How Bad are Modern Recordings Getting? - Page 3

MP3gain is your friend. I won't even listen to any of my albums without running them through MP3gain first.

MP3 gain does nothing to fix distortion or brickwalled recordings.

Yeah, it only adjusts the volume gain -- it's the same thing as having the volume knob automatically turn depending on which song is playing or something. If there are no dynamics in the master itself, it can't do anything for that. The sound has already been mixed that way and you can't really fix it with processing after the fact. (Only sort of attempt to simulate it a bit.)

Also, you should only use MP3Gain when you have to. Unfortunately, adoption of ReplayGain outside of PC audio players is pretty bad, so you do probably have to use it for portable devices, games, and etc, but if you're talking about PC audio players, you shouldn't be using it. It does actually physically modify the gain values inside the MP3 file itself, so it's actually modifying the audio file in a semi-permanent manner (it saves tags with undo data, but you have to be careful as something can overwrite or remove those tags.)

BTW, on that note, PowerAMP on the Android platform has just added ReplayGain support in with the new major version update a while back.

My only audio device is a portable device, so I pretty much have to use it. I understand that it doesn't fix bad recordings, but it helps.

How does it help? The point is just to keep the volume somewhat regular and prevent any clipping from it trying to play louder than it can. Mostly it's just so you don't have to constantly change the volume between albums and even tracks. It doesn't help with the lack of dynamics at all as it has absolutely no effect on dynamic range.

Then explain why I'm getting clipping, regardless of volume, when I don't use it? It's particularly noticeable in my car when I play from my DAP.

what about those fancy remastering e.g. k2 mastering by Sony - marked as audiophile standard - and remasetered from the masters - do these have less compression/more dynamic range than the standard mass produced CD version?

 

This helps with clipping, yes. All I'm saying is that it won't fix the lack of dynamic range. Volume and loudness are two completely different things in this context. (Consider this to be RMS versus peak for simplicity's sake. Think of "loudness" as "RMS" and "peak" as "volume." Well, things like ReplayGain and thus MP3Gain by extension actually use a bit more than just RMS, actually calculating based on our hearing purportedly -- I have no idea of the exact algorithms -- but it's more like RMS than anything else.)
Edited by Nazo - 11/22/11 at 6:30am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Xwj4uETdnY

 

This was released on a 1998 CD, it has about 16 dB of dynamic range. One of the best-recorded pieces of electronic music I ever heard (YouTube won't do it justice.) The more DR, the closer the music sounds to a live act. At a live concert you will probably be facing differences of around 60 dB or more.

 

I can actually use 100% of my digital volume to listen to this song and retain full bit-depth and SNR...

 

And if I want it louder...

 

I have 36 dB more on the gain knob of my 140W speakers...

 

Stupid-a** deluded recording industry pricks.

 

Today's music has 6 dBFS (if you're lucky) and most of the time less. To hell with that, I won't listen to that ****. <8 dB = you're out. Might as well record white noise.

 

 

P.S. I'm listening to the first NIN album, Pretty Hate Machine. It sounds so much better than any of the stuff Trent made later that it's just sad. The vocals in the middle, the synths have their own space, the bass is down there, everything sounds really natural. "Official DR value: DR13" - ahh, no wonder. Seriously, this stuff is made so well, everything recent just sounds awful after this.

Edited by WrxSTI - 11/22/11 at 4:45pm