How To Mix & Master EDM Like A Pro

Summary (Mix & Master EDM tutorial)

• Tutorial goal: A walkthrough for mixing and mastering an EDM track using exported stems from the creator’s song “Worst Way.” It starts by comparing the unmixed/unmastered version versus the finished mixed/mastered version.

Reference songs (before touching your stems)

Before processing the stems, the speaker analyzes two reference tracks:

• “Gotowa” – Hotwell Anciano
• “Alive” – Rich Edwards (Chronos)

He uses a spectrum/analyzer tool (SPAN) to check:

• Frequency balance:
  • sub region
  • low-mids
  • mids/lead area
  • highs
• Stereo width / correlation meter:
  • guidance to avoid excessive left/right extremes that can indicate instability or unwanted width

He also shares guideline-like targets (not strict rules), such as:

• Sub presence around ~50 Hz
  • corresponds to correlation roughly in the 0.5–1 range for these references
• Bass/low-mid areas (e.g., 100–200 Hz and 300–400 Hz regions)
  • too much can become unpleasant/woody/high-bass
• Lead prominence in the mid-range (roughly 400–800 Hz)
• High-end behavior:
  • highs typically don’t go above ~-30 dB on the references
  • shows falloff due to high-cut around ~16 kHz (or sometimes ~10 kHz depending on the reference)

Stem setup

To avoid micromanaging too many layers, the stems are grouped into 7 total stems, for a “big picture” mixing approach:

• Drum bus (kick, claps, etc.)
• Sub bass
• Mid-bass / chords / leads
• Ambient sounds
• FX

Mixing approach: “mix into the limiter first”

Instead of preserving headroom early and doing everything later, the speaker uses a workflow:

• Put a limiter on the master from the start
• Set the ceiling early
• Mix each element into the limiter:
  • raise levels until you hear distortion,
  • then back off slightly

This helps prevent a late-stage issue where the limiter can’t keep up and forces you to redo your mix balance.

Limiter and related tools

Tools mentioned include:

• “Sausage Fattener” (for pushing loudness)
• Fruity Limiter (used as the video’s limiter option)

He adjusts limiter behavior (e.g., attack/release/sustain) to act more like a brick-wall limiter and reduce unwanted pumping.

Drums mixing workflow

• Start with the kick
• Push it close to the distortion threshold, then dial back to keep it loud but clean
• Use waveform monitoring to ensure the kick looks “clean” while still strong

Sidechaining workflow (key EDM concept)

Sidechain is used to prevent masking/clashes:

• Sub bass sidechained against the kick
  • uses Gross Beat with a “sub bass” preset / hand-drawn curve concept
  • idea: the kick waveform “stops” at a point, and the sub is “docked” in the space where the kick isn’t present
• Mid-bass sidechained too (example tool: Kickstart)
• Chords sidechained
• FX and ambient sometimes already include sidechain processing from the project

EQ strategy per element

• Sub bass
  • cut/remove an overly strong upper octave / higher bass layer
  • decisions guided by the EQ display and by ear
• Mid-bass
  • use a low cut to prevent conflict with the sub bass
  • example: low cut around ~250 Hz (may change later)
• Chords
  • reduce lows to avoid mud
  • cut around ~300 Hz and also reduce top-end if it becomes boxy/harsh
• Leads
  • low cut around ~200 Hz
  • small cuts around ~800 Hz and ~6 kHz (as described)
  • use OTT (presets commonly used)
  • adjust volume if OTT makes them too loud

Reverb setup (lead-focused, controlled wet level)

• Add reverb to leads using a Peak Controller approach:
  • keep a base so wet never fully dominates
  • invert the controller so wet reacts to the dry signal
• Reverb high-cut around ~8–10 kHz (bright but controlled)
• Damping increased slightly
• Decay time:
  • leads: around ~3.5 seconds
• Reverb on chords is lighter:
  • shorter decay (~1.5 s) to keep them less washed out

Ambient and FX balancing

• Ambient: volume adjustment + some EQ (sidechaining is already present in the stems)
• FX: mostly volume adjustments (sidechaining already present)
• A possible export/render issue may cause “something missing” in the reviewed part, but the overall result is described as strong.

Final mastering steps (minimal)

Because the workflow is limiter-driven, the speaker claims only minimal additional mastering is needed:

• limiter is already applied
• ceiling is set
• output isn’t going into distortion

Additional actions:

• Add a high cut on the master
  • explicitly avoids a low cut to protect low frequencies
• Add a small warmth boost around ~2–300 Hz (~+1.2 dB) without adding muddiness

End result

He listens back to the final mixed drop and concludes the tutorial.

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Main speakers/sources

• Speaker: “everman” (YouTube creator; begins with “yo what’s up guys my name is everman…”)
• Reference tracks used for analysis:
  • “Gotowa” – Hotwell Anciano
  • “Alive” – Rich Edwards (Chronos)