to get it right on the way in. Get the sound at the source. It must sound good to begin with to sound great in the end. There's no magic, computers can't turn shit into gold, "We can't polish a turd" (...but we can spray paint gold over it").

Same applies to your performance.

If drum editing is necessary, be sure that's done before recording any other instruments, as the other players will instinctively lock in with the drums and the overall feel of the band will be better as a result of working in this order.

Check your tuning

Check the tuning on your guitars and basses at all times. That means before each take.

Mute the strings you don't use on a riff by riff base. Use foam, tape... Dampen the strings of your guitars above the nut (between the nut and the tuning pegs), below the bridge, and dampen your Floyd-Rose springs with a tissue. You'll be surprised the difference in clarity this will make.

Do not apply EQ or compression or anything else on the way in unless you're 100% sure that you know what you're doing.

Record a DI signal of guitar and bass tracks alongside your mic'd signal. This will be useful in case the mic'd signal isn't usable or doesn't fit. If you want us to reamp sounds, we will need those DI signals. If you're recording in a studio, the guys there will know what to do. If you're doing it yourself, take some time to learn about the subject as this is quite critical. It will also tremendously help with any editing.

MASTERING

What is mastering?

"Mastering fixes problems you didn't know you had in ways you don't understand".

Mastering is a critical step in the music production process, serving as the final polishing touch to a piece of music before it's ready for distribution. It's both a technical and creative process that requires a lot of expertise, an ability to listen critically and an obsession for details.

At its core, mastering involves checking the program material for any issues that may have arisen during the recording and mixing stages. If any problems are identified, corrective measures are applied to ensure that the final product sounds as good as possible. This can involve fixing any audio anomalies, equalizing the audio for a more balanced sound, and adding subtle effects to enhance the listening experience.

One of the most important aspects of mastering is achieving a consistent and uniform sound across a variety of playback systems. The goal is to create a product that sounds great whether it's being played on a high-end home stereo system, a pair of earbuds, or a car radio. Achieving this requires an understanding of the intricacies of different playback systems and how they can affect the sound of the music.

Mastering compressor

Sequencing is another key aspect of mastering. Once each individual song has been mastered, they must be arranged in a way that makes sense as a cohesive album. We carefully consider the order in which the songs are presented and how they transition between one another.

Communication is critical throughout the mastering process. We work closely with the artists or producers to ensure that their vision is being realized, and that any changes or corrections are made in a way that's consistent with the artist's vision. By the way, congratulations, you have just found an Easter Egg. In recognition of your attentive reading, we're pleased to offer you a ten percent discount code for your first mastering as a token of our gratitude. Include the code "ireaditall" in your email and we'll sort you out. But hush, keep it a secret! So anyway, it's also important for the client to have a clear understanding of what to expect during the mastering process, as there can be misconceptions and myths about what it entails.

CD duplication

During the mastering session, we will listen to the music through a very accurate monitoring chain, using a variety of tools to identify and correct any problems or shortcomings that may have occurred during the recording and mixing stages. Once we and the client are satisfied with the sound of the individual tracks and the sequencing of the album, a master file is created, eventually in the form of a CD-A disk or a DDP. This master is then checked for errors and sent off for duplication, replication, or streaming platforms.

Mastering Your Music

We're offering a mastering service for mixes we've worked on, as well as for mixes done at other studios.

You must provide us with stereo mixdowns of each song (with or without fades, it doesn't really matter) in the original resolution / sample rate at which they were recorded/mixed at. If you have thoughts on what you're hoping to hear from the mastering process, or things you'd like to avoid, add them in a text file. Also, feel free to include an extra folder with some songs from other bands and albums that you like (the overall sound, not necessarily the music). We'll take a critical listen to those examples and keep them in mind as we work. Please make sure that any song references you include are Wav files, not lossy over-compressed mp3.

Mastering in-the-box

We master in-the-box, using the world's best mastering plugins from Universal Audio, Flux, Sony Oxford, iZotope, Waves, Brainworx, Eventide, Slate Digital, Mathew Lane...

Mastering in-the-box allows for consistency, automation and total recall of plugin parameters, so we can provide as many revisions of your first song as it takes for you to be totally satisfied.

We do not use presets during mastering and think it's a very bad idea to do so.

We do not charge for individual revisions or invoice by the hours we spend on your material as neither never really seemed fair to us. Who can tell if a studio is charging you 5 hours for something that took them 2? At Tower Studio the price is set by the length of your material, so you can be certain of the cost beforehand - no nasty surprises.

Upon approval, delivery of the master will be made electronically using our private secure server as 16 bits / 44,1 kHz wav files (unless you specifically require another format).

Album Sequencing

We can also sequence your album. If you requested this, we'll deliver a DDP file that you can send straight to your pressing plant for duplication. DDP is the industry standard for master delivery, the safest method and is accepted by most reputable factories. With this option you will also receive a customised DDP Player software (Mac and PC compatible) that will allow you to listen to the audio, verify your DDP files, check CD Text, create RedBook compatible audio CDs, export lossless wave files and much more. The normal value of this software alone is 67€ and you get it for free.

If we're sequencing, we will require you to send us the ISRC codes for each song and a UPC/EAN code for the album (that is if you want us to embed them in the master). The process of obtaining those codes varies from country to country, so if you're unsure about any of those terms, please Google them or ask your record company as soon as possible.

Physical copies

Physical copies of your master can be posted to you, those this is really not often required anymore. We can provide DDP on a DVD, or good old-fashioned audio CDs in your mailbox if you'd prefer that (3 copies: 2 sealed units for the duplicators and 1 for your ears). If this is required, just let us know and provide a valid address.

Test Mastering

Of course, any mastering studio can claim to make your mixes shine and take your money, but how do you know what they'll really bring to the table? This is why we offer a test master of one song (3 minutes max length, delivered to you in mp3 format) for a very small fee (50€), so you can decide whether our interpretation is the right one for your music. If you do like our work and ask us to master the rest of the songs, half of that fee will be refunded.

Apple Apple Digital Masters (MFiT)

Certified Apple Digital Masters provider

We also offer the option to deliver your masters in High Definition for the Apple Digital Masters (fka Mastered For iTunes or MFiT) program, allowing you to get the best possible sound with as little sound quality loss as possible. We are certified by Apple as an official ADM Provider so that means your releases will get better visibility on Apple Music / iTunes and can be badged and marketed as "Mastered For iTunes" (Apple gives better placement to those). Keep in mind this is not an automatic process and the "certified by Apple" mention must be specified when you or your label upload the files to Apple. The good news is that these masters can also be used for other High Definition Digital Retailers and streaming platforms (Spotify, YouTube, etc) at no additional cost.

Vinyl Premastering

Vinyl premastering

The vinyl format is becoming increasingly popular again, but truth be told, it suffers from a lot of technical limitations. Extra care must be given to the master to prepare your music for vinyl replication. We'll be happy to do that for you and deliver the premasters as high resolution wave files.

Stem Mastering

For bands who want optimal results, or anyone who's aware that their mixes are not as well balanced as they would've liked, we're offering a stem mastering option/upgrade.

Stem mastering is different from 2 track stereo mastering. It uses a number of grouped instruments such as kick, snare, toms, rest of drums, bass, rhythm guitars, lead guitars, clean/acoustic guitars, keyboards and vocals.

This approach provides additional scope for us to discretely enhance specific subsets of instruments, gives us more flexibility if there are any problems that slipped under the radar during mixing, and allows for a greater enhancement based on the summing of the stems. Additionally, standard stereo mastering processes are included. Stem mastering can produce subjectively improved sonic results.

Ratio

It is worth clarifying some differences between stem mastering and mixing. Mixing relies on equalisation, fader and send automation, effects, tuning etc, and at times a heavy-handed approach to these aspects is used. Stem mastering takes a much subtler approach to EQ, dynamic adjustment and occasionally automation, but tuning and effects are a rarity at this stage. Essentially, it's another way to get the most out of that fresh set of ears in a highly linear monitoring environment by giving him some extra room to manoeuvre.

If you feel your mix lacks width, depth, warmth, punch, glue, dynamics... then stem mastering might be the right choice for you.

How do you prepare your tracks for Stem Mastering:

Export your stems from exactly the same time code position in your digital audio workstation timeline so they will synchronize when we import them.

A good set of stems must "sum" or combine to sound identical to your stereo mixdown when all stems are played back at unity gain. Note that any processing your had on your master bus will be lost. If your mix depends heavily on that processing, maybe stem mastering isn't the best choice for you. You can safely apply your static processing (equalization, reverb, etc) to each separate stem though, but dynamic processing (compression, expansion, limiting etc) will not react the same (unless using the sidechaining trick). If you mixed in the box, we can probably replicate your master bus compression settings though (depending on what plugin you used) so it's worth checking with us beforehand.

Notes or pointers on any sonic issues that have been of concern during mixing such as "bass line sounds muddy, drums require more punch" could be useful.

Also please confirm any aspects of the mix you are happy with, so we can avoid changing things that you like.

Please remember to send your stereo mixes as well for reference.

CONTACT US

We reply to all emails and messages as soon as we can. If you don't get a reply in a timely manner, it probably means that something went wrong with it, so please try again.

RATES

Rates

Recording Rates

We don't have fixed rates for recording, so send us an email to explain what you're looking for. It's usually cheaper for us to come to you (travel expenses, accommodation and food for one person are obviously cheaper than for five people). So give us as many details as you can, and let's see if we can make this happen.

Mixing Rates

Every mix is different. So if you want to get a fair and accurate quotation for your project, please answer these questions in your inquiry email:

• What is the name of your band?
• Do you have a web site or a place where I could hear your music?
• Are you signed or independent?
• What type of music do you play?
• How many musicians and which instruments are played on these songs?
• Do guitars and bass need to be reamped?
• Are the drums midi or acoustic? (no judgement here, but acoustic drums usually take way more work)
• How many songs will you want me to mix?
• How long does your album last in total?
• Do you also want me to master your music?
• How will it be (or has it been) recorded? (professional studio, home studio, live...)
• When do you want the mix to take place? Do you have a tight schedule?

Seems like a lot of questions we know, but if we have all that info in front of us, you can be sure we'll offer you the best price and quickest turnaround possible.

To give you a ballpark figure, album mixing usually costs somewhere between 1.500 and 4.500 euros (mostly depending on the number of songs, the total length of the album and your schedule flexibility).

Mastering Rates

Mastering rates are set by the length of your material:

• 100€ between 0 and 5 minutes
• 150€ between 5 and 10 minutes
• 200€ between 10 and 20 minutes
• 250€ between 20 and 30 minutes
• 300€ between 30 and 40 minutes
• 350€ between 40 and 50 minutes
• 400€ between 50 and 60 minutes
• 450€ between 60 and 70 minutes
• 500€ between 70 and 80 minutes

Revisions are free of charge until you are satisfied, within reason (our call, obviously) and within the limits of your source material.

Delivery time for a master is usually within 2 weeks.

Options:

Album sequencing: 50€, includes codes embedding and online DDP delivery + custom DDP Player software.
Physical delivery: 50€, includes 3 audio CDs or 1 data CD and shipping, requires album sequencing.
Stem mastering upgrade: 30€ per song *, 200€ max per album.
Apple Digital Master / Streaming Optimized Version: 20€ per song *, 150€ max per album.
Vinyl Premastering: 20€ per song *, 200€ max per album.
Additional versions (instrumentals, vocal up, etc): 20€ per song *, 150€ max per album.
Multichannel Surround: Get in touch depending on the number of channels (quad, 5.0, 5.1, 6.0, 7.1, etc).
Test mastering: 50€ for a 3 minutes max song or extract (delivered in mp3). Half of this fee will be refunded if you like our work and ask us to master the rest of your songs (only if the mix is not or barely different).

* One song = approximatively 5 minutes max.

Booking requires a 50% up-front payment or 100% if booked last-minute.

Prices include taxes: no bad surprise, no last minute extra. Keep that in mind when comparing with other studios rates.

Reamping Rates

Here's our formula to calculate how much reamping will cost: setup + [songs] + {options}.
Feel free to disregard it and ask us directly for a quote if it's too complex.

I. setup

The minimum incompressible fare (setup time, amp setting, etc) is 100€

II. [songs]

We charge 40€ per song for the first 2 songs on the record.

Then, each two-songs, a discount rate is applied:
- 30€/song for the next 2
- 20€/song for the next 2
- 10€/song for the next 2
- then each additional song is free.

One song = approximatively 5 minutes max.
Songs over 5 minutes count as two, over 10 minutes count as three, etc.
If some of your songs are 5:15 or something like that, contact us and we will discuss it.
One record = 78 min max

Please do not contact us with 4 hours of material hoping that only the first 8 songs will be charged for and that you'll get 27 songs done for free (it happened, haha). As much as we love reamping, we've got bills to pay and a cat to feed. If you've got a lot of reamping to be done, or you want to share the setup time and amps with someone else, contact us and we can discuss that.

III. {options}

a. Amps

The following amps come at no additional cost:
- Diezel Einstein 100
- Engl Savage 120
- EVH 5150 Stealth
- Marshall JVM410H
- Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Recto-Verb ('95)
- Mesa Boogie Mark V
- Mesa Boogie Road King II
- Peavey 6505
- Peavey JSX
- PRS Archon

Any other amp requested is considered an option and costs 100€ (check for availability first please).

b. Multi amps

If you want to use several amps, add 50€ per extra amp (in total, not per song).

c. Cabinets

Reamping is done via the Two Notes Torpedo at no additional cost.

It can also be done with basically any other cabinet (Mesa, Diezel, Engl, Marshall, Bogner, Orange, etc...) for an extra fee of 100€ for the first cabinet and 50€ per extra cab.

IV. Ask us

If you're still lost about it (and you probably are), just drop us an email and we will gladly help you out.

Booking requires a 50% up-front payment.

Taxes are already factored into the prices: no unpleasant surprises or unexpected additional charges. Remember this if you compare our rates with other studios.

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