Monitoring volume - The correct / optimal volume in the recording studio

All tracks are loaded for the song. Let's listen to it now. We press “Play” and now touch the volume control - but how loud should I listen to the song? Usually the level is turned to a comfortable volume or we like the song so much that we listen to it loudly. Doesn't it matter how loud you listen to the music while mixing / mixing in the studio? You probably already guessed it: In addition to the correct recording level, the correct or optimal listening volume (listening level) in the recording studio is also important for good sound quality / sound quality.


Hearing tired

Everyone has probably experienced this before: We listen to our favorite music and after a while we get used to the volume. What do we do? We increase the volume. The longer we listen, the more we feel the need to turn up a bit. If we now take a short break and then continue listening to the music, we start out briefly: “Yikes, is that loud.” Yes, unfortunately our hearing tires very quickly and we want to get more input by turning up the volume.

It actually poses a problem when mixing. We are constantly fighting our hearing. Unfortunately, after a while, we don't hear any more details. Make mixing mistakes. Small changes to the EQ sound the same. We tend to turn up the EQ too much.

Because our hearing quickly becomes insensitive and quickly gets used to the sound, the first impression of the song at the beginning of a mix session is important. All abnormalities should be saved in the back of your mind in order to edit them later or, if you like, leave them as they are .

What do we do about the rapid fatigue of our hearing? We take a break often . When we feel like we want to turn up the volume, it's a sign to take a break. Get out of the studio. Have a coffee. Or go for a walk. A 15-minute break is enough to have "fresh ears" again. At some point after hour x, a small break no longer helps. We just can't hear some details exactly anymore. Then it is time to continue the next day at the earliest .


Break against hearing fatigue

When we do activities on the mix that don't require us to hear the music, such as looking for a plug-in, we hit the stop button in the DAW (Cubase, Pro Tools, Studio One, Logic, Ableton live, etc.) .
A plug-in is software that extends the capabilities of the host program. In our case, the host program is an audio sequencer, also known as a DAW. In order for the plug-in to be loaded in the audio sequencer, the audio sequencer must understand the interface of the plug-in.


The right listening level in the studio

It is important at a constant level during the entire mixing down in the recording studio or home studio listen. This level should also have a certain volume. Because our hearing is not equally sensitive to all frequencies at every volume. The louder we listen, the stronger we perceive the bass. So we hear more bass in the studio than is actually there . We'd mix the lows too quietly. In the opposite case, if we listen too quietly, we mix the bass too loud.

In addition, loud eavesdropping has two other disadvantages :

1. The louder we listen, the faster our hearing gets tired
2. Loud listening can damage our hearing

To know how loud it really is, we need a level meter . I have a Teufel level meter . I set this to 80, C-weighted and a slow response time. That comes very close to the human ear. The volume is then adjusted so that the level meter shows a volume between 80-87 dB SPL . Why this volume? At this level, we hear the frequencies most evenly.

The perceived frequency response at the different volume levels is shown in the Fletcher-Munson curve . This shows that 80-87 dB SPL represents the most balanced (optimal) frequency range for our hearing.
The curve and the corresponding explanation is shown on Wikipedia ( Fletcher-Munson curve ).
Recording, mixing, mastering - the right listening volume for every situation

Mastered music is loud. Our unfinished mix quieter. Individual instruments that we switch to solo are even quieter. Nevertheless, it is recommended to listen to everything at 80-87 dB SPL . This means that we need the right position for our volume control for every situation.

We can also mark the position of the volume control so that we can quickly move the volume control into the correct position when listening to an individual instrument and thus also hear the individual instrument at a sound pressure level of 80-87 dB SPL (listening volume, listening level). If we now listen to the entire song again, we turn the volume control down until the "mix position" is reached.
Another important thing : don't control the volume in the computer . This will reduce the resolution of your converter. The sound quality suffers. And yes, you can hear it.


Volume when mixing with headphones

With headphones, it is difficult to measure the sound pressure level. Nevertheless, even with headphones, it is important not to mix too loud or too softly. But if you have a feeling of how loud 80-87 dB SPL are, you can adjust the headphones accordingly.


The volume of 83 dB SPL sounds very loud

Does the 83 dB sound very loud to you? Today's songs are very compressed. Overall, such songs have too high an average level. This can also damage your ears in the long term, if only because of the tiredness you hear. Dynamic songs only occasionally reach the perceived level of 83 dB SPL. Such dynamic songs sound excellent at the level of 83 dB SPL and do not damage the ears with the occasional bursts to the peak level. In addition, you might be listening very closely. It is then advisable to calibrate your loudspeaker (per loudspeaker) to 77 dB SPL.


Conclusion: A sound pressure level of 80-87 dB SPL is ideal

Give it a try: Buy a sound level meter and make sure you have a sound pressure level of 80-87 dB SPL all the time you mix. If you catch yourself turning up the volume, it's time to take a break. A short walk, for example, helps. Especially since you should run 10,000 steps every day for your health. If you listen to the bass drum solo, turn it up. However, the 87 dB SPL should not be exceeded.


Digital sound 8922 (Sound level meter)
www.thomann.de/de/digital_sound_8922_level_meter.htm

Source: https://tonstudio-wissen.de/abhoerlautstaerke-richtige-lautstaerke-tonstudio/

 

I'd add few things:

80dB offers indeed "flattest" perceived frequency response for human ear, and actually the bare minimum to hear lowest octave of 30Hz area,

80dB is relatively loud, it's safe for 8-hours 5-days a week but be aware with every +3dB you should cut your time in half since the sound pressure is doubled,

that said, although 80dB is flat and probably best sounding, it does not at all mean you have to record and produce at such high levels, it's certainly healthier to record and lay ideas at lower volumes

my conclusion: A sound pressure level of 80-87 dB SPL is only ideal for mixing and mastering process, which should be preferably rather short

 

!!!

I know what you are trying to say, but that is not what is appearing in the text.

What I am seeing is ... < your average volume should always be set to produce 87 dB SPL > which is not correct and quite painful after a while.

What I think you are trying to say is that if you calibrate for loudness your target loudness value should be calibrated to 87 dB SPL and you'll more less be mixing for loudness as most humans start becoming uncomfortable at that volume. It comes from the K System, etc...

https://www.meterplugs.com/blog/2016/10/14/k-system-metering-101.html

Most of your work you can do much lower at around 65-67 dB SPL, there is a reason most output attenuator pad buttons are 20dB, you can check your work with the push of a button at reference levels without loosing your calibrated output.

 

May be youre talking about K-meter - Katz Bob metering system. https://www.digido.com/k-stereo-reviews/ invented to translate well between studios(when you mix a piece of song in your studio, you move to other with same calibration system, then you must continue your work hearing almost the same as in your studio}.
I use to mix loud just to know how it translate in real world then i press the -20db button for comfort

 

so, just out of curiosity I did some measurements with some free iPhone app, which measures A-weighted SPL:
when listening to music and doing my mixing work, I'm usually around 75-ish dB,
when listening music loud for joy, and from further distance, then it's around 85-ish dB, peaking 90dB,
when I play my acoustic drums (with isolated in-ears, SE215), I measured peak of 123dB, averaging around 90dB - even when just practicing snare, it's peaking around 115dB

 

If the values were correct, they would soon be deaf. I've read that some cheap apps can't reliably measure the actual dB.

Shouting or barking in the ear // 110 dB // Hearing loss possible in less than 2 minutes
Standing beside or near sirens // 120 dB // Pain and ear injury
Firecrackers // 140–150 dB // Pain and ear injury

Sounds May Be Louder Than What You Hear
How loud something sounds to you is not the same as the actual intensity of that sound. Sound intensity is the amount of sound energy in a confined space. It is measured in decibels (dB). The decibel scale is logarithmic, which means that loudness is not directly proportional to sound intensity. Instead, the intensity of a sound grows very fast. This means that a sound at 20 dB is 10 times more intense than a sound at 10 dB. Also, the intensity of a sound at 100 dB is one billion times more powerful compared to a sound at 10 dB.

Two sounds that have equal intensity are not necessarily equally loud. Loudness refers to how you perceive audible sounds. A sound that seems loud in a quiet room might not be noticeable when you are on a street corner with heavy traffic, even though the sound intensity is the same. In general, to measure loudness, a sound must be increased by 10 dB to be perceived as twice as loud. For example, ten violins would sound only twice as loud as one violin.

The risk of damaging your hearing from noise increases with the sound intensity, not the loudness of the sound. If you need to raise your voice to be heard at an arm’s length, the noise level in the environment is likely above 85 dB in sound intensity and could damage your hearing over time.