Patent ID: 8199933

Claim:
A method for controlling a particular loudness characteristic of an audio signal, wherein the particular loudness characteristic is either an approximation of specific loudness, which is a measure of perceptual loudness as a function of frequency and time, or an approximation of partial specific loudness, which is a measure of perceptual loudness of the signal in the presence of a secondary interfering signal as a function of frequency and time, comprising obtaining an approximation to a target specific loudness, deriving frequency-variant modification parameters usable for modifying the audio signal in order to reduce the difference between its particular loudness characteristic and said approximation to a target specific loudness, and a) applying the modification parameters to the audio signal to reduce the difference between its particular loudness characteristic and said approximation to a target specific loudness, or b) transmitting or storing the modification parameters and the audio signal for temporally separated, spatially separated, or both temporally separated and spatially separated application of the modification parameters to the audio signal to reduce the difference between its particular loudness characteristic and said approximation to a target specific loudness.