About this episode

Dave McNair discusses his extensive career in the music industry and his unique approach to mastering.

Dave McNair is a mastering engineer, producer, and recording engineer with over four decades in the music industry and more than 900 credits spanning rock, blues, country, pop, and world music. Originally from Corpus Christi, Texas, he came up through the working-studio world of New York City, including a stint at The Hit Factory, before spending years producing and engineering in Los Angeles and Austin. He's now based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where he operates Dave McNair Mastering from a studio in his own home, monitored on a high-end audiophile playback system. What sets McNair apart is the breadth of his pre-mastering career. He toured as a drummer with indie/alt-country band The Silos, engineered and mixed landmark sessions with Stevie Ray Vaughan and Cyndi Lauper, and produced artists like Buddy Guy and Kelly Willis in the Austin music scene. That lived-in understanding of how records are made from the ground up, tracking, arranging, mixing, deeply informs his mastering philosophy. His approach emphasizes what he calls "mastering with mixing in mind," treating the bass and vocals as the true anchors of any record. McNair's audiophile background is equally…

People in this episode

Guest: Dave McNair

Topics covered

• mastering engineering
• music production
• career reinvention
• audiophile sound
• music industry experience

Keywords

• mastering engineer
• music industry
• record production
• audiophile
• Grammy nomination

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Hit Factory, Dave McNair Mastering

Places: Corpus Christi, Texas

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