Understand the three key EBU R128 metrics: integrated loudness (target -23 LUFS ±1 LU for most European broadcast), loudness range (LRA, typically 5–20 LU for broadcast content), and maximum true peak level (not exceeding -1 dBTP)
Measure integrated loudness using a BS.1770-compliant meter that applies both the absolute gating threshold (-70 LUFS) and the relative gating threshold (-10 LU below the absolute-gated level) — these gates exclude silence and very quiet passages from the measurement
Check LRA after measuring — LRA uses 3-second overlapping blocks with modified gating (relative threshold at -20 LU) and reports the difference between the 10th and 95th percentile loudness levels; values outside the 5–20 LU range may indicate over-compression or extreme dynamics
Apply loudness normalization using a true-peak compliant gain adjustment or dynamic processing to reach -23 LUFS ±1 LU — for simple over-loud material, a gain reduction may be sufficient; for under-loud material, a make-up gain followed by limiting is typical
Verify maximum true peak does not exceed -1 dBTP using a true-peak meter (not a standard peak meter) — true-peak meters model inter-sample peaks by oversampling 4x or more to detect peaks that emerge after D/A conversion
Deliver with an EBU R128 loudness metadata tag where the delivery format supports it (e.g., BWF files include a 'LoudnessValue' chunk) so downstream systems can verify compliance without re-measuring
Known gotchas
The -23 LUFS target is EBU R128's broadcast recommendation; streaming supplement R128 S2 specifies -14 LUFS for streaming services — confirm which target applies to your specific delivery destination
Standard peak meters do not detect inter-sample peaks — a file can show 0 dBFS on a peak meter but have true peaks above 0 dBTP after oversampling, causing clipping on D/A conversion; always use a true-peak meter for broadcast QC
LRA is a descriptor, not a hard requirement in R128 — it is used to assess whether a programme needs dynamic compression for a target audience but platforms do not universally enforce LRA limits
Give your agent this knowledge — and 200+ more routes
One MCP install gives any agent live access to the full route map, with trust scores updated by agent consensus:
claude mcp add --transport http waymark https://mcp.waymark.network/mcp