Turn a quiet recording up, a loud one down, or normalise the whole file so it matches everything else.
A very large boost cannot create detail that was never recorded — it lifts the background hiss too. Normalising is usually the safer choice.
The Volume Changer fixes the two most common level problems: a recording that is too quiet to hear, and a set of files that are all at different volumes.
Change by amount multiplies the whole file by a fixed amount, measured in decibels. Plus six decibels roughly doubles the level, minus six halves it. Anything pushed past the maximum is rounded off smoothly rather than clipped square, so a heavy boost distorts gently instead of tearing.
Normalise is usually the better tool. It finds the single loudest moment in the file, works out how much headroom is left, and lifts everything by that amount — so the track ends up as loud as it can be without ever distorting. Normalising several files to the same target is how you get a set of recordings that all play at a consistent volume.
A way of measuring loudness where each step of about 6 decibels doubles or halves the level. Going from −20 dB to −14 dB makes a recording twice as strong; the numbers are negative because they count down from the maximum a digital file can hold.
It looks for the single loudest moment in the file, then raises the entire recording by however much room is left above it. The balance inside the track is unchanged — quiet bits stay relatively quiet — it just uses the full range available.
Because the hiss was recorded along with the voice, and turning the file up turns both up together. No tool can separate them after the fact. Recording closer to the microphone is the only real fix.
Beyond the maximum the audio is rolled off smoothly rather than chopped flat, so it softens rather than crackles — but it is still distortion. If the meter says you need more than about 12 dB, normalise instead.
No. This works on peak level, which is the simple and predictable measure. Streaming platforms use a perceived-loudness measure (LUFS) and will apply their own adjustment on top whatever you do here.