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mrgeeze Offline OP
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I am getting closer to performance time.
I have a group of wav's and mp3's I've created for backing tracks to my guitar.
Many from biab (wav's) some from purchased mp3 backing tracks.

Trouble is the volume levels are all over the board.
Some are real loud, some are quite as a mouse

My player (IPAD/SoundCue) has volume control for each song.
This works most of the time
Sometimes I have things maxed and vol is still low.

Are there any hints folks have learned when generating .wav from biab?
I currently set output as Normalized and set to mono.

Do I need to push them through a DAW to homogenize the output volume.

Doesn't have to be perfect (some songs are loud) but I would like to get it a little better than it is now. Don't want to blow out any ears when i switch from song to song.

Thanks


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You're really going to have to get them into a DAW and match levels. Best way to do this is playing the tracks through your PA system and using a combination of the meters and your ears.

Do you have a DAW?


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Bob

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Yup... use envelopes in a DAW or process the tracks with volume to get them up..... or down. You can do this to the final mixed tracks just as, if not easier than in a multitrack format.

Sometimes, Normalize will do this nicely. But yeah, you need to play them back to back to be sure they are about the same levels. I also like to use the dB up or down function in Sonar.... I can go up or down by 1,2,3,or 6dB at a shot. Really handy tool to use.

As you become more proficient with recording, your tracks should naturally all start being very close to the same levels.

Last edited by Guitarhacker; 08/09/16 09:48 AM.

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You can get software that will automatically 'level' a selection of MP3 files (Levelator, MP3Gain, SoundNormalizer are some product names), but I would recommend that you go the hard way and manually set the levels. That way, you'll keep the all-important balance.


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A great target level is Bob's screen name, 90dB. Since your using "foreign" mp3s that you had no control in making, the levels will be all over the charts. I've found MediaMonkey (free) to do a fairly decent job of smoothing differences in volume between songs. It's also a first rate media player with a great feature set.

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Originally Posted By: Don Gaynor
I've found MediaMonkey (free) to do a fairly decent job of smoothing differences in volume between songs.


+1 Don. This is also my MP3 tool of choice.




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SoundCue will let you do that simply.

"Adjusting cue volumes:

Press “Tools” and choose to unlock individual cue volume controls. You can use a slider on each cue button to set it’s volume. When you’re done making changes, you can lock these sliders back using the tool menu to prevent accidentally adjusting them during a show."

http://www.soundcueapp.com/quick-start-1


Run through your sets, adjust as necessary(using your ears); freeze settings. The ones that are way too low you can adjust in a DAW and reload in SoundCue. That would be quicker.

What kind of places do you play? What are you using as a PA? Are you having a good crab season this year? grin


Regards,

Bob

Last edited by 90 dB; 08/10/16 03:32 AM. Reason: To Edit
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Pan them left and right. Not hard pans but between 7-15. So your stereo image increases. Your voice will be at the center and the rest should be okay. Test it out!

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Originally Posted By: erickabadude
Pan them left and right. Not hard pans but between 7-15. So your stereo image increases. Your voice will be at the center and the rest should be okay. Test it out!




Most SE's pan everything dead center, for good reason.

http://www.audiomasterclass.com/why-pan-in-live-sound-when-it-only-makes-the-audience-s-experience-worse


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Bob

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Originally Posted By: 90 dB
Originally Posted By: erickabadude
Pan them left and right. Not hard pans but between 7-15. So your stereo image increases. Your voice will be at the center and the rest should be okay. Test it out!




Most SE's pan everything dead center, for good reason.

http://www.audiomasterclass.com/why-pan-in-live-sound-when-it-only-makes-the-audience-s-experience-worse


Regards,

Bob


Bob,

I may be having a senior moment but ... what is a SE? By the way, nice link.


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I'm guessing, sound engineer.


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Originally Posted By: Jim Fogle
Originally Posted By: 90 dB
Originally Posted By: erickabadude
Pan them left and right. Not hard pans but between 7-15. So your stereo image increases. Your voice will be at the center and the rest should be okay. Test it out!




Most SE's pan everything dead center, for good reason.

http://www.audiomasterclass.com/why-pan-in-live-sound-when-it-only-makes-the-audience-s-experience-worse


Regards,

Bob


Bob,

I may be having a senior moment but ... what is a SE? By the way, nice link.




Sorry - it is "sound engineer".

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mrgeeze Offline OP
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When I like the biab version en total I export a single wav file with all tracks.
I save this .wav file in mono.

I figured mono would be better for accompaniment.
I'm playing guitar, no vocals.

Mono would preclude any need for panning at all, correct?

Thanks,


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Originally Posted By: mrgeeze
Mono would preclude any need for panning at all, correct?

Thanks,

Right. If you want panning, you can then do it in the DAW.


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Originally Posted By: 90 dB
Originally Posted By: Jim Fogle
Originally Posted By: 90 dB
Originally Posted By: erickabadude
Pan them left and right. Not hard pans but between 7-15. So your stereo image increases. Your voice will be at the center and the rest should be okay. Test it out!




Most SE's pan everything dead center, for good reason.

http://www.audiomasterclass.com/why-pan-in-live-sound-when-it-only-makes-the-audience-s-experience-worse


Regards,

Bob


Bob,

I may be having a senior moment but ... what is a SE? By the way, nice link.




Sorry - it is "sound engineer".


Thank you Bob and Matt. Also thanks to the shy user that responded by pm (personal message) grin

And with that, I'll return the thread back to the original subject. Sorry for highjacking your thread mrgeeze!


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