Key takeaway
A loudness result needs its asset, interval and metering mode. An excerpt, short-term maximum and whole-programme integrated value are different evidence.
Match the result to the exact programme and edit
An audio QC export can show a plausible LUFS value beside a programme title while omitting what the meter actually measured. Was it the complete delivery file, an opening excerpt or an earlier edit? Was the number integrated loudness or a short-term maximum? Before using the record to support a delivery statement, connect the result to the actual asset and requested check.
EBU R 128-2023 recommends generally measuring the audio signal in its entirety and distinguishes programme loudness from true peak. This is an EBU recommendation, not a universal delivery rule for every broadcaster or streaming service. Keep the receiving specification separate from the measurement record. A result can be correctly measured for one purpose and inapplicable to another.
Read the mode before comparing the number
EBU Tech 3341-2023 distinguishes momentary, short-term and integrated loudness. In its EBU-mode definitions, momentary and short-term use different sliding windows without the integrated gate; integrated measurement uses gating. A label that stores only loudness discards that distinction. Metering edition and mode are part of the result’s meaning, not optional display decoration.
The same specification describes a two-stage measurement gate for integrated loudness. Consequently, a programme result is not interchangeable with a maximum from a short window. The practical owner task is to retain the actual meter mode, interval and asset identity, not to recompute a delivery value from whichever numbers happen to survive in a spreadsheet.
Complete the applicability sheet before a delivery decision
This hypothetical programme has edits E1 and E2. The assumed review request needs the complete delivered edit’s integrated loudness and its separate true-peak result under a named specification. The table contains invented measurements; no audio was processed and no meter compliance was verified. The numerical values are evidence labels within the illustration, not recommended targets.
L1 cannot answer the whole-programme integrated question because it covers an excerpt and another mode. L2 is a candidate result for E1 under its documented scope. It cannot establish the result for E2. L4 records a different quantity needed by the request, so it stays separate. Even when the displayed numbers look familiar, the owner must still establish the actual delivery requirements and measuring method.
| QC record | Asset and measurement scope | Invented result | Completed applicability decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| L1 | E1; opening 30 seconds; short-term maximum | -21 LUFS | Does not answer the requested full-programme integrated check |
| L2 | E1; entire programme; integrated EBU mode | -23.0 LUFS | Candidate measurement for E1 and its named specification |
| L3 | E2; no retained whole-programme measurement | Not available | Hold E2 result; do not carry L2 forward automatically |
| L4 | E1; true-peak measurement | -1.2 dBTP | Separate quantity; does not replace integrated loudness |
Preserve a usable QC record instead of one clean column
For the illustrative E1 decision, retain the file/edit identity, programme boundaries, channel configuration, meter/tool version, specification edition, mode, gating and recorded result. Link the stated delivery target and the technical reviewer’s decision separately. If a title refers to several languages or versions, do not assume they share one measurement because their names or durations resemble each other.
Record whether the meter was reset and which interval it integrated if that evidence exists. A result from an earlier pass can remain useful historical evidence while failing the current-edit question. If the interval or mode cannot be recovered, label the result unresolved rather than filling the field with an assumed EBU setting.
Do not manufacture an integrated result by averaging the LUFS entries in this table. They cover different modes and windows, so no such reconstruction is supported. Likewise, do not compare dBTP and LUFS as if they were one quantity or describe an EBU recommendation as a receiving platform’s own specification. Ask the audio technical owner for the missing scoped measurement.
The completed sheet retains L2 and L4 as candidate E1 evidence and holds the broader E2 statement. Inventory can describe those record categories, while Readiness assigns missing identity or method evidence. Music, performances, voice recordings and client deliverables can carry separate restrictions. Explain the structure with fictional rows first. VOID’s metadata introduction does not grant audio files, certify a meter or approve a later sample or license.