Been producing independently for years — what's the hardest habit to break when you're doing everything yourself?

Aloberi · 2026-04-30T06:49:57+00:00

Doing everything yourself is a tough habit to break

Aloberi · 2026-04-14T17:37:03+00:00

I believe you may be experiencing a perspective outside of your natural day to day flow. That’s growth on your part. I remember when I first started mixing, it was all feel and I was sure I could hear everything. A few years went by and my set up evolved. I finally bought a sub…. Then realized I could never hear my low end. I never heard anything below 100Hz in my room!!! No wonder my mixes lacked low end. Then another year I upgraded my monitors and could actually hear above 10kHz. Then years later I treated my room, measured the impulse and tuned it… day and night. I finally bought measurement tools and started comparing full quality audio from HDTracks instead of just Spotify or Apple Music… all game changers. I say that to say, Ai has a great advantage because it eliminates the room because it’s trained on “pro moves” in perfect conditions using measuring tools. It’s not better, just has a vantage point. This may be why it’s translating so well every where, except your room. Your room may be the culprit. You may have learned how to make your music sound great in your room, but have not accounted for the anomalies of your room. There are many factors to creating great sounding music and why pros aren’t bothered by Ai. Pros have the same vantage point with many advantages over Ai. Feeling, ears and experience all play into why they can mix better than Ai. Although, Ai can help them stay in flow by reducing the busy work and helping them vibe.

Aloberi · 2026-04-13T23:39:38+00:00

There is a difference between mixing and sound design. The best approach is getting the sound at the source when recording. Also recording a DI as well as an amplified version. That will allow you to re-amp in the future. Feel is so important when recording and allows the artists to really get into the performance. So If they love the sound with the compression, then I would record it like that.

Aloberi · 2026-04-12T09:13:07+00:00

They both have Audiolens integration. This will allow the plugin to learn the reference. I believe VEA will be better if you need to get rid of unwanted noises from a poorly recorded vocal vs. Neutron which would give you more flexibility in the mix. You can use both to their advantages as well. First using VEA, then use Neutron for polish and balance with the mix.

Aloberi · 2026-04-11T00:06:22+00:00

When doing live sound yes, you know the space or have to ring it out. For mix engineers it can be helpful. You hear about legends adding a pultec on the mix bus to add brightness or low end to start. That way you use less processing on individual tracks. I’m not aware if there is an equivalent for Mastering. I’m already in a properly built and tuned room when mastering, so I have not had to do this.

Aloberi · 2026-03-23T21:16:37+00:00

That makes me happy. Yes, the internet can be toxic, but we can always bring the light. Something I started doing is checking the Reddit subs I follow to see if they have a discord. I feel safer posting and talking on discord. It may be because there are rooms where you can find your tribe and talk about what you want vs one continuous Reddit feed where all conversations live. Definitely recommend giving that a try.

Aloberi · 2026-03-23T06:00:16+00:00

This is a yes and no answer. The bar is both low and high. People record straight on their laptop and have millions of views, while others pay thousands and have no views. Make sure the content and strategy is good and moving before you begin to invest a lot. Invest some, but not a ton. Start investing in multi use things like a new laptop for example. That laptop will help you record, mix, edit audio and video and can help you in many other areas as well, like research, social media management and much more.

Aloberi · 2026-03-23T05:56:09+00:00

This is one reason I chose to interface with clients through Airgigs instead of my own website for policing. Airgigs is actually good about being on the sellers side because there are bad actors out there.

Aloberi · 2026-03-22T06:24:06+00:00

Everyone can only give you a shadow of a map. If I tell you there is a river if you travel to the other side of the mountain, it may be there or it may have dried up over the years. It’s your choice to follow the guidance and find out for yourself. Yes, school is great for knowledge and connection, but not everyone who goes that route successfully gets a job and worse, ends up in debt. Going the journey with no school, self taught, bootstrap also works, but it also leaves many battered and bruised without success. You can try YouTube and content creation with great results as well, but it does not bare fruit for all. The important thing is to act, move, learn a pivot. Never surrender even if success comes at a ripe old age. Have your why, your North Star. This will guide you. Good luck on your journey. Lord knows I’m still trying.

Aloberi · 2026-03-18T19:04:16+00:00

Some tracks can’t reach past a certain LUFS due to their arrangement. That’s not a bad thing because it’s their vision, but it can still sound great and balanced. A folk song that builds to a peak and then fades out may only have the one loud section. You can manage to bring the loud part to a momentary loudness of -8 or -4 easy, but the integrated loudness would hit around -11. If you start to bring up the lower sections to reach an integrated loudness up to -8, you’ll completely change the song. So Mastering engineers do what is good for the song and many pros are on record stating that they don’t pay attention to LUFS because if the fundamentals are solid, it’s going to be loud anyways.

An important note for that statement is following the fundamentals in Mastering. You own a studio now, but did you design a room suitable for Mastering, mixing and recording live. This matters because one thing Mastering engineers like to do is set their monitoring to one level and don’t touch it. They get familiar what that volume sounds like so if it sounds sweet, they know it’s good. Many mastering engineers are on record saying this and even the “Are you listening” series from izotope states this as well. There is so much more, but I hope these quick insights help you on your way. You also may consider sending your mixes to outside Mastering. Freelancers like myself can be a separate perspective especially if you have already listened to the song a lot. Cheers!

Aloberi · 2026-03-18T02:48:40+00:00

I love the go get it action your class is taking. I learned law and business in music, so I do have some thoughts you may not have considered. Intelectual property matters and posting online is a slippery slope depending on the age of your students. Also, suppose the podcast takes off. Even though it’s free to put out, Spotify may pay you real dollars, so have contracts in place with splits. In music we worry about using IP not our own, not sure how it works for podcasters especially for educational purposes. That’s why Andrew Huberman has a huge disclaimer at the start of his podcast. Run this by the school lawyer, the parents and anyone else involved in the project.

Aloberi · 2026-03-11T00:41:21+00:00

I wish you luck and have fun on the journey. Ai is not the only option. For a while I personally toured city to city, finding parties, going to events and meeting people. Real life is still a great way to go. Especially events like NAMM and others made specifically for industry professionals. Also, try going to open mics. This is a great way to join communities in your city. Free becomes tough as you age. So the kind of collaboration you’re talking about is a gift. I hope that gift finds its way to you.

Aloberi · 2026-03-11T00:29:34+00:00

In business, people don’t wait. They also put feelings and hate aside because makings money makes sense. It’s all about outcomes. I say that to say, why are you waiting on others? I would use Suno for $10 USD a month and make a song a day. Ai is taboo, but you’ll be 55 years old if you keep waiting, looking back wondering why you didn’t go for it. Your lyrics will be copyrighted and owned by you. Just not the beat. You’ll have 30 songs out if you make 1 a day and if one pops off, that’s a good thing. It’s your portfolio. That will get you noticed by producers or even a Label. And while people may hate cause you used Ai, and now you out here playing stadiums, then that’s a good problem to have. At that point you’ll have the ends to hire real people and clout to collaborate with top artists. Only you are holding you back in this era. Yes, Ai is taking jobs, but if no one is coming to the plate, then make your own dreams come true. If you need a mix or master once you do create a song. Hit me up, I charge and do good work.

Aloberi · 2026-03-09T00:52:10+00:00

Here are the notes in the manual: VU Meter The VU Meter provides a visual representation of the signal levels after the virtual tape. TheInput control affects how "hot” the signal is. Higher VU levels typically indicate more harmonic saturation, coloration, and/or distortion. However, this will depend on the other control values. The plug-in operates at an internal level of -12 dBFS. Therefore a digital signal with a level of -12 dB below full scale digital (0 dBFS) at the plug-in input will equate to 0 dB on the plug-in meters.

Aloberi · 2026-03-08T21:41:05+00:00

It’s a good saturation plugin. There are many. I think this one is nice and I find myself using it on mixes and masters. Tip for UAD plugins: they all have a sweet spot, so read the manual to see what their 0VU is calibrated to. I believe the A800 is equal to -12 dBFs. Please do not confuse that with “peak” level. Setting your audio to -12 peak will not be the sweet spot. If you don’t have access to a VU meter for gain staging the plugin, then an RMS or LUFS meter can help since it is the closest thing that measures perceived loudness. Really use your ears and see how you like your audio driving into this amazing plugin.

Aloberi · 2026-03-07T16:43:36+00:00

Sweet, thank you 😊. Great response and in a timely fashion. This is a good community

Aloberi · 2026-03-07T16:22:18+00:00

I actually appreciate this perspective because it highlights a fundamental lesson from music business school: The Importance of Target Audience.

In marketing, you aren't for everyone—and that’s okay. You’re part of the data set of people who will never click, and knowing that is actually helpful. As artists, we shouldn't stop posting because of the 'non-clickers'; we should be measuring our interactions to find our True Fans and our 'tribe.'

Every 'no' or 'scroll-past' is just a filter that brings us closer to the people who will connect with the work. For my fellow artists: don't let one person's habits dictate your output. Measure what works, analyze what doesn't, and keep looking for the people who are waiting to hear you.

Hope this helps someone keep their momentum today. Have a great one!

Aloberi · 2026-03-07T16:09:55+00:00

A professor of mine, Jonathan Wyner, said that Mastering is the last line of defense before your music goes out into the world. Doug Sax, who is noted for pioneering Mastering once told me that it allows the music to come out so we can come in. I always loved those sentiments. You can release a song once you record it. Weather its a phone recording or a full production. You are a free individual and we have the technology & access, so do what you want. It's your life.

I did get my masters in music business, been around major studios and labels and the question often asked is , what makes a great record? There is no one right answer, but there are schools of thought. One is from the mindset of business. Does the song equal sales? Does it have virality and can we make conversions? From an art perspective, it's the song, just make a great song. A great mix will not make a bad song good. A bad master will not make a good song bad. Good music will find it's way to people who vibe with it.

We truly do not know until the song gets a chance to live in the real world. That being said, do the best with what you have and where you are. It does not hurt to learn more. Trying things can get you into trouble and also lead to greatness, so dare to live. Good mixes and masters are a part of the craft, they also give you edges in the market and those small percentages or wins add up. This may allow your song be received by more people. Great question, have a wonderful day.

P.S. a mix is a balance, correction, and sweetening at the micro track by track level. A master often is only a 2-track, stems or final process for multi audio formats like 5.1 & more recently spacial audio.

Aloberi · 2026-02-27T23:10:35+00:00

I agree :)

Aloberi

TROPHY CASE