Stem Mastering

If you aren't 100% confident in some aspect of your mix prior to handing it off to be mastered, or simply want the absolute best achievable end result, stem mastering might be what you need. Stem mastering is a great way to give the mastering engineer a bit more control over sonic and dynamic elements that might need slight tweaking in order to get the best possible master. Traditional mastering consists of applying processing to one mixed stereo track. For stem mastering, multiple separate tracks are provided to the engineer to then be combined together properly during mastering. These can be instruments like drums, bass, guitars, synths, strings, and vocals all grouped into their own bounced tracks. Think of this process as a middle ground between mixing and mastering. It places more control and responsibility in the hands of the mastering engineer, but can save you from having to take your song back to whoever mixed it and fix problems before sending it back to be mastered.