There are different metering standards, most of which are available in Ardour. In short:
</p>
-<dl>
- <dt>Digital peak-meter</dt>
- <dd>A <dfn>Digital Peak Meter</dfn> displays the absolute maximum signal
+<table class="dl">
+ <tr><th>Digital peak-meter</th>
+ <td>A <dfn>Digital Peak Meter</dfn> displays the absolute maximum signal
of the raw audio PCM signal (for a given time). It is commonly used when
tracking to make sure the recorded audio never clips. To that end, DPMs
are always calibrated to 0 <abbr title="DeciBel Full
Various conventions for DPM fall-off times and dBFS line-up level can be
chosen in <kbd class="menu">Edit > Preferences > GUI</kbd>.
</p>
- </dd>
+ </td></tr>
- <dt>RMS meters</dt>
- <dd>An <dfn><abbr title="Root Mean Square">RMS</abbr>-type meter</dfn>
+ <tr><th>RMS meters</th>
+ <td>An <dfn><abbr title="Root Mean Square">RMS</abbr>-type meter</dfn>
is an averaging meter that looks at the energy in the signal. It
provides a general indication of loudness as perceived by humans. Ardour
features three RMS meters, all of which offer additonal peak indication.
<li><dfn>Peak + RMS</dfn>: standard RMS, customizable via
<kbd class="menu">Edit > Preferences > GUI > Metering</kbd></li>
</ul>
- </dd>
+ </td></tr>
- <dt>IEC PPMs</dt>
- <dd><dfn><abbr title="International Electrontechnical Commission">IEC</abbr>-type
+ <tr><th>IEC PPMs</th>
+ <td><dfn><abbr title="International Electrontechnical Commission">IEC</abbr>-type
<abbr title="Peak Programme Meters">PPM</abbr>s</dfn> are a mix between DPMs and
RMS meters, created mainly for the purpose of
interoperability. Many national and institutional varieties exist (<abbr
Their specification is very exact, and consquently, there are no
customizable parameters.
</p>
- </dd>
+ </td></tr>
- <dt>VU meters</dt>
- <dd><dfn><abbr title="Volume Unit">VU</abbr> meters</dfn> are the dinosaurs (1939)
+ <tr><th>VU meters</th>
+ <td><dfn><abbr title="Volume Unit">VU</abbr> meters</dfn> are the dinosaurs (1939)
amongst the meters. They react very slowly, averaging out peaks.
Their specification is very strict (300ms rise-time, 1–1.5% overshoot,
flat frequency response). Ardour's VU meter adheres to that spec, but for
visual consistency it is displayed as a bar-graph rather than needle-style
(more below).
- </dd>
-</dl>
+ </td></tr>
+</table>
<h2>Ardour Specifics</h2>