The key to a good mix also requires a critical ear and the equipment/room to properly monitor. It would be considered outrageous if you paid a pro mixer to mix your cd and he only had headphones to monitor, a bunch of free amp sims for guitars, and downpitched guitars to get bass. People might say that you wasted money or that you should have hired someone else. If someone attempted to mix this himself with the same equipment, he would be encouraged to try it or possibly be considered crafty and resourceful.
Now if we change the subject to mastering, a few things differ. If you paid someone to master your mixes and he only had headphones, a copy of Wavelab with free plugins on a 3 year old PC, it would also be considered outrageous. This is the same, but here is where it gets different. If someone says he's going to attempt this at home with only that stuff, suddenly they're at risk of messing up their own mix. Suddenly they don't have the proper equipment or the know-how to do it themselves. Suddenly it is justifiable to spend over $500 to have a pro do it when you so ardently saved money in the mixing stage scrounging for free drum samples and plugins on internet forums.
The truth is that a decent self-mastering job can be done at home in the same way a decent mix can be done at home. You won't sound like Bob Katz, but I don't think anyone ever stopped mixing at home because they didn't hope sound like Jerry Finn. I think an encouraging attitude towards self-mastering is more needed than a facility with top equipment.
Also,
Izotope Ozone 4 is slated for January 2009.
point was: ISRC codes are a relic and useless basically
hehehe
