AES Rome 2013
Loudness Day Event Details
Sunday, May 5, 09:00 — 10:00 (Sala Alighieri)
L1 - Loudness 101—A Hitchhiker's Guide to Audio Nirvana
Presenter:Florian Camerer, ORF - Austrian TV - Vienna, Austria; EBU - European Broadcasting Union
Abstract:
This session will bring participants up to speed regarding most aspects of loudness control and metering. It is targeted to sound engineers in general, giving a brief intro to the algorithm and the metering paradigms and then expanding to common misunderstandings, dangers as well as chances and challenges. Some new concepts like "gating" and "true peak level" will be explained in detail. As chairman of the European loudness group PLOUD and senior post-pro mixing engineer at ORF (Austrian TV), Florian Camerer has enough experience under his belt to provide a thorough workout!
Sunday, May 5, 10:00 — 10:30 (Sala Alighieri)
L2 - All Loudness Recommendations Are Equal—But Some Are More Equal than Others
Presenter:Andrew Mason, BBC Research and Development - London, UK
Abstract:
This tutorial will give an explanation of the different loudness standards used in Europe (R 128), the US (A/85), and in other countries such as Australia and Japan.
Sunday, May 5, 10:45 — 11:30 (Sala Alighieri)
L3 - Loudness for Commercials—How Esthetics Change(d)
Presenters:Matteo Milani
Alessandro Travaglini, Fox International Channels Italy - Guidonia Montecelio (RM), Italy
Rubens Zambelli
Carlos Zarattini, Discovery Networks Italy - Milan, Italy
Abstract:
Commercials have often been the number one complaint when it came to loudness problems and level jumps. The fear to be softer than the competition has led to overcompression of the spots and to an extremely narrow loudness range as well as the”perception of the audio signal being constantly smashed. 'Free transients” and the liberation from this loudness competition has now finally come with the transition to loudness normalization, and especially for commercials this is more than welcome. Three sound designers who have a lot of experience in producing detailed sound tracks for commercials will demonstrate how this new paradigm has changed and is still changing their approach and show how the new dynamic possibilities can be used to great effect. Among the points discussed will be:
• Use of headroom and dynamic processors
• Use of sound effects (in particular low-frequency sounds)
• Speech definition and sound artifacts, and
• Short-term loudness limitations
Examples of their work will be played and explained.
Sunday, May 5, 11:45 — 13:15 (Sala Alighieri)
L4 - Are Movies Too Loud? The Loudness Race Reaches the Cinema
Presenters:Florian Camerer, ORF - Austrian TV - Vienna, Austria; EBU - European Broadcasting Union
Eelco Grimm, Grimm Audio - Utrecht, Netherlands
Abstract:
Cinema operators are on the receiving end of growing numbers of complaints from the audience of soundtracks that are "too loud." Just turning them down results in lowered dialog levels, which leaves the movie quieter but unintelligible. The EU has loudness standards that are now starting to be applied to cinemas. There is a possible need for standards to ensure the theaters are given soundtracks that meet EU laws. This workshop will investigate the issues involved and the work necessary to resolve the issues.
Sunday, May 5, 14:15 — 16:15 (Sala Alighieri)
L5 - Make LUFS Not War
Chair:Thomas Lund, TC Electronic A/S - Risskov, Denmark
Panelists:
Florian Camerer, ORF - Austrian TV - Vienna, Austria; EBU - European Broadcasting Union
George Massenburg, Schulich School of Music, McGill University - Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Abstract:
Newly produced pop/rock music rarely sounds good on fine loudspeakers, commercials on TV are annoyingly loud, and a visit to the cinema may be a deafening experience. This is audio's dark middle ages, from which there will be little content for future generations to enjoy.
However, 2013 could be the year where a renaissance again spreads from Italy. Transparent loudness normalization has arrived to radio, TV, and iPod; and the panel sets out to describe the far-reaching implications this will have on audio production at large. Hear about new quality-defining criteria, and save your next album for generations to come.
Sunday, May 5, 16:30 — 17:30 (Sala Alighieri)
L6 - Give Peaks a Chance
Presenter:Thomas Lund, TC Electronic A/S - Risskov, Denmark
Abstract:
Hearing is our most acute temporal sense by far, but the terms we have for describing dynamic changes in audio are few and not well defined. This session is about micro-dynamics and macro-dynamics in music and in speech, what effect they have, and what it takes to actually register them as a listener. Engineers be warned. Though audio examples are given, the presentation will primarily be based on anatomy, physiology, and psychology.
[A follow-up session to the Loudness War panel]
Sunday, May 5, 17:45 — 18:15 (Sala Alighieri)
L8 - Loudness in Radio—The Next Step
Presenter:Florian Camerer, ORF - Austrian TV - Vienna, Austria; EBU - European Broadcasting Union
Abstract:
After the start of the switchover from peak normalization to loudness leveling in TV, the logical progression is the move into Radio. One could argue that due to the hypercompression used in music production and Pop/Rock-stations over the last years, loudness differences are not an issue in Radio.... but that somewhat cynical view is definitely not an excuse to leave out the vast world of Radio programming. On the contrary! Albeit from a different angle and with other strategies, loudness production has many benefits and advantages also for supercompressed Radio stations. In this session those differences and challenges will be examined, and an outlook on the forthcoming work of the EBU-loudness group PLOUD in that area will be given.
