The importance of the Dynamic Range Database? Maximum score?

[christian u]

I have uploaded one of my favorite hi-res downloads to the Dynamic Range Data base;  http://dr.loudness-war.info/
It is the Batik album  ''The old Man and the Sea'' .
It had a maximum score of 19. The DRData base suggest that it is the last tune that has the maximum score.
You can hear a bit of it here :http://www.soundliaison.com/
 
I was looking a bit around on the Database and could not seem to find an album that had a higher score and very few that reached the 19  that ''The Old man and the Sea'' got.
An Old favorite of mine, Doug Macleod's ''There's a Time'' got 19 as well.( http://www.hdtracks.com/)
 Is there a piece of music that reaches 20? or is 20 not possible? and since so few albums comes close to the 19 that the Batik album got, is that because they all have been using compression even though they might claim other wise?
Or are they just playing less dynamic?
 
And which albums with a high score is your favorite?
 

http://www.soundliaison.com/
 

http://www.hdtracks.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=doug+macleod+there%27s+a+time

 

[SilverEars]

Hi, how is the dynamic range scored?  I've seen Audacity waveforms, and is it based on the loudest to the most quiet points?

 

[christian u]

I do not know but probably something like that.

 

[christian u]

Sonny Rollins; ''Way out West'' gets a 16 as best score.
 
While Keith Jarrett the Kóln consert ''only'' scores an 11. So I guess the Kóln album had a bit of compression on it.
I love the album but always found the sound problematic.
 

 

[Kheadfi]

Very interesting.
 
 
One of my favorite albums Cassandra Wilson's New Moon Daughter scores a 12 in the new remastered version but the old CD scores a 14 !
 
So they have applied more compression to the remaster or ?
very strange.    
 
                                                                          
 
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list?artist=Cassandra+wilson&album=New

 

[christian u]

Same goes for Miles Davis: Kind of Blue.
The 24/192 hi-res download has a maximum of 14 but the old 1986 CD scores a 16.
 
But really the hi-res download sounds fantastic,much better than the old CD, is it possible that the DR database has a problem with the HI-res files?
 

 

[Gozzer]

Audioholics used this track for a vinyl vs CD comparison.
 
If you fast forward to the 7:30 point, Gene explains that the Miles Davis Vinyl version had much more realistic Brass  than the digital version and suspects the dynamic compression had something to do with it.
 
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hh-23EUP-s8>

 

[icebear]

  Hi, how is the dynamic range scored?  I've seen Audacity waveforms, and is it based on the loudest to the most quiet points?

 
I would also like to know... What are the units in this 20 pt scale ? How does it translate into dbs ?
 

  I do not know but probably something like that.

LOL, you start a discussion and don't know the background about the topic.
I guess getting a detailed understanding is the first step to be able to make a judgement if this entire analytical tool makes any sense or not.
 
One thing is pretty clear, it is completely worthless to judge the artistic quality of a recording.
Just getting some data points doesn't mean these are meaningful.
Obviously the mastering process is always aimed at a specific application and not every music product is consumed in an ideal room via a high end audio equipment.

 

[Golfnutz]

Just leave Artist and Album blank and do Search to get the entire list. Then by clicking DR max you can sort (up or down based on the score).

 

[Gozzer]

   
I would also like to know... What are the units in this 20 pt scale ? How does it translate into dbs ?
 
LOL, you start a discussion and don't know the background about the topic.
I guess getting a detailed understanding is the first step to be able to make a judgement if this entire analytical tool makes any sense or not.
 
One thing is pretty clear, it is completely worthless to judge the artistic quality of a recording.
Just getting some data points doesn't mean these are meaningful.
Obviously the mastering process is always aimed at a specific application and not every music product is consumed in an ideal room via a high end audio equipment.

 
 The intention of the database is to compare the Dynamic Compression in recordings. The value applied is an approximation of the average softest to loudest peak.
Its not scientific but it works. It gives you a choice to select the version with higher dynamics, if an artist has more that one release of the same album.
 
I have noticed  that the new remastered versions or Best of releases often are have more Dynamic Compression than the original release.

 

[icebear]

... The value applied is an approximation of the average softest to loudest peak....

 
LOL, this sounds so fishy to me, I couldn't care less

.
 
If you listen to a Glenn Gould recording, there are the subtlest nuances.
He is breathing, his chair is famously creaking and there are moments of complete silence in between, all of that is important (for me) and nothing is average.
 
I don't see any relevance in these measurements. Max. dynamics is only one aspect of SQ and for me it is not the most important.
What's the purpose of dynamics so great that I can't listen at the same volume setting to just hear the subtlest part and the loudest part will blow my ears off ?

 

[gevorg]

IMHO, as long as the score is at least 10-12, then its good. Extremely high DR score close to 20 or above is not necessarily good. Depends on genre too.

Track #11 "Little Wing" in this album has a DR score of 20:



Track #8 "Duende y Compas; Bulerias" in this album has a DR score of 22:

 

[bfreedma]

I think the focus here has been on the wrong end of the scale.
 
My take on the Dynamic Compression database is to help identify recordings that are highly compressed and suffer because of it.  In my personal experience, anything over 10-12 or so sounds good enough that the compression applied doesn't negatively impact my listening experience.
 
Conversely, the recordings with scores below 6-7 are compressed to the point where it's noticeable to me.

 

[DonaldDraper]

Wow, are you guys really on a hi-fi site?  DR is of the UTMOST IMPORTANCE.   It is very useful for comparing different versions of the same song.  
 
Whether you use these DR database websites or do your own using the built-in tool in Foobar, should be your 1st priority if you are in any way serious about audio.
 

 Its not scientific but it works.

It works because it is scientific.  It is a mathematical algorithm.  Not someone's biased opinion.
 
This tool helps separate the good, the average and the compressed remastered snake oil (...like many albums on HDTracks).  

 

[Beyakusenn]

Originally Posted by christian u /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I was looking a bit around on the Database and could not seem to find an album that had a higher score and very few that reached the 19  that ''The Old man and the Sea'' got.
An Old favorite of mine, Doug Macleod's ''There's a Time'' got 19 as well.( http://www.hdtracks.com/)

Flim & the BB´s was the first band to use digital recording. Big Notes is an album from them that scores DR-19 (DRmin-14; DRmax-22). It's my favourite album from this band.

   Is there a piece of music that reaches 20? or is 20 not possible? and since so few albums comes close to the 19 that the Batik album got, is that because they all have been using compression even though they might claim other wise?

The second album from Flim & the BB´s - TriCycle displays the full dynamic range available in CD's. The song 'Thunder And Birdies' measures DR23.
 
There also exist Gold CD versions of the albums I mentioned and there is also a SACD reisssue of TriCycle. Those might have larger dynamic ranges, but I have honestly no idea.
(I just looked up what the gold versions cost. Prices usually start at €115 for new ones)