/reference

Reference audio.

Like the reference kilogram, but for sound. Every file here is hosted on this page and measured by the AudioLab engine. The numbers are published so you can run the exact same file and reproduce them. Real masters, deliberate problem cases, and calibration signals. Don’t trust the numbers. Check them.

Music by JonathanD (electro) and Ibiza Spirit (lounge): the maker’s own releases, used with permission. Derived and calibration files are generated.

01 Masters & problem cases

JonathanD · Clean up

Original master

electro

A real loud club master. It already runs true-peak over 0 dBTP, common in club-loud electronic music.

Integrated: −7.5 LUFS
True-peak: +1.8 dBTP
LRA: 1.7 LU
Correlation: 0.67

JonathanD · Clean up

Normalized to −14 LUFS (Spotify)

on-target

The same clip normalized to the Spotify target. This is what streaming plays back, and the true-peak is now safely under 0.

Integrated: −14.4 LUFS
True-peak: −5.8 dBTP
Crest: 11.2 dB
Correlation: 0.67

JonathanD · Clean up

Pushed +14 dB into clipping

clipping

Deliberately overdriven. Peak and true-peak sit far over 0 dBFS. The recipe for audible distortion on any real playback chain.

Integrated: +0.3 LUFS
True-peak: +4.9 dBTP
Crest: 7.7 dB
Peak: +4.9 dBFS

JonathanD · Clean up

Summed to mono

mono

Folded to mono: what a single phone or club-sub speaker hears. Stereo correlation reads a perfect 1.0.

Correlation: 1.00
Mono-safe: yes
Integrated: −8.7 LUFS
True-peak: +0.0 dBTP

Ibiza Spirit · Jazz Club

Original master

lounge

A real lounge / downtempo master: loud, wide, warm, and, like a lot of masters, true-peak just over 0.

Integrated: −8.3 LUFS
True-peak: +1.8 dBTP
Correlation: 0.89
Centroid: 2.2 kHz

Ibiza Spirit · Jazz Club

Big 2–4 kHz boost

harsh

A heavy presence-band boost. AudioLab flags harshness: High. That is the fatiguing, edgy zone your ears tire of first.

Harshness: High
Centroid: 2.9 kHz
Integrated: −4.1 LUFS
True-peak: +3.9 dBTP

Ibiza Spirit · Jazz Club

200–400 Hz hump, neighbours cut

muddy

A boxy 200–400 Hz bump lifted above the bands on either side. AudioLab flags muddiness: Medium. The metric is relative, so it catches a hump, not just bass.

Muddiness: Medium
Integrated: −10.6 LUFS
True-peak: +1.0 dBTP
Crest: 13.8 dB

Ibiza Spirit · Jazz Club

One channel polarity-flipped

out of phase

The right channel is inverted. Correlation reads −0.89 and mono-compatible is false. It partly cancels itself the moment it folds to mono.

Correlation: −0.89
Mono-safe: no
Crest: 23.7 dB
Integrated: −8.3 LUFS

02 Calibration signals

Known-value signals with exact levels. Run them through any meter (or AudioLab). If the numbers match, it is calibrated. These are the truest “golden” references.

1 kHz sine

Normalized to −23 LUFS

sine

A pure 1 kHz tone at the EBU R128 reference level. Crest factor is 3.0 dB. The textbook value for a sine. If your meter agrees, it is calibrated.

Integrated: −23.3 LUFS
Crest: 3.05 dB
Centroid: 1.0 kHz
True-peak: −23.2 dBTP

Pink noise

Normalized to −23 LUFS

pink noise

Broadband pink noise at −23 LUFS. A stable reference for level, spectrum and stereo tools.

Integrated: −23.5 LUFS
True-peak: −12.6 dBTP
LRA: 0.0 LU
Correlation: 1.00

Reproduce it

Copy any file’s URL above and send it to the API. You should get the same numbers we published.

curl https://audiolab.tools/v1/mixlab/analyze \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $AUDIOLAB_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"url":"https://audiolab.tools/reference/jd-original.mp3"}'

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