Unmixed VS Mixed VS Mastered | Comparing The Same Track

For those who want to skip the mumbo jumbo and go straight to the examples:
2:40 - RAW
4:24 - MIXED
6:13 - MASTERED
8:16 - COMPARISON OF ALL
Today I compare the same track at different stages of the music production process. I compare the raw files, the mixed file and the mastered file to help you understand what each stage sounds like and hopefully give you a deeper understanding into recording, mixing and mastering.
The song I used is Smile My Way by Indigo Bloom:
open.spotify.com/track/6cYlEF...
Hey, my name's Josh and I'm a mastering engineer at Viking Lounge Mastering and apart of the audio team at Tommirock Studios. I want to make videos that help you on your audio journey so you can release better quality music! Let me know if there's any topic you want to know about in regards to audio, production, recording, mixing or mastering and I'd be happy to make a video about it.
Follow me on IG: josh.bartel

[@mechanicalbreaks8319]

Hearing the difference between each of these makes me really curious how many artists and producers write and record with the image of the final product in mind. I’m guessing most people have no idea that the mastered versions of their songs will come to life as much as they do. I wish I could hear all my favorite artists unmixed/unmastered so I could get an idea what they thought was finished before hand.

[@slft47]

Tip if u cant hear ur final product your new or have low experience mixing, seeing the end product with a raw song takes a stupid amount of hours/songs to gain that mixing mentality😎 In other words, if ur not bothered to learn buy to get ur shii mixed🤑

[@alexanderdiazlarsson829]

That’s why it’s common practice to mix in to a compressor during the production stage to get a ruff idea!

[@RocknRollkat]

@@slft47 Lighten up.

[@SentientAnomaly]

Comparing just the chorus: 3:10 4:54 6:44

[@Josh.Bartel]

Aaay thanks, that’s heaps handy

[@657Crew]

@@Josh.Bartel its a brilliant comparison Josh. Thank you for sharing

[@shadrum9499]

Dude, thank you so much for making this. This is exactly what I've been looking for because of how simply you laid it out.

[@Josh.Bartel]

Not a problem at all!

[@gelson1official]

Really good vid, straight to the point, helped a lot👍🏾 keep it up!!

[@nicolassundara9568]

Superb video. Very useful. I rarely watch a 10-min video until the end. Thank you!

[@andreamilliou1661]

Simple and straight to the point, kudos!

[@kevinj9270]

Very insightful and the song is cool too!

[@nalymnezeoh]

And such a good song! Tnx for the helpful video :)

[@christiansandberg9612]

Very well explained. As for the sounds, I definitely prefer the mixed one. Very much space between the instruments and more pleasant for the ears. I imagine the mastered one is good when doing playback on all types of medium (ranging from speakers to phone) but the mixed one played on bit speakers is just great, opens up very much more.

[@Bia-starlight]

Thank you so much! This really helped. :)

[@yakshrajsingh8121]

I was freakin annoyed seeing people waste time in videos, this is the best video ever, made me relief myself

[@Josh.Bartel]

Thanks so much! I try to be as clear and concise and possible because that’s what I would want to watch also

[@rugashoobsworld3616]

Thank you my friend

[@semephor]

great mix!

[@Josh.Bartel]

Why thank you 🙏🏻

[@tonyphillips5100]

Just to get an idea, how much do you charge to mix and master a song, and is there a price different for just enhancing (eq) a premixed song without sending each individual track? Just curious..

[@Josh.Bartel]

So just to clear some things up: Mixing is when you work with each individual track. Once the mix is finished it is ready for mastering. In mastering we mostly just work on the finished mixed file and make sure it is competitive and ready for commercial release. And yes there is a price difference between the two. In most cases mixing costs more than mastering because it simply takes longer. I use a quote based system because every project is different but if you would like more specific numbers you can go to www.joshbartelmastering.com and send me a message there using the contact form 🙂

[@Monti3395]

A good mix song or master version makes all the difference for me, I used to think the problem was my headphones, but it turns out if you can mix a song well, it can kinda give you the experience of a HiFi headphone 🙂

[@ryanallen1286]

Aight then josh

[@melanielynne0414]

Sounds good. Nice ears.

[@__________hugo]

Thanks

[@ElectroShockMedina]

Great Video!

[@Josh.Bartel]

Thank you 🙏🏻

[@ElectroShockMedina]

Keep doing them man, you got this! 💪

[@martinlanders6135]

When you flicked from Raw to Mastered , it was like having two blocked ears i instantly fixed !!

[@Josh.Bartel]

Hahah that is a fantastic way to describe it. I appreciate that 🙏🏻

[@Josh.Bartel]

NEWER 2021 Raw VS Mix VS Master is out! kzbin.info/www/bejne/fGG6ZqyNjLdqb7c We go into a bit more detail into the production, mix and master which I think may interest some of you 🙏

[@danielsgrunge]

Quite like the song as well

[@crossedkiller4315]

This video is almost perfect. I would've liked to see the volumes for Raw, Mixed and Mastered being equal in the final comparison. Otherwise the brain thinks louder = better. Great job anyways!

[@Josh.Bartel]

Thanks heaps! That’s a very fair point and if I were to do future videos like this I’d probably provide both; an untouched non-level matched comparison, and a level matched comparison. Just so people can hear the difference between the original delivered files (loudness included) AND the overall tonal and sonic differences with a level matched comparison 🙂

[@Ibetala]

Nice song

[@vilvd3934]

good

[@xenoidaltu601]

I like the Raw and Mixed versions.

[@Brian-qg8dg]

I like the mixed version. . The mastered sounded like a treble wide mess to me, but what do I know. I can say this, if bands want to sound unique and memorable, I would work on finding your individual sound, not just to sound slick. Again, what do i know

[@imasayitpodcast]

I like that song

[@NIP28]

What do u use to master?

[@tallboygb8936]

Master sounds really good, but the hh/cymbals are a bit lost (?)

[@siavashdarmani1190]

I'm asking this because i'm just learning. But i'm not hearing the vocals clearly in the verse section. Is that because the guitar register is interfering with the vocal register? Or is it just ok and the way it should be?

[@Josh.Bartel]

No no you have a valid point. Everyone likes things differently. I did this almost 3 years ago so at that time myself and the band may have been enjoying a softer, more buried vocal sound rather than a more forward pop sounding vocal. To get clearer vocals It’s probably as simple as turning them up 1-2db. Which brings me to an interesting point. If I were working on this today I would probably approach it slightly differently. Our taste in music changes over time and that’s completely normal 🙂

[@siavashdarmani1190]

@@Josh.Bartel Thanks for your response Josh. So that's completely intentional and can be simply changed by turning it up in this case. I got your point. Thanks for the helpful content

[@vidworxsfx]

At least in this case your mastered track still has some dynamics and over all clarity left, unlike so many mastered versions i see where its just a Brick wall Limited wall of mush. So with yours both the mix and the mastered version sound good as you did not turn it into a wall of mush, awesome some actually do it right and try to maintain sound quality making the mix sound good not just loud for the sake of loud, nice work.

[@Flowerbranche]

The mixed version sounded better than the master, and that doesn't surprise me! So why is the last step needed really? What if I want the record to sound like the mixed version? To me it sounds like the "mixed" file is the final version of the track, and the "master" is a remaster. Is that correct?

[@Josh.Bartel]

If you were the client then I would aim to achieve competitiveness while keeping the elements you like about the mix.

[@genuineimpulse9134]

I'm so old editing involve cutting and taping the individual track recordings.

[@Lif3Wav3]

The raw is good

[@marianojrivera8101]

Tip for anyone that really wants to hear differences. Listen to the first few seconds of this clip in your car, on your phone, on your headphones, on your tv, speaker bar, entertainment center, Bluetooth speaker. This will let you know how well or unbalanced each version is on all these mediums and why it's important to do smaller things in the mix to really get those details just right or how well the polish is on the master

[@learnconceptsclearly7534]

Is that daw Ableton live??

[@jwv5678]

pro tools

[@AlmightyBshine]

Song name?

[@Josh.Bartel]

Smile My Way by Indigo Bloom

[@bnaybasnet8839]

Is it your original song???

[@Josh.Bartel]

No, this is Smile My Way by Indigo Bloom. I recorded, mixed and mastered it.

[@stranger_0007]

The only mix ver was pretty good actually. If it was me I wouldn't even bother to master it lol

[@bigtambzofficial8135]

Bro the intro song for this video i need it nowww!! :O

[@Josh.Bartel]

Haha I appreciate that, I actually made it. I might make a video about it and put a free download in the description.

[@persona8991]

Should’ve shown your mix..

[@lyrvc9636]

the vocals are so quiet

[@mehdi5738]

Hi Josh. Thanks for sharing this video. I liked how you compare the versions. I also liked the song of the band "Indigo bloom". So if I did my homework correctly, It seems that their official song is not mixed and mastered correctly? It seems that the voice doesn't stand out very much. Am I right? kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqfFp4evoq2MjqM

[@LukucProdigy]

And the best version is the mixed one, because mastered version is too loud and compressed and lost much of the dynamic by my hearing

[@Josh.Bartel]

That's a fair point, I disagree but everyone has their own taste in music. Compared to references the mastered version is much more competitive than the mix.

[@LukucProdigy]

@@Josh.Bartel I think it is not too much about "taste". It is more about quality. Mastered version is much more competitive because of laudness, because laudness war still there. If you have some better player/amplifier/headphones (not airpods or similar operpriced crap) you hear much more things in the recording, than if you play it louder from mobile on normal headphones. But it is quite long time problem, because brain takes it mostly like Louder=Better. Many people tells you that Airpods (pro) or similar are best headphones, but it is because many of them take them from some cheap ones, and the difference is quite big. But when you got some good ones, the difference is huge. And they don't know it because the never heard it

[@BirchCove0123]

Lukuc you sound like a self-proclaimed audiophile who’s just read the wikipedia page for the loudness war, and you’re arguing with a professional mastering engineer who makes a living doing this work. The arrogance to try to lecture a mastering engineer on audio quality and loudness is crazy to me 😂. Keep up the good work Josh, I like the mastered version a lot more.

[@LukucProdigy]

@@BirchCove0123 it can sounds like, but for sure not. I like music (almost every genre, but not almost every artist), but I like good quality recordings (no streaming services etc.). Loudness war is nothing new and it is real, now maybe little retreat. When I take some recordings of one song from different releases (old original issue, reissue, some "best of" version or remaster etc.) mostly the newest release is the worst (of course honor exceptions). Usually engineers are forced to make recording louder, because other recordings are loud. Final mastering in this song is not bad, but I like more version before master, for me sounds little better. One of examples of very bad mastering is Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication. I like almost every song on this album, but the sound is terrible.

[@BenjiiJackson]

@@LukucProdigy I Was Listening To Mary J Blige My Life Song Real Low In The Car & It Sounded Beautiful....vs In My Truck On Subwoofers Loud Brung A dynamic to my ears That Really wasn't vibing the same just because i wanted to jam it loud ...Rick Ross Music hit better like that too ...the mastered version opened both my ears to all the instruments but the mixed version felt good to jam too more & it was lower

[@waynechesser2000]

Having to put a volume disclaimer on the Mastered track and actually turning the volume down on your end before playing it to make it "comparable" to the Mixed version, making it "competitive". That, in my opinion, is what has killed music. And I'm not saying it is you, as the Mastering Engineer, that has done it. It's the industry. Dudes, we have volume controls for a reason. How about giving control back to the consumer? Insane and asinine.

[@Josh.Bartel]

Yeah I agree that a level matched comparison would’ve been ideal. In my most recent raw vs mix vs master I showed both, level matched and not level matched. I believe it’s valuable to hear the matched sonic differences AND the actual file the client received at its original loudness. I think making something competitive isn’t the same as killing it. Yes, a lot of people take the loudness way too far and kill the life of the music, but if it’s done correctly you can achieve a musically appropriate loudness AND sounding better. I agree that it’s never a good idea to compromise quality for loudness which is what I’m assuming you’re mainly referring too.

[@waynechesser2000]

@Josh Bartel Mastering Yes, I hate that quality is compromised too often for loudness. Just sad what has been done to music.

[@paulgrant8665]

Vocal are indistinct. Instruments are muddy

[@vinylmastersgr1036]

New productions have no treble no highs and they are very overcompressed even in the vinyl format, for example Taylor Swift and Post Malone. And the majority of people say they are very perfect productions, I find these awful. Same happens with new greek songs from the biggest record greek company, they put more lows than highs and sound is very clipped and distorted loud.

[@-FelixMelvinrajP]

Bro can u msg me I have some doubt in mixing and mastering