Q&A
What's the difference between mixing and mastering?
Dec 4, 2025
Mixing is the process of balancing and refining individual tracks in your song, like adjusting the levels of your kick, synths, and vocals, and adding effects like EQ and compression to make everything work together. Mastering comes after mixing and focuses on polishing the entire final stereo mix to ensure it sounds cohesive, professional, and consistent with other tracks across different playback systems. Think of mixing as sculpting each element of your track, while mastering is the final polish that makes your song ready for Spotify, SoundCloud, or any other platform. Both stages are essential to achieving a professional sound that competes with what you hear on the radio or in the club.
Learning to mix and master your own tracks is one of the most valuable skills you can develop as a producer, and Kadence (Futureproof's AI music coach) offers real-time feedback on your mixes by analyzing balance, EQ, compression, and arrangement. Combined with guidance from Futureproof Mentors who have years of professional experience, you'll get the personalized support you need to transform your tracks from bedroom demos to release-ready bangers.
Should I finish mixing before I start mastering my track?
Yes, your mix should be as polished as possible before mastering. Mastering can't fix a poorly balanced mix, so make sure your levels, EQ, and effects are dialed in first.
How much headroom should I leave when bouncing my mix for mastering?
Leave around 3-6 dB of headroom with your master fader peaking between -6 and -3 dB. This gives the mastering stage enough dynamic range to work with without clipping.
Can I use mastering plugins on my mix bus while mixing?
You can reference mastering plugins during mixing to hear how your track might sound finished, but turn them off before your final mixdown. Mixing into mastering processing can limit your options and cause you to make compensation decisions that won't translate well.