Mastered or Unmastered? What to Upload to BeatStars (and Why)
Published · by Loopin
Upload both: a mastered version that wins the first ten seconds of a listen, and a file with headroom that the artist can actually record over. The mistake is sending one slammed file to do both jobs.
Split the job: the preview sells, the file gets used
A buyer decides in seconds, and in a side-by-side the louder beat wins. That is the case for mastering what you put on the storefront. But an artist recording vocals over a brick-walled file has no room for their own processing, and their engineer will often ask you for something quieter.
So keep two exports of every beat: a mastered one for previews, and a mix-bounce with headroom for the buyer to work with. Check your store’s upload rules for which file goes where, because the slots and formats differ and they change. A good habit is to open both files in a fresh project, play the loudest drop of each, and ask whether a stranger could tell which one you meant to sell.
Export the clean file first, with numbers
Bounce a stereo WAV with peaks around −6 dBFS, nothing on the master bus except what’s part of the beat’s sound. That leaves room for the vocalist’s chain and for the engineer to master the finished song. Don’t put a limiter on this version, and don’t normalise it to 0.
Listen to the 808 in this file on a phone speaker. If it vanishes or buzzes, fix it in the beat now, because no master repairs that. Our guide to mastering headroom covers why the −6 target works.
Master the preview version in under ten minutes
Take the clean bounce and run it through the free masterer. For most beats, Punchy (about −11 LUFS) gives the density buyers expect; Club (about −10) suits harder trap and drill; Warm suits soul and lofi. Flip the loudness-matched Original-vs-Mastered switch so you hear whether the master actually improved the beat or only made it louder.
Mastering and previews are free and unlimited. Downloads are capped on the free tier, at one per rolling 24 hours with no account and two with a free account, so audition everything first and download only the version you will upload. The export is a 16-bit WAV with a −1 dBTP ceiling.
Check the master against your best reference
Drop a beat you admire from the same style next to your master, loudness-matched, and compare three things: kick weight, how loud the hi-hats get, and whether the melody stays clear. If your master is duller or harsher, try another feel before changing anything in the mix. You can master the beat free online with all eight feels and compare each against the original.
If the check keeps failing the same way, the cause is the mix, not the master: a boomy sub, a masked lead, a crowded 2–4 kHz. Automatic mastering takes no creative direction and can’t fix it. Our post on how to master a beat has the quick fixes.
Name and label both files so nobody uploads the wrong one
Use names that make the difference obvious: beatname_PREVIEW_master and beatname_CLEAN_headroom. Keep the sample rate the same across both and make a note of the BPM and key in your sheet, which the key and BPM finder does in seconds.
When a lease buyer emails asking why the file is quieter than the preview, you have a one-line answer: it was left clean on purpose for their vocal chain. Know your lease versus exclusive terms too, because exclusive buyers often want the cleanest version. Keep a single sheet listing every beat, its BPM, key, both file names and the date you last exported, so a buyer request three months later takes two minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Should I master my beats before uploading to BeatStars?
Master the preview version so it competes on loudness, and keep a clean file with about -6 dBFS peaks for the artist. Check the store's upload rules for which slot takes which file.
How loud should a beat be for selling?
Previews commonly sit around -11 to -14 LUFS; Punchy exports near -11 and the default export is about -14 LUFS with a -1 dBTP ceiling. The clean artist file should peak around -6 dBFS.
Will a mastered beat hurt the artist's vocal mix?
It can, because there is no headroom left for vocal processing. That is why you keep a clean version with headroom as well.
Is free online mastering good enough for beats?
For previews and demos, yes: instant automatic mastering with eight feels and a loudness-matched A/B. For exclusive sales or a mix with real problems, consider a human engineer.
How many free downloads do I get per day?
1 per rolling 24 hours with no account and 2 with a free account. Mastering and previews are unlimited.