Great mastering makes music sound its best, and the engineer's background is the foundation for his or her decisions. Some engineers are master technicians who know every resistor in a piece of gear. Some engineers are musicians-turned studio-pros. Some engineers are producers in disguise who can hear a needle in a haystack - from intonation to serious groove.

The best mastering engineer is a combination of all: technician, sound analyzer, producer - with a broad base of sonic experience. Musical experience adds another dimension. When you know what music feels like on stage and you understand that passion, you can bring that dimension into an artist's project.

Key: Whether the mix is benefited by excitement or serenity, it's the point of reference from which any engineer bases his or her influence on your project. Grammy winners Bob Ludwig, Ted Jensen and Doug Sax are great examples of having a classical background as a significant portion of their reference.

Great engineers also have years of experience listening to monitors that are musical and revealing. While not all studios have accurate monitors, they can turn out great product because they've learned how to interpret their speakers relative to the real world. (See Studio Monitor Madness to learn more about why what you hear in the recording studio is often not what you get.) In mastering, an excellent system is key.  Our monitor system has been refined over years of critical listening to give a real-world picture of optimum sound.