Updated October 2026 · Loudness and levels
Dynamic range is the difference between the loudest and quietest parts of a recording. Speech with a wide range can feel natural but hard to hear on a phone, and speech with a narrow range is easier to follow but can sound flat. Aim for a range that suits the listening place.
Dynamic range describes how much the level changes across a recording. Live speech has a natural dynamic range, from soft words to strong emphasis. Editing and processing change it, and every step can make the sound more even, or less natural. Understanding it helps you decide how much processing a voice needs.
A wide range keeps the expression in a voice. Soft words, emphasis and pauses all stay in place. For a relaxed listening environment, such as headphones at home, a wide range can sound very natural. The risk is that the quiet parts become hard to hear in a noisy place like a car or a train.
A narrow range keeps the level steady, so listeners do not need to adjust the volume. This suits podcasts, voice-overs played in noisy places and content that people listen to while doing something else. Too narrow, and the voice sounds squashed, with no life.
The range comes from the performance, the microphone distance, the room and the processing. Stepping back from the microphone, or speaking softly, widens the range. A close microphone and a steady voice narrow it. Compression and limiting narrow it further, which is why heavy processing can flatten a voice.
There is no ideal range for every voice. A dramatic narration needs more range than a news summary. Use the content and the listening place to decide, and listen before you commit. The levelling guide shows how to smooth a conversation without losing its natural feel.
Integrated LUFS, true peak and streaming targets. Runs in your browser, nothing is uploaded.
Not always. It depends on where the audience listens. Wide range suits headphones, narrow range suits noisy places.
Yes. That is its job, so use it lightly on speech if you want the voice to stay natural.
If the voice sounds flat, tiring or lifeless on headphones, reduce the processing and compare.
Not well. A small speaker struggles with quiet passages, so the mix needs more even levels for phones.
