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Loudness (2007)

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Re: Loudness (2007)

#51

Post by taneq »

trevyn wrote: post #11
morecoffee wrote: post #4

Tangential, but for the longest time I couldn't figure out why VLC always played music / DVDs at such low volume. Setting the system volume to max and overdriving VLC's volume slider was the only way I could actually hear the soft parts. Recently I found out about the volume compressor, which with a single check box does exactly the right thing. I asked myself "why the heck isn't this box checked by default?" I think…

Movies generally have a wide dynamic range so that loud action scenes are very loud. You don't want your normal dialogue to be at the same volume as your explosions, unless you're watching at home with the volume down.

> unless you're watching at home with the volume down.

Is this not the most common scenario, though?

Super high dynamic range is great in a cinema but terrible if you're watching at home and want to hear the dialogue but also not wake the neighbourhood when it flicks to an action scene.

Re: Loudness (2007)

#52

Post by hammock »

mrspeaker wrote: post #10
morecoffee wrote: post #4

Tangential, but for the longest time I couldn't figure out why VLC always played music / DVDs at such low volume. Setting the system volume to max and overdriving VLC's volume slider was the only way I could actually hear the soft parts. Recently I found out about the volume compressor, which with a single check box does exactly the right thing. I asked myself "why the heck isn't this box checked by default?" I think…

I think the reason it's not on by default is that so much music is already compressed to insane levels that sounds terrible - double-y compressing things doubles the terribleness. I love music, but I wouldn't call myself an audiophile (heck, I'm listening out of my lappy's default sound card with cheap headphones) but in this case I totally agree with the audiophile's term "fatigue". Music that is over-compressed doe…

Actually if the music those crazy people were listening to was overcompressed, they'd be able to turn it up louder without distortion :)

Re: Loudness (2007)

#53

Post by em3rgent0rdr »

Fortunately many audio providers now have been fighting back against this. For instance YouTube will punish video uploads that are louder than -13 LUFS by attenuating the level. This will provide a somewhat level playing field and encourage people to upload with a reasonable dynamic range.

Re: Loudness (2007)

#54

Post by mtone »

taneq wrote: post #51
trevyn wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Movies generally have a wide dynamic range so that loud action scenes are very loud. You don't want your normal dialogue to be at the same volume as your explosions, unless you're watching at home with the volume down.

> unless you're watching at home with the volume down. Is this not the most common scenario, though? Super high dynamic range is great in a cinema but terrible if you're watching at home and want to hear the dialogue but also not wake the neighbourhood when it flicks to an action scene.

My upstair neighbour stopped banging on the floor when I started using reclock's dynamic audio compressor in MPC-HC.

It sometimes end up slightly unnatural, but it beats having to constantly change the volume throughout a movie - something I didn't do too well anyway, evidently.

I still prefer the media to have better dynamics and have control over how much compression I want to apply.

Re: Loudness (2007)

#55

Post by pizza »

Fice wrote: post #21
xkcd-sucks wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's easier to remove dynamic range on playback than to add it back in... don't many stereos have a "loudness" function which brickwalls the audio?

The "loudness" switch on stereo amplifiers is for loudness compensation [1], not compression. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_compensation

Shouldn't it be called quietness compensation, then? :P

Re: Loudness (2007)

#56

Post by triangleman »

ryandrake wrote: post #31
trevyn wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Movies generally have a wide dynamic range so that loud action scenes are very loud. You don't want your normal dialogue to be at the same volume as your explosions, unless you're watching at home with the volume down.

Much to the chagrin of people like my wife, who, during scenes with just dialog will remark, "I can't hear it, turn it up!" and then when the action starts, "Too loud!" I end up adjusting the volume up and down over and over throughout a 2-1/2 hour film. As much as I appreciate good dynamic range in recordings, I wish my sound system had a "constant loudness" function that I could just engage and put the remote down.

That is almost definitely related to the center channel being either too low, not existing, or some element of the sound setup mixing the center into the left and right.

I have the same problem and I have not fixed it yet because I have yet to purchase a sound system with a center channel.

Re: Loudness (2007)

#58

Post by hashmal »

em3rgent0rdr wrote: post #53

Fortunately many audio providers now have been fighting back against this. For instance YouTube will punish video uploads that are louder than -13 LUFS by attenuating the level. This will provide a somewhat level playing field and encourage people to upload with a reasonable dynamic range.

And some others are going full retard. Some streaming services actually add compression to everything…

Re: Loudness (2007)

#59

Post by hashmal »

chrismealy wrote: post #45

It's not just about volume. Tracks mastered with a ton of compression trick your brain into sounding louder than they really are, which is great for a song or two (or if you want pay people to pay attention to your tv commercial), but for listening to a whole album it wears you out. If you have an album you love but somehow never make it all the way through this is probably why. The perception of full volume gets you…

Not only it wears you out, but it can be dangerous, especially in clubs. The longer you listen to loud music (can be just a few minutes!), the more damage is done. Having music with a wide dynamic range helps to have an overall lower volume and preserve ears.

Re: Loudness (2007)

#60

Post by hashmal »

mortenjorck wrote: post #13

For practical listening, I actually prefer modern brickwall mastering techniques to more traditional mastering with a high dynamic range, for one reason: what the author sees as "hijacking the volume control from the listener" I would consider the opposite. With a high dynamic range, a headphones listener may feel the need to adjust the volume several times in a song to boost the clarity of softer sections or to make…

softer sections are an integral part of the music. what you're asking is like forcing movies to have all scenes with a constant luminosity no matter if it's day or night.

softer sections are actually an excellent way to make other sections bang like crazy, just because of contrast. the brickwall mastering techniques are an invitation to neglect composition techniques and overall creativity. the drumcode label comes to mind…

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