A lesson from Vlado Meller on how to deal with over-compressed mixes.

“Going through these various options also dialled in the perfect colour and tone for the record using only limiters. This meant I needed minimal EQ to get the tonal balance right. The less EQ you can get away with, the better—less phase shift and less transient distortion.”

“Every workday, I spend 10-20 minutes on a simple routine before starting client work.

Here's what I do: analyze a track mastered by a world-class engineer, master it myself quickly, then compare the results.”