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Guided workflow variation

-23 LUFS and -1 dBTP,across the whole delivery.

Broadcasters across Europe ask for programme loudness of -23 LUFS under a true-peak ceiling. WavSpec measures each master per ITU-R BS.1770-5, sets the gain, limits any overs, converts the format, and stamps the verified values into the Broadcast Wave header.

Choose EBU R 128 broadcast, run the batch, and every file lands at -23 LUFS within tolerance, under -1 dBTP, at 48 kHz, with its values in bext.

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Buy through the Microsoft Store—instant install, automatic updates, and a Microsoft receipt for easy expensing. No account needed on our site, and no subscription on Store purchases.

Full WavSpec overview
One-time purchase No telemetry Local-first

windows · re-measured from disk · originals never overwritten · nothing uploads

If this sounds like your week

R 128 is one number until the station adds its own sheet.

EBU R 128 sets programme loudness at -23 LUFS and a maximum true peak of -1 dBTP. Broadcasters then layer their own sheets on top: UK DPP AS-11 tightens the window to ±0.5 LU and recommends -3 dBTP, ARD, ZDF and ORF give loudness range a 20 LU guideline, and promos follow R 128 s1 with a short-term ceiling of -18 LUFS.

Where tooling usually breaks

Gain alone moves the peaks, and the header still says the old number.

Raise a quiet dialogue stem to target and its transients cross the ceiling. Pull a loud music bed down and nothing clips, yet a 44.1 kHz source still fails on sample rate and a 32-bit float file fails on bit depth. Broadcast Wave masters also carry loudness fields in bext, and copying stale values contradicts the audio that went out.

Where WavSpec lands

Measure, correct, limit, convert, and stamp in one pass.

WavSpec ships EBU R 128 broadcast, R 128 s1 short-form, UK DPP AS-11 and ARD/ZDF/ORF presets, each cited to its source document. Press Check and correct batch: gain lands on target, the look-ahead limiter holds true peak under the ceiling, the format becomes 48 kHz PCM, and the Broadcast Wave header receives the verified loudness.

Pay once. Own it forever.

One-time purchase on the Microsoft Store · No subscription · Instant install

Get it from Microsoft

Buy through the Microsoft Store—instant install, automatic updates, and a Microsoft receipt for easy expensing. No account needed on our site, and no subscription on Store purchases.

Learn more about WavSpec

windows · re-measured from disk · originals never overwritten · nothing uploads

What you get

Feature highlights

Named client specs

ten built-in presets for broadcast, podcast, ad and audiobook delivery, each cited to its source document, plus your own specs, exported and imported as files to share.

Measured per ITU-R BS.1770-5

integrated, short-term and momentary loudness, loudness range, and 4× oversampled true peak, checked against the EBU Tech 3341 and 3342 test signals, plus RMS, noise floor and room tone.

Corrected in one run

gain to the exact target, look-ahead true-peak limiting only where needed, windowed-sinc resampling, bit depth with TPDF dither, and PCM WAV or constant-bit-rate MP3 delivery.

Re-measured from disk

every delivered file is read back and measured again, with up to three passes to land on target, and files that already meet the spec pass unchanged.

A report to send

PDF, HTML, CSV and JSON with before and after values, a loudness timeline per file, client and project details, and a SHA-256 digest for every delivered file.

Audiobook heads and tails

room tone padded with the file’s own room tone or trimmed, digital silence replaced, plain file names, and 192 kbps CBR MP3 for ACX, with originals never overwritten.

Especially when

  • Check a whole batch against the client’s loudness, true-peak and format spec instead of metering and fixing files one at a time
  • Correct loudness, true peaks, sample rate and bit depth in one run, without the gain change pushing peaks over the ceiling
  • Get audiobook chapters within the ACX rules for RMS, peaks, room tone and MP3 format before the upload
  • Send a report with before and after values and a SHA-256 digest for every file, with the audio kept on the PC and the originals untouched

Who benefits

Real-world scenarios

A post house delivering a series to a UK channel

Each episode goes out as a stereo mix and stems at 48 kHz, 24-bit, and the channel’s sheet is UK DPP AS-11: -23 LUFS within ±0.5 LU and a -3 dBTP recommendation.

Pick the UK DPP AS-11 broadcast preset and run the episode folder. Every file is set to -23 LUFS, limited to -3 dBTP, and checked for loudness range against the 18 LU guidance, and the PDF report goes to the channel with the masters.

Promos and trailers under R 128 s1

A batch of 20- and 30-second promos must meet EBU R 128 s1, which adds a maximum short-term loudness of -18 LUFS to the -23 LUFS programme target.

The EBU R 128 s1 short-form preset checks integrated loudness, short-term loudness and true peak for each spot. WavSpec corrects level and peaks, and the short-term loudness timeline in each file’s detail shows exactly where a spot runs hot.

Archive interviews at the wrong rate

Old interviews recorded at 44.1 kHz and 16-bit are going into a 48 kHz, 24-bit package alongside new material, under the Generic post delivery 48k/24 preset.

WavSpec resamples each interview to 48 kHz with a windowed-sinc converter, sets the loudness to -23 LUFS, converts to 24-bit with TPDF dither, and carries any bext, iXML and LIST chunks into the delivered file.

Deep dive

What EBU R 128 asks for, and what WavSpec does at each step

The measurement. R 128 measures with ITU-R BS.1770: K-weighting, 400 ms blocks with 75 % overlap, an absolute gate at -70 LUFS and a relative gate at -10 LU. WavSpec implements BS.1770-5 natively, with short-term and momentary loudness per EBU Tech 3341 and loudness range per Tech 3342, and its test suite checks the meter against the EBU Tech 3341 and 3342 test signals.

True peak, not sample peak. A sample-peak meter misses overs that appear between samples once audio is converted or encoded. WavSpec measures true peak with the 4× oversampled filter from BS.1770-5 Annex 2, and its limiter uses the same 4× detection with a 2 ms look-ahead, so the ceiling holds on the file that is delivered.

Target and tolerance. The EBU R 128 broadcast preset aims at -23.0 LUFS with ±1.0 LU and a ceiling of -1 dBTP. WavSpec applies gain to land on the target itself, not just inside the window, and limits only when the predicted peak would cross the ceiling. A file already within the spec passes unchanged.

Format rules. The preset accepts 48 kHz, 16- or 24-bit PCM, in mono, stereo or 5.1. A file at another rate is resampled; a float or 32-bit file is converted with TPDF dither; 5.1 files are measured and corrected with the BS.1770 channel weights. AIFF, FLAC, MP3 and AAC sources are decoded and delivered as PCM WAV.

Loudness metadata. R 128 says loudness metadata should state the actual programme loudness. After verification, WavSpec writes the measured values into the bext chunk of delivered Broadcast Wave files using EBU Tech 3285 version 2 fields, refreshing any fields the source carried, and keeps iXML, LIST and cue chunks in their original order.

The rest of the R 128 family. The R 128 s1 short-form preset adds a -18 LUFS short-term maximum. The UK DPP AS-11 preset targets -23 LUFS ±0.5 LU at 48 kHz, 24-bit, with a -3 dBTP ceiling and 18 LU of loudness range as guidance. The ARD/ZDF/ORF TV (2025) preset uses ±0.5 LU and a 20 LU guideline. Duplicate any of them to match a station’s own sheet.

Proof that travels. Every delivered file is re-read from disk and measured again. The report gives before and after values per criterion, a short-term loudness timeline, the spec’s reference document, and a SHA-256 digest for each delivered file, as PDF, HTML, CSV and JSON.

How it is built

Built to change only what the spec needs, and show the numbers.

Verified from disk

Every delivered file is read back and measured again, with up to three passes to land on target. The report’s After columns and SHA-256 digests describe the exact bytes delivered.

Originals never overwritten

Sources are opened read-only. Delivered files go to a separate delivery folder as a temporary file moved into place, and Broadcast Wave bext, iXML and LIST chunks are carried across.

Nothing leaves your PC

No account, no telemetry, no update check and no cloud processing. Measurement and correction run on your PC. One-time purchase in the Microsoft Store.

FAQ

Straight answers—no glossary dump

What is EBU R 128?

EBU R 128 is the European Broadcasting Union’s loudness recommendation. Version 5.0, from November 2023, sets programme loudness at -23.0 LUFS and a maximum true peak of -1 dBTP in production, measured per ITU-R BS.1770 with EBU Tech 3341 gating. Loudness range and maximum short-term or momentary values can serve as additional checks, and many European broadcasters build their delivery sheets on it.

How do I normalize a batch of files to -23 LUFS?

In WavSpec, drag the files or folder into the window, choose EBU R 128 broadcast under Client specification, set the Delivery folder, and press Check and correct batch (F5). Each file gets the gain that brings it to -23 LUFS, peak limiting where it needs it, and conversion to 48 kHz PCM. The delivered files and the report are written to the delivery folder.

Does WavSpec keep Broadcast Wave metadata?

Yes. The bext, iXML, LIST and cue chunks are carried into the delivered file in their original order, and unknown chunks are copied as they are, so time references and scene and take data survive. Under the R 128 presets, WavSpec also writes the verified loudness values into the bext chunk using EBU Tech 3285 version 2 fields, so the header matches the delivered audio.

What happens to my original audio files?

They stay exactly as they were. WavSpec opens originals read-only and writes every delivered file to the delivery folder you choose, first as a temporary file and then moved into place. If the delivery folder is the source folder, the delivered file gets a new name, so the original is never overwritten. Copies renamed for a platform’s file-name rule are new files too, and the source keeps its name.

Does my audio leave the PC, and how do I get WavSpec?

Your audio stays on this PC. WavSpec opens no network connection: there is no account, no telemetry, no update check and no cloud processing, and settings, specs and the log stay in your local app data folder. It runs on Windows 11 version 22H2 or later on an x64 PC. WavSpec is a one-time purchase in the Microsoft Store, and the Store runs a 15-day free trial of the full product.

Related pages

-24 LKFS for every spot, checked and corrected in a batch. A folder of WAVs in, every file at the target LUFS. -16 LUFS for every episode, from the pilot to the back catalog.

A batch of audio in.
A verified delivery and its report out.

WavSpec checks every file against the client’s spec, corrects loudness, true peak, sample rate and bit depth in one run, re-measures each delivered file from disk, and writes a PDF, HTML, CSV and JSON report. Originals are never overwritten, nothing uploads, and the Microsoft Store runs a 15-day free trial.

Pay once. Own it forever.

One-time purchase on the Microsoft Store · No subscription · Instant install

Get it from Microsoft

Buy through the Microsoft Store—instant install, automatic updates, and a Microsoft receipt for easy expensing. No account needed on our site, and no subscription on Store purchases.

Open full product page

ACX and Audible are trademarks of Audible, Inc. or its affiliates. Apple Podcasts is a trademark of Apple Inc. Spotify is a trademark of Spotify AB. EBU R 128, ATSC A/85 and the other named specifications belong to their publishers. WavSpec is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.

Technical specifications

Technical specifications for procurement

Spec Implementation
Data Sovereignty Reads only the files and folders you add, or the watch folder you choose, and opens originals read-only; writes delivered files and reports only to the delivery folder you pick, as a temporary file moved into place; settings, specs and the log stay in your local app data folder on this PC
Telemetry Status None; no account, no telemetry, no update check, and the app opens no network connection
Core Runtime C# on a self-contained .NET 10 runtime with WPF, packaged as MSIX for the Microsoft Store; loudness metering, true-peak detection, resampling and limiting are implemented natively; AIFF is read with NAudio, and MP3, AAC, FLAC and WMA use the Windows Media Foundation codecs
Network Requirements Fully functional offline; WavSpec makes no network connections, and the Microsoft Store handles the trial and purchase
Deployment Compatibility Windows 11 version 22H2 or later, x64, with 4 GB of RAM and about 150 MB of disk; one-time purchase on the Microsoft Store with a 15-day free trial
Inputs WAV, BWF, RF64, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, AAC/M4A and WMA; mono, stereo, 5.1 and 7.1; files, whole folders, or a watch folder
Measurement ITU-R BS.1770-5 integrated loudness, EBU Tech 3341 short-term and momentary loudness, Tech 3342 loudness range, 4× oversampled true peak, sample peak, whole-file RMS, noise floor, and head and tail room tone
Correction Gain to the exact LUFS or RMS target, look-ahead true-peak limiting, windowed-sinc resampling, bit depth and float conversion with TPDF dither, CBR MP3 through the Windows encoder, room-tone padding and trimming, and plain file names on delivered copies
Built-in specs EBU R 128 v5.0, EBU R 128 s1, UK DPP AS-11, ARD/ZDF/ORF TV (2025), ATSC A/85 (2026) full-mix / short-form, Apple Podcasts, Spotify audio ads, ACX audiobook, Author’s Republic audiobook, and generic 48 kHz / 24-bit; user specs export and import as files
Verification Every delivered file is read back from disk and measured again, with up to three passes to land on target
Outputs Corrected PCM WAV or CBR MP3 in a separate delivery folder, with bext, iXML, LIST and cue chunks kept and verified loudness written to bext (EBU Tech 3285 v2)
Report PDF, HTML, CSV and JSON with before and after values per criterion, loudness timelines, a batch consistency line, client and project details, and SHA-256 digests of delivered and source files
Automation Watch folder in the app (Ctrl+W); command line with --spec, --out, --check-only and exit codes for scripts