What I Need From You

The following "instructions" are ideally meant for the band or the artist. The engineer/producer may find much of the following information redundant, but I include it in an effort to help whomever is paying for this work clearly understand what is required, so that this project is concluded with no misunderstandings or difficulties. Indeed, I like to get things right the first time. Mistakes cost time (and sometimes money, too), so it's best that I detail everything in as much specific detail as possible. If you're the artist, and there's anything in here you don't understand, please forward it to your producer/engineer. Most of it is in their tech language anyway. Feel free to give them my email address, so that they can contact me directly with any questions or concerns they might have: busterkeatons@gmail.com

THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW IF YOU HAVEN'T MADE YOUR MIXDOWNS YET:

Firstly, always leave about -5db of HEADROOM. do NOT "maximize" the audio level of your mix. ALSO PLEASE TRY TO AVOID MAX'ING OUT YOUR MIXES BY USING A LIMITER. I need room to work. Do NOT use an "exciter" or whatever "mastering tools" you have there when doing your mixdowns. Just mix them down without compression or LIMITERS, if possible.

I'll need the following information sent to me in ONE EMAIL, clearly and concisely, please:

band name
cd title
song titles in numbered sequence, starting with "01, 02, 03", etc...followed by the song titles printed exactly as you wish to see them appear on the cd-text read-out - small letters, "CAPS", or both or whatever you want them to be - the titles you will see on your CD player will appear exactly as you sent them to me.
instructions regarding spacing/silences between tracks, fades & crossfades, removing drum intro/clicks, etc.
instructions regarding anything you need me to know about specific tracks/problems/etc.
ISRC codes (cd-only...if you use them).

I need all of this info in ONE EMAIL so I can CUT & PASTE the song titles directly from your instructions. In this manner, there is no possibility of a mistake being made HERE, and your cd-text will have EXACTLY the information you sent to me.

You can send the WAV FILES of your mixes via the internet using any service you prefer.

The title of the WAV files and the name of the song must be identical. PLEASE DO NOT send me WAV files with names like OLD MIX# 3 JOHNNY VOCALS LOWER IMAGINE STEMS FINAL MIX.wav - if the song's title is IMAGINE, then the name of the file should simply read...IMAGINE.wav -

Be sure to put the name of the band/artist/project in the note accompanying your paypal payment and ALL EMAILS, so I know who you are, and what the payment is for. Many artists send me emails with no reference whatsoever to the name of the band, expecting me to remember names and miraculously connect them to their project. Please understand that I have no personal assistant or secretary, so…YOU MUST PUT THE THE NAME OF THE ARTIST/BAND IN THE SUBJECT LINE OF ALL EMAILS !!!

I often share emails with dozens of artists and labels each week. It is impossible to keep track of them all by memory, so please make your emails as specific as possible, and always begin by saying..."Hello, this is John Lennon from the Beatles", or, "Hello, this is Buddy Holly from The Crickets", or if you really want to ruin my day, "Hello, This is Bono from U2"...etc etc etc, so i know who you are. It always helps to see the name of the band/artist in the subject line of each email you send. I will often master up to ten or more projects each week, so please help me to keep details in order by following these instructions.

IMPORTANT: PLEASE BE 100% CERTAIN that the mixes you are sending are the mixes you are satisfied with. If you send me files, and then, after I do the mastering work, you decide that your mix can be better and you want to send a new one (or if you find that you made a mistake and sent me the wrong mixes), there is an additional fee of $100 to Master the new mix and burn new master discs. DO NOT send me your mixes for mastering until you are CERTAIN you are satisfied with them, and be absolutely 100% sure that you are sending me the correct mixes. PLEASE understand; If I make a mistake, I fix it FREE. But, if YOU make a mistake that requires I do additional work, then it is NOT free. I will re-master one or two songs and burn new master discs for an additional fee of $100, but if you made BIG mistakes and i have to re-master the entire project, that is TWO mastering jobs, and the additional fees would be determined by the length of the CD/LP. If you want to keep within your budget, please send the correct mixes, and don't change your mind after you send them to me. The time for changing your mind about things is BEFORE you send me the final mixes. This also applies to any text you send. If you change the CD Title, song titles or the name of the band AFTER I have finished the mastering, there's an additional $100 fee.

If you want to stay within your budget, be sure that what you send is CORRECT !!!