DJs get a lot of flak, especially about loudness. There’s a deep-seated belief that “loud” masters are still a requirement for club music, and that DJs are somehow to blame.
But is this fair ? The reality is much more complicated and interesting than the popular cliche that DJs will only play loud masters, and in this episode Ian dives deep into the issue with Joe Caithness, who works as both a DJ and a mastering engineer. Topics include:
- The reality of DJ-ing
- The problem with peaks
- Loudness ? Or consistency ?
- The power of Pioneer
- The shocking missed opportunity of loudness metadata
- The ‘sound’ of loudness
And much more !
Links
Joe’s site www.joecaithnessmastering.com (@joecaithnessmastering)
His label https://yesmatewotusayin.bandcamp.com/
Dan Worrall’s video DJs Want Loud Masters (Cos DJs Are Idiots)
Pioneer Rekordbox DJ Software
kyo "How Can I Live” (Joe’s dynamic and successful example)



This show is an absolute gold mine of information. Thank you for doing this Can we please get an episode on recommendations for making mix tapes from pre-existing tracks.