---
title: 'Get a 2nd Opinion before sending off that audiobook!'
url: 'https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/get-a-2nd-opinion-before-sending-off-that-audiobook'
markdown: 'https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/get-a-2nd-opinion-before-sending-off-that-audiobook.md'
date: '2015-10-08'
description: 'So, you’ve recorded, edited, proofed, and finally mastered your audio. It’s ready to head off to ACX or off to a publisher. Well… you THINK it’s ready… you HOPE it’s… You get the idea. You know that you’ve put in oodles of work getting this audiobook done, but if only there were a way to double che…'
taxonomy:
  category:
    - Journal
  tag:
    - software
    - audio
    - voiceover
    - daw
    - audiobook
---

# Get a 2nd Opinion before sending off that audiobook!

## [Get a 2nd Opinion before sending off that audiobook!](https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/get-a-2nd-opinion-before-sending-off-that-audiobook)

    8th Oct 2015   [software](https://stevenjaycohen.com/tag:software#body-wrapper) [audio](https://stevenjaycohen.com/tag:audio#body-wrapper) [voiceover](https://stevenjaycohen.com/tag:voiceover#body-wrapper) [daw](https://stevenjaycohen.com/tag:daw#body-wrapper) [audiobook](https://stevenjaycohen.com/tag:audiobook#body-wrapper)  

So, you’ve recorded, edited, proofed, and finally mastered your audio. It’s ready to head off to [ACX](https://www.acx.com) or off to a publisher. Well… you **THINK** it’s ready… you **HOPE** it’s… You get the idea.

You know that you’ve put in oodles of work getting this audiobook done, but if only there were a way to double check some of the basics, that would make you feel so much better. I felt that way too. That’s why I wrote \[2ndOpinion\](/journal/2ndopinion

It works on both Mac OSX (tested on 10.10 & 10.11) and Windows (tested on both 7 & 10).

[**Click here to download**](https://stevenjaycohen.com/2ndopinion)

[2ndOpinion](https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/2ndopinion) is an audiobook checkup tool that is designed to be used once you feel that your audio is finished. It checks your audio to see if it meets [some common specifications](https:/blog.acx.com/tag/mastering/):

- That it peaks at or below -3dB
- That it has an average RMS between -18dB and -23dB
- That the head of the file is between 1/2 and 3/4 of a second in length
- That the tail of the file is between 3 and 5 seconds in length
- That the noise floor is at or below -60dB
- That the file was recorded at a sample frequency of 44.1 kHz
- That all the files are mono (or stereo)

Many of the points listed above have simple fixes that can be handled automatically. If [2ndOpinion](https://stevenjaycohen.com/2ndopinion) finds any of these issues, it fixes them. If it finds more complex issues, it lets you know. Take that information, fix the issues, and run the software again. Or take it to a reputable audio engineer and they will fix it for you.

And, [2ndOpinon](https://stevenjaycohen.com/2ndopinion) is free to use on any projects you like. If you’d like to support future development, you can always buy me a coffee…

#### Cup of Coffee

A ridiculous amount of caffeine was consumed while researching.

Add some fuel if you would like to help keep me going! [ Click here to give whatever amount works for you](https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/6NMZ3LXKADZ88) and thank you 🙂

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---

## Navigation

- Parent: [My Journal](https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal.md)
- Previous: [Audiobooks in the Classroom: A Field Guide](https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/audiobooks-in-the-classroom-a-field-guide.md)
- Next: ["A Little Off the Top" - Using Limiters for Voiceover](https://stevenjaycohen.com/journal/a-little-off-the-top-using-limiters-for-voiceover.md)