What loudness should you target for Tape / Vintage?
Tape is a tonal flavour, not a loudness target. The point is the warmth and gentle harmonic saturation of analog tape, the subtle second and third harmonics that make digital sources feel rounder, not a particular LUFS. Set loudness to suit the song and its destination (a streaming-friendly -14 LUFS is a fine default) and let the saturation do the character work. True-peak -1 dBTP.
When you export from Quantara targeting Tape / Vintage, the engine measures your master's integrated loudness (ITU-R BS.1770 / EBU R128), normalises it toward the -12.0 LUFS reference, and holds inter-sample (true) peaks under -1 dBTP. It will not slam a quiet, dynamic track up to a loud number just to hit a target — and since the major streaming platforms normalise playback anyway, sitting near the reference is what actually matters. You stay in control: tweak the chain, A/B against the original, and export when it sounds right.
How to master your track for Tape / Vintage
Upload your mix
Create an account (no card needed), then drag and drop your WAV, FLAC or MP3 file into Quantara Studio. Supports files up to 500MB.
Select Tape / Vintage preset
Click the Tape / Vintage target. The mastering chain starts from a -12.0 LUFS reference with tone, dynamics and stereo width tuned for this target.
A/B compare and export
Press Play and flip between Before and After to hear the difference. When you're happy, click Export to download your Tape / Vintage master in the format your plan includes (WAV, FLAC or MP3), normalised toward -12.0 LUFS with true-peak limiting at -1 dBTP.
Genres to pair with Tape / Vintage
Genre starting points to pair with the Tape / Vintage target: Jazz, Blues, Folk, Country, Rock. Each genre has its own frequency balance and dynamics, so treat the preset as a starting point and fine-tune by ear.
Why master Tape / Vintage with Quantara?
A mastering engineer brings trained ears to a release. Quantara gives you a fast, transparent mastering chain tuned for Tape / Vintage: try it with a free account (1 export with a watermark), then unlimited on the Pro plan at €8.99/month. It is a strong, measurable starting point, not a replacement for a trained engineer's ears on a critical release.
Quantara Music masters with its own engine — no AI model. The Tape / Vintage starting point is fully adjustable in real time, and every change shows on real LUFS, true-peak and gain-reduction meters, so you can verify what it does.
Quantara Music gives you full control: adjust every control in real time, hear the difference with A/B bypass, and export when you're satisfied. Mastering runs entirely in your browser: your files are not uploaded for mastering.
FAQ — Tape / Vintage mastering
Yes — master and preview in the studio; a free account includes 1 export with a watermark, no credit card. Exports without a watermark come with Pay Per Track, Pro or Studio. Unlimited exports are available on the Pro plan.
Use -12.0 LUFS integrated as a reference and keep true peak under -1 dBTP; for streaming, Spotify recommends below -2 dBTP for masters louder than -14 LUFS. Master for the song first; most streaming platforms normalise playback, so the reference matters more than chasing a loud number.
Upload WAV, FLAC or MP3 up to 500MB. Export WAV, FLAC or MP3, depending on your plan, normalised toward the Tape / Vintage reference with true-peak-safe limiting.
Ready to master your track for Tape / Vintage?
Free account: 1 export with a watermark — no credit card required
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