The Short Version
- Every Track As Its Own WAV (Or AIFF) File
- 24-Bit Or 32-Bit Float, At The Session's Sample Rate
- All Files Start At The Same Point (Bar 1) And Run The Full Length Of The Song
- Nothing On The Master Bus: No Limiter, No Compressor, No EQ
- No Clipping: Nothing Should Hit 0 dB
- Clear Names, A Rough Mix Bounce, The BPM And Key, And A Reference Or Two
1. Export Every Track On Its Own
A Stem Is One Track (Or A Small Group Of Tracks) Bounced To Its Own Audio File. For Mixing, More Separation Is Better: Lead Vocal, Doubles, Adlibs And Harmonies As Separate Files, And The Beat Split Into Kick, 808, Snare, Hats, Melody And So On If You Have It.
If The Producer Only Gave You A Two-Track Beat, That's Fine. Send The Two-Track Plus Every Vocal As Its Own File. Separate Beat Stems Give The Mix More Room, So It's Worth Asking The Producer For Them.
2. Use The Right Format
Export WAV Or AIFF At 24-Bit Or 32-Bit Float, At The Sample Rate Your Session Is Already In (Usually 44.1 Or 48 kHz). Don't Convert Up To A Higher Rate; It Adds Nothing. Never Send MP3s As Stems: They've Already Thrown Away Detail That Can't Come Back.
Turn Off Normalizing And Dither When You Export. Mono Sources (Most Vocals, Kick, 808) Can Be Mono Files; Stereo Sources Stay Stereo.
3. Start Everything At The Same Point
Every File Should Start At Exactly The Same Moment, Usually Bar 1 Or The Very Start Of The Session, Even If The Track Doesn't Come In Until The Second Verse. That Way I Drop Them All Into My Session And They Line Up Perfectly. Files That Start Wherever The Audio Starts Have To Be Lined Up By Ear, And That's Where Timing Mistakes Creep In.
4. Decide What Stays Printed
Print The Effects That Are Part Of The Sound: Tuning You Like The Character Of, A Vocal Chain You Built On Purpose, A Guitar Amp, A Filter Sweep. Leave Out The Effects That Are Just There To Make The Rough Sound Finished: Master Bus Processing, Heavy Reverb On Everything, And Limiters.
If You're Not Sure, Send Both: The Vocal With Your Effects And A Dry Version. Label Them Clearly And Tell Me Which One Is The Vibe.
5. Leave Headroom
Nothing Should Clip. If A Stem Hits 0 dB In Your Session, Pull Its Fader Down Before Exporting Rather Than Putting A Limiter On It. You Don't Need To Aim For A Specific Level; Just Keep Everything Safely Below The Top.
6. Name Files So Anyone Could Follow Them
"Audio 1_04.wav" Tells Me Nothing. Name Each File For What It Is, And Number Them In The Order Of Your Session So They Open In A Sensible Order:
- 01 Lead Vocal
- 02 Lead Vocal Double
- 03 Adlibs
- 04 Hook Harmony
- 10 Kick
- 11 808
- 12 Snare
- 13 Hats
- 20 Melody
7. Send The Context
Include A Rough Mix Bounce (Your Best Version Of How It Should Sound), The BPM And Key, One Or Two Reference Songs You Want It To Feel Like, And Any Notes: A Vocal Effect You Love, A Part You Want Louder, Your Release Date. Put The Whole Thing In One Folder, Zip It, And Upload.
The Mistakes I See Most
- Stems Exported With The Master Bus Limiter Still On
- Files That Don't Start At The Same Point
- MP3s Instead Of WAVs
- The Beat And Vocals Bounced Together On One File
- Missing Adlibs Or Doubles That Are On The Rough Mix
- Different Sample Rates Across Files