Mastering by Saundhaus
Listen first.
Master second.
Personal stereo mastering for independent artists and home-studio musicians, shaped by decades of recording experience and one careful set of ears.
Starting at $75 per songStereo mastering · One included revision
One focused service
Stereo mastering, built around the song.
Saundhaus launches with a deliberately simple offer: send a finished stereo mix and receive a carefully evaluated, release-ready master. No preset is more important than what the recording actually needs.
Stereo mastering
From $75 / song
- Critical listening and mix-readiness check
- Tonal balance, dynamics, level, and peak control
- Release-ready lossless master
- High-quality listening reference
- One included revision
Multi-song projects are quoted as a project so the record can be treated as a connected whole.
“I’ll make it sound better, but I can’t fix your mix.”
Mastering is the final stage of a good mix—not a substitute for one. If something should be corrected before mastering, I’ll tell you.The process
Listen. Decide. Finish.
Send the finished mix
Send a stereo WAV or AIFF, along with any reference track and a few notes about the result you want.
Listen before processing
I evaluate the mix first. If a mix problem is standing between the song and a good master, we address that before mastering begins.
Master, review, deliver
You receive a reference master to review, one revision, and organized final files ready for release.
When is a master finished?
When the music connects.
You can measure loudness, peaks, dynamics, and frequency balance. Those things matter, but they do not tell you when the record finally lands.
Sometimes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Sometimes you get a little chill. Your ears have told your body that something happened.
Unless there’s emotional feedback, I’m not done.
Experience behind the ears
From analog studios to modern mastering.
San Francisco · The beginning
Eric Kauschen began playing in local bands at 15, but was just as interested in what happened on the other side of the studio glass. At San Francisco State University, he studied audio production with John Barsotti and was selected through the program for audio work at Grateful Dead New Year’s Eve concerts.
Mentorship · Peter “Big Boy Pete” Miller
After college, Eric developed a long working relationship with British musician, producer, and recording engineer Peter “Big Boy Pete” Miller. Miller had played guitar with Peter Jay & the Jaywalkers and learned recording techniques during sessions produced and engineered by Joe Meek.
Analog judgment · Not a formula
Working with vintage analog outboard gear—Eric learned how small changes in tone, space, and level can make separate mixes feel like one record. Just as important, he learned not to process every kind of music the same way.
Independent music · Decades of change
Through the 1990s he recorded demos for San Francisco’s underground rock, thrash, and heavy-metal musicians. Later projects included bringing analog recordings into the digital world for mixing and mastering. That analog-to-digital perspective still shapes every Saundhaus master.
The technology changed. The job didn’t: listen to the music and give it what it needs.
Local listening consultation
Hear your mix outside your room.
Local artists can arrange a listening session at the Saundhaus mastering workspace in Northampton. Bring your mix, hear it through a different monitoring system, and get a clear outside opinion about what is—and is not—ready for mastering.
Consultations are by appointment and quoted separately.
Ask about a local session →Before you send a track
A few useful boundaries.
Finished stereo mixes
Saundhaus is accepting stereo mastering projects at launch. Stem mastering is not offered.
Mastering, not recording
The Northampton room is built for critical listening and mastering, not for tracking bands or recording live drums.
Clean, unclipped files
Send a lossless stereo file without clipping. There is no arbitrary −6 dB rule; clean headroom matters more than a magic number.
Ready when the mix is
Let’s finish the record.
Tell me about the song, what you want the master to do, and where you plan to release it.
Email Eric about mastering