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Veteran mastering engineer Michael Romanowski has secured his sixth GRAMMY win, this time for his work on Immersed<\/em>, the latest album from artist and producer Justin Gray, which took home Best Immersive Audio Album in 2026.<\/p>\n Romanowski\u2014founder and chief engineer of Coast Mastering in Berkeley, California\u2014handled both the immersive and stereo mastering for the project, a dual responsibility that underscores his fluency in an industry rapidly expanding beyond traditional formats. Over a career spanning more than three decades and more than 4,000 albums, his r\u00e9sum\u00e9 reads like a cross-section of modern music history, with credits including Prince, Alicia Keys, Bonnie Raitt, and The Grateful Dead.<\/p>\n For Immersed<\/em>, however, the mission went beyond polish\u2014it was about preserving space. \u201cJustin stayed focused as the artist, and I totally appreciated that,\u201d Romanowski explains. \u201cWhen I received the music files, I sat down, I listened\u2026 I didn’t do anything until I listened all the way through.\u201d That restraint, he suggests, is key to navigating immersive formats, where the goal isn\u2019t loudness but dimensionality.<\/p>\n That philosophy marks a shift from the hyper-compressed tendencies of the loudness wars. \u201cWhat we want out of Atmos\u2026 is a sense of space,\u201d Romanowski says. \u201cThe more you try to make it loud\u2026 the less that space happens.\u201d Instead, he embraces a more relaxed dynamic range\u2014an approach that, perhaps surprisingly, has begun to influence how he approaches stereo mastering as well. The result? Music that invites listeners in, rather than overwhelming them.<\/p>\n Central to achieving that balance is Romanowski\u2019s monitoring environment at Coast Mastering, anchored by a suite of Focal speakers. It\u2019s not just about gear\u2014it\u2019s about trust in what you\u2019re hearing. \u201cWith any mastering project I\u2019m working on, knowing my listening environment is one of the most important things in the mastering process. For Justin\u2018s record, my room, my experience, and my perception of what the music sounds like are what allowed me to make the best decisions to help realize the artist\u2019s creative intent.\u201d It\u2019s a philosophy that reinforces the idea that even in the most advanced technical workflows, the human ear\u2014and instinct\u2014remain the final authority.<\/p>\n For Justin Gray, that trust was well placed. \u201cI have long admired Michael\u2019s work,\u201d Gray says. \u201cAs an artist, mix engineer, and producer, I gained confidence knowing that the final mastering stage with Michael was always on the horizon.\u201d<\/p>\n Romanowski\u2019s win adds to an already decorated career that includes eleven GRAMMY nominations and two prior wins for Best Engineered Album, Classical. Beyond the studio, he remains deeply embedded in the evolution of audio technology, consulting for companies like Dolby, Sony, and Google, and contributing to industry conversations at AES, NAMM, and SXSW.<\/p>\n If Immersed<\/em> proves anything, it\u2019s that the future of music isn\u2019t just louder\u2014it\u2019s deeper. And with engineers like Romanowski shaping that future, listeners can expect to hear (and feel) every dimension of it.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n