San Diego, California, USA
| StoreTags: dynamic range, loundness
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A little mini-rant/blog/article prompted by this: link
So we all know that most people prefer loud music. It grabs your attention. To many, it just sounds better. Some argue that this is because at louder volumes our ears act as natural compressors, smoothing out and sweetening what then becomes a better perceived sound. Others argue that loud music grabs your attention. Compared with softer music, loud music seems "hot."
To try it, show a friend two recordings, both identical except in one a limiter boosts the signal (dynamic range) by a few db. Now ask them which "mix" sounded better. They'll pick the boosted one every time. That's because the average volume is a bit higher - at the expense of the differences between your audio peaks and valleys. (Most producers know that to accurately compare two mixes your unprocessed mix must be gain-boosted to match the perceived loudness of your processed mix.)
Troll any music message board and the number one question is always, "How can I get my music as loud as a commercial CD?" The answer is to limit the hell out of it so that the average volume is only 3-6db under the track's peak. And while most tracks do require a bit of compression and limiting, these days every new CD is trying to one-up the competition.
But why?
It's an audio arms race. Louder music jumps out at the listener. We've been bred by decades of producers and major label producers that we need loud music. They're trying to sell more CDs and make more money, and we're eating it up. And to compete, most artists and producers jump into the game.
So what changed in the last 30 years?
The audio medium. Records have tangible limits on the loudness of music - louder tracks required larger grooves, which cut down on the length of a side. Bass frequencies were also problematic.
Fast forward to the days of digital audio and the limits are gone. Want a track with an average db level of -1. You got it. And in 10 years your recording might just be able to compete with the latest and greatest club anthem. | |
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08/24/07
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Roshi
08/24/07
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jdg
i've got military grade weapons, i came to drop bombs on your moms
08/24/07
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stringedthry
Good links, Roshi. I think this issue comes up so often because it's a big one.
jdg, I agree with you completely: "Tru loudness is best left to the amplification stage, not to the transport stage."
08/24/07
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mechp
I personally hypothesize that the proliferation of ipods and listening to music out on the street/bus/car/work on crappy ear buds with no noise reduction has more to do with why pop producers are blasting their mixes than anything else...but hey, it could be an "arms race", maybe sony will stage the first record produced on the moon to put this all to rest.
08/24/07
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Roshi
I've tried to listen to music on ipod earbuds.
God they are terrible.
This is my theory why boxy sounding "dancepunk" is popular - it emphasizes the freqs that you can hear through these stupid things.
08/24/07
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Spark
squarewave it
08/24/07
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dach
I dont think it's anything to worry about really. Pretty soon, people will come to realize that shitty sound sounds shitty. With everything just compressed to mush and mangled through tiny speakers, it can be a shock to go to some classical concert or choir and get a taste of real dynamics.
08/24/07
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stringedthry
mechp: that's the argument in the linked article - music listening in cars and mass transit has made matters even worse. most people don't want dynamics there as it makes the softer parts unlistenable with all that background noise. but while it certainly adds to the problem, i don't think it's the cause. they've been pushing the limits well before today's mass transit listening habits.
roshi: i agree with the earbuds. most people really have no idea what a good pair of headphones sound like. you'll also find crappy sound setups on most people's computers, which is another place where people are listening to a lot of music these days.
08/24/07
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airliner
I'm gonna release an album full of 0dBFS square wave tones and put an end to the loudness wars once and for all.
08/24/07
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jdg
i've exploited intersample clipping and actually made an ablum that is constant overs.
0dBFS.. try +3dBFS. i have destroyed physics!
08/24/07
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madeofoak
physics is for suckers anyways.
08/24/07
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jdg
this is a fact!
08/24/07
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airliner
You should patent that technique and license it to the RIAA.
08/25/07
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skab
let's start a quietness war
08/25/07
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Fredo
I'm up for that.
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