AES E-Library

Loudness Descriptors to Characterize Programs and Music Tracks

We present a set of key numbers to summarize loudness properties of an audio segment, broadcast program or music track: the loudness descriptors. The computation of these descriptors is based on a measurement of loudness level, such as specified by the ITU-R BS.1770. Two fundamental loudness descriptors are introduced: Center of Gravity and Consistency. These two descriptors were computed for a collection of audio segments from various sources, media and formats. This evaluation demonstrates that the descriptors can robustly characterize essential properties of the segments. We propose three different applications of the descriptors: for diagnosing potential loudness problems in ingest material; as a means for performing a quality check, after processing/editing; or for use in a delivery specification.

Authors: Skovenborg, Esben; Lund, Thomas
Affiliations: TC Group Research; TC Electronic(See document for exact affiliation information.)
AES Convention:125 (October 2008) Paper Number:7514 Import into BibTeX
Subject:Analysis and Synthesis of Sound

Click to purchase paper or login as an AES member. If your company or school subscribes to the E-Library then switch to the institutional version. If you are not an AES member and would like to subscribe to the E-Library then Join the AES!

This paper costs $20 for non-members, $5 for AES members and is free for E-Library subscribers.

Learn more about the AES E-Library

E-Library Location: (CD 125Papers)   /125/7514.pdf

Start a discussion about this paper!