https://wearethemusicmakers.co/latest Music tech and AI in music: the news that matters, what we think about it, and a directory of the tools. en-us Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-lufs https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-lufs LUFS is the unit loudness meters use to say how loud a whole track or programme sounds, measured with the ITU-R BS.1770 algorithm. Broadcasters aim at -23 LUFS under EBU R128; Spotify turns playback to -14 dB LUFS. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referencelufsloudnessmasteringstreaming https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-true-peak https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-true-peak True peak is the highest level a digital audio waveform reaches once it is rebuilt as a continuous signal, including peaks that fall between samples. It is measured with the ITU-R BS.1770 method and shown in dBTP; Spotify asks for masters at or below -1 dBTP. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referencetrue-peakloudnessmasteringmetering https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/ai-mastering-how-it-works https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/ai-mastering-how-it-works Automated mastering services and assistants analyse your mix, compare it with a target, and set EQ, compression and a limiter to close the gap. This guide explains that loop step by step, what the measurements underneath it are, and the limits you should know before you trust the result. Standards and manuals checked on 25 Oct 2026. Sun, 25 Oct 2026 05:30:00 GMT We are the music makers masteringai-musicworkflowsloudness https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/limiting-and-true-peak-explained https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/limiting-and-true-peak-explained A limiter is a very fast, very hard compressor that stops your track going over a ceiling. True peak is the level your audio reaches between the samples, after it is turned back into a waveform or encoded to a lossy format. This guide explains both in plain terms, shows how to set a limiter step by step, and explains why a -1 dBTP ceiling is the safe default, using the ITU, EBU and Spotify specs read on 25 Oct 2026. Sun, 25 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers masteringloudnessmixingworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/reference-tracks-for-mixing https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/reference-tracks-for-mixing A reference track only helps if you compare it fairly. A mastered release is louder than your mix, and louder sounds better, so an unmatched A/B pushes you towards more EQ and more compression. Here is how to match levels with a loudness meter, which meter readings to use, how to pick references, and why streaming normalisation changes what "loud enough" means. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 06:30:00 GMT We are the music makers mixingloudnessworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/bedroom-mix-mistakes https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/bedroom-mix-mistakes Most lists of beginner mixing mistakes tell you what not to do. This guide pairs each of ten common bedroom-mix problems with a quick test you can run on your own track, on your own headphones or speakers, so you can hear the problem before you fix it. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers mixingworkflowshome-studioloudness https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/streaming-loudness-targets-2026 https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/streaming-loudness-targets-2026 Most "streaming loudness target" charts mix official numbers with figures nobody at the platform ever published. We went back to each service's own pages on 24 Oct 2026. Spotify publishes a full spec, Apple and Amazon describe the method but no number, YouTube says normalisation-style processing is off for music, and for TIDAL and Deezer we found no current artist-facing page at all. Here is what is documented, what is reported, and a target plan you can defend. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers masteringloudnessworkflowsspotifyapple-musicyoutube https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/ai-mastering-honestly-landr-ozone-engineer https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/ai-mastering-honestly-landr-ozone-engineer LANDR and Ozone's Master Assistant both learn from finished records and push your mix toward a reference and a loudness target. That makes them fast and cheap at a good mix's last 10%, but a 472-listener public blind test still put two human engineers on top. Here is how the assistants work, how to test them fairly, and what they cost. Wed, 19 Aug 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers workflowsmasteringailandrizotopeloudness https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/loudness-normalisation-explained-lufs-spotify-apple-youtube https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/loudness-normalisation-explained-lufs-spotify-apple-youtube Spotify plays music at -14 LUFS by default and turns louder masters down, so a -8 LUFS master buys you no extra volume, only less dynamic range and more risk of encoding distortion. Here is what Spotify, Apple and YouTube actually document, what they leave out, and how to make mastering decisions with that in mind. Thu, 06 Aug 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers workflowsmasteringloudnessspotifyapple-musicyoutube