Forty thousand hours in a studio. Two Grammy Awards. One mixing method that throws out the order most engineers were taught.
That is the short version of Luca Pretolesi, and it is the reason his name sits on an advanced course instead of a marketing banner. Most producers learn to mix from the bottom up, one track at a time. Pretolesi built a career doing close to the opposite.
Key takeaways
- Luca Pretolesi is a 2x Grammy winning mixing and mastering engineer with over 25 years of experience and 40,000 hours in the studio.
- He founded Studio DMI in Las Vegas and has worked with Diplo, Skrillex, David Guetta, Beyoncé, Calvin Harris, Imagine Dragons, and more.
- His Reverse Funnel 2.0® method, the approach that earned him two Grammys, starts from the Stereo Bus rather than the individual tracks.
- He teaches the full method inside the Pete Tong DJ Academy Mix & Mastering Course
- The course prepares tracks for release on platforms like Spotify and Beatport, and comes with an official certificate.
Who is Luca Pretolesi?
Luca Pretolesi is a mixing and mastering engineer with over 25 years of experience and 40,000 hours logged in the studio. He is the founder of Studio DMI in Las Vegas, and his work with internationally renowned artists earned him two Grammy Awards.
The client list is the credential. Diplo. Skrillex. Drake. Steve Aoki. David Guetta. Major Lazer. Jack Ü. Lil Jon. Snoop Lion. Beyoncé. J Balvin. Calvin Harris. Imagine Dragons. Carnage. ZHU. Above & Beyond. G-Dragon. Jolin Tsai. You do not assemble a roster like that with theory. You assemble it by delivering a finished sound, over and over, under deadline.
The Reverse Funnel 2.0, the method that won two Grammys
Here is the part most tutorials get backwards. The classic approach mixes each element in isolation, then glues everything together at the end and hopes it holds. Pretolesi reversed it. His Reverse Funnel 2.0® starts at the Stereo Bus and works inward.
Shape the Stereo Bus
Before touching a single channel, you set the energy and color of the whole mix on the bus. That becomes the solid foundation everything else has to fit.
Sculpt your core sounds
With the bus in place, you go deep: punchy drums, powerful basslines, and the rich synth textures that define your sonic identity.
Finalize vocals and mastering
You make the vocals shine, lift the track to a professional level, and deliver a clean, release ready result. This is the method he built, and it is the one that carried two Grammys home.
Learn the Reverse Funnel 2.0 from the engineer who built it. The full method lives inside the Mix & Mastering Course, an advanced program available on the Elite plan.
What Luca Pretolesi teaches inside the course
The course is built for advanced producers and runs across six chapters and more than five hours of video. It moves in the same order as his method: session setup and workflow, starting the mix, mixing the beat from kick to drum buss, shaping the core sound with bass, synths and FX, the vocal mix process, and the full mastering stage from mix to release.
On the technical side it covers EQ, compression, stereo imaging, reverb, loudness, dynamics, and exporting. You finish knowing how to prepare a mix and master for streaming, and you receive an official certificate on completion. Lessons carry subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Italian, and you can study from any computer, tablet, or mobile.
Feedback is not left to a comment box. You can get your mix reviewed through live sessions and through Talent Pool submissions, which is also where the academy's talent scouting runs.
Who this course is for
If you are a self releasing artist trying to get tracks ready for Spotify, Beatport, and beyond, this is aimed squarely at you. It is designed for that exact job.
One honest detail on access. The Mix & Mastering course is not in every plan. It unlocks on the Elite plan, the three course tier that also includes the DJ and Producer courses, so you get the full path from performing to final master rather than a single lesson set.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Luca Pretolesi?
Luca Pretolesi is a 2x Grammy winning mixing and mastering engineer with over 25 years of experience and 40,000 hours in the studio. He founded Studio DMI in Las Vegas and has worked with artists including Diplo, Skrillex, David Guetta, and Beyoncé.
What is the Reverse Funnel 2.0?
It is the mixing approach Luca Pretolesi created, the one that earned him two Grammy Awards. Instead of mixing track by track, you start at the Stereo Bus to set the mix's energy and color, then sculpt the core sounds, then finalize vocals and mastering.
What does the Mix & Mastering course cover?
Six chapters across five plus hours: session setup, gain staging, mixing drums, bass, synths and FX, the vocal mix, and full mastering. On the technical side it covers EQ, compression, stereo imaging, reverb, loudness, dynamics, and exporting for streaming.
Which plan includes the Mix & Mastering course?
The Mix & Mastering course is available on the Elite plan, the three course tier that also includes the DJ and Producer courses. You can compare the tiers on the pricing page.
Can I get feedback on my mix?
Yes. You can have your mix reviewed through the academy's live sessions, feedback corners and through Talent Pool submissions, so you get real ears on your work rather than guessing whether it holds up.
