MeldaProduction

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Thu Jan 17, 2019 6:11 am

I understand that all mixes need to be normalized to -16 LUFS, and how this can easily be done with MLoudness Analyzer. But what yields the best mix? Meaning, is it best to aim for 0db FS, and then normalize it to -16 LUFS? Or is it best to aim for -16 LUFS to begin with? The standards are changing, just when I got used to going for 0db FS on the master. Does it matter (as long as there's no clipping)?
I also get that the "loudness wars" got out of hand, and the new standards address this problem. However, I don't want to wind up with something that sounds way quiet...that never impresses!

Tagirijus · Post by **Tagirijus** » Thu Jan 17, 2019 11:36 am

I think in the end it may become a matter of taste. Imagine mixing as loud as possible and bringing the whole mastering down to -16 LUFS maybe you will have less dynamics than directly aiming for -16 LUFS then? Just some quick thoughts from me. As Vojtech often times wrote already: best thing would be to just use the ears anyway, hehe.

mibby · Post by **mibby** » Thu Jan 17, 2019 2:23 pm

1. Make a copy of your mixdown because MLoudnessAnaylzer will overwrite the file it is analyzing. It will also convert it to a WAV file if it is an MP3, so you might as well render a WAV file.
2. Set MLoudnessAnalyzer to -16 Target.
3. Click on the "Batch Processing" or "WAV" button and browse to your copy of the mixdown - or just drag it onto the UI. It will analyze your file and tell you the amount of gain it adjusted your mix to get to your Target LUFS.

From the help:

Batch auto-gain button lets you batch process files and make the integrated loudness match the specified Target. You can either click the button and select a file to process, or drag & drop any set of files onto the button. Note that despite the plugin can read several audio file formats, it will always output WAV files.

NOTE: If the MLoudness Analyzer raises the gain on your mixdown, render your mix again and adjust the Gain by the amount it tells you, paying careful attention that you do not start clipping as a result!

...Just another awesome feature of in one these plugins.

PS. Here's an online loudness analyzer from Youlean.
https://youlean.co/online-loudness-meter/

Tagirijus · Post by **Tagirijus** » Thu Jan 17, 2019 2:45 pm

I do not think this was the question from the OP.

sirmonkey wrote: ↑Thu Jan 17, 2019 6:11 am I understand that all mixes need to be normalized to -16 LUFS, and how this can easily be done with MLoudness Analyzer. (...)

mibby · Post by **mibby** » Thu Jan 17, 2019 2:59 pm

Ah yes, NORMALIZED... So sorry! I think the previous contests asked for a Loudness Level of -16 LUFS, which is why I went straight there.

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Fri Jan 18, 2019 12:30 am

Thanks for replies everyone!
From watching a few videos on the new metering systems/loudness standards, I will probably try to get my mix to -16 LUFS to -14 LUFS before normalizing. From what I take from Youtube videos (from various places), it's no big deal if the mix gets turned down a few db's. It sounds like the mix can change in sound if it is too far below the target (not that I want to be very far above, either). So I'll just see how it goes. It's all a learning process, and I might as well get used to the new meters anyway.

* Good point about how batch processing will overwrite the file. I will definitely make a copy of the mixdown. And since the point was brought up, wouldn't it make more sense for MLoudness analyzer to make another copy, instead of overwriting the original?

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Thu Jan 24, 2019 1:32 am

I submitted my song for the contest, normalized to -16LUFS as required. I had the mix at about -15 LUFS prior to normalizing with MLoudness Analyzer. When I used the Batch Auto Gain function, it said that clipping had occurred. I kept turning down my mix until it didn't clip any more. But now it's way soft compared to the other submissions!
So I didn't do something right. *I am used to using a limiter while using dbfs, but I'm lost when trying to limit using LUFS. I tried using MLimiterMB, but I ran out of time to experiment with it. Is MLimiter suitable when trying to aim for a certain level in LUFS? Any pointers on this would be appreciated!

mibby · Post by **mibby** » Thu Jan 24, 2019 2:44 am

-- DELETED -- Sorry, off-topic. Again.

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 1:12 am

Thanks to those who posted trying to help me.
My submission was not accepted for some reason.

I give up.

MeldaProduction · Post by **MeldaProduction** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 1:34 pm

Mibby says it all:

mibby wrote: ↑Thu Jan 17, 2019 2:23 pm 1. Make a copy of your mixdown because MLoudnessAnaylzer will overwrite the file it is analyzing. It will also convert it to a WAV file if it is an MP3, so you might as well render a WAV file.
2. Set MLoudnessAnalyzer to -16 Target.
3. Click on the "Batch Processing" or "WAV" button and browse to your copy of the mixdown - or just drag it onto the UI. It will analyze your file and tell you the amount of gain it adjusted your mix to get to your Target LUFS.

sirmonkey: Which were you? There are a few I didn't pass, because there didn't seem to be anything (or at least anything interesting) in the drums, this was about Studio 2018 after all

. Anyways at the end this contest kinda ended as a "festival of bizzare"

mibby · Post by **mibby** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 1:38 pm

His was one of my initial "top 3" that I was going to vote on after a quick listen through the entries. I'll PM you in case he doesn't want his name "out there".

MeldaProduction · Post by **MeldaProduction** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 2:56 pm

Okey dokey

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 4:31 pm

I will login in to my Melda account and use the contact page. Although you have explained that this was about MDrummer, I took the description to mean that the contest was about Melda plugins in general, AND MDrummer. Part of the description: "Acoustic drums and percussion from Studio 2018 pack only. Then you can record guitars, vocals, bass... whatever you need....."
I used MDrummer, a bass guitar, and 8 instances of MPowerSynth. Maybe I didn't use the right drummer pack? Maybe I didn't normalize it properly? Anyway, I will contact you through the Melda site with the e-mail that I use for Melda Productions.
* I am paying attention to the "no whining" rule! I really do respect the rules. But if I messed up on something, that's O.K. I just want to figure out some details about where I went wrong.
Thanks for revisiting!

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Mon Jan 28, 2019 2:04 am

Yay! Song appears in the voting now! Thanks guys for including it.
Although my mix is really too quiet, hopefully some listeners will turn it up and give it a listen.
Now I need to learn about how to use the normalize/batch processing function in MLoudnessMeter. That's one place that I think that I messed up. I doubt that it's hard to use...I followed a gif animation (that's somewhere here in the forum) but I initially got clipping.
Any chance of a quick tutorial that gives us an idea on how to mix & process everything to hit a certain target in the LUF scale?
In any event, thanks for including my song!

sirmonkey · Post by **sirmonkey** » Mon Jan 28, 2019 3:18 am

mibby wrote: ↑Sun Jan 27, 2019 1:38 pm His was one of my initial "top 3" that I was going to vote on after a quick listen through the entries. I'll PM you in case he doesn't want his name "out there".

Thanks mibby! Much appreciated....even if i don't win anything, I still have that sense of something I put together being enjoyed by someone... which is really the main point!

MeldaProduction

KVR Audio

Mix Contest: One more question (about -16 LUFS level requirement)