I took the time and got all my sounds (dailog, music, effects, ect) to hit right between 3 and 6 db without any clipping or anything too low. However... when I listen on my PC or on the TV (by DVD) The sound is always much lower than regular TV or a DVD. I always have to crank the sound way up to get it even with regular TV or a DVD. For example... on my TV I watch TV or a DVD at sound level 20 but to get the same sound level with a Vegas>Architect DVD I have to crank it up to 55. What is the deal...?? I'm I missing somthing?

Try the following settings and see if it helps.

Encode set to AC3;
Click on custom tab;
Dialog normalization: -31 dB;
Dynamic range compression: None;
On the first tab set diag. norm to "-31";
On the last tab marked preprocessing;
Set the Line Mode & RF mode profiles to "None";
Now save this as a preset.

When I open "custom" the Dailog Normalization is default set to -27Db... Hmmm... I havn't a clue but wouldnt setting it to -31Db make the sound even lower? As I said, I don't have a clue and will try your advice nevertheless. I'm thinking Dailog Normalization should be 0??? But as I said, I'll give your settings a shot and let you know.

Carl, have a look at the AC3 too quiet? (http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=47131&highlight=Dialog+normalization) thread and see if it helps to clarify things.

I have same problem using Pinnacle studio plus ver.10 any body help me with that one please

Hi,

I have the same problem in Vegas 7. Final DVDs are ok but the volume is very low.

Audio is close to clipping level in the source AVI file that I feed to DVDA. Rendering this to a DVD using stereo AC3 (the standard audio setting for DVDs) ends with very low audio volume levels. I would say the audio leve is about -12...-16db lower than what it should be. Shouldn't the standard settings produce an 1:1 volume ratio? I read this thread and the other mentioned here - but did not find an answer to the problem.

What is the exact procedure to get close to 1:1 volume and audio levels encoding with stereo AC3? I don´t want the AC3 stereo encoder to alter the audio level in any way.

Our skilled moderator(s), do you have any better advice to share??

Christian

Christian, just use the settings mentioned previously in this thread.

It seems I've finally got a question that has touched base with many. As Christian says... why does the encoder change the volume level without telling anybody... it should just encode 1 to 1... as we have labourously spent time on the timeline setting the levels we want!? This is goofy... and should be fixed to output the same levels as we have set them!! (did I say that already?) Anyways... Thank you everybody for your input and advice, always greatly appriciated.

Do a search here for "Dialog Normalization". You'll find lots of pages talking about this. Bottom line - the AC3 encoder is working as designed. You can override the effect by using the above settings.

[QUOTE=Carl Downs;634095]I took the time and got all my sounds (dailog, music, effects, ect) to hit right between 3 and 6 db without any clipping or anything too low.

Do you know where your average RMS figures are? I assume -3 to -6dbfs is peak and not RMS. You may need to put a limiter on the master buss and raise the RMS levels while holding the peak output between -1 to -2 dbfs.
That should help significantly. Commercial CD's have RMS levels as high as -8 dbfs although the results usually sound terrible. If you can get your RMS levels to around -14dbfs your levels should be in the ballpark of commercial releases while still retaining decent sound quality.

Hi,

THX Edward, it worked for me. I searched for the "Dialog Normalization" as you recommended, and actually I read through most of what I found. Dolby encoding is tricky!

Still I do not understand why the -31dB setting is such a "magic number". Do you have an explanation for this? I would like to understand (if possible) why things work the way they work...

After all - I think DVDA should offer a factory preset (in addition to all the others) where AC3 stereo material is just converted as is (1:1). As it seems, this would be a very much used preset among most of us. And reading the posts, it seems that this issue is a recurring subject. At least this audio level issue should be somehow clearly adressed in the documentation... Well - nobody's perfect...

regards,

Christian

Hi,

Sorry to bother with this detail - but - I cannot find where in DVDA to adjust the custom setting for AC3 audio encoding (dialog level etc). Please guide me where to find this control. I am totally lost...

Christian

You don't do it in DVD Architect. You do it in Vegas. When you go to File - Render As, pick AC3 as the file type, pick Stereo DVD as the preset, and then click on "Custom". From there you can change these settings.

Hi,

Thanks Edward - no wonder why I felt like an idiot.

BUT - how do I cope with already rendered AVI material imported into DVDA - if there's no control for the proper AC3 audio level setting in DVDA? Must all this material be re-rendered to MPG2 in Vegas first - just to be able to render the audio at a correct level? I refuse to accept that.

If AVI files can not be rendered to proper AC3 audio level in DVDA - isn't this a severe shortcoming of the program - a problem that should be rectified by Sony?? Sony brags about render capabilityie from practically any format to any format. The reality seems not tobe all that rosy...

best regards,

Christian

If AVI files can not be rendered to proper AC3 audio level in DVDA - isn't this a severe shortcoming of the program - a problem that should be rectified by Sony??

No it's not. You have a very simple solution - drop the AVI file back on the Vegas timeline and render to AC3 format.

It is recommended that you render from the original project to MPEG2 and AC3 straight from Vegas. This will give you the highest quality rendering. Going to DV-AVI first and then to MPEG2/AC3 can give a decrease in video quality depending on where you started and what you did.

Hi,

Thanks. I had the impression that the AC3 finetuning could be done in DVDA... I was wrong. You cannot either do this AC3 volume correction in Vegas, if you do not render the audio separatedly. What a shame...

I normally go from HDV to AVI (PAL) in Vegas, quality drop is mainly due to loosing the HDV resolution. The I let DVDA render from AVI to MPG2 (DVD) since it is impossible to tell at this stage the final bitrate of a crowded DVD with all menus and additional stuff. The worst thing that could happen is that an already rendered MPG2 file gets re-rendered in DVDA if it does not fit.

It seems that there is then no work-around for properly rendering the audio levels of an AVI source material in DVDA into MPG2 for DVD burning!!! Am I correct?

And - am I the only one that thinks this is a severe shortcoming - or even an stupid omission?

Sony touts everywhere to stay in AVI for the best quality, additionally it is fast and easy to edit (no GOPs). It would be completely natural to assemble the final DVD in DVDA out of AVI files (the natural format of most of the DV material). This can be done - but the audio level will be somewhat -20db too low due to the default and fixed setting of the AC3 encoding...

To solve this audio problem I am forced to:

1. Assemble my final DVD already in Vegas (albeit not the menus).
2. Render the audio into separate AC3 file with custom tweaks to keep the volume level intact.
3. Determine at this stage what is the proper bit rate for the DVD so that all video will fit when assembled in DVDA.
4. Render the video as an separate MPG2 file (without audio)
5. Put togheter my final DVD in DVDA (separate audio and video files) and cross my fingers and hope that everything will fit.

This can not be how Sony has intended it? I am very disappointed if there is not other (simpler) way to achieve 1:1 volume in DVDA after coding stereo AVI into stereo AC3 MPG2... This is very frustrating. DVDA should be the application where you assemble your final DVD - or?

I am grateful to you Edward that you teached me (and probably a bunch of other unknowing people) how to work around the audio problem. I had no clue why all my DVDs sounded so silent... If someone says that just turn up your volume on your TV - remember that you loose at the same time the same amount of S/N...

However, in a professional sw package as Vegad+DVDA - it should not be this complicated. Stereo AC3 should be by default converted at 1:1 - when the source is stereo AVI. There should be a setting in DVDA, to fine tune the AC3 encoding. There is no technical reason why it could not be also there and not only in Vegas. And there is no other reason why it couln not be there. Someone with influence should talk to the Vegas development team...

Sorry for the long post - but I feel a little disasppointed. Othervice Vegas is rock solid and works great, but this kind of structural shortcomings (in my opinion) should be ironed out. Am I alone with my opinion?

Christian

You basically have two options:

1. Render to MPEG2 and AC3 in Vegas giving you FULL control of all settings (and, yes, also full responsibility of getting the sizes right). There are several bitrate calculators available and a chart in my newsletter to help ensure you get a file that is small enough. Using the chart in my newsletter, my MPEG2 files have always been sufficiently small.

2. Render to DV-AVI in Vegas and let DVD Architect take care of everything for you. However, you no longer have full control over the various settings (you basically have NO control). Plus, depending on your source and whatever else you've done to the project, you've potentially lost some color information as well by going through the intermediate AVI file.