Your Song is Mixed.
I offer the best audio mastering possible
to make it stand out.
I am listening.
Audio Mastering . Mixing .
Stems Mastering . Restoration .
CD/DDP - Streaming - MFiT - Vinyl
Stephen has forged a career enabling emerging artists to achieve their musical vision. Experience across many musical genres has sharpened a unique skill set focused on mastering and music production.
Having begun engineering for the love of recording live bands, Stephen honed extra skills as a studio audio engineer at Umbrella Sound in Toronto beginning in 2001. He absorbed all mastering duties at that facility after the departure of mastering legend João Carvalho in 2002.
By 2005 Stephen left Umbrella to focus on engineering/drumming with the band Elliott BROOD, who have since garnered a Polaris Prize Shortlist, Gemini Award Nomination and 5 Juno Award Nominations (one win).
Modest Heights Music was formed in 2012 upon moving to Hamilton and establishing a newly equipped treated room under the modest height of Hamilton “mountain”.
In 2015 Stephen was selected to participate in a mastering academy at iZotope HQ under the direction of Jonathan Wyner (president; Audio Engineering Society 2021). The eight participants traded ideas on mastering and gave feedback to the software development team during the creation of Ozone 7 (mastering software) and RX6 (noise reduction software).
In 2020 Stephen made an analytical presentation to the AES Toronto chapter featuring his comparisons of software vs hardware versions of EQ, compression and tape emulation. Currently doing an independent study of mastering for vinyl vs outcome, comparing methods of lacquer and direct metal mastering (DMM).
He is an advocate for audio delivery standards and musicians royalty rights.
COMPARE MY MASTERS
V1 = mix
V2 = master
Note that masters typically sound louder than mixes
Comparisons are done at 1:1 during my mastering process to ensure the master sounds as good or better
Monitors:
Focale Twin6 BE, Evolution Audio MMMicroOne, KRK V8 Series 2, Avantone Mix Cube
Sennheiser HD 600 headphones, Shure SE535 IEM headphones
Hardware:
UAD Apollo 8P, x8, twin MKII, Satellite Quad
API A2D dual channel preamp
AEA RPQ3 dual channel preamp
Chandler Channel TG1 w passive EQ (x2)
Drawmer MC3.1 Active Monitor Controller
Drawmer 1969 2ch tube preamp/compressor
Empirical Labs Distressor EL8-x (x2)
Assorted additional preamps,compressors, gates, EQs, mics
Software:
Wavelab 11, Protools 2024.10, RX7 noise reduction, Melodyne 5, Autotune Realtime, Room EQ Wizard, Smaart 7, FAB EQ4 and L2 Limiter, iZotope Ozone, UAD, Plugin Alliance, Waves, Soundtoys, Klanghelm, Acustica, Pulsar, oeksound
Modest Heights employs the latest conventions in mastering for CD, streaming and vinyl.
More than anything the FOCUS is on making YOUR MUSIC sound as GREAT as possible !
