How to Prepare a Club Ready Songs Track for SoundCloud

A Club Ready Songs track is ready for SoundCloud as it leaves the studio: upload the 24-bit WAV from the result panel or the DJ pack, keep the −8 LUFS loudness because SoundCloud does not normalise, use the "Artist - Title - cover.jpg" from the DJ pack as artwork, and copy the title, genre, BPM and key from the tags into the upload form. SoundCloud transcodes to 128 kbps AAC or Opus for free listeners, which is the main reason to start from the WAV rather than the MP3.

Steps

1. Download the DJ pack

On a studio track, press DJ pack to get a zip with the MP3, the WAV if you left WAV 24/48 on, the cover JPEG, cue points.txt, a rekordbox.xml and a README. The WAV is your upload file and the JPEG is your artwork. For a DJ edit, press WAV on the result panel; there is no cover, so you will supply your own image.

2. Decide whether the track belongs on SoundCloud

Studio tracks you rendered are yours to upload. A DJ edit of someone else's song is a different matter: SoundCloud matches uploads against label catalogues and can block or take down an edit of a commercial release. Keep edits of other people's music for Mixcloud, which licenses mixes, or share them privately with the Copy link URL. Upload DJ edits of your own songs freely.

3. Leave the loudness at −8 LUFS

Club Ready Songs masters to −8 LUFS integrated with a true peak of −1 dBTP by default. SoundCloud plays files back as uploaded, so a −8 LUFS track sits level with the other club tracks in a listener's feed. Do not rebuild a DJ edit at −14 for SoundCloud; that is the setting for YouTube, Spotify, TikTok and Instagram, which turn everything down to about −14. On SoundCloud a −14 file is simply six dB quieter than its neighbours.

4. Upload the WAV

Choose the WAV in SoundCloud's upload form. Uploads can be up to 4 GB and a 24-bit 48 kHz WAV of a seven-minute track is roughly 120 MB, well inside the limit. On the free plan the total upload time is 180 minutes across all tracks, so a crate of twenty six-minute renders fills two thirds of it; the Club Ready Songs share page can host the rest with its free 30-second preview and Download MP3 button.

5. Fill in the details from the tags

Set the title to match the TIT2 tag, "Title (Extended Mix)" if you ticked the suffix, and the artist to the TPE1 value. Pick the genre from the TCON tag. Paste the comment tag into the description, for example "8A · 1m · A minor · 126 BPM · intro 16 · outro 32 · Club Ready Songs", so DJs know the key and intro length before they download. Add BPM and key as tags. Upload the cover JPEG as the artwork; it is square and uploads without cropping.

6. Set download and preview options

Turn downloads on if you want other DJs to take the file; SoundCloud serves them the original WAV, which is the version you want them to play. If you would rather control the download, turn it off and put the share link /t/ in the description. That page carries the cover, a 30-second preview from the drop and an open Download MP3 button.

7. Listen after the transcode

Play the published track in a browser without logging in. You hear the 128 kbps stream the public hears. Check the drum-loop intro for smeared hats and the bass for pumping. The mono bass below 120 Hz keeps the low end stable through the encoder, but a very dense high end can lose definition; if it does, the WAV source is still the best you can offer.

Tips

• Put the BPM in the title only if your audience is DJs; otherwise keep it in the description and tags.
• Keep a consistent artist name across the TPE1 tag, the SoundCloud profile and the share page so search finds everything.
• Use the first drop cue from cue points.txt to decide where to start a short teaser clip if you post one elsewhere.
• Schedule your own uploads by hand. Club Ready Songs has no publishing or scheduling feature, so the share link is the only automatic page.
• If a listener asks for a DJ-ready file, send the DJ pack rather than the SoundCloud download; it includes cue points and the rekordbox.xml.

Common problems

• The upload was rejected or muted. The track is a DJ edit of a commercial release. Use Mixcloud or a private share link instead.
• The track sounds quieter than everything else. It was built at −14 LUFS. Press Change settings & rebuild and set Volume level to −8.
• The artwork looks cropped. You used a non-square image for a DJ edit. Export a 1000 by 1000 pixel square or use the studio cover JPEG.
• The upload limit is reached. You are on the free plan with 180 minutes used. Replace older uploads or point listeners at the share pages.