You can't possibly be objective about your decisions unless you are some kind of superhuman audio machine. Mastering a project that you've just spent the last month recording and mixing will likely give you skewed results. When you send your project out to a mastering house, one of the biggest benefits you are getting is a set of fresh ears. The mantra I heard repeated throughout my education was always “Don't EVER master a recording you mixed!” I have tried to live up to that advice with a slight modification of “Don't charge clients to master a recording you mixed or suggest that you should be the mastering engineer too.” Sure, the new mantra is a mouthful-but how will you learn what mastering is about if you don't try it? What better way to learn about mastering techniques than to try your hand at it as much as possible?
Mastering shouldn't be feared, though… just respected. For this reason, it can often be very intimidating to get your feet wet in the field of mastering. Visions of Professor Snape in his potions lab chanting incantations while listening to Beethoven from magical speakers always used to spring to mind when I prepared to send a project to a mastering house. Mastering engineers are often highly regarded professionals with a completely different set of gear and tools that sets them apart from standard 'tracking' studios. The art and science of mastering audio has often been shrouded in equal parts mystery and danger.
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