Moderators: MattKingUSA, khz
How is your setup, how do you manage the volume of each monitor (monitor=speaker, right?)?Completely turn down the volume of each monitor and make sure they are off or muted
I would think you keep the volume something below it.... but the howto says83dB SPL is the highest continuous sound pressure level, scientifically shown not to cause excessive fatigue and hearing loss while exposed for prolonged times.
Is there a way to limit the max volume of your setup?Unmute or switch on the first monitor and increase it's volume until the SPL meter reads 83dB. Mute again.
I'll have a look at the programs you suggested. Thanks Studio.I use powered monitors, and they have individual volume controls at the back. This should be the same if you use passives with a monitor amp, because each channel should be individually adjustable.studio32 wrote: How is your setup, how do you manage the volume of each monitor (monitor=speaker, right?)?
How do you manage this well?
It has almost everything to do with this. We keep forgetting that our ears are also just a very sophisticated sound system, with threshold levels. Lower than a certain level is not perceivable, and louder than a certain level causes pain and/or damage. In order to maximise the dynamic range we can hear, it is best to keep within these guidelines. Remember that with this set-up your peaks will still be higher than 83dB, but the long time average levels should be below this level if you calibrated it the way described in my how-to.And how is headroom (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headroom_% ... cessing%29) related to this?
You want to work at a level where you do not have to strain yourself to hear things, but you also do not want to tire your ears with too loud sounds. If you set it up like this you will find that you can work for longer stretches without having to take an ear break. Mix engineers work against time. If you can do more in less time, you will impress more clients, and word of mouth will bring in more business, which will necessitate you to raise your feesI'm very much interested in the 'preventing ear fatique/damage part'
I think I answered this question above. It is not the peaks that kills ears, but the continuous barrage of sound that will. Sure, if you have high peaks above 100dB you will sustain damage, but keeping the average at 83dB and keeping your music on the K14 scale target will protect your most valuable asset as a mix / master engineer. K14 sets the average level 14dB below the maximum level. The maximum level that can be emitted from your monitors will then theoretically be around 100dB (97dB times 2) which is very very loud, but still safe.edit: btw when you sayI would think you keep the volume something below it.... but the howto says83dB SPL is the highest continuous sound pressure level, scientifically shown not to cause excessive fatigue and hearing loss while exposed for prolonged times.Is there a way to limit the max volume of your setup?Unmute or switch on the first monitor and increase it's volume until the SPL meter reads 83dB. Mute again.
You can use what you want, but the pink noise I supplied is calibrated to the K14 scale in loudness. If your monitors are calibrated to this K14 pink noise played full scale out of your DAW, your DAW is also calibrated to the playback monitors, so that your end results will be transferable to any high quality playback system, with the same dynamic range. You may think of it as wheel alignment and balancing on your car. You do it to prolong the life of your tyres, but in the end you positively influence the ease of driving and the safety of your car as welledit2: Can't you use japa for that pink noise?
Exactly.spm_gl wrote: The 83dB (actually 85, but the two channels add) is not only about protecting your ears. It is also the volume at which your hearing is the most linear.
