1-Minute Test

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » October 3rd, 2023, 10:05 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/kitty/Hardwave.mp3

sjmarky · Post by **sjmarky** » October 4th, 2023, 10:10 am

Welcome Patrick

I reviewed your test sample, and there are some technical changes needed. LibriVox requires audio that is 128kbps constant bit rate, 44.1kHz sample rate, mono, and between 86db and 92db, preferably 89-90. Your test audio is 320kbps, stereo, and volume too high at 93.6db. There is also too much room echo, and excessive background noise.

Make sure the the input gain slider in Audacity (upper right with the little mic icon) is well to the right. Then adjust the input gain on your mic so your raw recording has wave forms that peak at about the 0.5 marks in the Audacity window:

If necessary, adjust the volume level before exporting by going to Effects>Amplify.

You can find advice on improving issues like room echo in the Librivox wiki:
https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Improve_Your_Recording

Try to isolate your mic from the noise, such as computer fan. If that isn’t entirely successful, use Audacity’s Noise Removal filter to reduce the background noise about 10db. Noise removal instructions are available here: https://wiki.librivox.org/index.php?title=Noise_Cleaning. A video tutorial on Audacity noise removal is available here: https://youtu.be/rvhqw7zBmEo

When exporting your MP3 from Audacity, be sure to check Bit Rate Mode - Constant, then select 128kb from the pull-down menu, and check Force Export to Mono.

You can pre-check your audio yourself by downloading the free Checker app: https://cgjennings.ca/projects/checker/
Passed with Warnings is a fail with regard to volume.
Go to Validation>Choose Validation Methods and check Background Noise. Be sure to leave 5 seconds blank at the end of your recording. While not critical for a test recording, you will be expected to edit reading errors and extraneous noises like mouse clicks from your submitted work.

Please make a new test recording and post it in a reply to this message. Upload to the folder "tests." I will come back and review it for you.

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » November 15th, 2023, 3:54 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/libriboxtest.mp3

InTheDesert · Post by **InTheDesert** » November 15th, 2023, 4:21 pm

pbhressays wrote: ↑November 15th, 2023, 3:54 pm https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/libriboxtest.mp3

1 Minute Test Feedback:

Welcome to Librivox and thanks for posting your test file. We look forward to you joining the community!

Reading Feedback:
You have a bright, warm voice.

Technical Feedback:

00:00 The volume of this track is 72.47dB. LV requires the overall volume for the track (measured by ReplayGain - you can try this tool if you want to check the volume) to be between 86-92dB (with 89dB being the ideal). The easiest way to fix this automatically is to use the 'Loudness Normalization' effect (set to -19LUFS in 'perceived loudness' mode) in recent versions of Audacity before exporting the track as an MP3. If you use RMS normalization, set it to -21dB. Another way to fix it would be to use the Amplify effect set to 17dB. Since the volume is so low, amplifying it sufficiently would increase the background noise a lot. Did you accidentally have the microphone slider lower than intended or were you further from the microphone than you should be?
00:00 Librivox needs mp3 files with a constant bitrate of 128kbps. This file is 63kbps. Since that is not one of the standard mp3 bitrates, you probably selected 'variable' rather than 'constant' bitrate.

Once you've tweaked these settings, upload the file again using the same filename (uploading to the same filename is important when you are submitting Librivox files) and post in the thread and I'll check it for you again!

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » February 5th, 2024, 6:58 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/untitled.mp3

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » February 5th, 2024, 7:03 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/libriboxtest.mp3

InTheDesert · Post by **InTheDesert** » February 5th, 2024, 8:13 pm

pbhressays wrote: ↑February 5th, 2024, 7:03 pm https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/libriboxtest.mp3

Technical Feedback:

00:00 The volume of this track is 72.47dB. LV requires the overall volume for the track (measured by ReplayGain - you can try this tool if you want to check the volume) to be between 86-92dB (with 89dB being the ideal). The easiest way to fix this automatically is to use the 'Loudness Normalization' effect (set to -19LUFS in 'perceived loudness' mode) in recent versions of Audacity before exporting the track as an MP3. If you use RMS normalization, set it to -21dB. Another way to fix it would be to use the Amplify effect set to 17dB. Since the volume is so low, amplifying it sufficiently would increase the background noise a lot. Did you accidentally have the microphone slider lower than intended or were you further from the microphone than you should be?
00:00 Librivox needs mp3 files with a constant bitrate of 128kbps. This file is 63kbps. Since that is not one of the standard mp3 bitrates, you probably selected 'variable' rather than 'constant' bitrate.

Once you've tweaked these settings, upload the file again using the same filename (uploading to the same filename is important when you are submitting Librivox files) and post in the thread and I'll check it for you again!

InTheDesert · Post by **InTheDesert** » February 5th, 2024, 8:18 pm

pbhressays wrote: ↑February 5th, 2024, 6:58 pm https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/untitled.mp3

1 Minute Test Feedback:

Welcome to Librivox Patrick and thanks for posting your test file. We look forward to you joining the community!

Reading Feedback:
You have a clear, powerful voice.

Technical Feedback:

00:00 The volume of this track is 96.67dB. LV requires the overall volume for the track (measured by ReplayGain - you can try this tool if you want to check the volume) to be between 86-92dB (with 89dB being the ideal). The easiest way to fix this automatically is to use the 'Loudness Normalization' effect (set to -19LUFS in 'perceived loudness' mode) in recent versions of Audacity before exporting the track as an MP3. If you use RMS normalization, set it to -21dB. Another way to fix it would be to use the Amplify effect set to -8dB.
00:00 Librivox needs mp3 files with a constant bitrate of 128kbps. This file is 98kbps. Since that is not one of the standard mp3 bitrates, you probably selected 'variable' rather than 'constant' bitrate.
00:00 Note (no change needed): This file contains some clipping. This is where the maximum possible volume is exceeded (possibly because you were too close to your microphone but possibly because the 'gain' for the channel in Audacity was pulled up above 0.0). It can't be changed after recording (unless it was caused by the Audacity gain problem) though a compressor might make it less noticeable.

Once you've tweaked these settings, upload the file again using the same filename (uploading to the same filename is important when you are submitting Librivox files) and post in the thread and I'll check it for you again!

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » March 6th, 2024, 4:36 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/test.mp3

InTheDesert · Post by **InTheDesert** » March 6th, 2024, 7:23 pm

pbhressays wrote: ↑March 6th, 2024, 4:36 pm https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/test.mp3

Technical Feedback:

00:00 Note (no change needed): The volume of this track is 86.58dB. LV requires the overall volume for the track (measured by ReplayGain - you can try this tool if you want to check the volume) to be between 86-92dB (with 89dB being the ideal). The file falls within the outer ends of that range and so doesn't need to be changed but watch that it doesn't end up outside the range. The easiest way to automatically set the volume is to use the 'Loudness Normalization' effect (set to -19LUFS in 'perceived loudness' mode) in recent versions of Audacity before exporting the track as an MP3. If you use RMS normalization, set it to -21dB. Another way would be to use the Amplify effect set to 2dB.
00:00 Librivox needs mp3 files with a constant bitrate of 128kbps. This file is 48kbps.

Once you've tweaked these settings, upload the file again using the same filename (uploading to the same filename is important when you are submitting Librivox files) and post in the thread and I'll check it for you again!

pbhressays · Post by **pbhressays** » March 6th, 2024, 7:53 pm

https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/test(1).mp3

InTheDesert · Post by **InTheDesert** » March 6th, 2024, 10:06 pm

pbhressays wrote: ↑March 6th, 2024, 7:53 pm https://librivox.org/uploads/tests/test(1).mp3

I double checked this with another program to make sure it's not my software playing up and the bitrate is indeed still variable rather than constant. What software are you using?

Technical Feedback:

00:00 Note (no change needed): The volume of this track is 86.62dB. LV requires the overall volume for the track (measured by ReplayGain - you can try this tool if you want to check the volume) to be between 86-92dB (with 89dB being the ideal). The file falls within the outer ends of that range and so doesn't need to be changed but watch that it doesn't end up outside the range. The easiest way to automatically set the volume is to use the 'Loudness Normalization' effect (set to -19LUFS in 'perceived loudness' mode) in recent versions of Audacity before exporting the track as an MP3. If you use RMS normalization, set it to -21dB. Another way would be to use the Amplify effect set to 2dB.
00:00 Librivox needs mp3 files with a constant bitrate of 128kbps. This file is 126kbps. Since that is not one of the standard mp3 bitrates, you probably selected 'variable' rather than 'constant' bitrate.

Once you've tweaked these settings, upload the file again using the same filename (uploading to the same filename is important when you are submitting Librivox files) and post in the thread and I'll check it for you again!