Waveform
Techno typical envelope
EQ Profile
Kick Transient (80 Hz & 2 kHz) & Dark Mid Presence (500 Hz–2 kHz)
LUFS Target
Bandcamp integrated
Spectrum
Pink-noise reference
Techno Mastering for Bandcamp
Relentless kick, dark sub-bass, aggressive Berlin-style mids · Tuned for Bandcamp playback
Target: -14 LUFS · True Peak: -1 dBTP · Dynamic Range: 4-8 LU
Techno Mastering Specification. Bandcamp
| Parameter | Techno Specification |
|---|---|
| Loudness Target | -14 LUFS integrated (Bandcamp optimized) |
| True Peak Ceiling | -1 dBTP. Inter-sample peak limit |
| Dynamic Range | 4-8 LU LU. Genre-appropriate |
| EQ Focus | Kick Transient (80 Hz & 2 kHz) & Dark Mid Presence (500 Hz–2 kHz) |
| Stereo Image | Mono-focused kick, wide atmospheric stereo |
| Platform Algorithm | Bandcamp serves independent artists and quality-focused listeners with lossless FLAC downloads at full quality. |
Why Techno on Bandcamp Needs Specialized Mastering
Techno mastering is a machine-precision discipline. The genre's relentless 4/4 kick depends on absolute timing coherence that over-limiting destroys. The fundamental error in techno mastering is treating the kick as the loudest element and limiting it aggressively, reducing the kick's transient attack at 80 Hz and 2 kHz and causing it to lose impact on large-format club speakers. Correct techno mastering uses multiband compression to manage frequency density rather than broadband limiting for loudness. The sub-bass at 30–60 Hz is almost always louder than the kick's sample peak reading. A true peak limiter at -0.3 dBFS will allow sub-bass inter-sample peaks to breach 0 dBFS during AAC encoding. Set true peak at -1 dBTP. The Berlin techno aesthetic favors a dark, mid-bass-forward sound: a high-frequency rolloff above 12 kHz is intentional, and adding air at 10 kHz is inappropriate for the genre. Sidechain compression between kick and bassline must be preserved through the mastering chain. Check that the compressor's release time hasn't softened the pumping that defines the track's groove. Dynamic range targets of 4–8 LU reflect the genre's relentless energy.
Bandcamp context: Bandcamp serves independent artists and quality-focused listeners with lossless FLAC downloads at full quality. Bandcamp applies no loudness normalization. Preserve your dynamic range. Audiophile listeners value wide dynamics over loudness. A -14 to -18 LUFS master with 12+ LU dynamic range impresses discerning ears.
Techno × Bandcamp. The Normalization Math
How -14 LUFS interacts with Techno's natural loudness window
Techno's natural -9 to -7 LUFS loudness sits roughly 6.0 dB hotter than Bandcamp's -14 LUFS target, so the platform turns the master down at playback. The competitive instinct to push to -7 or -8 LUFS for "loudness wars" parity is wasted on Bandcamp. the platform takes the gain back, and the only result is the dynamic compression you paid for with no perceived loudness benefit. Target -14 LUFS integrated directly and bank the saved dynamic range as relentless and steady. The -1 dBTP ceiling specified for Bandcamp prevents inter-sample peaks from clipping during the codec's reconstruction filter, which is especially relevant for Techno's 40-80 Hz kick content where high-amplitude transients accumulate against the limiter.
Codec Reality for Techno on Bandcamp
Bandcamp's FLAC / WAV / ALAC delivery at lossless at original bit-depth is effectively transparent. Listeners on the hi-res tier hear the master as it left your limiter, including every micro-detail of the 40-80 Hz kick band that defines Techno. Aggressive limiting or saturation that masks itself under MP3 transcoding becomes audible here; Techno producers releasing to Bandcamp should master from a clean source and accept that "loudness war" tactics that work on phone-speaker platforms actively damage the perceived quality on this tier. The dynamic-range character of Techno (relentless and steady, 4-7 LU) interacts with this codec tier specifically: preserve the dynamics, the platform will reward them.
Techno EQ Profile for Bandcamp
Kick dominance: The techno kick is everything. Boost 60–80 Hz for body and 2–4 kHz for the click/attack. High-pass at 25 Hz to remove sub-rumble.
Dark sub-bass: Deep, sustained 30–50 Hz sub-bass defines dark techno. Mono everything below 80 Hz for club PA compatibility.
Synth aggression: Cut 300–500 Hz from pads and leads to reduce boxiness. Boost upper-mids at 3–6 kHz for the dark Berlin-style presence.
Stereo density: Wide, dense stereo field in the high frequencies (500 Hz+). Keep the sub-bass and kick strictly mono.
Compression & Limiting for Bandcamp
Aggressive limiting: Techno tolerates 4–8 LU dynamic range for maximum impact. Heavy compression is stylistically correct.
Kick preservation: Despite heavy compression, the kick transient must cut through. Use a transient shaper if limiting smears the attack.
Long-form consideration: Techno tracks run 8–15 minutes. Ensure the master doesn't fatigue. Preserve some dynamic movement in the arrangement.
Techno LUFS Targets. All Platforms Compared
How Techno mastering specs differ across every major streaming platform.
| Platform | Integrated LUFS | True Peak | Current page |
|---|---|---|---|
| -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -16 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
▶️YouTube | -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → |
| -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -11 LUFS | -0.5 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -13 LUFS | -0.5 dBTP | View guide → | |
🎛️Beatport | -9 LUFS | -0.3 dBTP | View guide → |
🎨Bandcamp | -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | You are here |
| -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -14 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → | |
| -15 LUFS | -1 dBTP | View guide → |
Technical Methodology. Techno Mastering for Bandcamp
Target: -14 LUFS integrated · -1 dBTP true peak · EBU R128 / ITU-R BS.1770-4 compliant
We measure integrated LUFS using K-weighted filtering per ITU-R BS.1770-4: a high-shelf pre-filter at 1681.97 Hz (+3.9998 dB gain) followed by a 75 Hz high-pass (Q=0.5) to remove DC offset and low-frequency rumble. The mean square of the filtered signal gives us integrated loudness in LUFS.
True peak (dBTP) is measured at 4× oversampling to detect inter-sample peaks that occur between digital samples. Sample-peak measurement alone misses these peaks, which cause audible clipping during AAC and MP3 lossy encoding on streaming platforms. We enforce the true peak ceiling at -1 dBTP for all standard platforms.
Genre EQ profiles apply frequency-specific gain based on each genre's sonic characteristics: mud reduction at 250–400 Hz for hip-hop and trap, presence enhancement at 2–4 kHz for vocal clarity on phone speakers, sub-bass high-pass at 30–35 Hz for all genres to remove inaudible subsonic content that wastes headroom.
Master bus compression uses a VCA-style algorithm with genre-tuned attack and release times. Lo-fi and jazz use 50 ms attack to preserve transients; EDM and techno use 5–10 ms for density. Parallel compression blends the compressed signal at 20–40% wet to lift room sound without eliminating the uncompressed transient attack.
The final limiter stage uses lookahead limiting (3–5 ms) to catch transient peaks before they exceed the true peak ceiling. The limiter targets platform-specific LUFS: -14 LUFS for Spotify, -16 LUFS for Apple Music, -11 LUFS for SoundCloud, -9 LUFS for Beatport. Gain reduction is transparent at 1–2 dB of limiting; beyond 3 dB audible artifacts require reducing the input drive.
All processing runs in your browser via Web Audio API. No audio data is uploaded to any server.
Techno Mastering FAQ. Bandcamp
What LUFS for techno on Bandcamp?
Target -14 LUFS integrated. Techno can push aggressively. A 4–8 LU dynamic range at -14 LUFS delivers maximum impact without normalization penalty.
How do I keep the techno kick punching through heavy limiting?
Boost 2–4 kHz on the kick for the click/attack before the limiter. Use a transient shaper after limiting to restore the attack if it's been softened. The kick must cut through at any playback volume. Test at low levels where the kick should still be the most defined element.
How does techno translate from headphones to club PA on Bandcamp?
Techno mastered for streaming should have mono sub-bass (below 80 Hz) for club PA compatibility. The kick body at 60–80 Hz and the synth density at 500 Hz+ define the club experience. Check mono compatibility. Any phase issues in the low-end will collapse on a club system.
Techno Mastering for Other Platforms
Other Genres on Bandcamp
Upload a track to
instantly master
Choose a file or drag it here
Supports WAV · FLAC · MP3 · M4A · AIFF