Loudness
- Loudness in the Effect | Volume menu.
- Loudness effect in the Add Effect window of Batch Processing.
Loudness sets the volume of a file to an international standard level defined in ITU-R BS.1770-4.
When creating playlists you may notice that some songs have a different volume level and you have to adjust the volume control from one song to the next. By using Loudness, you can set the volume of each song to a standard level to avoid such variations. The LUFS (Loudness Units Full Scale) number provides a way to compare and match volumes of different files. Files with the same LUFS number will seem to have to same overall volume.
| Loudness | |
|---|---|
| Setting | Description |
| Volume (LUFS) | Sets the standard volume of the selection. The standard recommends -23 LUFS, however that tends to be much lower than most songs currently available. You can scan several songs in your playlist to see the current levels, then pick one of the lower levels to use on all files. |
| Allow clipping | Uses the given volume, regardless if clipping is required. |
| Reduce volume to avoid clipping | Reduces the volume just before processing begins to ensure that the audio will not be clipped. A lower volume is used for the entire file, so it will not be at the standard volume you've given. However this ensure no distortion occurs if the volume is too high for the file. |
| Abort processing if clipping is required | Processing is aborted immediately when clipping is required. A range error is displayed. Use this setting for batch processing to prevent writing clipped audio. |
| Calculate Loudness Range | Rescans the selection to calcualte the loudness range (similar to the dynamic range). This is a much slower calculation, so it is not performed automatically. The loudness range is defined in EBU Tech 3342. |
Use Loudness on each file to set the Volume to the same value. Use Batch Processing to apply this effect to a group of files.
Unlike Maximize Volume, Loudness may result in clipping distortion if the volume is set too high. The Final peak area displays the resulting final peak level after processing. If the peak exceeds 0dB, the value is shown in red as a warning that clipping will occur. Use a lower volume to avoid clipping or select the appropriate clipping option.
This effect should not be used with Maximize Volume. Use one or the other, but not both (one cancels the other).
See Also: Auto Gain, Compressor/Expander, Maximize Volume, MaxMatch, Presets