Originally Posted by BIG JIM MERRILEES
Have you tried mastering the dynamics the way you would want it done then ask the artist if they really want extra distortion it costs more.



Hey Jim,
Occassionally I get an artist or producer that tells me they don't want to get caught up in the loudness war and that dynamics is king to them..... inevitably after they get their ref they say "sounds great, but {nervous chuckle} can we get a little more volume out of it - you know 3-4 dB".... To which I then ask someone near to shoot me. I like the idea of charging more for extra distortion like you're ordering the extra artery clogging biggie size of fries from a fast food joint.... OK, you're going to die soon sir but here's your bucket of fries.

Paul Elliott
Head Mastering Engineer
The Soundlab @ Disc Makers