Levelator: Anyone Using This?

jrazz wrote on 10/26/2009, 4:42 PM
The Levelator

Here is an excerpt:

So what is The Levelator®? It's software that runs on Windows, OS X (universal binary), or Linux (Ubuntu) that adjusts the audio levels within your podcast or other audio file for variations from one speaker to the next, for example. It's not a compressor, normalizer or limiter although it contains all three. It's much more than those tools, and it's much simpler to use. The UI is dirt-simple: Drag-and-drop any WAV or AIFF file onto The Leveler's application window, and a few moments later you'll find a new version which just sounds better.

j razz

Comments

Former user wrote on 10/26/2009, 5:10 PM
I used the Mac version on a FC project and it did work surprisingly well. I can recommend it for those situations where you can't draw enough volume nodes.

Dave T2
Opampman wrote on 10/26/2009, 8:59 PM
I've been using this for years and it's really an amazing tool. You're right - it's VERY easy to use and my wife has been using it on her TV show for several years with great results.
Sab wrote on 10/26/2009, 10:03 PM
Easy and extremely effective in many (but not all) situations. Love it.

Mike
John_Cline wrote on 10/26/2009, 10:08 PM
Depending on the nature of the audio material, Levelator may cause some "pumping and breathing." Since there are no adjustments, there is nothing that can be done if pumping and breathing artifacts are present after processing..
JohnnyRoy wrote on 10/27/2009, 6:57 AM
I use it too. It's a simply brilliant tool. Some times I'm asked to record school plays. There is always one kid too far from the mic and another one eating it. I use to spend hours and hours editing the audio in Sound Forge to get the levels smooth. Now I just drop the audio track in Levelator and tweak a bit with the volume envelope in Vegas and I'm done. Occasionally I'll have to apply some noise reduction if the noise floor is too high but it's a great tool that everyone should have in their kit.

~jr
Opampman wrote on 10/27/2009, 7:31 AM
John is right, It is not the cure all for everything. There are times when I have to do it manually also. But the time it saves me in most situations is incredible. Occasionally I get a few strange phasing results but 98% of the time it just works great.