How often is it that you can get something for your systemfor nothing? Almost never. Below are six of our favorite free pieces ofsoftware that we think every audio enthusiast should download and try out. FromCD ripping to improving your ability to critically listen, this list hassomething for everyone. Enjoy, and let us know if you have any othersuggestions by posting in the comments below.
蓝牙音频测试 / Bluetooth Testing Seminar May 17, 2021 - 3:57 pm June 3rd 2021. 10am (China Time) In this 1hr online seminar, S&V Samford presents Les Quindipan of Listen, Inc. And Kristopher Hett of Portland Tool & Die demonstrating how to test Bluetooth devices. With this App you can Test your Sound System. Four High-resolution Audio Files. 2 Sound Files are FLAC 'Free Lossless Audio Codec' and 2 of the Sound Files are WAV 'Waveform Audio File Format'. This 4 Sound Files are Optimated for 5.1 surround sound audio systems. Produced for our recent exhibition at AES Milan 2018, this brief video provides an overview of smart speaker testing in the context of AP's upcoming software.
1.Exact Audio Copy
Exact Audio Copy, or EAC as the cool kids say, is theSwiss Army Knife of CD ripping, copying, and burning. The goal of this program,as the name suggests, is to rip audio from a CD without adulterating the file.It does this through jitter correction and read error detection. When rippingin “secure mode”, EAC reads every audio section at least twice, or relies onextended error information that some drives are able to return with the audiodata. Let’s say there is an error while reading a disc, the program willre-read up to 82 times, compare the results, and give you the best copypossible. If the program is less than 99.5% sure the audio stream is correct,it will alert you with a read error. Beyond accuracy, the program is endlesslycustomizable while still managing to be easy enough to use for the less-technicaluser.
Exact Audio Copy
EAC can save the ripped files in uncompressed WAV format,and supports external MP3, WMA, flac and OggVorbis encoders. It can alsodecompress some files back to WAV. There are a host of other features, like CDwriting, pre-track gap detection, and metadata editing. If you are looking totake your CD collection and turn it into a digital library, EAC is the way todo it.
2. TT Dynamic Range Meter
We’ve written about compression and the loudness war foryears (see: CurrentTrend in the Recording Format Arena and CDCompression Depression for two examples), and we’re not alonein our frustration. The Pleasurize Music Foundation created TT Dynamic RangeMeter with the goal of fighting the over-compression of music. The programtells you the dynamic range of songs, so you can find out if you have justpurchased a quality recording or not. One fun use of DR Meter is to compare differentreleases of the same song or album. The program is incredibly easy to use,simply select the track or folder you want analyzed ... and that’s it. It takesa few seconds for the program to spit out a number telling you the dynamicrange of the album or track. It can also create a log file telling you thedynamic range of each individual track if you scan an entire folder. Accordingto their website, a DR of 7 “is low for rock music or very low for Jazz, [but]it is quite acceptable for electronic club music which has nowadays oftenvalues below DR4. All values above DR12 have generally a high dynamic quality.”
DR Meter Offline DR Meter Log Sheet
DR meter comes in two flavors, what they call an offlineversion (pictured above) and as a foobar2000 component. For those of you who are wondering what foobar2000 is, checkout our MusicPlayback Software Comparison. If you do decide todownload DT meter, we encourage you to sign up andsupport their campaign to end the loudness war.
3. Room EQ Wizard
Room EQ Wizard, or REW, was one of the original room andloudspeaker measurement systems available to the home theater enthusiast. Oncesetup properly, it’s a joy to use. Actually, I find it much more intuitive thanOmnimic, a costly alternative. REW is packed with useful features, the mostprominent being an SPL meter, RTA, waterfall plot, and spectrogram. REW canhelp you figure out the best placement for speakers, listening position, andacoustic treatments. Figuring out how to use all of the functionality packedinto REW can be a little tough at first, but there is a large online communityto provide support.
RoomEQ Wizard
Like we said, once up and running, REW is a powerfulpiece of software. However, getting it up and running can be difficult, andresults can be inaccurate depending on the quality of measurement equipment youare using. You will need to invest in a microphone, cables, tripod, andexternal soundcard (external soundcard is optional). You may also needsomething like the NadySMPS-1X phantom power supply for the mic, depending on thefunctionality of the soundcard you purchase. If you are willing to spend someextra time during setup and invest in decent quality measurement gear, you willbe rewarded. For people who want a more seamless experience, kits from Omnimic or XTZ(review in progress) come with everything you need and work right out of thebox with little to no setup.
4. Harman How to Listen
This is the only program we know of that is designed toimprove your critical listening abilities. Originally created to train Harmanemployees, it has been made available, for free, to the public. It’stechnically still beta, but it has been that way for a number of years, sodon’t expect an update anytime soon.
2 Band Test 24 Band Insane Test
The program works by asking listeners to identify how atrack has been manipulated. For example, the image above-left shows a verybasic Band ID exercise. The user can switch be an unaltered “flat” version ofthe song, and the modified “EQ” version. The goal is to identify which of thetwo Eqs shown is being applied, number 1 or 2. The tests become increasinglydifficult. Above-right is an image of the most difficult Band ID test theprogram has to offer. As you can tell, the tests become very difficult. Thereare a number of different training exercises, including reverb, coloration, andnoise. If you become tired of the tracks that come with the software, you caneven upload your own to demo.
Speaker Testing Software Tutorial
5. Audio DiffMaker
Have you ever made a change to your system and wonderedif there was any actual change in the sound? Let’s say you just spent $3,800 perfoot on a Audioquest WEL Signature power cable,and you want to know if that made any difference, audible or not. That’s thepurpose of Audio DiffMaker. You record a reference track. This can be done with a mic to capture the actual sound output from your speakers, or using various other methods to capture the audio output from a device. Next, make the change inthe system, and then record a compared track. The software compares the twotracks and extracts the difference.
Diffmaker Screenshot
The designers (Liberty Instruments) went through a lot oftrouble to ensure accuracy. For example, it automatically accounts for samplerate drift and level differences, so the difference recording is only what hasactually changed between the two recordings. Anyway, that’s what they claim,and they seem to have taken all of the necessary steps to achieve that goal.Note that this system does not require your equipment be completely linear orof the highest quality, by its very design all of the characteristics of yoursystem are part of the reference and comparison recordings. Even though theconcept of Audio DiffMaker is simple, be warned that its actual implementationcan be difficult and time consuming. The two recordings need to be verycarefully taken so as to isolate only a single variable. Still, if you arereally into small system tweaks and DIY projects, this is a fun program to seeif each change makes a difference or not.
6. Audacity
Audacity has been around for a long time, and like someof the other software on this list, is opensource. Unlike the other software onthis list, which serve specific purposes, Audacity has a wide range of uses.Essentially, it’s a sound recording and editing program. It can record liveaudio or computer audio, and then be used to edit the recording. One of thecommon uses of Audacity is to record and edit podcasts, and is employed by AVrant podcast forthat very purpose. Quality is also key with Audacity. It can import and export WAV,AIFF, AU, FLAC and Ogg Vorbis files, and record at 24-bit depth and 192,000 Hzsampling rate (384,000Hz on OS X and Linux).
Audacityscreenshot
One of the reasons it made this list is because of a cool“show clipping” feature. The program will highlight red any portion of theaudio waveform that clips. Like DifMaker, this can be used to compare thequality of different tracks. The above screenshot shows a song from HDtracks’free sampler. The image below shows Dire Straits “Walk of Life” downloaded fromiTunes … notice any clipping?
ImageCourtesy of AVrant Podcast and their loyal listener John
Conclusion
We thoroughly enjoy using the software on this list, andhope you will too. We didn’t cover everything out there, so let us know whatyour favorite software is. Finally, we want to say a quick thanks to all of theindividuals who invest their time and effort into creating software that therest of us can use for free. Richard Stallman would be proud.
Applications
dScope Series III M1 Software latest update: 2020-01-23
Now includes updated 'Auto Sequence' automation tool with sample sequences.dScope V1.50 software (supporting the M1) available at: dScope Series III M1 page.PLEASE NOTE: Applications and script downloads are not fully updated for M1 software version. For M1 applications, downloaded examples may need updating. Contact us for assistance via the contacts page.
Spectral Measurement (formerly Prism Sound Test and Measurement)
Spectral Measurement (formerly Prism Sound Test and Measurement) has been supplying successful high quality analogue and digital audio test solutions for 33 years. The solutions we provide contain the highest performing audio test products available, backed up by consultancy and support services recognised as the best in the industry.Speaker Testing Software Program
Spectral Measurement not only manufactures high quality audio test equipment, but also has a wealth of experts who can provide the support you need to help you throughout the product development and manufacturing cycle. The benefit of this approach is that you can develop your R&D, verification and production tests in parallel, leading to a significant reduction in your time to market.News
| Test & Measurement Flies Solo As Prism Sound Music & Post Joins The Audio Squadron Prism Media Products Limited, the company behind the innovative dScope Series III Audio Analyzer, is now exclusively focussed on developing new audio test & measurement solutions for the 21st century. . . . (27th August 2019) |
| Prism Sound shake up Audio Test at AES New York 2018 with full-featured high performance audio test solutions from only $3395! On show for the first time will be the very latest dScope M1 audio interfaces for Prism Sound's dScope Series III audio test & measurement software. . . . (10th October 2018) |
| dScope plays a pivotal role at BW Broadcast Croydon-based BW Broadcast has increased its stock of Prism Sound audio test equipment by investing in two more dScope Series III Digital Audio Analysers, bringing the total number of units it owns to nine . . . (9th September 2014) |
| dScope Series III advances with new automation solution and updated soundcard support dScope's automation sequencer gets a major update and soundcard support now extends to ASIO devices . . . (17th October 2013) |
See Also: News Archive
Upcoming Events
| Wednesday Webinars Audio Test and Measurement webinars See the Wednesday Webinars Page for times and topics. |
| Audio Design Workshop LIVE ADWL is a series of workshop for audio design engineers to network and discuss problems and solutions. See the ADWL site for details. |