Hi guys,
What is the optimal headphone loudness and how can I measure it while I am mixing? We all know mixing engineers optimize their monitors like using K-meter and 75 dB -14 LUFS pink noise and blah blah blah.
Is not there any loudness standard for headphone while mixing so we don't f*ck up the low end of our mix?
I know we should turn up or down volume while mixing for checking it my question is mainly about that constant loudness we should keep track of while mixing to make best decisions. Give a practical solution please(If there is any?), don't copy paste some other worldly user from forum "X" talking "Y" about technical aspects of measuring loudness.

 

Not sure if this helps but I have an Audient id14 interface that has a volume knob with dB metering LEDs (I use headphones for mixing quite often). Personally I have them at around -12dB then turn them down to -18dB when making final adjustments. This is just a personal preferance but it certainly does help.

 

And in which unit you want to have the answer?

First you should try to answer for yourself which unit loudness has and I doubt that you are able to do this.

You can not assume that everyone has the same ears like you.

 

That's right. All I can say is my sound card is Focusrite Scarlet 2i2 and it doesn't have any loudness measure on its volume knob.

 

Adjust the playback to a comfortable non-wow non-exciting level (but fairly clear still), then turn it down a little bit more for general mixing.

When time comes to focus in on the lows, temporarily go to loud.

Have a utility on your master bound to a hotkey so that you can quickly go to mono at any time. You can use that as a sort of reality check to avoid mixing too headphone-y. The more you listen in mono, the less problems.

 

The same loudness that is used by your monitors in the mix, which means your headphones set so loud that they are equal to the monitors.

 

The only people who mix to a constant loudness are cinema mixers. With headphones you should set your loudness where your hearing fatigue is. If you want to wear them for eight hours you need to set them very low. Otherwise set them to a normal, comfortable listening level.

 

I wonder how the cinema mixers keep their track loudness almost constant, it would probably require lots of automation!

 

Indeed, the boadcasting studios have their own automated processing chain. But as "Fudsey Plange" correctly said this is not necessary here because you are probably not producing for the end consumer in a very professional manner. Therefore you have to measure this for yourself with your ears for every song specialized.

The loudness is not relevant for you at the end this is the reason why you do not have to care about this. This also goes out for all those "professional mixing/mastering engineers" which try to measure all kind of things with some metering they do not understand and posting an super serious mixing/mastering chain for all of their productions.

 

Last edited: Apr 17, 2019

Is that a joke?...…

 

No, there's no volume knob or control over the monitoring. It's fixed at the standard loudness of all cinemas everywhere, so what you hear on the mixing desk is what you get in the auditorium. Fixed loudness, you mix to match.

 

Optimal loudness is the one that doesn't damage your ears. Simple.

Kinda like, you set it to a level that you think feels good, but then bring it down a notch. That's probably it.
If you're a casualty of earbud wars, I feel sorry for you. I really do. Those are ear destroyers, especially if you like to listen to the music in a loud environment like traffic. People should wear ear protection in traffic, not earbuds and listening to music. I still don't get why people do that. The noise is unbearable already and then you make your ears listen to the music with all that noise in the background?! One day all these people will be sorry for doing that.

 

Last edited: Apr 18, 2019

Mixing in earbuds can give ear fatigue quickly so you need to mix at low levels, for out and about listening I use an eq app and rolloff high frequencies above around 3khz -15db which not only let's a lot of bass through which I like but cuts the shrill high's from a lot of earbuds. My ears are very sensitive so I usually keep the levels low all the time

 

Most earbuds are noise cancelling with a rubber seal so traffic noise can be minimized greatly. I wouldn't recommend driving with any beats by Dre headphones though.

 

I'm sure that was a contributing factor of hearing damage to untold numbers of New Yorkers riding the subway and negotiating the aggressive ambient environment of the city streets when that tympanic membrane destroyer, the infamous Sony Walkman made it's debut in 1980. Those horrid headphones that were included in the package kept zero decibles from the outside environment at bay. One would find oneself turning higher the volume dial until...PLEASE SPEAK UP, I CANT EVEN HEAR WHAT IS WRITTEN ON THIS PAGE!!

 

I don't mix with earbuds. I mix with professional mixing headphone. I am still curious about that cinema mixing process to match loudness.

Can you tell me more about "automated processing chain"? I am really curious about cinema mixing workflow and how they professionally keep track of loudness with the minimum hassle. I always find cinema mixes pleasant and professional. I even know that top music producers also do some cinema mixing too! (Not all of them)

 

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/rem...cording/44665-radio-station-signal-chain.html

The second post is already stating everything relevant. But you have to know that the material they get is already highly professional mastered by people who really know what they're doing.

Jünger Audio is the "Industry standard" for broadcasting products. They've also invented the "Level Magic"-plugin which is still sold by Flux. It's already very good for loudness management.

Edit: This PDF also contains very useful information about their chains, at least for the voice.
www.nu9n.com/images/Broadcast-Chain-Tutorial.pdf

 

Last edited: Apr 18, 2019

Sound is very powerfull it cannot only damage your ears but also your mind body and your soul