The solution is easy in theory:
Technically that's easy: the opposite to a compressor is an expander. It expands dynamic range instead of reducing it. Use one in your signal chain. I'd it's a digital one, you can even save presets for different styles and albums and stuff.
Unless you use the same attack decay times as was used when mastering youll usually end up with weird dynamics. And if the original was compressed more than once (like during mixing, quite probable) its almost impossible to expand it back properly.Technically that's easy: the opposite to a compressor is an expander. It expands dynamic range instead of reducing it. Use one in your signal chain. I'd it's a digital one, you can even save presets for different styles and albums and stuff.
If theres money at stake producers will find a way around it.
What the streaming platforms have already done. If the loudness of the recording (EBU R 128 dB LUFS measured over the entire track) is greater than their platform-wide max, e.g. -14 dB LUFS, then apply negative gain in the amount of the difference. The result makes the recordings that are pushed through brick-wall limiters to high levels sound quiet relative to tracks that retain their dynamics.
Yes, but note that R128 is a loudness scale--not really a dynamics scale. I will immediately acknowledge that the reason why dynamics are disappearing from produced music tracks is because the record company A&R executives think that "louder = better", so if you stop them making everything louder, then the dynamics won't suffer as a consequence. But note that R128 measures average loudness, while crest factor measures dynamic range (like the DR Database is showing). Those are actually two different things.
If it worked properly. Dont know about other streaming services but Spotify gives you the option to normalize volume (make all songs the same loudness). If people dot use nothing will change.
Isn't it turned on by default? I believe so.
I would change louder to more sales. Most producers can hear the difference but there getting hired and paid to increase sales. Dynamics reduction started with broadcasting over air (you could only broadcast so loud before you over modulated or destroyed a 20,000 watt tube) to very limited S/N systems. And these systems were where most people heard 98% of there new music, the car AM radio. It didnt take long for record companies to figure out that louder songs sold more and we where of to the races. They would even pay off radio DJs to turn up there songs. Heres some real old compressors.
Interesting. It has indeed gotten cheap enough to be used in inexpensive mixers/recorders such as the Zoom Livetrak L6 that records in 32bit float, and is indeed very convenient for the purpose - you can largely ignore input gain settings, within reason ofc. Or rather: not care about input levels. There is no gain setting in the traditional sense. Weird but practical!
Buy music on SACD when you can, hope others do the same, hope the industry asks “Why are SACD sales increasing, and hope they answer that question with the dynamics answer. It’s a long shot, but money talks. I have just recently dipped my toes in the the SACD market, and have been very happy with what I hear.
Only value I find in SACD is possibly a better end product in terms of mixing/mastering, but mostly just for multich options vs 2ch generally.
This is clearly a case of "one size fits all" thinking. It's a bit tiresome to have to keep pointing this out.
I think the music industry is starting to come around on this with the ATMOS releases, not "user controlled" (which I don't think will ever happen) but at least they are willing to release 2 versions with ATMOS being aimed at the "listen at home in a quiet environment" crowd.
