Speaks Volumes continues Season 3 with a mastering engineer who wanted the job before she'd ever really seen it done. She just knew it was mysterious, and that was enough.

Idania Valencia grew up in Mexico City, picked mastering as her goal before finishing school, and got turned away by Sterling Sound's internship program only to land the job anyway by showing up in person and leaving a resume. Eleven years later, she's still there, now out of the New Jersey facility and into Sterling's LA room.

Dan Coutant and Mat Leffler-Schulman talk with Idania about the years of QC work under Tom Coyne that actually taught her to master, the tiny EQ moves that get masters approved or rejected that "nobody" else can hear, her LUFS targets and honest take on the loud-reference epidemic, and how burning out on an insane schedule led to fibromyalgia, therapy, and a real sense of balance, plus what it's actually like trading Sterling's tight-knit East Coast culture for LA's more open one.

Music in this episode: "Strawberry Moon" by Nashville artist Maddie Ettrich.

About Our Guest
Idania Valencia is a mastering engineer at Sterling Sound, where she has worked for 11 years, starting as a production engineer for Tom Coyne. Originally from Mexico City, she studied music composition at Academia de Música Fermatta before Full Sail University's recording arts program, and now works out of Sterling's Los Angeles location. Her mastering credits include Sam Smith, Shawn Mendes, Charli XCX, Ariana Grande, Coldplay, and Of Monsters and Men.

Topics We Covered

• The backup plan that wasn't. Growing up around music through her non-musician, bohemian father, choosing composition for college, and her parents' insistence on a backup plan that happened to sound like "an engineering" degree
• Finding mastering on purpose. Trying recording and a physically demanding, male-dominated live-sound gig first, and being drawn to mastering specifically because it was the mysterious, unexplained part of the process
• The resume that got the callback. Applying to every studio in New York, getting turned down by Sterling for an internship, and going in person anyway with a resume in a nice folder
• Trained by QC, not theory. Years assisting Tom Coyne, mentored by Aya Merrill and Will Quinnell, learning to tell the difference between a mix problem and a mastering problem one distortion at a time
• The moves nobody else can hear. EQ changes so small other engineers insist they're inaudible, but they're the difference between a master getting approved or rejected. Feel and instinct over pure technical process
• Stacking limiters. Why she sometimes runs two or three limiters instead of one, same type or different, for more control than any single limiter gives her
• LUFS, true peak, and the loud-ref epidemic. Her real-world targets (around -8 to -6 LUFS depending on genre), rarely applying true peak limiting herself, and her nuanced take on loud references: it depends entirely on who the mixer is
• Burnout, fibromyalgia, and finding balance. The insanely paced years assisting Coyne and then Randy Merrill, the chronic pain that followed, and the therapy and boundary-setting that got her to a healthier place
• NYC vs. LA. Sterling's self-contained East Coast culture versus the more open, curious engineering community she's found since moving, and why Mexico City always felt more like LA than New York ever did

Links

• Sterling Sound: https://www.sterling-sound.com
• Idania Valencia at Sterling Sound: https://www.sterling-sound.com/engineer/idania-valencia
• Idania's Mix with the Masters mastering workshop: https://mixwiththemasters.com/masters/idania-valencia
• Rose Gray, "Club to Your Arms": https://rosegray.lnk.to/clubtoyourarms
• Academia de Música Fermatta: https://www.fermatta.edu.mx
• Full Sail University: https://www.fullsail.edu
• Maddie Ettrich: https://www.maddieettrich.com

Speaks Volumes is back for Season 3, and we're kicking things off with someone who went from mopping floors at Chicago Mastering Service to owning the place.

Greg Obis interned at Electrical Audio, talked his way into CMS in 2012 by offering to vacuum and grab groceries for Bob Weston and Jason Ward, and spent a decade working his way up from quality control to full-time mastering engineer. Then in 2024, Bob announced he was moving to Portugal, and Greg made him an offer.

Mat Leffler-Schulman and Dan Coutant talk with Greg about the surreal jump from employee to owner, the lost art (and real fear) of cutting lacquers, why he asks clients to remove peak limiting, the loudness "come to Jesus" talk, reference mixes from The Replacements to Converge, and balancing life as a business owner with his band Stuck.

Greg's latest record with Stuck, Optimizer, is out now on Exploding In Sound Records.

Music in this episode: "Sicko" by Stuck, from Optimizer.

About Our Guest

Greg Obis is a mastering engineer and the owner of Chicago Mastering Service, where he has worked since 2012. He has mastered records for artists on labels including Sub Pop, Matador, ANTI-, Numero Group, Sacred Bones, and International Anthem. He also co-founded Born Yesterday Records and plays guitar and sings in the band Stuck.

Topics We Covered

• From intern to owner. Greg's path from Bennington College and an Electrical Audio internship to offering Bob Weston studio chores in exchange for a foot in the door, then a decade climbing from QC and archiving to a full mastering workload
• Buying CMS. How Bob's move to Portugal turned into a handover instead of a shipping container, why building a new room from scratch priced itself out of the running, and the "child emperor" phase of suddenly running the show
• Wearing every hat. Taking over project management, invoicing, and scheduling while keeping his own clients happy, and how coming up through quality control made him a better communicator
• Revisions and being the fall guy. Why the mastering engineer, like a monitor engineer, is the last one in the chain and the first to catch blame, and why recall requests are the most valuable education in the business
• Reference mixes. Greg's listening playlist: "Bastards of Young" by The Replacements, Yes, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Kendrick Lamar, and Converge for when he needs something absurdly loud. Plus the legend of a Daft Punk record allegedly mastered twice
• Lacquer cutting. Learning on Bob's Neumann VMS 70, the fear of a blown cutter head, how cutting changed his digital work, and the great lathe-versus-house-down-payment debate now that the VMS 70 lives in Portugal
• Peak limiting and loudness. Greg's "limiter on or limiter off" philosophy, asking clients for unlimited mixes, 32-bit float delivery, and talking a client back from the loudness ledge with help from Tone Projects Uni-L
• When to say no. Mostly when it's a mix problem mastering can't solve. Otherwise: offer the professional opinion, then respect that it's their record
• Life outside the racks. Stuck's new album Optimizer, touring while running a business, cooking, weightlifting as a third space, and Greg's dream of a gloriously unlistenable side project made purely for the joy of it

Links

• Chicago Mastering Service: https://chicagomasteringservice.com
• Greg Obis: https://www.gregobis.com
• Greg's Substack, Live. Laugh. LUFS.: https://livelaughlufs.substack.com
• Stuck, "Sicko" from Optimizer (Exploding In Sound Records): https://stuckchi.bandcamp.com/album/optimizer
• Born Yesterday Records: https://www.bornyesterdayrecords.com

Our guest today is Sarah Register, a mastering engineer, from New York City, NY, USA.

Sarah has worked with The Shins, Lee “Scratch” Perry, John Mayer, Meshell Ndegeocello, The Donnas, and Wye Oak.

We talk about early memories of experiencing music, starting out mastering records in NYC, managing your body and time, how community plays in to work and life, working with Kim Gordon, keeping physically active, and what does success mean?

This episode’s music is brought to you by Bel from Philadelphia, PA - USA. For more information on Bel, head to instagram: @iz.fur

For more information about Sarah:

Check out: https://sarahregister.com/

And Instagram: @  _sarah_register

Our guest today is Jeff Lipton, a mastering engineer from Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Jeff has worked with Agnostic Front, Arcade Fire, Click 5, Throwing Muses, Superchunk, The Magnetic Fields, and Andrew Bird.

We talk about process/quality control, getting started in the Boston music scene, Fort Apache, working with Stephin Merritt, how it used to be with A&R historically, video chats for mastering sessions, never figuring out a work/life balance, working in and educating clients about spatial audio, and Brian Eno’s Oblique Strategies.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Valories from Nashville, Tennessee. For more information on Valories, head to instagram: @itsvalories

For more information about Jeff:

Check out: https://www.peerlessmastering.com

And Instagram: @peerlessmastering

Our guest today is Chris Gehringer - a mastering engineer from Edgewater, New Jersey. 

Chris has worked with Dua Lipa, Drake, Ed Sheeran, The 1975, Rihanna, Harry Styles, and Selena Gomez, and is part-owner of Sterling Sound.

We talk about getting started at Greene Street Recording, Trutone Records, and the Hit Factory, changes and evolutions in the music industry, teaching newer clients what mastering is and isn’t, caring about your sound and individuality, being cognizant about balancing work and family life, listening to music passively and actively seeking out new music, credits for records, meeting new people and networking, NAMM, struggles in your career, respecting the mix, and your favorite limiters.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Plant Dad from Baltimore, Maryland. For more information on Plant Dad, head to instagram: @plantdad_music

For more information about Chris:

Check out: https://sterling-sound.com/engineer/chris-gehringer/

And Instagram: @chrisgehringer

Our guest today is Izzy McPhee - a mastering engineer from Bristol, England. 

Izzy has worked with Dream Wife, Marla Kether, Walt Disco, and COWZ.

We talk about getting started as DJ, mentorship, how the virtual mastering house Weird Jungle functions, the community of the Bristol music scene, building a studio in your house, managing routine, working in the box, and accessibility in the music industry.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Peter Groppe from New York, New York. 

For more information on Peter, head to: 

Instagram: @_petergroppe

For more information about Izzy:

Check out: https://www.izzymcpheeaudio.co.uk

And Instagram: @izzymcpheeaudio

Our guest today is Anna Frick - a mastering engineer from Boulder, Colorado. 

Anna has worked with Wood & Wire, Billy Strings, John Denver, Clay Street Unit, Della Mae, The Grateful Dead, and Third Man Records.

We talk about getting started at AirShow Mastering and the audio industry as a whole, the weight and responsibility of working on Glee, audio restoration with analog tape, being a metadata geek, and actually managing your business.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Stevie Matthews from Queens, New York. For more information on Stevie, head to: https://www.mynameissteviematthews.com and Instagram: @stevie_zucchini

For more information about Anna:

Check out: https://allysound.com

And Instagram: @frickinanna

Our guest today is Simon Lancelot - a mastering engineer from Paris, France. We are also joined by Speaks Volumes’ original creator, Dan Coutant.

Simon has worked with Dijon, Mk.gee, Kelela, Hendrix Harris, Abel31, and Hovvdy, and Bren Joy.

We talk about working with tape, taking risks and working out of your comfort zone, making pizza, and working with Dijon and mk.gee.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Jenna May from Boston, Massachusetts. For more information on Jenna May, head to: https://www.mayroseandmagic.com and Instagram: @mayroseandmagic

For more information about Simon:

Check out: https://www.simonlancelotmastering.com/

And Instagram: @masterinparis

Our guest today is Amy Dragon - a mastering engineer from Portland, OR.

Amy has worked with Big Thief, Sam Prekop, Marisa Anderson & Tara Jane O'Neil, Silversun Pickups, and girlSperm.

We talk about how having a background in social work and community advocacy can influence your workflow, cutting lacquers, being a DJ, listening to records as a whole, knowing when to do nothing, and the open-mindedness and kindness of the mastering engineer.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Gerecki from Novi Sad, Serbia from their upcoming EP. For more information on Gerecki, head to:https://www.instagram.com/gereckigerecki/

For more information about Amy:

Check out:https://amydragon.com

And you can find her on Instagram: @amy__dragon

Our guest today is John Baldwin - a mastering engineer from Nashville, TN.

John has worked with Lou Reed, Sly Stone, Emmylou Harris, Nancy Sinatra, Glossary, and The Jesus Lizard.

We talk about persistence in getting an internship, not convoluting the process, leaning on Brian Eno for guidance, retraining yourself to not “grind” yourself until defeat, and getting outside to do things unrelated to mastering.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Maggie Mae from Philadelphia, PA. For more information on Maggie Mae, head to: https://www.maggiemaemusic.com

For more information about John:

Check out https://johnbaldwinmastering.com

And you can find him on Instagram: @johnbaldwinmastering