Removing all processing from the mixbus will cause the mix to fall apart

The decisions you have made on the mixbus (i’d like to believe) have all been made with intention and a purpose behind them. The artist and team have approved this mix. With a good or great mix, a master that deviates too far from the mix doesn’t usually get approved (and also, in my opinion, doesn’t make sense).

I believe that tailoring the master to the final approved mix, with the vibe and processing it has, is much better for the end result.

Instead of removing the processing, one option would be to bounce a “less limited” mix. On this “LL” mix you can hit the mixbus with 2 or 3dB less gain than the approved mix, therefore keeping the vibe and essence of the mix but giving the mastering engineer a little more room to work with.

Another option would be if on your final limiter you have more than 3 dB of gain you can just pull it back 2 or 3dB to not hit it as hard.

Our goal here is to keep the essence of that incredible mix that the team has approved and take it from there.

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