How do I master my tracks as loud as commercial EDM tracks?

[Hermetech Mastering]

I was wondering if any of you knew how professionals master their track so loud.

Years of experience. Honestly, loads of different ways to achieve loudness. A little here, a little there, it's like mixing spices, and you can get it loud and relatively transparent. If you try to do it all with one process, it's gonna sound like arse.

[Edmsoundworks]

You might want to check this tutorial here :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExXYPSCobT0

[ntom]

EDIT
noticed someone beat me to the punch.

[Aroused by JarJar]

Robin Strand, it seems to me that your mixes sound very good and could be made about as "loud" as you or anyone else would like them.

Have you tried keeping your kicks and basses, everything in the low range, tightly mono? I've found that while stereo action in the low range can sound really good in ambiences and so on, it's one of the first things to break into ugly pieces when you're pushing volume.

Something I've noticed about mastering tutorials in magazines and YouTube- they approach a song as if it is the same throughout. But songs change. So how can you have, say, the exact same multiband compression settings throughout the whole song and expect them to be ideal for every different part of the song? So that means automating parameters or splitting your tunes into sections (easier for you because it's your music).

Those are just some general universal suggestions which you probably already know.

[Aroused by JarJar]

I should also note that I don't do EDM and judge my loudness standards by generally "hi-fi" stuff like jazz and film soundtracks and so on. But listening to those I learned something very interesting, which applies to every kind of sound, but is kind of difficult to explain: "fine" stuff tends to sound naturally "louder". For example, recording acoustic stuff with the exact same equipment and instruments but in a proper room with acoustics like an old-fashioned studio (tall ceilings, wooden floor) rather than a bedroom studio and bam, same levels on the meters, but sounds "louder".

Also, there human ear is extremely geared toward the voices and voice-like qualities, and projecting living presences. So anything that makes a sound somehow suggestive of some kind of "being" that's "speaking" (or growling or purring or whatever) is automatically "louder" to us. That's also hard to explain, but if you think about it, it's something everyone knows. We say things like "that's a mean bass" or a "sweet lead".

Just some observations.

[risome]

Keep pushing to get on a good label and let them get it mastered

[spirit]

"How do I make my songs louder" followed by other equally great questions of our time such as: "How can I look like Justin Beiber" and "How can I get 1D to follow me on Twitter".

[nineofkings]

"How do I make my songs louder" followed by other equally great questions of our time such as: "How can I look like Justin Beiber" and "How can I get 1D to follow me on Twitter".

The question of loudness for its own sake might strike you as frivolous, but it's a good way to study how to make audio more efficient and maximize headroom during the mixing phase, in both frequency and dynamics.

[DJ Warmonger]

I remember reading nice observation on Kim Lajoie's blog. The means to provide incredibly loud and powerful mix are exactly the same that you need to get great dynamic range.
So, instead of protesting against overcompressed tracks, adapt. These qualities are interchangeable. What you want is to get best starting point.
Try to find a way to make overcompressed track not over-compressed on mixing stage. Once you release compressor, you will get very tight and dynamic track.

Well, that's what I did.

[Blue-eyed Blonde Ape]

How can I make my track infinitely silent ?
Will a gunshot to my head do it ?

[matthew_wehttam]

I am not the most complex person. And I can not listen here. But this is pretty simple stuff. You pay no attention to the apple sales people. They said your mix is fine so all you need to do is load your wav into a wave editor and normalise it.