iZotope Insight 2: Now Updated for Netflix Loudness Requirements
Netflix recently updated their loudness delivery standards. Read how we updated iZotope Insight 2 to make it easy for mixers to meet them
Working on an audio mix for Netflix, or just interested in broadcast loudness standards? This post is for you! We’ll cover Netflix’s recent update to their loudness delivery standards, and how we updated Insight 2 to meet them.
The update
Last year, Netflix updated their audio mix specifications, recommending that content delivered for streaming meet a dialog-gated loudness target of -27 LKFS. Read more about Netflix audio mix specifications and best practices here.
This change in Netflix’s preferred average loudness impacts a lot of broadcast and re-recording mixers, many of whom use iZotope’s Insight metering plug-in to make sure the shows and movies they mix meet delivery specs.
In fact, Netflix spent around $8 billion on content in 2018. And for every show they offer their subscribers, children’s content must be made available in 24 languages, and adult-oriented content in 8 languages. Currently, all of this work is outsourced and all of it must hit the new specs listed above. This requires reliable metering for broadcast loudness standards.
What we added to Insight 2.1
Insight 2 comes with lots of presets (called Layouts) from which you can select a loudness Target. This makes it easy to see if you’re hitting the mark. Version 2.1 comes with a new Target named "Netflix" that enables the Dialogue gate and sets the LRA targets to the expected values. Here’s a screenshot of the Netflix Target selected below:
Integrated loudness is a measurement that is averaged over the duration of the program. To get an accurate reading, the user will need to first select the Target, then play all the way through the program in order to make sure that the integrated measurement meets the selected loudness Target. Note that this process works offline too. You can hit “analyze” in Pro Tools AudioSuite for a faster analysis (that way you don't have to listen through the entire program in real time to get a measurement).
Another update we made was to move the controls for Peak, Loudness, and Gate (which used to be positioned next to the Targets dropdown menu) into the Target selection panel. This centralizes all the controls, rather than take up space in the main panel.
How to update to Insight 2.1
To update to the latest version of Insight, simply download the patch using iZotope Product Portal. Not using Product Portal yet? It’s our application that lets you seamlessly manage your iZotope software in one central location. Download it for free.
