By reference levels I mean that you calibrate with DB-meter using static white noise to a reference DB-value. I have done it before, but I don’t seem to keep up with it, and do the “insane” volume knob riding all the time lol.
I read somewhere that when mixing professionally you should calibrate to around 75 to 80 dB (depending on room size). By always mixing at a specific calibrated reference level you will make sure the frequency response will always be equal on all mixing sessions. Our ears pick up frequency balance extremely differently at different volume levels if you did not know.
Haven’t calibrated the level, and I’m also not sure about the value of that, as levels, dynamics, and frequency balance will be tweaked in the mastering stage anyway - but I do most work on a fixed level, and only occasionally go lower or higher to listen for specific things from different “perspectives.”
I suppose it depends on the genre as well… Extremely dynamic orchestral pieces probably call for more, or you’ll have to hold your breath to hear what you’re doing for the most part - but going above 75 dB when working on an EDM track would result in listening fatigue pretty quick.
David, the value is that you calibrate a defined average, so that everything evolves around a certain set DB. I believe it can have even more value if you compose music with wide dynamic range. The reason is that if you ride the volume knob of your audio interface, the complete balance of frequencies will change due to how our ears pick up sound.
It’s the same kind of value as why we use studio monitors that are “flat”, because it should make the sound more “natural” to avoid deviations and be closer to the middle of a classical statistical bell curve.
But as I said, it’s something I don’t do, even if I tried it. I just feel so tempted to increase the volume just because I feel the music instead of mixing to a defined reference average level
Another thing we “should” do is to mix with a reference stereo image (angle of monitors and seating position). Which is why headphones are tricky for mixing.
If you work professionally with mixing there are lots of these “reference calibrations” that are very important to follow as far as I understand. Especially for soundtrack mixing. Would be super cool to be able to visit a soundtrack mixing session at some time in my life btw!
Yeah, stereo image is one of the reasons I’ve built this whole flush-mount speaker thing and all. I just don’t like to work with headphones, and only used them to double-check the mix. Same with bass; headphones will just never match a speaker system with proper bass.
Yeah, you can’t just throw one in to add some bass… Needs to be set up and adjusted to match the system perfectly, or it’s just going to add random rumble. The safer bet is to just use massive main speakers, but that means MASSIVE if you want to go all the way down to 20 Hz.
You can’t change physics, bass frequencies need to move LOTS of air.
A little story: I remember that I read a hifi magazine way back many years ago. There was this chief of some european club for hifi-enthusiasts. He had his music system, including speakers, special made.
Normally 18" is the biggest speaker cones in production. He made them dual 21" per speaker with some insane amplification (focused on control, which is reeeeally hard with low frequencies in hifi-sound), just so that they could go naturally all the way down to 16Hz, which I believe is about the fundamental tone for the lowest note on the biggest church organs!
Well…my small studio runs 75-77 DB SPL at the listening position …sometimes less …
It’s usually less and I punch it up to the above levels when I’m finalizing things … the 83Db SPL is a number based on a room of 24,000 cubic feet if I remember correctly…
As for the “sub” or “no sub” …debate …I run a sub … it’s really hard to control low frequency energy in a small room …and even harder trying to control bass with a larger full range speaker… I run a smaller nearfield monitor and a 12" sub that I can control the level with …Its alot easier to introduce bass into the room then it is to remove it …This is my personal experience …but hey …you environment may be very different…
Wow! Earthquake level !!! …there is a design for a bass bin which you install in the basement of your house …fairly large …about 6 ft high that looks like a cylinder …apparently it can drive bass through your entire house… I thought this was a joke but it was quite real ! …
Some crazy guy built two massive exponential horns under the floor, with “vents” into the room… Totally something I might do, if I found myself with enough time and resources! Except, I’m not a huge fan of horns, due to the delay. I don’t even have bass reflex on my current 15" sub! (Prototype; just slapped a new driver into an old box to see where I am, before spending time on building something proper.) Even tuned and EQd to play linear down to 25 Hz (-3dB @ 20 Hz), it packs enough punch for my needs anyway. And there is an 18" version of this driver. Or I could get another 15"… Just need to glue and bolt everything in my room down first!
Anyway, indeed; bass is complicated, and I agree that subs a better solution than large full range speakers, unless possibly if you have a big and very well designed room. Apart from matching phase and level to the top speakers, all adjustments I did on my sub was against my room, and that’s the difficult part - which you can’t really do much about with full range speakers, unless the woofers have their own amps and processing.
Yes you really need a speaker which is bi-amped ( or tri-amped ) … I’ve treated my room and am fairly well tuned … my da converter feeds the bass bin on xlr and there is a selectable high pass which establishes what gets sent to your mains … personally your main monitors really clear up when you have a good pairing with the sub …
Oh, there is that as well; the Doppler effect when a speaker plays high amplitude bass along with higher frequencies. Totally blurs everything in some one-way headphones when playing any music with substantial bass, but the effect is certainly present to some extent in speakers as well, and it gets worse the higher up the woofer needs to play.
Well, I know which position my volume knob has to be in to get the 80db level, but I was taught in Sibelius academy mixing classes that you should start mixing with a low volume in the morning to combat ear fatigue and increase the volume bit by bit during the day. I do check the track every now and then at the 80db level but I usually mix at a level that feels good at that specific moment
Ah, that makes sense to have different levels depending on ear fatigue. I know reference volume is very important for how we perceive frequency balance. I think louder volumes “boosts” our perception of bass for example, and opposite for low levels. That is just one aspect.
