The loudness war refers to the use of increasingly louder levels in the production and mastering of music. Many music producers have participated in a trend of turning up the volume on more parts of a track over time, according to music experts, so today’s music has a different dynamic than songs recorded in previous decades. According to many experts and specialists, the loudness war has resulted in a loss of clarity in music.
Typically, sound engineers will demonstrate the loudness war playing a recorded track alongside its digital representation on a screen. Experts point out that older music typically has a wide dynamic range, with quieter sections and much louder sections. Acoustic interludes leading up to the body of a song, for example, might be recorded at a very low volume, with snare drums and other types of percussion being among the loudest sounds.
While the loudness war is often justified as an attempt to make quieter parts of music more accessible to listeners, the overall effect is that the dynamic between sounds is leveled out, with no sound standing out as a much louder sound. Many experts refer to this as a loss of clarity, in which music is no longer perceived as a distinct interplay of louder and quieter parts.
It’s no coincidence that the loudness war occurred at the same time as the rise of digital sound media. Experts discussing the loudness war and other aspects of modern production frequently mention the need to change production in order to hide digital track defects. Although it began long before digital tracks, with the recording of vinyl 45s, the loudness war may have been an unavoidable result of the transition to digital music.
While the term “loudness war” was coined to describe producers’ competition to make music louder, the debate or “war” is actually about whether producers should return to providing a more distinct dynamic lowering overall track volume. Whether excessive loudness enhances or detracts from music is still a point of contention among listeners. The best way to assess this effect is to use a digital platform that allows you to experiment with different levels of loudness.