Working with people in other cities is now normal. The projects that go wrong rarely go wrong because someone was far away — they go wrong because nobody agreed how files would move.
Agree the delivery spec first
Before anyone records, write down:
- Sample rate and bit depth, and stick to one across the whole project
- File format — WAV for audio masters, not MP3
- Whether stems start at the same timecode or bar one
- Whether effects are printed or left dry
- Which file is the reference everyone mixes against
Mismatched sample rates and inconsistent start points cause more lost hours on remote projects than any other single issue.
Name files so a stranger understands them
A workable convention:
`Project_Song_Element_Take_Version_Date`
For example: `Northside_Chorus_LeadVox_T3_v2_2026-04-11.wav`
Never use `final`, `final2`, `FINAL_real`. Use version numbers that only ever increase.
One place for files, one place for conversation
Pick a single shared folder and a single thread for discussion, and keep them separate. Feedback that lives inside a file-sharing service's comment box disappears; feedback in a scattered set of messages gets lost. When a project involves people you have not worked with before, keeping the conversation in one place also protects you if the terms are ever disputed.
Structure revisions
Open-ended feedback is what turns a fixed fee into unpaid work. Define:
- How many revision rounds the fee includes
- What counts as a revision versus a new brief
- How feedback is given — timestamped notes, not "make it punchier"
- Who gives final sign-off, and by when
One named decision-maker. Feedback gathered by that person and sent once per round.
Recording apart, sounding together
When contributors record in different rooms, consistency matters more than perfection. Ask everyone for the same thing: a quiet space, the same distance from the microphone across sessions, no room processing, and thirty seconds of silence at the top of each file so the editor can sample the room tone. That last one costs nothing and saves the edit.
Time zones and response windows
Agree working hours and a realistic reply time rather than assuming availability. A remote project with a clear twenty-four-hour turnaround expectation runs better than one where everyone privately expects an instant answer.
Keep an archive
When the project ends, archive raw recordings, the session file, stems and the final master in one place, with the naming intact. Someone will ask for it in two years.