Loudness & Normalization
Loudness is how loud something sounds to a human — which isn't the same as how high its peaks are. Aura Mixer measures loudness to the broadcast standard (ITU-R BS.1770 / EBU R128) and can automatically hold a bus to a loudness target.
Loudness metering and normalization are a Premium feature. On the Free version the readings show as «—».
A quiet acoustic track and a wall-of-sound master can hit the same peak level yet feel worlds apart in loudness. Streaming platforms judge you on LUFS (loudness), not peaks — which is why a loudness meter matters.
The readings
Shown in the LOUDNESS / LUFS group on a channel's HOME tab and across a bus's HOME tab:
| Reading | Window | Tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Momentary | 400 ms | Instant loudness, right now |
| Short-term | 3 s | Loudness of the last few seconds |
| Integrated | whole programme | The overall loudness since you last reset — the number platforms care about |
| LRA (Loudness Range) | whole programme | How much the loudness varies — dynamic vs flat |
| True Peak | — | The real peak including inter-sample peaks, in dBTP |
Click any value (or CLR) to reset the integrated reading and start a fresh measurement.
Loudness targets
On a bus's HOME tab, a target selector colours the integrated reading against a chosen loudness target — green when you're within tolerance, amber when you're off — so you can mix to a number at a glance.
Common targets to aim for:
| Destination | Typical target |
|---|---|
| Music streaming (Spotify, YouTube, etc.) | ≈ −14 LUFS |
| Podcasts / spoken word | ≈ −16 LUFS |
| EBU R128 broadcast | −23 LUFS |
Volume Normalization
Rather than chase the target by hand, switch on Volume Normalization on the bus's SETUP tab: set a Target LUFS and a true-peak ceiling, and Aura Mixer rides the bus level to meet the target while never exceeding the ceiling. The CURRENT Δ GAIN read-out shows what it's doing moment to moment.
Set the bus Limiter ceiling to −1.0 dBTP (True Peak) as a hard safety net, then enable Volume Normalization at −14 LUFS with −1.0 dBTP headroom. The normalizer handles loudness; the limiter guarantees nothing ever clips.