viddy well, droogies

ORIGINAL: tunekicker

For an excellent example illustration of both sides of the loudness war, try listening to the first movement of Beethoven's 9th symphony sometime...

The dynamic variation is incredible and really works to sustain the listener's attention and emotion.

Of course, this makes the listening environment very obvious. On my studio system or headphones in a quiet environment I can appreciate the dynamics and LOVE it. In my car or with an iPod in a crowded, noisy room I find I would rather listen to something else, since I would constantly be playing with the volume to find the right level.

Peace,

I really have to wonder how many of you high minded individuals actually sell any product or get played on the radio.

2 db? If you are passing 0 db, you are clipping...

Unless you mean, -2db

Around 1995 or so I started noticing newer CDs were sounding a little distorted or "squashed". I mentioned it to other people, but they couldn't seem to hear what I was talking about. Over the years I noticed it not only more and more, but getting worse. Since no one else seemed to be hearing distortion, I thought it was just me (veeery fussy ears, here), but now I know it isn't.

 
It's not you. Most of the commercial CD's (rock, etc...) has been smashed and stomped on so much that they're really hard to listen to for any length of time. Annoys me to no end.
 
Todays music buying public buy and listen to music differently then when I was a youth. The "album" experience is dead. People DL individual tracks and add them to their playlist in whatever it is they listen to music on. A lot gets converted to mp3's along the way. (The new cassette.) The newer generation are accustomed to todays production methods, and the vast majority of people would never be able to tell the difference. So many people using portable players with earbuds these days. Earbuds do not say "hi-fi". Record companies want their product to be at least as loud as everything else out there. Louder sounds better to the masses, but we know that's hardly the case at all....not when it's been clipped, stomped and squashed to get there.
 
Sad state of affairs. It may not change anytime soon.  

It's unfortunate but true. Many young bands recording these days have drunk the "loud is best" kool-aid and request a "loud as possible" mix. Then they wonder why it sounds the way it does after it's been crushed.

I think the mastering houses these days would prefer to back things off, but when the paying customer demands "make it louder, or we'll go somewher else", then they're pretty much stuck to go down that road.