Fix the Mix: Learnings from Analyzing Over 2 million Tracks
RoEx’s Mix Check Studio, a mix and master analysis tool, has analyzed over 2 million tracks. BMI caught up with RoEx CEO David Ronan to discuss key insights from their learnings.
BMI: You have analyzed over 2 million tracks through your Mix Check Studio product. What patterns are you seeing?
David Ronan: We are seeing clear trends in how people mix and master music. From bedroom producers to established artists, the data reveals recurring technical mistakes that could often be avoided with the right knowledge and accessible tools.
What’s the biggest issue you’re seeing across all these tracks?
Loudness management, by a long way! About 79% of masters exceed Spotify’s -14 LUFS (loudness units relative to full scale, a standard way to measure the loudness of audio content) and 91% go beyond Apple Music’s -16 LUFS. Streaming platforms turn those tracks down, so producers are losing dynamics for no real gain.
The irony is that your track ends up sounding quieter than properly mastered tracks on the same playlist, and you’ve sacrificed all the punch and energy of your music to get there. Listeners notice when a track feels lifeless and overly compressed, and they’re less likely to save it or add it to their playlists.
Can you break that down for songwriters who might not be familiar with these technical terms?
Sure. Streaming services keep playback levels consistent. If your track is too loud, they simply turn it down.
But to get that loudness, you’ve already crushed the dynamics with compression and limiting - so you end up with a track that is quieter and less dynamic.
Nobody wins in this instance.
What about the difference between mixes and masters? What are you seeing there?
Of the 2 million+ tracks, around 700,000 are mixes and 1.3 million are masters. About 46% of mixes are under-compressed and lack dynamic control.
Without proper compression, your vocals can get lost in the chorus, or your verses might sound disconnected from the rest of the track - listeners will struggle to hear the lyrics clearly or feel the song doesn’t have professional polish. But with masters, the opposite happens; over-compression and clipping dominate.
On the bright side, masters tend to fix stereo and mono compatibility problems left in the mix.
You mentioned clipping. How common is that problem?
More common than it should be. Around 69% of mixes avoid clipping, but only 43% of masters do. This is especially frequent in electronic genres like house, drum and bass, and trap. It usually comes from not leaving headroom during mixing, so the mastering stage pushes into distortion.
When listeners hear that distortion, they often assume there’s something wrong with their speakers or that the file is corrupted - many will simply skip to the next track rather than finish yours. Sometimes clipping can be used creatively, especially with genres like trap, but often it’s generally a feature of a mix or master that shouldn’t be present.
What are phase issues, and should our affiliates be worried about them?
Phase issues happen when left and right channels are slightly misaligned, causing thin or weak sound, especially in bass. We see them in around 16% of both mixes and masters. They’re often not corrected in mastering.
This may go unnoticed until your track is being listened to on a portable speaker or a phone speaker. Suddenly your bass disappears, vocals can sound hollow and the track can lose all its power.
Does genre make a difference in the types of problems you see?
Definitely. Electronic genres like techno and trap show heavy bass and more clipping.
Acoustic genres - like folk and singer-songwriter - often lack low-end energy, which makes tracks sound thin and amateurish compared to professional releases in the same genre.
Metal and orchestral music can have overly bright high frequencies, causing listening fatigue - people literally can’t listen for long periods because it hurts their ears.
If you could give BMI affiliates one piece of advice based on all this data, what would it be?
Leave headroom. Over half the mixes we see are louder than -17.5 LUFS. Aim for -18 to -20 LUFS, with peaks below -3 to -6 dBTP.
That gives mastering room to work without distortion and results in better loudness and dynamics overall.
How can musicians apply these insights to improve their own work?
Measure, don’t guess. Check loudness, clipping, and mono compatibility. Stop chasing volume - streaming platforms handle that. Be aware of genre habits and get objective feedback - from tools such as Mix Check Studio, a mastering engineer, or a fresh pair of trusted ears.
What about producers who are struggling with the actual mixing process – getting the balance right in the first place?
Start with gain staging - get your levels right before reaching for plugins. Give your tracks plenty of headroom, then focus on balance. If you can’t hear everything clearly, it’s usually a level issue before it’s an EQ problem. Take regular breaks - your ears adapt, so fresh perspective is crucial.
Getting a solid starting point can be challenging, which is why we built Automix. While Mix Check Studio evaluates finished tracks, Automix works with your multitrack stems, automating balance, EQ, compression, and spatial placement professionally based on your selected genre. Once happy you can master within Automix or download a project file for Ableton Live, PreSonus Studio One or Bitwig to take it to new creative heights.
Based on what you’re seeing from your users, where does audio production education need to go?
There is a gap between creative ideas and technical execution. Nearly 80% of masters are too loud, 46% of mixes need more compression, and clipping is widespread. These are not creative decisions - they are misunderstandings. We need better education on gain staging, loudness normalization, dynamics, and frequency balance. Our tools both fix and teach.
What’s your vision for the future of accessible audio production tools?
Professional-grade tools should be available to everyone. The goal is to make the technical side of audio production more manageable so the creative side can flourish. We are working to bring our tools earlier into the production process - removing the tedious parts and saving time that can be spent on the creative side of mixing.
Any final thoughts for BMI affiliates working on their productions?
Technical excellence should support - not overshadow - your songs. Start with strong writing and performance. Then assistive production tools can help ensure your mix and master meet your creative vision. Don’t chase loudness. Measure, learn, improve. Professional sound is a skill you can build.
Ready to improve your mixes and masters?
BMI affiliates get 90% off the first month of an Automix Pro subscription and 50% off their first Mastering+ download with Mix Check Studio. Visit BMI Spark to unlock this offer.
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