Mastering.com is the premium destination for online education in audio. Our approach goes beyond great curriculum, and focuses on the importance of expert mentorship and a thriving, supportive community.
The Reverse Engineer
Degree-alternative program that will give you pro-level skill sets in production, mixing and mastering.
*Financing options available
Membership
Short course library, weekly virtual events, monthly mentor check-ins, and free plugin drops.
Mastermind
Career & business mentorship to monetize your skill set and get guidance from industry pro's.
The Reverse Engineer is a comprehensive training and mentorship program that unlocks true creative potential and give students pro level skillsets in mastering, mixing and production.
We train full-stack artists
And we do things a little differently.
We start with mastering first — because learning how to master gives you essential audio skills that inform your ability to mix properly. Then, once you have an in-depth understanding of mixing and mastering, you can record and produce with the end in mind. This prevents common audio mistakes and blunders before they even happen. There are no technical stumbling blocks in your way, so you can focus on being creative. You are free to express yourself and truly create what is inside your mind.
One-on-one
mentorship
Our mentors will guide you through every part of the process and provide tough feedback on your projects. This one-on-one mentorship will shape both your skills and mindset.
Training
platform
Our comprehensive and continuously updated curriculum is design to stay ahead of the fast-paced music industry and help you develop the skills and instincts needed to compete with anyone in the industry.
Active
community
When you join, you get access to our thriving community of artists, producers and engineers. You will learn from hundreds of supportive, like-minded individuals who have already walked the path.
How our students learn
Objective
(Technical Left Brain)
Mastering
- Accurate Listening Environment
- Pro Level Ear Training
- Objective Mindset
Mixing
- Connect Left and Right Brain
- Develop Instincts/Process
- Master the Tools
Producing
- Unlock Creative Flow
- End in Mind Perspective
- Emotional Connection
Subjective
(Creative Right Brain)
Meet your personal mentors
Rob Mayzes
Rob is a lifelong musician, engineer educator and owner of Mastering.com and Stratfield Studios.
Caleb Loveless
Caleb is Director of Education at Mastering.com and co-owner of danger.less productions and Black Fox Mastering.
Jake Kodweis
Jake Kodweis is an American music producer, songwriter, musician, educator, and founder of Valhalla Studios.
Dane Holmes
Dane is a veteran of the industry, an educator, and co-owner of danger.less productions and Black Fox Mastering.
Warren Huart
Warren is an advisor to Mastering.com and a multi-platinum record producer, musician, composer, and recording engineer.
Kevin McCloskey
Kevin is a self made Grammy nominated, multi-platinum mix engineer based in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Here’s what students are saying:
In partnership with
The Reverse Engineer advantage
The Reverse
Engineer
Engineer
Traditional
Education
Education
Cheap
online courses
online courses
Go at your own pace
Extensive 1-on-1 mentorship
Full-stack curriculum
Lifetime community support
Lifetime access to updated curriculum
Business education
Connections with industry leaders
Reverse Methodology
Learn from your own studio
In-house financing
Price
$6800*
$50K-$100K
$1-$1000
- Yes
- Maybe
*Financing available
Discount for faster payment
Curriculum breakdown
Part 1: Mastering
- Welcome To The Reverse Engineer
- Choosing Your Path
- The 2 Most Powerful Words
- Concepts Come First
- Expectations Going Forward
- Listening Environment
- Order Sonarworks Sound ID Reference
- Approaching Mentorship
- Section 1 Recap
- Section 2 Overview
- Computers & Interfaces
- Studio Gear Overview
- Storage & Backups
- Choosing Your DAW
- Know Your Shortcuts
- Getting Organized
- File Format, Sample Rate, & Bit Depth
- Section 2 Recap
- STOP! Are you ready to move on?
- Section 3 Overview
- Room Acoustics Basics
- Your Ears Are Your Guide
- ACTION ITEM: Tone generator
- Setting Up Your Room
- ACTION ITEM: Set up your room
- Speaker and Subwoofer Setup
- ACTION ITEM: Set up your sub
- The “MEDIA” Process
- “MEDIA” Expectations
- ACTION ITEM: Prepare for MEDIA
- A Quick Word About Patience
- M is for Measure
- Inclusion of a Subwoofer
- ACTION ITEM: Measure
- Measure Recap
- !!! Anti-Rabbit Hole Message !!!
- E is for Examine
- Examining Impulses
- Reflection Generator
- ACTION ITEM: Reflection points
- Destroying Desk Reflections
- Examine Recap
- !!! Patience Reminder !!!
- D is for Decay
- Waterfall Controls
- Tone Generator
- Decibel x SPL Search
- ACTION ITEM: Decay
- Decay Recap
- !!! Rule of Thumb !!!
- I is for Interference
- All SPL Graph
- ACTION ITEM: Move your listening position
- Interference Recap
- Acoustic Treatment 101
- Acoustic Treatment 201
- The Math of Building Panels
- Jim’s Room Journey
- “MEDIA” Goals
- ACTION ITEM: Hit your benchmarks
- EQ Compensation
- Sonarworks Sound ID
- ACTION ITEM: EQ Compensation Software
- Room Construction and Soundproofing
- Section 3 Recap
- Section 4 Overview
- Beyond The Cube
- Training Your Ear
- Your Greatest Asset
- Purchasing References
- Observing Dynamics & Transients
- Observing Loudness
- Music Analysis
- What Is Mastering?
- 5 Truths of Mastering
- Starting To Master
- Referencing Mindsets
- Reverse Problem Solving
- Bringing It All Together
- Section 4 Recap
- Section 5 Overview
- Campsite Lingo
- Home On The Range
- EQ Anatomy
- EQ Mindsets for Mastering
- Balance & Enhancement
- Tools For Handling Frequencies
- Live EQ with 1 Tool
- Live EQ with Multiple Tools
- Even More Live EQ!
- Section 5 Recap
- Section 6 Overview
- Peaks & Transients
- Tools for Handling Dynamics
- Taming Transients
- Anatomy of a Compressor
- Controlling Dynamics
- Enhancing Dynamic Intent
- Live Limiting & Clipping
- Live Dynamics Demonstration
- Section 6 Recap
- Section 7 Overview
- Making It Loud
- The End of the Loudness War
- Mastering Limiter Arsenal
- Live Limiting
- Questions About Loudness
- The Big Picture
- Section 7 Recap
- Section 8 Overview
- Listening Levels
- Aliasing & Oversampling
- Dithering
- Converters & DC Offset
- Transient Shaping
- Mid Side & Stereo Imaging
- Analog vs. Digital
- FiDef
- Audio Restoration & Phase Rotation
- Summing
- Advanced Mastering Compressors
- Upward Compression & Parallel Compression
- Mastering EPs & Albums
- Stem Mastering
- Live Stem Mastering
- ISRC
- Mastering For Vinyl
- Masters for CD & Vinyl
- Section 8 – Recap
- Section 9 Overview
- Shadow Mindsets
- Online Presence
- Connecting With People
- Getting Inside Your Client’s Head
- Getting Assets From Your Clients
- Delivering The Finished Product
- Handling Revisions
- Become a Mastering Engineer
- Start Connecting With People
- Section 9 Recap
Part 2: Mixing
- Week 10 Overview
- Your First Mixing Exercise
- Adventure
- Collecting Client Info
- Mixing Client Checklist
- Bouncing Multitracks
- How To Be A Good Dentist
- Mixing Transformation Cheatsheet
- Mixing Is Not Editing
- Editing Tools & Processes
- Editing Exercise
- Prepare To Succeed
- Gain Staging
- Gain Vs. Volume
- Polarity Vs. Phase
- Live Session Prep
- The BOING Method Cheatsheet
- Prep Your Mixing Session
- Week 10 Recap
- Feedback
- Volume Is Everything
- Mixing With Zero Plugins
- Live Volume & Panning
- Volume & Panning Cheatsheet
- Volume & Panning Exercise
- Initial Automation
- Live Initial Automation
- Initial Automation Cheatsheet
- Initial Automation Exercise
- Bringing It All Together
- Prep, Edit, & Balance Cheatsheet
- Part 1: Live Prep
- Part 2: Live Edit
- Part 3: Live Balance
- Prep, Edit, & Balance 5 Tracks
- Week 11 Recap
- Feedback
- Week 12 Overview
- Back To Camp
- Sonic Characteristics Chart
- Groups vs. Tracks
- Mixing EQ Arsenal
- Problems
- Relationships
- Balance
- Enhancements
- 4 EQ Phases Cheatsheet
- Live EQ
- EQ 5 Tracks
- Week 12 Recap
- Feedback
- Week 13 – Overview
- Problems
- Enhancements
- Compressor Types
- Dynamics Processing Cheatsheet
- Live Compression
- Saturation
- Mixing Dynamics Arsenal
- Compress 5 Tracks
- Week 13 Recap
- Feedback
- Week 14 Overview
- Reverb Exercise
- Delay Exercise
- Reverb Types
- Delay Types
- Listening for Space
- Spatial Processing Arsenal
- Applying Spatial Processing
- Setup Your Mixing Template
- To Send Or Not To Send?
- Inserts vs Sends
- Processing The Process of Spatial Processing
- Spatial Processing Cheatsheet
- Live Spatial Processing
- Add Spatial Processing to 5 Songs
- Week 14 Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Vocal Analysis Exercise
- Editing
- Baseline
- Character
- Space
- Observing Vocal Layers
- Observing Vocal Layers Worksheet
- 4 Vocal Mixing Phases
- Putting It All Together (Live)
- Live Vocal Mixing w/Dane
- Live Vocal Mixing w/Caleb
- Live Vocal Mixing w/Jake
- Finalize Your Vocals
- Week 15 Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Finishing Mixes
- The Danger of the Car Mix
- Finish 5 Mixes
- Delivering Mixdowns
- Step-By-Step Mixing Checklist
- Mix 5 Songs
- Learning To Drive
- Total Mixing Workflow
- Mix 5 More Songs
- Emotional Intent
- Emotional Intent Live
- Observing Emotional Intent
- Mix Another 5 Songs
- Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Breakin’ It Down
- STOP! Gut Check
- Deep Dive
- Sidechain Compression
- Parallel Processing
- Mid Side Processing
- Dynamic EQ & Multiband Compression
- Modulation
- Stereo Imaging
- Other Tools & Techniques
- Build Your Arsenal
- Full Mixing Session LIVE
- Mix This!
- Recap
- Feedback
- Learning To See
- Learning To See Worksheet
- The Market & Your Offers
- The Offer Builder Tutorial
- Selling Audio Services
- Solution Selling Framework
- Solution Selling Practice
- Following Up
- Following Up Practice
- Service Positioning
- Outbound Beastmode!
- Feedback
Part 3: Recording & Producing
- Production Overview
- Establishing The Vision
- Pre-Production Cheatsheet
- The Pre-Production Form
- Create Your Pre-Production Form
- Session Setup
- Sample Organization
- Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Subjective vs. Objective
- Studying Music
- Musical Diversity
- How To Be A Good Filmmaker
- Building Blocks of Song Structure
- Song Structure Analysis
- Arrangement Elements
- Live Arrangement Analysis
- Arrangement Analysis
- Hooks
- Hooks Throughout History
- Observing Hooks
- Target Analysis
- Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Designing Your Blueprint
- Audio Gestalt In Production
- Sound Selection Is The Most Important Thing
- The MOST OVERLOOKED Aspect
- Emotional Intent In Production
- Building Roller Coasters
- Variety Deep Dive
- Initial Vision Walkthrough
- Initial Vision Worksheet
- Recap
- Feedback
- STOP! A Word of Warning…
- Live Sound Sources
- Guide To Microphone Types
- Perfect Mic Placement
- Go-To Mic Positions
- Live Sources Deep Dive
- Recording Assignment
- Samples & Loops
- Samples In Music
- Live Samples & Loops w/Dane
- Sample Yourself
- Samples & Loops Assignment
- Virtual Instruments
- Realistic-Sounding MIDI
- Virtual Instrument Libraries
- Live Virtual Instruments w/Dane
- Virtual Instruments Assignment
- How To Get Great Performances
- Sound Selection Is The Most Important Thing
- Karaoke!
- Bizzarro Karaoke!
- Recap
- Feedback
- Week 23 Overview
- Exploring Movement Live Discussion
- Explore Movement
- Live “Random Emotion Generator” Demo – Jake
- Live “Random Emotion Generator” Demo – Dane
- Live “Random Emotion Generator” Demo – Caleb
- Random Emotion Generator
- Live Production Walkthroughs
- Contrasting Movement
- Week 23 Recap
- Feedback
- Week 24 Overview
- Exploring Atmosphere Live Discussion
- Explore Atmosphere
- Live Atmosphere Collab – Caleb & Dane
- Live Atmosphere Collab – Dane & Jake
- Live Atmosphere Collab – Caleb and Dane 2
- Atmosphere Collab
- Live Production Walkthrough – Jake
- Live Production Walkthrough Dane
- Live Production Walkthroughs – Caleb
- Contrasting Atmosphere
- Recap
- Feedback
- Week 25 Overview
- Character Discussion
- Explore Character
- Live Collab – Hatred
- Live Collab – Pleasure
- Live Collab – Irritation
- Character Project
- Character Walkthrough w/Dane
- Character Walkthrough w/Jake
- Character Walkthrough w/Caleb
- Character Project
- Week 25 Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Recording Lead Vocals
- Stacking Vocals
- Editing Vocals
- Vocal Recording Deep Dive
- Vocal Production Project #1
- Live Vocal Discussion
- Explore Vocal Production
- Vocal Production Walkthrough #1
- Vocal Production Walkthrough #2
- Vocal Production Walkthrough #3
- Vocal Production Walkthrough #4
- Deep Dive Walkthroughs
- Vocal Production Project #2
- Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- Production Process
- Total Production Workflow
- Prepping For Mixing
- Production Deep Dive
- Production Project #1
- Full Stack Producing
- Full Stack w/Dane & Caleb (Part 1)
- Full Stack w/Dane & Caleb (Part 2)
- Full Stack w/Dane & Caleb (Part 3)
- Full Stack w/Jake (Part 1 – Production)
- Full Stack w/Jake (Part 2 – Production)
- Full Stack w/Jake (Part 3 – Production)
- Full Stack w/Jake (Part 4 – Mixing)
- Full Stack w/Jake (Part 5 – Mastering)
- Final Project
- Recap
- Feedback
- Overview
- A Vision For Producers
- Next Steps
