Sound volume -Sound Forge - PC - MAGIX Community Forums Archive

Subject:Sound volume Posted by: jimmyy2krb Date:6/22/2001 7:56:12 AM Hello, I have 26 tracks saved as .wav files. When I listen to each track the volume levels are different. Is there a technique to set all 26 tracks to the same volume level. I'm using Sound Forge XP 4.5. Thank you, Rich
Subject:RE: Sound volume Reply by: Maestro Date:6/23/2001 9:29:52 PM You have to normalize all of your tracks. With SF 4.5XP, the easiest way to do this is just to open all of your tracks (in direct mode), for each file select Process\|Normalize, and I typically set all of my tracks to 98%. As an alternative, you can get the Sonic Foundry Batch Processor and automate the process. Unless you're doing this all of the time though, it's probably not worth the cost. Maestro
Subject:RE: Sound volume Reply by: Rednroll Date:6/24/2001 7:00:53 PM Normalizing is a good suggestion, but probably won't work. The easiest way to do this is to pick out the quitest song and then reduce the volume on all the other tracks to match that level. The human ear perceives loudness as an average level. This is exactly how a VU meter works and why audio mastering engineers use VU meters to do mastering. Most of todays equipment don't have VU meters, they have peak meters. If you normalize 2 songs to your 98% like you suggest, then both songs will read the same on a peak meter. If you look at both songs on a VU meter, they probably won't read the same and thus one sounds louder than the other. I gave sonic foundry a suggestion that they include a software VU meter option with SF 5.0, because sound forge was originally a mastering tool. If you've ever used Steinberg's Wavelab, you will notice that it has this feature. The difference is that Wavelab is trying to go after the professional user, while Sonic Foundry is going after the consumer user. I still use sound forge, but I have to use an external VU meter when doing mastering and matching levels. Sorry for the lengthy explanation, hope this helps, Brian Franz The Groove Factory Mastering
Subject:RE: Sound volume Reply by: dbarry Date:6/24/2001 9:54:00 PM My version 4.5 of Sound Forge allows peak or RMS wtih variable compression on normalize. This should work just fine, we do it all the time.....
Subject:RE: Sound volume Reply by: beetlefan Date:6/25/2001 4:17:02 AM Correct. SF 5.x also allows for RMS normalization mathmatically, automatically, so there's no need for guess work with meters. So much for SF being for just consumers. So many pros are so used to analog that they must have their software emulate it.

Subject:Sound volume

Posted by: jimmyy2krb

Date:6/22/2001 7:56:12 AM

Hello,
I have 26 tracks saved as .wav files. When I listen to each track the volume levels are different. Is there a technique to set all 26 tracks to the same volume level. I'm using Sound Forge XP 4.5.
Thank you,
Rich

Subject:RE: Sound volume

Reply by: Maestro

Date:6/23/2001 9:29:52 PM

You have to normalize all of your tracks. With SF 4.5XP, the easiest way to do this is just to open all of your tracks (in direct mode), for each file select Process|Normalize, and I typically set all of my tracks to 98%.

As an alternative, you can get the Sonic Foundry Batch Processor and automate the process. Unless you're doing this all of the time though, it's probably not worth the cost.

Maestro

Subject:RE: Sound volume

Reply by: Rednroll

Date:6/24/2001 7:00:53 PM

Normalizing is a good suggestion, but probably won't work. The easiest way to do this is to pick out the quitest song and then reduce the volume on all the other tracks to match that level.

The human ear perceives loudness as an average level. This is exactly how a VU meter works and why audio mastering engineers use VU meters to do mastering. Most of todays equipment don't have VU meters, they have peak meters. If you normalize 2 songs to your 98% like you suggest, then both songs will read the same on a peak meter. If you look at both songs on a VU meter, they probably won't read the same and thus one sounds louder than the other.

I gave sonic foundry a suggestion that they include a software VU meter option with SF 5.0, because sound forge was originally a mastering tool. If you've ever used Steinberg's Wavelab, you will notice that it has this feature. The difference is that Wavelab is trying to go after the professional user, while Sonic Foundry is going after the consumer user. I still use sound forge, but I have to use an external VU meter when doing mastering and matching levels.

Sorry for the lengthy explanation,
hope this helps,
Brian Franz
The Groove Factory Mastering

Subject:RE: Sound volume

Reply by: dbarry

Date:6/24/2001 9:54:00 PM

My version 4.5 of Sound Forge allows peak or RMS wtih variable compression on normalize. This should work just fine, we do it all the time.....

Subject:RE: Sound volume

Reply by: beetlefan

Date:6/25/2001 4:17:02 AM

Correct. SF 5.x also allows for RMS normalization mathmatically, automatically, so there's no need for guess work with meters. So much for SF being for just consumers. So many pros are so used to analog that they must have their software emulate it.