Does your podcast volume matter?
If you’ve been listening to podcasts for a long time you’ll probably know the frustration of flipping from one show to another, or even from one episode of the same show to another and having to increase or decrease your podcast volume.
At best it’s annoying, at worst it’s enough to blast your ears off.
Having a standard measurement for podcast volume means a better experience for podcast listeners and no angry complaint letters for you because someone got tinnitus listening to your show.
How loud should your podcast be?
The podcasting industry has settled on a podcast volume of -16 LUFS for stereo files and – 19 LUFS for mono files.
The scale is negative so – 19 LUFS is slightly quieter than -16 LUFS but a – 16 LUFS stereo track should essentially sound the same as a – 19 LUFS mono track (did I just see you fall asleep)?
You don’t need to know why or how this is happening, you just need to implement it across your show.
Will you be taken to jail if you don’t adhere to these podcast volume levels?
No, but they’re in Apple’s podcast requirements and having a standard, agreed-upon level for all podcasts benefits the industry because a better user experience means more love for podcasts across the board.
What is LUFS?
LUFS is a measurement of average podcast volume rather than a measurement of loudness at a particular second.
Of course, your podcast volume can vary throughout your show and ideally, you want it to so your show sounds dynamic and interesting.
But you want the average loudness to be the same so people don’t have to be riding their volume controls when they’re listening to your show.
Note: If you’ve seen loudness expressed as LKFS and you’re thinking “She’s spelt it wrong! What a hack!” The two measurement terms are interchangeable.
How do I make my podcast volume standard across all episodes?
You should be able to export your podcast episodes at -16 LUFS inside your audio editing software so have a look around for the right feature in the program you use.
In Adobe Audition I use the ‘Match Loudness’ feature but there are also a bunch of web tools that can help you do this including Auphonic and Hindenberg.
As with any podcasting tech you want to choose the platform that’s right for you.
Got a burning podcasting question you’d like answered? Send me an email.
Want to start your own podcast but need a little help? Download my “How To Start A Podcast” guide or sign up for my online podcasting course, PodSchool.
