Frequently Asked Questions
Category 1: The Process
Every release — single, EP, or album — goes through two stages before it reaches you. Stage One is the Safe Hands Pre-Mastering Audit: a full critical listen against your brief and reference track, with a written report before any processing begins. Stage Two is the mastering itself, processed to the agreed loudness spec and reference, and delivered with session notes, high-resolution WAV files, and MP3 reference copies.
What Is the Safe Hands Dual-Stage Protocol?
Is the Pre-Mastering Audit Just Another Way to Charge Me More?
No — and here’s the test: if the audit finds nothing wrong, I tell you that, in the same written report you’d get if it had. A service built to upsell you would only ever find problems. Mine doesn’t, because the report reflects what I actually hear, not what’s convenient to bill for.
Will You Fix Problems in My Mix?
Not as standard, no. The audit finds problems — it doesn’t fix them. If something’s flagged, it goes back to you or your mixing engineer to resolve before mastering proceeds. Stem mastering, a separate paid add-on, can sometimes correct a genuine technical balance issue — it’s not a creative remix, and it’s not something bundled into the standard process.
Why Not Just Have My Mixing Engineer Master the Track Too?
Mastering is a different job, done best with fresh ears and no attachment to the mixing decisions already made. Managers who’ve tried a one-stop mix-and-master shop often find quality suffers — the mastering stage exists specifically to catch what’s easy to miss after weeks inside the same mix. Keeping the two separate is part of what makes the audit meaningful in the first place.
How Much Does Mastering Cost?
From £85 for a single, £399 for an EP of up to 5 tracks, and £965 for an album of up to 10 tracks — each including the Pre-Mastering Audit and the Delivery Guarantee. See the full pricing breakdown, including options without the audit, on the Mastering page.
What if My Release Doesn’t Fit Neatly Into a Tier?
EP pricing covers up to 5 tracks and Album pricing up to 10; anything beyond either cap is charged at a set rate per additional track, so a 7-track release is priced smoothly between the two rather than falling into a gap.
How Does Booking and the Deposit Work?
A 50% deposit secures your slot in the schedule, with the balance due before final files are released. The deposit is non-refundable once paid, regardless of when a cancellation happens. Four slots are available each month, with a typical one-week lead time from booking to session start.
How Many Revisions Are Included?
Two rounds are included with every release, with additional rounds at £15 each. All feedback runs through a single point of contact by email. Once your final revision is approved, I’ll ask you to confirm the master as final — that’s what locks the brief and starts the Delivery Guarantee’s 14-day window.
What Do I Actually Receive When It’s Finished?
High-resolution WAV files, MP3 reference copies, and documented session notes — for every release, whatever the format.
Category 2: Pricing, Formats & Booking
Category 3: The Delivery Guarantee
What Does the Guarantee Actually Cover?
If something makes it through the Safe Hands Dual-Stage Protocol that fails the loudness spec or reference we agreed and shouldn’t have — I’ll fix it at no additional cost, with no limit on attempts, provided it’s raised within 14 days of final delivery. That’s a mistake in my process, and it’s on me, not you. Changes of preference outside the agreed brief are handled as additional revisions.
What Happens if I’m Still Not Happy After My Revisions Are Used Up?
It depends what "not happy" means against the brief we agreed. If it’s a verifiable fault — the loudness spec missed, something that contradicts the reference track — that’s covered by the Delivery Guarantee: free, unlimited attempts, within 14 days of final delivery. If it’s a new preference rather than a fault against that brief, it’s handled as an additional revision at £15 a round. The agreed brief is what both of us can point to — it protects you from a vague result, and protects the process from being reopened indefinitely.
Category 4: Before You Book
A lot of people ask this, especially when it’s coming out of a campaign budget rather than a personal one. What the Safe Hands Dual-Stage Protocol buys you is catching problems before they become expensive ones — a mix issue that makes it through mastering undetected can push back a release date, and that costs far more than the master itself. The real question isn’t whether you can afford this. It’s whether you can afford a delay if something’s missed.
Why Does This Cost More Than Other Mastering Services?
Can I Get a Free Test Master First?
I don’t offer free test masters. Instead, every booking that includes the Pre-Mastering Audit comes with the Delivery Guarantee — if something makes it through that shouldn’t have, I fix it at no additional cost and no limit on attempts. That protects you from the moment we start, without needing an unpaid sample first.
I Need Approval From Someone Else Before I Can Book — What Then?
That’s completely normal, especially when a release is backed by a label or management budget. If the price needs sign-off from someone else, just say so — I can hold a provisional slot for a short window while that goes through.
Still have a question?
If your release doesn’t quite match what’s covered here, the fastest way to get a straight answer is to ask directly.