Sound & signal
Gain
Gain sets how hot a track arrives at the channel before anything else touches it. It is a correction for how the record was mastered, not a volume control for the room.
In practice
Set gain so the channel meter peaks in the same place on both decks, then leave it alone and mix with the faders.
The working method is to cue the incoming track, watch its meter against the one that is playing, and match the peaks before you do anything else. Aim for the top of the green rather than the red — headroom is what lets an EQ boost or a hot section land without distorting. If a record needs the gain near maximum to keep up, that is a quiet master, and the honest fix is to accept it sits slightly lower rather than to push the channel into clipping.
-13.32 dB
Quiet end of the catalog
-8.45 dB
Loud end
4.9 dB
The gap you correct
Where these come from: The loudness figures are from the live catalog, measured on 11 August 2026, and describe how far apart real masters sit — the gain setting itself is yours. For what we can measure, see the full loudness distribution.
Why it matters
Gain is what stops a transition arriving as a jump in volume. Two records at the same perceived intensity can be mastered several decibels apart, and if you have not corrected for that before the crossfader moves, the mix announces itself as a level change rather than a musical one.
The confusion worth clearing up is that gain and the channel fader do different jobs. Gain matches records to each other; the fader decides how much of the result goes to the room. Using the fader to fix a mastering difference means every subsequent move starts from the wrong place.
Frequently asked
What is the difference between gain and volume?+
Gain sets the level entering the channel and is used to match records to each other. The fader sets how much leaves it and is used to mix. Correcting a mastering difference with the fader breaks every move that follows.
Where should the gain be set?+
So the channel meter peaks in the same place as the deck already playing — the top of the green, not into the red. Across the catalog the middle 80% of masters span about 4.9 dB, so most records need some correction.
Why does one track sound quieter than another?+
Because it was mastered quieter. Loudness is a production decision, not a property of the music, and two records of identical intensity can arrive several decibels apart.
Related terms
Headroom
Headroom is the gap between where your signal is sitting and the point where it distorts. It is the room left for the loud parts, and for whatever you do to the channel next.
Clipping
Clipping is what happens when a signal exceeds the maximum a system can carry: the peaks are cut flat, adding harsh harmonics. In digital audio the ceiling is 0 dBFS and there is nothing above it.
Loudness
Loudness is a track’s average level in decibels below full scale, so every value is negative and closer to zero is louder. It decides how far you move the gain, not how hard the record hits.
dBFS
dBFS means decibels relative to full scale — the digital measurement where 0 is the loudest a file can be and everything else is negative. A track at −10 dBFS sits ten decibels below the ceiling.
Explore: Loudness · Mixing guides · How the analysis works · All DJ terms