Inexpensive Mastering for Folk Album?

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Vagrant
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Inexpensive Mastering for Folk Album?

Post by Vagrant » Wed Sep 10, 2008 9:57 am

I'm looking for a good mastering engineer for a folk/rock album. At the most I have $800 to spend. I've already contacted a lot of engineers that have done albums that I'm a fan of, and most of the prices are around $1500-$2000 for the whole album. I like alot of what Sterling does, I contacted Greg Calbi, but was quoted at $3000 for the project. I know I could find someone to do it for under $800, but I'm trying to find someone who has worked on something I might be familiar with.

Credits aren't everything but I'd feel more comfortable if they have mastered some good albums.

Can anyone recommend a good mastering engineer in my price range?

Thanks for the help.

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roscoenyc
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Post by roscoenyc » Wed Sep 10, 2008 10:34 am

Paul Gold at Salt Mastering

chris harris
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Post by chris harris » Wed Sep 10, 2008 12:39 pm

TapeOp contributor Garrett Haines is fantastic AND in your price range.
http://www.treelady.com

MoreSpaceEcho
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Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Wed Sep 10, 2008 12:56 pm

as are carl saff and steve berson

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Post by @?,*???&? » Wed Sep 10, 2008 2:31 pm


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thieves
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Post by thieves » Wed Sep 10, 2008 2:34 pm

chicago mastering did my band's ~45 minute album for just about that budget:

http://www.chicagomasteringservice.com/
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E.Bennett
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Post by E.Bennett » Wed Sep 10, 2008 7:52 pm

i always recommend tom ruff at www.asburymedia.com. great guy, great rates, great results. he did tons of fantastic records while at sony and picked up a few grammies along the way. you can afford him.

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Post by cgarges » Wed Sep 10, 2008 8:41 pm

Dave Harris at Studio B Mastering in Charlotte could probably do it for about that. Dave does a lot of stuff for folks who use Calbi when they have the budget, like Don Dixon, Southern Culture On The Skids, etc. He does great work and is easy to deal with. Very honest and straight-up dude. He's probably done 20 or 30 records that I've engineered over the years. (I've had Calbi do a couple of things, too. He's terrific.)

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Charlotte, NC

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joninc
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Post by joninc » Wed Sep 10, 2008 11:11 pm

how about golden mastering? http://www.goldenmastering.com/
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Recycled_Brains
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Post by Recycled_Brains » Thu Sep 11, 2008 7:00 am

Carl Saff is awesome.
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Post by drumsound » Thu Sep 11, 2008 4:39 pm

I've been using Carl Saff a lot because he does great work and is a great guy. Garrett Haines @ tree Lady, Bob Weston @Chicago Mastering and Dave Harris are totally cool guys with a great deal of care and experience. John Golden did a great job on a project I mixed several years ago.

OOPS: JJ golden did the record I mixed, not John. JJ kicks ass!
Last edited by drumsound on Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:47 am, edited 1 time in total.

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farview
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Post by farview » Thu Sep 11, 2008 5:12 pm

John at Massive Mastering is wonderful. Great gear, great ears. www.massivemastering.com

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heylow
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Post by heylow » Sat Sep 13, 2008 5:30 pm

Wow.

Lots of choices here.

If it were me on a small budget, I'd pick John Golden. You want credits, you got credits....John has done SO many great records in SO many genres. Plus everyone who works there is an amazing human being.

Good luck with the project!


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Post by lyle76 » Tue Sep 16, 2008 5:50 pm

another vote for golden. my last band did our final record there and the results were impressive. i love mastering engineers that treat nobodies with respect and professionalism. john and his staff does.

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losthighway
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Post by losthighway » Wed Sep 17, 2008 7:06 am

I'll be #4 to say Carl Saff. Uncommonly affordable and kind. The dude is great, you will probably have some of your budget left over after he's done.

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