Forging Analog Masters – Mixes through real Iron.
Smithingrecords is an analog mastering room in the Finger Lakes NY built and operated by Thaine Smith. Thaine deliberately voiced boutique, world class, analog hardware in this chain to create a truly outstanding mastering experience designed to reveal each track’s highest potential.
Hear the difference
Every example below is one track twice — the mix as it arrived, and the master that left this room. Both are matched to the same integrated loudness (LUFS) for comparison.
Use headphones or speakers you know. Press play, then switch between Mix and Master while it runs — both versions are playing in sync.
Loudness matching here is for listening, not for delivery. Delivery targets are set per record.
No audio? Check that your phone isn’t in silent mode.
Want to hear your own record this way? Send one track. I’ll master it and send you the same A/B — your mix and your master, level-matched. You’ll know in thirty seconds whether this room is right for it. Send a track
Hear the full set and read how it’s done →
Here are some records already forged from the anvil. See full credits here
An analog signal path
Every tonal and dynamic decision on your record is made by hardware you could put your hand on. Nothing here is a plugin doing an impression of a box.
SPL PQ. SPL Iron. SPL BIG. API 5500 and 550A. Shadow Hills Dual Vandergraph. Rupert Neve Designs 542. Antelope conversion.
What it costs, what it takes
Singles from $110. Most records leave here inside two weeks.
You get a 24-bit production master, a 16-bit/44.1 kHz master for distribution, and an MP3 reference. Full deliverable list →
Rates, turnaround, and how a project runs →
The record stays yours
Once a project is paid, every right in the delivered masters is yours. Smithingrecords claims no ownership in your songs or your recordings. That’s in writing, not implied.
Working in the trade?
If you’re a mix engineer or a studio sending client work out, there’s a page for that — including white-label, where the master arrives with your name on it and mine nowhere. For engineers and studios →
If you’re a label placing more than one release a year, start here instead. For labels →
Start with a free sample
Send one track. You’ll get a mastered excerpt back — no charge, no obligation, no follow-up campaign. It’s yours to keep and listen to. If it doesn’t move you, that’s a useful answer too.
Questions before you send anything: thaine@smithingrecords.com
Forging Analog Masters
