Solved Couple questions about RMS

  • Thread starter Thread starter danny.guitar
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danny.guitar

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What is the difference between RMS Sine Wave and RMS Square Wave?

I notice that the RMS Sine Wave yields a result of about -3db compared to Square. Which one should I be using?

I remember this being brought up in another thread, but I forgot which one and the search didn't yield any results.

Another question, is -14 or -17db RMS with a peak of -3 to -6 RMS considered loud?

That was as loud as I could get my mix without using compression/limiting. I used volume envelopes to tame the few peaks in the mixdown so it could normalize to a louder level. I heard you're not supposed to normalize, but I saved it for the very last step and I can't work a compresser/limiter without messing up the sound, so I did it that way.
 
danny.guitar said:
What is the difference between RMS Sine Wave and RMS Square Wave?
Click to expand...

about 3dB :D

I actually wrote a post about about it a little while back here

Which one should I be using?
Click to expand...

It appears most DAW programs/plugins reference a square wave. Some programs let you choose.
However, do know this is different than just sending a test tone through your gear. The majority of engineers use a sine wave when they run test tones. As I say in the above post, I think this is the reason why Katz talks about why RMS metering is not the same thing as VU metering. They follow different rules and yield different results.


Another question, is -14 or -17db RMS with a peak of -3 to -6 RMS considered loud?
Click to expand...

does it SOUND loud to you? As has been posted by several members on this board, loud is subjective. Following RMS levels when trying to determine loudness gets away from the fundamental reason you are in the world of audio; it's how it sounds, not how it looks. If there are no rules for you to follow (as there are in the broadcasting world), then do whatever sounds good to you. And of course it's easy to make that louder...just by slamming it with a brick wall limiter. But this hurts your dynamics.
And it's not a peak of -3 to -6 RMS... ;)
 
Thanks, benny. That cleared it up a lot.

The mix sounds loud enough to me I guess, and it's pretty loud compared to other mixes I've heard.

I'm reading over that link you posted.

Thanks again. :cool:
 
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