normalize for youtube video

[deleuze3]

Hi, i did 2 videos for youtube.
In adobe premiere, i arrange myself to put the audio around -4db of peak volume.

Here are the 2 videos :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAtdgx9Onro

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_zcoOolseg

Do you think the volume of the video is just perfect (or is it too low or too high?)
(without considering that youtube compress the audio and the audio seem lower than the original file)

Thanks in advance,
have a great day!
Julien

 

[ryanjf]

Hi Julien,

Asking if the volume of a YouTube video is somewhat of a subjective question. There's really no "standard" for web-based content although some might decrease the dynamic range of the content to let the quieter parts cut through more.. For example, I have an older MacBook and the built-in speakers on that thing are so weak that I barely could watch a movie on it. Many times I can't even hear whispers, Foley, backgrounds, etc.. To aid this, the mixer might do a different mix and compress the audio a bit more so the quiet stuff peaks through. It's like the concept behind DVD / Home Theater mixes vs. Theatrical mixes.

Are you normalizing? If so, that may or may not help you depending on the peak of the pre-existing content. If your content already peaked at -5dB and when you normalize to -4dB, everything will be raised by 1dB (not that much). Sometimes normalizing doesn't do anything. What you probably need is a transparent compressor that can really smack down the peaks while raising the overall volume up.

 

[Richard Crowley]

Remember that CAPTURING the sound during shooting and MIXING the sound for release are two VERY DIFFERENT steps in the process. They each have unique requirements that make handling the sound significantly different. No single process or rule will cover these two different aspects of production.

The objective for RECORDING is to get the optimum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the best sound quality. In particular, getting the best SNR means recording the signal as "hot" as possible while leaving yourself reasonable headroom for the expected peaks so you don't run into clipping at full-scale. This was in some aspects easier back in the old analog days when equipment had a predictable amount of headroom beyond the end of the VU meter. But in the digital era, when you're out of bits, you're done. Period. But more modern (quieter) electronics and deeper sample-depth (24-bit) allow us to use -10 or -12 dB as our average recording target and still stay "out of the mud" of electronic noise at the bottom, but not bump up against full-scale clipping at the top.

OTOH, the objective for MIXING is combining all the audio elements in the proper proportions, and setting the final levels appropriate for the release format. For example, I found many DVD players that would not tolerate audio mixes that were normalized to 0dBFS. I had to create a sound track that peaked -10 to -12 dB to prevent distortion and clipping. OTOH, mixing for online release (YouTube, Vimeo, MP3, et.al.) is pretty much mixing (and compressing) right up to the ceiling (0dBFS).