To ensure consistent sound quality across all platforms and formats

To enhance the dynamic range of the audio

To remove unwanted noise and distortion

To increase the overall volume of the audio

The target audience

The intended playback device

The genre of the music

The mastering engineer's personal preferences

Mastering for CD requires a higher sample rate and bit depth

Mastering for streaming services requires a lower sample rate and bit depth

Mastering for CD requires a wider dynamic range

Mastering for streaming services requires a narrower dynamic range

To correct for frequency imbalances

To enhance the clarity and definition of the audio

To add warmth or brightness to the audio

All of the above

To reduce the dynamic range of the audio

To increase the overall volume of the audio

To improve the clarity and definition of the audio

To remove unwanted noise and distortion

Peak limiting prevents the audio from exceeding a certain threshold

RMS limiting prevents the average level of the audio from exceeding a certain threshold

Peak limiting is more transparent than RMS limiting

RMS limiting is more transparent than peak limiting

To reduce quantization noise

To improve the overall sound quality of the audio

To increase the dynamic range of the audio

To remove unwanted noise and distortion

Mastering for vinyl requires a higher sample rate and bit depth

Mastering for digital formats requires a higher sample rate and bit depth

Mastering for vinyl requires a wider dynamic range

Mastering for digital formats requires a wider dynamic range

To provide information about the artist, album, and track

To ensure that the audio is played back correctly on different devices

To help streaming services organize and categorize the audio

All of the above

Use the same mastering chain for all platforms and formats

Listen to the mastered audio on a variety of devices and playback systems

Get feedback from other audio engineers and producers

All of the above