RMS for Audiobooks explained - How to Fix your RMS for ACX
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- Опубликовано: 20 фев 2022
- In this video, I explain everything you need to know about RMS, at least in the context of audiobooks. What RMS is, how to understand it and how to get the right RMS for Audiobooks destined for ACX etc
Never have your audiobook submission rejected again. 
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Thank you so much for your video! It’s THE BEST explanation - easy to understand- I have seen on RUclips so far. I’m working on my first audiobook and I watch tons of tutorials, but your video seems the most helpful especially for an amateur, like myself. I wish it had a million views and you had a million subscribers. Thank you!
0:00 Intro
1:13 RMS for the layman
4:58 Audio Compression
5:57 Threshold and Ratio
7:37 pc instructions
9:41 Compressor
11:29 Normalize
12:26 Audio Discretion Advised - Room tone
This is THE most helpful video I’ve come across for rms. You’re a life saver! Thank you so much
This video was exactly what I needed! Was having a hard time with my RMS and your video explained perfectly what exactly RMS is and how to fix it. My audio has lots of peaks and valleys like your test sample and going through the steps to fix it, omg, it's going to save me so much time! Thanks again!
Super education, sir. I even like your personality as opposed to many of the so-called tutors who have to blab on endlessly about who they are and where they come from and unnecessary fluff. Working on audiobook narration using Adobe 3 and uploading to audiobook and you describe exactly what happened after doing it smoothly for 21 chapters, the recent chapter had where a lady screamed and I had to voice it, louder than the rest of the track for effect. You explain that's what threw the whole thing off! Will try and apply and let you know how it goes. Major Props
Thanks for dropping a comment, So happy you find my bits helpful :)
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Thanks so much for this! I was going nuts trying to find a video to explain RMS and after watching waaay too many, I found yours. THE SEARCH IS OVER! Thanks again!
Thank you :)
Your delivery was so refreshing. I understood so much more than any other video. Well done.
This is one of the best videos I’ve seen on this subject.
Thank you.
Watching your videos, and it appears you break things down and make it easy to understand. I use Logic Pro X, and I got it all straight, but hopefully now I can fix this and release my first Audio book. Excellent videos, please keep it up.
I never make comments on RUclips but you sir deserve one! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have been fighting this for 2 days and was about to give up. I could not get in the rms I needed without making it sound awful! I will be keeping this video for future viewing!
I've watched quite a few videos on how to change the RMS to meet ACX standards. This, by far, explains it the best. I was able to change the RMS to the correct levels (using other techniques), but it kept clipping the audio. I'm going to try this way later on. Thank you so much!!!
What are you recording with? Do you know how to fix RMS in Logic Pro? I found where to switch the Logic Pro setting to 44.1 instead of 48, so now that’s one issue that ACX isn’t flagging. But it still says: “RMS is too low. Raise the level of this file 2.1 dB." Do you know how to do that? I see RUclips videos for how to raise it in Audacity, but not Logic Pro.
This was THE BEST teaching tool for how to understand and fix RMS. Brilliant mate! Thank you!!
AWESOME VIDEO! Really appreciated your simple-enough-to-get-started explanation. I am learning about audio in anticipation of recording my novel, making some tracks and seeing if they can pass the ACX requirements. This was such a huge help!
THANK YOU!!!!!! I feel like I wasted a day tweaking RMS for my first audio book recording, and this one compressor tip was ALL I NEEDED!!!! I love you.
This made a lot more sense to me than any other video I can recall looking at. Thank you!
You're very welcome!
Thank you ! Finally RMS makes sense on a new level
I am now a subscriber- You have made the lights go on! I was able to fix things before doing what was told, but I didn't understand why I went from too quiet to too loud, now I get it and also the differences in checking software with the -3.1db - great tip, I think that is also what I was running into. Thank you for your videos
Glad I could help!
Thank you for this! Has helped so much - appreciate you taking the time to make this video :)
You're so welcome!
Literally the guy you described - thank you for your clear and practical answer I look forward to seeing the RMS error disappear after fixing the file. Cheers 🙌
Thank you so much for making this video - it has helped me out greatly for this audiobook I'm trying to get done. A really well done explanation on RMS and compression as well. Kudos to you good sir.
Brilliantly explained and demonstrated, thank you so much. I'm just getting into VO work, and had no idea how to fix the RMS error I keep getting using the ACX plugin in Audacity. Now I know! Thanks again
Great to hear!
Thanks man! This was super helpful! Just getting into producing my own audio books as a narrator on ACX. Major tools right here! Just downloaded Adobe Audition!
This was extremely helpful - well done!
Bro! As soon as you mentioned compression, I immediately had a light bulb moment haha! Thank you so much for this video! I needed it 😅
That’s the first time those terms made any sense thank you
Thank you so much for this video! It's greatly appreciated :)
You're so welcome!
This was so incredibly helpful. Thank you!
You are a lifesaver! Thank you for your explanation!
Happy to help!
listened to you for almost 8 min b4 you got to the how to set it. You love your voice
Yes sir, its a great voice, I can't help it.
Love your content. Full disclosure, what I love most about this video is how clearly it illustrates how hard this stuff is to explain.
BTW - check out what you’re saying about threshold settings at around 6:35. You might want to revise that part… Just saying, and please, please, keep up the very good work you’re doing.
THANK YOU..!!! Im doing my first audiobook and this helped A LOT.
Glad I could help :)
brilliant, thanks, I was banging my head off the walls - I'm using Garageband and for yous out there who were like me its as the man says, there's a COMPRESSOR function in the master and don't forget to turn the switch on LOL!!!
Thank you. I am starting out recording my books for audio and this was so easy to understand.
Glad it was helpful!
Sei un grande 👍, GRAZIE INFINITE!
Excellent explanation especially for a beginner like me.
someone literally asked me the other day what rms was and i could not have explained it the way you did. hence i just sent them the link to this video lol thanks bro.
Nice explanation in terms that even the newbie can easily understand.
Fab vid. thanks made so much sense
You are a fucking lifesaver right now, bro took me like a week to do a 20 minute book just guessing and changing levels and converting and converting again I had like 40 versions of every file so thank you so much for your explanation. It is helping so much.
You're a good teacher!
Thank you.
what a great video :) thanks
Very high quality video
Thank you, this was really helpful but some files are still giving me problems. I can't seem to get that final 0.2 dB it asks me for on some of the voice tracks. Not sure what else to do. I have about half of the audiobook good to go.
I really appreciate your videos. You make so much. I am struggling with RMS on the short recordings with just one phrase like "Part 1: The Beginning", for example. It seems like no matter how I try to edit, I can't get the RMS high enough and the bg noise low enough. Any special instructions for super short audio like this?
Great video man. Just one question, does the RMS need to be consistent throughout the audio tracks to be accepted by ACX? Meaning, if my introduction track is -19db RMS do the rest of the tracks need to be -19db as well or as long as the RMS is between -18db and -23db I will be fine? The reason I am asking is because I am having trouble keeping all of tracks either -19db or -23db when compressing.
Thank you so much! Quite helpful…
Would you happen to know why my recording sounds like I’m recording in a tin can that’s been covered in blankets lol? I use Adobe Audition and I use denoise and remove click option. I don’t change the amounts, just hit apply. I hope Im making sense. Trying to get my auditions out.
What mic are you using? and does you raw recording sound like that before you process it?
can you produce audiobook ready file with a mic and a computer. I do not have a studio
Hi, I am using WavePad and see the compressor as dynamic range compressor but how do I know what to set it to? It shows Limiter Threshold dB, Compressor Threshold dB, and Noise Gate Threshold dB.
This saves so much time! Love the compressor advice - but i noticed it distorted my "s" sound at one point. So i had to go back and lower peaks manually which is so time consuming...am I doing something wrong (setting at -25 db ratio 2 and attack 1)...I want this to work so badly
are you also running a de-esser?
Thanks for the explanation! Very thorough. I have a quick question, if you don't mind. I'm being asked to deliver a recording that "should measure between -23db and -18db RMS (average)". I've been trying to hit the Average RMS Amplitude on the Amplitude statistics, and it's been a nightmare since it's significantly lower than the Total RMS Amplitude. I noticed that you're using the Total RMS to measure here. Is that what I should be using instead of Average RMS, even though the directions I was given say "(average)"? I can't really find any resources online explaining the difference in Audition. Thanks!
You are right, Average RMS for some reason is "Total RMS" in Adobe Audition. I can't really explain why, but if you are asked for average RMS it is the Total RMS figure in Adobe Audition you need to look at.
@@KrakenMediaPro Awesome! Thanks for the info!
Does anyone know how to fix RMS in Logic Pro? I found where to switch the Logic Pro setting to 44.1 instead of 48, so now that’s one issue that ACX isn’t flagging. But it still says: “RMS is too low. Raise the level of this file 2.1 dB." Do you know how to do that? I see RUclips videos for how to raise it in Audacity, but not Logic Pro.
How do you deal with the compression process causing the pauses between words to become much louder?
Logic x noise floor is -54Db can someone help me understand how i can get down to -60??
Is the room noise / non-speaking parts included in the average RMS reading? In other words, I run a fade envelope before and after spoken parts, which zero outs all volume between spoken parts. Is this why my RMS is always too low even after processing?
Technically it is included, but thats not why your RMS is too low. Noise floor reduction should make 0 measurable difference to your total RMS. If your RMS is low, compress then normalise.
Can you Narrate with USB microphone for ACX, and how difficult is it to get the audio settings in compliance with their requirements? Is it difficult to learn , I’m hearing that the audio is why people struggle with .
Sooo... reducing my noise floor reduces my RMS, which makes me turn everything up and thereby raising my noise floor again?
REAPER has a couple of different ways to measure Peak & RMS without actually Rendering (Exporting) a file.
Okay I have watched your videos over and over and every time I get db to 3.0 my rms is too low and when I go back to fix it, it messes with my db. I cannot get the two right. I am nearly in tears as I have my very first audiobook and it has been months overdue and I cannot fix this problem at all. I am about to give up as I have tried everything I can think of.
Try using a compressor with threshhold set to -20 and a ratio of 2:1, it should then go really quiet. Normalise again to 3.0 and your RMS should be up.
"Threshold is what point it starts doing shit. Ratio is how much shit it does." Now I finally understand these terms 😂
I have been told I have a way with words.
You did not explain the effect of Attack and Release settings while using the compressor. If Attack settings are higher like 30-70ms louder peakes are not gonna be compressed. So keeping attack time short like 1ms helps us cut the louder peakes. And your release setting was 50ms which means compressor will stay active for 50ms after it starts cutting the peakes.
Your video is SO HELPFUL - but I have a question...Why would a person normalize to -3 before you run a compressor if you are just going to cut everything and boost it using the compressor?
If you recording is quiet, the compressor will work less. Remember the compressor work top down, so you need you signal to be at the top for it to work properly. Normalising is also a good start point to help keep all your tracks consistent.
@@KrakenMediaPro Ok, so normalize (-3db) then compress, then normalize (-3db) again... yeah?
@@amydubose Yup, pretty much.
Negative makes no sense. If 0 is the top level, but quietness can be infinite? In reality the human ear, and even instruments can only measure a specific level or range. Noise meters go up in scale from 0. Why does it have to be negative? I cannot imagine being at ground zero of a nuke and being told that there is noise that is louder? Or, in a vacuum of space where there is no noise, yet what level would that be? No common sense by the people who decided this. Okay. I will have to deal with it. Whatever. Thank you for the information and video.
In the analogue realm (ie the real world) 0db is silence and it goes up infinitely. In the digital realm (ie on PC) the actual volume of a signal will be dictated by the hardware which is a variable. So in the digital workspace it starts at 0 and then indexes down from there. Think of 0 as a 100% signal. It will be louder on bigger speaker than smaller speaker... But the signal is the same. I will do a video on this, it's quite interesting.
@@KrakenMediaPro I am getting it. Currently working on a sound room. I started with noise at -20 to -30. Then started to move things around. Put PC in the other room and closed the door. This gave me 10 to 20 reduction. Is it still called a reduction if it is negative? Hee Hee. My brain cells are in trouble. I only have two. Then I built a sound enclosure for the PC. Closing the door with the enclosure was better. Now sound blankets around the desk is reducing it more. I hope I get there. Your video truly explained the RMS AND the plug-ins too. Currently got -50 something. Thank you so much.
@@justnotg00d get waves NS1. Pretty awesome to kill noise
Explanation was great. But you're an audio tech, not a narrator, right? I can't imagine pronouncing 'three' and 'threshold' and 'everything' as 'free' and 'freshold' and 'everyfing' would be appealing in a narrator
Actually, I am a professional VO artist. The F instead of TH thing is a local accent quirk. You will be please to know I pronounce it properly when recording for a project. Just wait until you hear me pronounce escape as Xscape 😂
@@KrakenMediaPro good to know. I think the exscape thing is pretty common. The one that grinds my gears more than anything in the world is when people pronounce else with a t. "Eltse" gets under my skin.
I got so upset I 🦵 kicked a can outside because this is FRUSTRATING