How does Normalize WMA Loudness decide the right level?
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Concretely, loudness is measured against the EBU R128 standard and a single gain adjustment brings the whole file to the target LUFS — which is what streaming platforms actually measure, and is not the same thing as peak normalisation. The file is measured first and the correction follows from the measurement, rather than a fixed gain being applied and hoped for.
What is the difference between this and just turning it up?
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A volume change applies a number you chose. Normalisation measures how loud the file actually is and computes the gain needed to hit a target, so ten files recorded at ten different levels all arrive at the same one.
Does the source format affect normalisation?
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It does. WMA is Windows Media Audio, tied to the Microsoft stack and poorly supported on phones. That determines whether the corrected audio can be written back exactly or has to be re-encoded.
Anything specific to WMA here?
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Yes — WMA tooling outside the Microsoft stack is thin, which is why browser-side work on it is usually more reliable than a desktop app. Worth knowing when the goal is a consistent set rather than one file.
What loudness target should I aim for?
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About -14 LUFS is what the major streaming platforms normalise to, -16 LUFS is the usual podcast target, and -23 LUFS is the broadcast standard. Going louder than the platform target gains you nothing — the platform simply turns it back down.
Does normalisation compress the dynamics?
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No. It is a single gain adjustment for the whole file, so the relationship between the quiet and loud parts is untouched. Compression and limiting are separate operations and are not applied here.
