[Rocco DiPippo]

3 of my pet peeves about music these days is over compression, too hot digital mixes and abuse of auto tune.

I'm with you. Today nearly all pop/rock music gets obliterated by overcompression, ridiculous limiting and massive amounts of deliberate clipping and saturation. Dynamics are non-existent. The results are often unlistenable. I just don't understand how anyone can tolerate a mix that's crackly, distorted and ear-ripping, not because the music's exciting but because the mix is just slammed to the wall. It is horrible. I've been sent mixes to be mastered by clients where there was absolutely no headroom left to do anything resembling "mastering" - there was nothing left to work with. Sent them back saying either send me a dynamic, uncompressed, unlimited mix or I'll have to pass on it. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't.

[jdsteel]

I am not a pro like you, but often mix & master live multitrack performances. The end result isn’t quite as loud when A/B’d with “pro” tracks, but I get a lot of complements on the track. Dynamics are good!

[A Navy Vet]

"I've been sent mixes to be mastered by clients where there was absolutely no headroom left to do anything resembling "mastering" - there was nothing left to work with. Sent them back saying either send me a dynamic, uncompressed, unlimited mix or I'll have to pass on it."

If they send you a dynamic, uncompressed, unlimited mix, what is there to remaster? Do they mean re-mix?