The "I obviously didn't know that" thread

[KevinS]

So, I've been around for a bit---not a long time---but...

Anyway, I didn't realize that one could jump right to 'normalize' in Replay Gain. I thought one had to analyze the recording first and then normalize.

[KevinS]

Maybe I should re-name this thread "Slow Learner."

[zachh]

You're light-years ahead of me. I don't even know what Replay Gain does, though I've seen its name in passing. All I have learned to use so far are Noise Reduction and Amplify.

[JayKitty76]

You're light-years ahead of me. I don't even know what Replay Gain does, though I've seen its name in passing. All I have learned to use so far are Noise Reduction and Amplify.

Oh but you recently joined LibriVox, you have an excuse! Here’s me, 2+ years on the forums and, Zach, I don’t know very much more than you Only with extensive tutoring by Twinkle88 did I figure out how to layer tracks. I have no idea whatsoever what Replay Gain does.

[ashleighjane]

Replay gain can set your recording to 89dB for you so that you don't have to worry about manually finding the correct volume. Or it can tell you how much you need to amplify by in order to get to 89dB

[JayKitty76]

Replay gain can set your recording to 89dB for you so that you don't have to worry about manually finding the correct volume. Or it can tell you how much you need to amplify by in order to get to 89dB

Thanks for telling me that, Ashleigh!
Is this a feature of Audacity (like already installed?) or do I need to update the program?

[ashleighjane]

You have to install it. Instructions on how to do so are here

[JayKitty76]

You have to install it. Instructions on how to do so are here

thank you! I’ll look into it

[mightyfelix]

You have to install it. Instructions on how to do so are here

thank you! I’ll look into it

Here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Measuring_Volume_within_Audacity

Note that if you have a loud spike in the recording, and you Normalize using ReplayGain, that spike could become clipped. I recommend using it to Analyze (that is, measure) your volume, and then use Amplify to adjust it, since that feature protects against clipping.

[JayKitty76]

You have to install it. Instructions on how to do so are here

thank you! I’ll look into it

Here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Measuring_Volume_within_Audacity

Note that if you have a loud spike in the recording, and you Normalize using ReplayGain, that spike could become clipped. I recommend using it to Analyze (that is, measure) your volume, and then use Amplify to adjust it, since that feature protects against clipping.

Thank you! Yeah, I always get pl notes saying I need to amplify more so this would definitely help.
What exactly is the difference between normalizing and de-amplifying, do you know? I think normalizing clips the audio, right?

[ashleighjane]

thank you! I’ll look into it

Here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Measuring_Volume_within_Audacity

Note that if you have a loud spike in the recording, and you Normalize using ReplayGain, that spike could become clipped. I recommend using it to Analyze (that is, measure) your volume, and then use Amplify to adjust it, since that feature protects against clipping.

Thank you! Yeah, I always get pl notes saying I need to amplify more so this would definitely help.
What exactly is the difference between normalizing and de-amplifying, do you know? I think normalizing clips the audio, right?

I'm not 100% sure whether it's the right thing to do but i always use the 'compressor' effect on my recordings before i make any edits to volume. By my understanding, doing so reduces the risk of clipping. (i...don't really understand much though, i just click buttons and hope they work )

[mightyfelix]

Here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Measuring_Volume_within_Audacity

Note that if you have a loud spike in the recording, and you Normalize using ReplayGain, that spike could become clipped. I recommend using it to Analyze (that is, measure) your volume, and then use Amplify to adjust it, since that feature protects against clipping.

Thank you! Yeah, I always get pl notes saying I need to amplify more so this would definitely help.
What exactly is the difference between normalizing and de-amplifying, do you know? I think normalizing clips the audio, right?

I'm not 100% sure whether it's the right thing to do but i always use the 'compressor' effect on my recordings before i make any edits to volume. By my understanding, doing so reduces the risk of clipping. (i...don't really understand much though, i just click buttons and hope they work )

That's more or less correct. It's not likely that you need to compress every time, though. Basically, if you have sections of audio that are much louder than the rest, then those sections can become clipped if you amplify. If you don't, then there's no need. What I do is:

1) Find out how much I need to amplify by using ReplayGain's Analyze function.
2) Attempt to amplify by that amount.

IF I can't amplify without clipping, I will either:

3a) Use the compressor, which makes those louder parts softer while leaving the quieter parts alone, or
3b) If there's only one loud spot, and they're not scattered throughout the recording, I will de-amplify that spot manually.

Then:

4) Attempt to amplify again, and this time it should work without clipping!

[mightyfelix]

thank you! I’ll look into it

Here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Measuring_Volume_within_Audacity

Note that if you have a loud spike in the recording, and you Normalize using ReplayGain, that spike could become clipped. I recommend using it to Analyze (that is, measure) your volume, and then use Amplify to adjust it, since that feature protects against clipping.

Thank you! Yeah, I always get pl notes saying I need to amplify more so this would definitely help.
What exactly is the difference between normalizing and de-amplifying, do you know? I think normalizing clips the audio, right?

Normalizing can clip the audio. It doesn't always. But there's always a risk, since it doesn't protect against clipping like Amplify does (as long as you keep the "Allow clipping" box unchecked, as you always should).

[JayKitty76]

Thanks, you guys! This is really helping me understand the process.