

Does your track sound good on Soundcloud? If not go back to the mix and make headroom. Listen back to your track objectively in the format that your audience will hear. Think of the encoding as part of your mastering chain.


Here’s a post we slaved over that explains headroom simply and clearly. 160kbps is what is technically considered high-res MP3, but we recommend 320kbps for best outcome.

They will make a 128kpbs MP3 version of your track for streaming. Use a high quality file (WAV or AIFF) to avoid transcoding (the undoing and redoing of MP3 encoding) or encoding twice when uploading to sites like Soundcloud or Bandcamp. Consider where your track is going to be hosted and act accordingly.In plain english, reduce your master fader by 1.0dB. Reducing the output ceiling will reduce the number of intersample peaks that can cause audible clipping when converting to MP3. This is probably the best way to make an audible difference when encoding your track. Converting from WAV to MP3 online may boost the peak level of your track, so try exporting your mixdown from your DAW at a lower ceiling level (ex.What can you do to prepare a track to become an MP3 hosted online? The encoder reduces bits that are perceptually less important, giving us a smaller file. In short an MP3 is a coded version of your track that has been strategically degraded in quality to minimize the data size for online streaming.
