I have a macOS Sierra Version 10.12.6. I’m using Audacity 2.3.2. So I’ve made some Audacity recordings and exported them as “WAV (Microsoft) Signed 16-bit PCM.” In each case there is a noticeable loss of volume in the exported file.
Does this loss of volume mean a loss of fidelity/sound quality? If so, would it be better to select WAV Microsoft 24-bit or 32-bit, which are available options? Or would better quality be obtained through AIFF (Apple) 16 Bit PCM? I chose Microsoft over Apple because I wanted to send some files to people who don’t have Macs.
Any help on this matter would be appreciated. Thanks.
Exactly what are you doing and how are you comparing the volume?
If you open a file in Audacity and then export (to any format) without doing anything, the volume won’t change unless the file goes over 0dB.
Some file formats can go over 0dB, but “regular” (integer) WAV files will [u]clip[/u] if you “try” to go over 0dB. But with clipping, usually you hear the distortion before you hear any loss of volume and the clipped/distorted file will often sound louder to the human ear.
(In general, your “final production” should not go over 0dB because the listener’s DAC will clip if they play-back at “full digital volume”.)
Thanks for the reply. The files I listened to are all have a project rate of 44,100 HZ. These files often do go to 0db and beyond (the red lines pop up). I was recording a tape deck through a Zoom U22 interface. This interface doesn’t allow adjustments to gain, at least for what I was doing.
As for the volume comparison, I was using my computer’s speakers. With the volume set to .50 on Audacity, it’s about the same volume as the WAV file cranked up to full volume on iTunes. There’s no audible distortion in the WAV files.
Maybe I’m mistaken about the volume issue. Is it a matter of iTunes just not having the same “volume capacity” as Audacity?
With the volume set to .50 on Audacity, it’s about the same volume as the WAV file cranked up to full volume on iTunes. There’s no audible distortion in the WAV files.
Maybe I’m mistaken about the volume issue. Is it a matter of iTunes just not having the same “volume capacity” as Audacity?
Do you have [u]iTunes Sound Check[/u] enabled? (I can’t remember it it’s enabled by default).
Sound Check, or ReplayGain, or any other volume-matching tool will reduce the volume of most songs because most songs/files are already normalized/maximized, including quiet_-sounding_ songs that can’t be boosted without clipping.
I just checked and I don’t have the Sound Check enabled in iTunes. Given that my recordings often match or exceed 0db, is there a better way to export these files?
I just checked and I don’t have the Sound Check enabled in iTunes. Given that my recordings often match or exceed 0db, is there a better way to export these files?
If it’s not Sound Check I don’t know why they play louder on Audacity than iTunes…
If the peaks are already hitting 0dB and you don’t want added distortion you’ll have to use compression or limiting (with make-up gain) to bring-up the loudness. That’s how the professionals “win” the [u]Loudness War[/u]. If you are not using compression your files won’t be as loud as most modern professional music releases.
This will of course, reduce the dynamic contrast which you may, or may not like. Compression is a little tricky because there are quite a few settings to choose from (and there are no easy-universal presets) and different compressors operate differently. Limiting (a kind of fast-compression) is a little easier. The Audacity “Hard Limit” setting seems to work very-well without distorting the waveform (it’s not hard-clipping or soft-clipping). Overall, you probably won’t get your recording as loud as a modern “over-compressed” recording without excessive “damage”, but you should be able to make some difference.
Thanks for the info, I’ll probably just stick to the normal WAV files.
One more question: Let’s say I have an existing Audacity file saved to my hard drive. I then save the project (as an Aup file) to a flash drive using “Save Project As.”
Now let’s say I save the project to a flash drive using “Save Lossless Copy of Project.” Would the sound quality be the same as using “Save Project As”?
Now let’s say I save the project to a flash drive using “Save Lossless Copy of Project.” Would the sound quality be the same as using “Save Project As”?
The quality is the same. The “copy” is like an extra backup in a different folder with a different name. It’s explained [u]here[/u]
Thanks. . .I found some Audacity files that I recorded that don’t go beyond 0db. It turns out that these files also have volume loss after being exported to iTunes as 16 bit Wav files. So the issue has nothing to do with clipping. Also, I exported one file as a 32-bit float Wav file, and this too had the same volume loss in iTunes. This is just for informational purposes, I’m fine with the volume loss.
. . .Speaking of 32-bit float WAV files (which I like because they don’t result in clipping in files that go beyond 0db), I’ve found that I can play them both in iTunes and the Windows audio player (I’m not sure what it’s called) on my HP laptop. Is this the real deal or are these programs playing a “lesser” version of the 32-bit float WAV files?