Production Sound (Gain Staging)

[Mannie Bothans]

Maybe it's my speakers and my ears, because I can't hear the difference at https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/type/www...e-present.html either.

[Mannie Bothans]

This looks interesting: http://www.avisoft.com/recordertests.htm (as does this: http://www.avisoft.com/test/noisefloors.pdf ).

Not quite sure I understand what it all means, but it looks like it could be helpful anyway.

[harmonica44]

What is 'normalization'?

[rocksure]

Originally Posted by harmonica44

What is 'normalization'?

Most DAW's have a normalization algorithm. If you use these to process your audio they boost the volume of the processed audio until the peaks are at (or just below) 0dBFS. That leaves no room for EQ or other processing. Don't do it. Y knot u may arkx? Well for a start, if you were to blend 2 or more normailized tracks when doing a mixdown of audio, if the audio on each one happened to peak at or even close to 0dBFS simiultaneously, you will clip your master buss. Result= digital distortion. Sound =yuk! That's just one reason not to normailize in the traditional sense.....and there are others too that are related to EQ, compression etc.
However, you could normalize at a much lower level if you really wanted to and be safe. To do that however, you would have to change the standard settings usually found in a normalization preset.