FAQs

The best way to reach me is through the website contact form. I usually respond to all messages within 24 hours, and from there we can talk about your project.

It depends on how much time you need. If it’s a short session (a few hours), I’ll sometimes have room the same week, though it’s a good idea to plan at least 7 to 10 days ahead since things get busy here. If you need a full day, a weekend, or a specific day and time, plan on booking 2 to 6 weeks out.

I require a 50% deposit for all new clients. Once we’ve worked together and built a relationship, a deposit usually isn’t necessary.

Zelle is my preferred method, but I also accept Venmo, Cash App, Apple Pay, credit or debit cards, and cash.

I require 24 hours notice for cancellations or reschedules, otherwise you’ll be billed 50% of the time booked. No shows are also billed 50% of the time booked, and I’ll require a 50% deposit for any future bookings.

Payment is due at the end of each session unless we’ve made other arrangements.

Tone Freq is based in San Jose, California. I work with artists throughout the greater Bay Area, as well as around California and out of state.

Studio A is the main tracking room, built around a ProTools Ultimate rig with an Avid S3 console and Antelope converters. It has a large live room plus two isolation areas for amps and other instruments. Studio B is a smaller, vibier room set up for mixing, mastering, and overdubs.

I’m not just running the board. I’ll offer suggestions and creative input where it’s useful, but the song and the vision stay yours. My role is to help you make your best work, not impose a formula on it.

I offer full recording, mixing, and traditional production, but I don’t offer creative production services. If you’re looking for someone to help create the music for a song, I’m happy to send you references to producers I work with.

Printed lyrics and charts are always helpful if you have them, and a demo of the song can be useful too. Bring fresh strings for your instruments, new drum heads, and drum sticks.

The more rehearsed you are, the more of our time together goes toward performance and creative decisions instead of working out parts. If you’re tracking vocals, know your lyrics and melody cold. If you’re bringing a full band, run through the songs together beforehand. Don’t practice until you know the song, practice until you can’t perform it wrong!

There’s no easy answer here. It depends on the genre, whether you’re recording to pre-recorded music or bringing in a band, how complicated the song is, and how well prepared you are. I’d suggest we do a consultation so we can figure out a production timeline together.

Guests are generally fine as long as they’re not disruptive to the session, though I like to keep the number of people to a minimum since we’re there to work, not party. Photographers are welcome too, as long as they don’t get in the way of the performances or the workflow.

Once final payment for your sessions has been made, the files are yours. I claim no ownership over them, and I actually encourage you to back up all your files after every session. Unless we arrange otherwise, I deliver all mixes through the client portal on the website, and I’ll provide the production files (ProTools sessions) to you as well.

I do. I’ve recorded plenty of audiobooks here. I follow ACX standards and can deliver raw audio as well as compiled books in .m4b format.

We have a five piece Pearl drum set with cymbals and stands, but no piano. For piano work, I book time at another studio.

I recommend arriving a few minutes before your session starts, since I may still be wrapping up with an earlier client. If you’re running late, just text or call to let me know. I always build in a 30 minute grace period for traffic and things like that.

Yes, I keep multiple backups of files in my archives as a courtesy to all my clients. That said, I highly recommend bringing your own hard drive or memory stick and keeping your own copies, since I can’t guarantee your files will be available after your session.

The Client Portal started as a better way to deliver large audio files to you without relying on file transfer services like Dropbox or WeTransfer. It also lets you send files to me. On top of that, it shows your upcoming sessions, sends session reminders, displays your block time balance, and has a messaging system you can use.

Most of my clients find it easy to use and really helpful, but you’re not required to use it.

Here is a Client Portal Tour video to help you learn what it is and how to use it.

You can sign up online. Here is an Account Management video to help walk you through it.

You will receive an email from the portal to accept the invitation. Here is an Account Invitation video to help walk you through the process.

Mixing blends individual tracks, like vocals and drums, into a balanced song using volume, panning, EQ, compression, and effects. Mastering is the final step, where the finished stereo mix gets polished for consistency, loudness, and quality across all playback systems and platforms.

It’s always best to submit the highest quality stereo files you can, ideally 24 bit 96K WAV files. Please make sure your mixes are unlimited before submitting, and check out the submission guidelines for more details.

Things may change down the road, but I’m not hiring or offering internships at this time.

Click here to view the mixing file submission guidelines (opens in a new tab)

Click here to view the mastering file submission guidelines (opens in a new tab)