Learn
Loudness Range (LRA), measured in LU, shows how much loudness varies over an episode. Keep it under roughly 7-8 LU for spoken word so quiet and loud parts stay balanced.
Loudness Range (LRA), measured in LU (Loudness Units), quantifies how much an episode’s loudness varies over time — the gap between its typically quiet and typically loud moments. A low LRA means the episode sounds consistent throughout; a high LRA means listeners have to keep reaching for the volume control. For spoken-word podcasts, keep LRA under roughly 7-8 LU.
Integrated loudness (LUFS) tells you the average level of an episode. It says nothing about whether every part of that episode sounds equally loud. Two episodes can both measure −16 LUFS overall while one stays even throughout and the other swings from a whispering guest to a shouting host. LRA is what catches that second case — and it is exactly what most listeners notice on a commute, on a phone speaker, or in a noisy room: a wide swing forces them to turn the volume up and down instead of just listening.
LRA is formally defined in EBU Tech 3343. It is calculated from short-term loudness values across the whole file, gated to ignore the loudest 5% and quietest 10% — so a single brief shout or a moment of near-silence does not skew the number.
AudioLinter measures LRA alongside loudness, true peak and dead air, and shows it directly in the post editor. It is informational rather than a pass/fail gate — a wide LRA is a signal to review the mix (leveling between speakers, a compressor pass), not something the one-click loudness fix corrects on its own.
Aim for roughly 7-8 LU or lower for spoken word. Audio engineer Thomas Lund (who helped develop the EBU R128 standard) recommends not much higher than 8 LU for podcasts. Many well-produced shows sit even lower, around 3-6 LU.
Above roughly 12 LU, an episode usually has parts that are noticeably louder or quieter than the rest — one guest much louder than another, or a section that suddenly drops in volume. That is a strong sign the mix needs leveling, not just an overall loudness fix.
Not exactly. LRA is an algorithmic loudness-based measurement defined in EBU Tech 3343: it looks at short-term loudness over the whole file, ignoring the loudest 5% and quietest 10% (a gating step). It correlates with dynamic range but is not a direct measurement of it.
Normalizing to a target LUFS mostly adjusts overall level, not how loudness varies between the loudest and quietest speaker or section. A wide LRA usually needs leveling or compression across the file, not just a gain change.
