How loud should you master?
How loud we should master music depends on various factors. The genre and the target medium are crucial. Generally, current masters range between -6 LUFS and -14 LUFS – our [link to relevant section] shows you how to achieve this level cleanly. 10 Mastering Tips.
In order to give an adequate and accurate answer to the question of how loud a master should be, we must first become familiar with the following points:
What is the difference between volume and loudness?
Loudness is a physical quantity used to measure sound, often by measuring sound pressure in dBa or dBc. In addition, the volume can be increased or decreased simply by turning the volume control on the player. Loudness is the perception of sound, the measurement of which is based on the psychoacoustic model. The measured loudness is measured and evaluated in the LUFS. Unlike volume, loudness cannot be increased by turning the volume control on the playback device.More info:
Does the respective target medium play a role in the loudness in the mastering?
No, in principle the target medium does not play a role in the loudness of the respective title in the mastering process. Only the specifications that the respective target medium entails must be observed. The following target media can be distinguished: Compliance with the respective specifications for the target medium is extremely important in order to guarantee an unadulterated sound in the best possible quality on the respective playback medium.Does music genre play a role in determining loudness in mastering?
Yes, the music genre plays an important role in determining the target loudness within the master. Of course we want to ensure the best possible quality here, but also be competitive with other titles of the same genre.
The answer depends on platform, genre, and distribution — the full loudness context with target values for each platform is collected by the Mastering Guide.
To give an indication of how loud
we have put together a series of articles based on scientific studies:
Other useful information:
48 khz Sample Rate – Why 44,1 kHz will soon be obsolete:
https://www.peak-studios.de/48-khz-der-neue-standard/
Intersample Peaks – Why 2 dBTP headroom better
https://www.peak-studios.de/intersample-peaks/
Streaming mastering from Peak-Studios:
https://www.peak-studios.de/mastering/
Tip: Measure the loudness of your master in LUFS – free in your browser with our Loudness Meter.
