Adobe Audition

Useful tips and tricks in Adobe Audition

Work in 32 bit float but export in 24 or 16 bits.

Effects can be applied to individual Clips (select them) or to entire Tracks. (Use the Effects Rack Panel).

In the Preferences > Audio Hardware Set the master clock to reflect whatever the main use of the software is at the moment, so when doing a lot of recording set it to the default input but when mastering set it to the major output.

When Mastering, it's important to know what loudness your aiming for. This will depend on the content you are producing. Songs will not be mastered the same way as podcasts, or video.

LUFS (Loudness Units Full Scale) are used as a standardized way of expressing loudness. It’s a measurement of how loud the peaks are compared to the average level. So the more dynamic the track, the higher the number. The less dynamic the track, the lower the number.

Integrated LUFS are a measurement taken usually over the entire sample.

Short-term LUFS are a measurement over the last 3 seconds.

Momentary LUFS are a measurement over the last 400ms.

The Loudness Penalty Analyzer can be used to help guide the mastering process for loudness normalization.

Podcasting generally targets -14 LUFS. Every online streaming platform operates with its own Distribution Loudness reference level, generally around -14 LUFS but there is no standard. If your audio is above that level, they will all tune it down. If it is under, some platforms will tune it up (Spotify for example does) and some won't (YouTube for example doesn't).

Additional Ressources on LUFS

Mixing Lessons Article on LUFS

+/- (KEYPAD) : Zoom In/Out by one step

KEY_PAD 0 : Toggle back from Waveform/Spectral view to Multitrack view
KEY_PAD 9 : Toggle from Multitrack view to Waveform/Spectral view of selected clip