ReplayGain

[Pepsican]

(10-06-2016 14:12)simoncn Wrote:  I have done some experiments to see how this could work.

There are two tags used by dBpoweramp: ReplayGain_Album_Gain and ReplayGain_Track_Gain. The value of ReplayGain_Track_Gain can differ greatly between tracks of the same album and I don't think it would be a good idea for MinimStreamer to adjust levels based on this. Adjusting levels based on ReplayGain_Album_Gain should produce a better result.

In my experiments, adjusting output level as part of ffmpeg transcoding didn't degrade sound quality noticeably, so this should be a viable approach for supporting this capability.

I still need to work out how best to pass the ReplayGain_Album_Gain value for a track from MinimServer to MinimStreamer when the track is selected for playback.

Thank you very much for considering the request. Highly appreciated and happy to provide input if so required.

Would it not be able to have a variable that would determine whether to read ReplayGain_Track or ReplayGain_Album? Here is the reasoning based on a conversation I had with Spoon, the maker of DBPoweramp.

If I recall his words correctly, ReplayGain_Album will hold the value to normalise tracks that are of the same album. So, if you have two songs with wildly differing output levels, then for that album you can level it through ReplayGain_album. Both tracks will now sound roughly the same in terms of volume / output level. However, you are still left with differences between tracks of different albums. And this is where ReplayGain_track comes in handy.

DBPoweramp's batch processor (And I believe Foobar as well) allows you to level all tracks within your selection. In other words, if you select your entire library or any subset of it, that subset will be levelled in its entirety (is that proper English?) to the same level. This will resolve the play list issue that so many talk about where low output level tracks from the 1980s (Pink Floyd's original CD issue of The Wall comes to mind) are way too soft, while CD releases from the 2000s and later will make you jump up against the ceiling because they are so loudly recorded.

Also, DBPoweramp and EAC will allow you to ensure that no clipping occurs when determining the ReplayGain value. So, in principle you can take the value that the software calculated as given, I think. If there is a problem, the user needs to reapply the ReplayGain calculation algorythm or turn off ReplayGain processing in Minim. It should not be the responsibility of Minim to check the originally applied ReplayGain or second guess its value, in my view.

I agree that sound quality will not be affected as bits and dynamic range are not affected. But there will be a perceived quality loss for tracks that will get a lower output level. The reverse will be the case for tracks that will get leveled upwards.

But I think many of us would be happy to have this option. Thank you.