Common Myths About Mastering Debunked by a Pro Engineer
Mastering is one of the most misunderstood stages of music production. It’s often shrouded in mystery, with myths and misconceptions swirling around what it can do—and what it can’t. As a mastering engineer, I’ve heard it all: “Mastering will fix my mix,” “It’s just about making things louder,” or my personal favorite, “AI mastering is just as good as a human.” Spoiler alert: none of these are true.
In this post, I’ll debunk some of the most common myths about mastering and shed light on what the process really involves. Whether you’re an artist, producer, or DIY enthusiast, understanding the truth about mastering will help you make better decisions for your music.
Myth 1: Mastering Can Fix a Bad Mix
This is probably the biggest misconception about mastering. Many people think of it as a magic wand that can transform a poorly balanced mix into a radio-ready hit. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works.
The Truth:
Mastering is about refining and enhancing a mix—not fixing fundamental problems. If your vocals are buried, your bass is overpowering, or your snare sounds like it’s in another room, those issues need to be addressed in the mix. Mastering can polish your track and make subtle improvements, but it can’t rebuild the foundation.
Pro Tip: Before sending your track for mastering (or mastering it yourself), take the time to perfect your mix. Listen on multiple systems—headphones, monitors, car speakers—and make sure everything feels balanced. A great master starts with a solid mix; read this post for more.
Myth 2: Mastering Is Just About Making Tracks Louder
Loudness has been a topic of much debate in audio for decades, especially during the so-called “loudness wars.” While achieving competitive loudness is part of mastering, it’s far from the whole story.
The Truth:
Mastering is about balance, not just volume. It involves fine-tuning tonal balance with EQ, controlling dynamics with compression, and ensuring your track translates well across all playback systems. Yes, limiting is often used to increase loudness—but only to the extent that it serves the music without sacrificing clarity or dynamics.
With streaming platforms now normalizing playback volume (e.g., Spotify targets -14 LUFS), loudness for loudness’ sake has become less relevant. A well-mastered track focuses on emotional impact and sonic quality—not how loud it is.
Myth 3: AI Mastering Is Just as Good as Human Mastering
I’ve written about this in a previous post. In recent years, online AI mastering services have gained popularity for their convenience and affordability. While these tools can be helpful in certain situations (like quick demos), they’re no substitute for a skilled human engineer.
The Truth:
AI lacks the ability to understand context, emotion, and artistic intent. A human mastering engineer listens critically to your music, considers its genre and mood, and makes informed decisions tailored to your vision. For example:
• An AI algorithm might apply generic EQ settings to brighten a track but fail to recognize that those highs clash with the song’s warm, vintage aesthetic.
• A human engineer would approach the same track with nuance—enhancing its character rather than imposing cookie-cutter settings.
AI can’t replicate the intuition or collaborative spirit that comes from working with someone who truly cares about your music.
A picture of me for a change!
Myth 4: You Need Expensive Gear to Master Properly
Many people believe that professional mastering requires racks of analog hardware and high-end monitors in a perfectly treated, million-dollar room. While these tools certainly help (and I love my studio), they’re not prerequisites for great results—especially in today’s digital age. As they say: “it’s the ears, not the gear".”
The Truth:
Mastering is more about skill than gear. A talented engineer with affordable tools will always outperform someone with expensive equipment but no experience. Modern plugins like FabFilter Pro-Q 3, iZotope Ozone, and Waves L2 offer incredible precision at a fraction of the cost of analog gear.
That said, monitoring is critical—whether you’re using headphones or speakers. Invest in an accurate monitoring environment and learn how sound translates across different systems to which you have access.
Myth 5: Mastering Is Only for Professionals
Some DIY musicians may think mastering is out of reach unless you’re signed to a label or working on big-budget projects. This couldn’t be further from reality.
The Truth:
Mastering is for everyone. Whether you’re releasing an indie single on Bandcamp or preparing an album for Spotify, mastering ensures your music sounds polished and professional. While hiring an experienced engineer is ideal for commercial releases, DIY mastering can be effective if you take the time to learn the basics (and avoid over-processing). Learn some helpful tips on mastering your own music here.
There are also affordable options available—many engineers like myself offer budget-friendly rates for independent artists because they genuinely care about helping great music shine.
Myth 6: Mastering Makes All Tracks Sound the Same
There are still lingering aversions to mastering from a small group in the audio community. They may worry that mastering will strip their music of its individuality by forcing it into some kind of “industry standard” mold. This myth likely stems from false expectations, misunderstanding what mastering actually does, and bad experiences with shoddy engineers in the past.
The Truth:
Mastering enhances your vision—it doesn’t replace it. A good engineer works with the unique character of each track rather than against it. For example:
• If your song has an intentionally raw or lo-fi vibe, mastering will preserve that aesthetic while ensuring it translates well across platforms.
• If you want your track to stand out in a playlist alongside polished pop hits, mastering can help achieve that without compromising its authenticity.
Mastering isn’t about conformity—it’s about presenting your music in its best possible light.
Myth 7: Mastering Is Easy—Just Throw on a Limiter
With so many “mastering presets” available in plugins like iZotope Ozone or Waves L3 Multimaximizer, some producers or mixers assume they can skip learning the craft entirely by relying on one-size-fits-all solutions.
The Truth:
Presets are starting points—not solutions. Every track has unique needs based on its genre, arrangement, mix, and emotional intent. Blindly applying presets often leads to over-processing (or underwhelming results) because they don’t account for context.
Mastering requires critical listening and decision-making—skills that take time to develop but are ultimately more rewarding than relying on shortcuts. Mastering is a highly specialized craft that has a rich and fascinating history.
The Bottom Line
Mastering isn’t magic—it’s an art form grounded in technical expertise and creative intuition. It won’t fix a bad mix or turn an average song into a masterpiece. But when done thoughtfully—whether by a professional engineer or as part of your DIY workflow—it can elevate your music to its fullest potential.
By debunking these common myths about mastering, I hope you feel more empowered to approach this final stage of music production with clarity and confidence. After all, great music deserves great presentation—and that’s exactly what mastering is here to achieve.