8
votes
Compressor vs Volume
It's important to remember that a compressor does not make a sound louder, it reduces dynamic range. By bringing down the peak values, you give yourself more headroom to bring up the overall signal ...
- 14.8k
6
votes
Accepted
Volume treatment in WAV (PCM) file
If you want to be technically accurate, a sound file does not have a volume, it has a level. Volume can only exist when there is an actual speaker producing sound as that has a fixed SPL(sound ...
- 8,091
5
votes
Convert dB value to linear scale
Practical version
dB → gain-multiplier:
g = 2d / 6
gain-multiplier → dB:
d = 6 · log2(g)
I find these definitions far more handy than the ones below: changing the amplitude ...
- 6,001
4
votes
How can I get my direct input monitoring louder?
I doubt this is really an error – as this interface is USB-powered, the designers probably spec'd the headphone output with rather low maximum voltage, so as to avoid supply problems; I know at ...
- 6,001
4
votes
Accepted
Choosing a balance between soundtrack and voice
Personally, I prefer tutorials without music. I also think a bit of background noise is not an awful thing. Gated dialogue or over-baked noise reduction is far more distracting. Choosing a mic you can ...
- 4,465
4
votes
Accepted
How can I extract the volume from an MP3 or MP4?
As you don't mention which platform/OS you're running, I would suggest loudness-scanner.
Something like :
loudness dump -m 0.1 *.mp3 > data.txt
should provide you with a text file containing raw ...
- 2,613
4
votes
Accepted
Certain tracks have wacky volume on certain speakers?
Phase cancellation is a common cause of confusion for many audio professionals, sometimes this is caused by a channel becoming inverted for some reason. Maybe this answer can help you, and other ...
- 2,176
4
votes
Accepted
How to adjust the volume level of the track when the automation points are already set?(Ableton/Logic pro)
To move the whole automation, you have to select the entire area of the automation first, then move it.
BUT..
This is a common problem, that pretty much everyone solves the same way.
Do not under ...
- 674
4
votes
How can I eliminate sounds below a certain threshold?
It really depends on the material; are these sounds that you want to remove truly peaking at a lower level than every bit of the speech? How about in loudness or 'energy'?
You need to look into the ...
- 2,176
4
votes
How to change volume of a .wav file in a mp3gain-like way?
ReplayGain tags aren't standard in WAV files, so you have to alter the PCM data with the required gain.
As per my reading of the Replaygain specs, a correctly implemented Replaygain scanner will ...
- 584
3
votes
Accepted
What property of sound disturbs us?
Change is typically "disturbing". A sharp change of amplitude (a crash, a scream, an explosive sound, etc.) Or even sudden quiet after moderate but steady background noise will disturb some people. ...
- 1,869
3
votes
Does a Headphone Amp Increase Output Volume?
Probably, yes. "Headphone power" depends basically on two things, output voltage and headphone impedance (I discussed it in some detail here). Many devices don't bother providing a very great voltage, ...
- 6,001
3
votes
Free tools for normalizing the volume within a single track
Audacity does normalising but it sounds like what you want is a peak limiter. Try the Yohng W1 Limiter, which is modelled a a well-known and (possibly overused) plug-in. It doesn't look all that, but ...
- 61
3
votes
Free tools for normalizing the volume within a single track
Normalisation only raises the overall volume uniformly (the soft parts will be louder, but so will the loud parts). What you're looking for is dynamic-range compression, and I think there's a plug-in ...
- 213
3
votes
Accepted
Best volume setting for audio capturing
Gain-staging without meters…
Turn your output device [in this case your phone] up gradually, turning down your listening levels as you do this to keep the sound comfortable.
If you start to hear ...
- 7,059
2
votes
Choosing a balance between soundtrack and voice
You could use a gate to try and remove as much of the background noise as possible. If the background noise is in the low frequencies, try low-cutting the commentary with an EQ or filter. Audacity ...
- 237
2
votes
Accepted
How can I get my direct input monitoring louder?
Thanks for your answers. This is what I ended up doing:
I found out you can buy a splitter for a mic (called an "isolation transformer", $40) which allows you to use two preamps (in other words it ...
- 161
2
votes
Compressor vs Volume
I'm honestly not sure what you are asking here. Compression does not increase the "volume" of a signal, it decreases it. Compression makes a quiet portion of the sounds louder relative to a louder ...
- 8,091
2
votes
Certain tracks have wacky volume on certain speakers?
This might be due to a phase problem,
With your headphones and speakers the audio source is still really near so you fully enjoy the space emulation without loosing level.
When you are far from your ...
- 1,095
2
votes
Accepted
Why are levels so different on popular music tracks I open in my wav editor?
Basically, you're right with all your points.
The level between different albums can indeed be dramatically different, depending on how agressively it was mastered. Records from the early days of CDs ...
- 6,001
2
votes
Accepted
Is there a function to randomize the volumes of a MIDI Clip on Ableton Live?
There is a “Velocity” MIDI effect in Ableton Live, with a patch called “Add some random.” Place this MIDI effect onto the channel that you want to randomize.
- 621
2
votes
Accepted
USB sound card not detecting Shure mic
Computer microphone inputs, both the built-in kind and the external USB kind, are designed to be used with relatively high-output electret condenser microphones. But that dynamic mic (Shure SV100) is ...
- 1,869
2
votes
Easy way to remove spikes for the audio of a video file?
Your first problem with mixing this is that you have the main dialogue source panned hard left. I suspect you have a lavalier or remote wireless mic on the left channel, and camera mic on the right. ...
- 8,454
2
votes
Accepted
Temporary increase in signal/sound level/volume?
This is partly a mic-technique issue for the person talking and singing - they need to be a lot closer to the microphone than they currently are. Vocal microphones such as SM58 are designed for hand-...
- 8,454
2
votes
Accepted
What unit can be used to define "loudness" across multiple programs?
The international consensus seems now established that loudness measure should be done according to ITU R BS.1770.
Algorithms to measure audio programme loudness and true-peak audio
level
It is ...
- 2,613
2
votes
Accepted
How can I eliminate sounds below a certain threshold?
I doubt you will get an acceptable result with a simple gate setup: while you may get rid of low volume breathing sounds, it will also chop away natural endings.
Noise reduction plugins with noise ...
- 3,702
2
votes
Percent volume increase to decibels
VLC's volume to dB curve is not linear. If you increased it from 100% to 110%, that is a change of +2.5 dB.
Source: I also wanted to know the dB for a given percent level, so I measured it:
- 1,873
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