Open Audio Analyzer vs Raven Lite
Open Audio Analyzer
open-audio-analyzer.comRaven Lite
ravensoundsoftware.comSide by side
| Figure | Open Audio Analyzer | Raven Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Audio Analysis Software | 8.6 (#5) | 7.7 (#24) |
| Headquarters | Kirchheim, Germany | Ithaca, New York, USA |
| Platforms | The maker lists desktop downloads for macOS 14.2+, Windows 10 1809+ and Linux; its privacy policy also covers iPadOS and Android builds. | Raven Lite 2.0.5 has 64-bit downloads for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux; Windows versions require 64-bit Windows. |
| Purpose | Open Audio Analyzer is a free, open-source loudness and spectrum analyzer for live audio and audio files. | Raven Lite records, saves, and visualizes sounds as spectrograms and waveforms. |
| Support | Technical support is directed to the public GitHub issue tracker, with documentation covering installation, metrics, keyboard controls, wire protocol and building. | The maker provides a Knowledge Base with documentation and FAQ articles and a support request form that includes Raven Lite. |
| System requirements | Official desktop minimums are macOS 14.2, Windows 10 version 1809, or Linux; macOS packages are universal for Apple silicon and Intel. | The maker lists Windows 10 or 11 as recommended (Windows 7 or later supported), macOS 10.14 or later, and most Debian-based and RPM-based Linux distributions. |
Plans
In their own words
Open Audio Analyzer
Open Audio Analyzer is free, open-source software for measuring loudness and spectrum in live audio and audio files. Its fourteen meter types include loudness, true peak, VU, spectrum, spectrogram, oscilloscope, phase scope and histogram. Loudness measurements follow EBU R 128 and ITU-R BS.1770-4, with momentary, short-term and integrated LUFS, loudness range and oversampled true peak. Users can arrange meters across tabs, save presets, choose delivery targets for streaming or broadcast, and create their own targets. A command-line tool analyzes individual files or album folders and can produce reports or CSV output. VST3 and Audio Unit plugins send measurements and DAW transport position to the app. An AAX plugin is in the plugin archive but is not signed for a released Pro Tools version. A tablet on the same network can display the app's published measurements over Wi-Fi. The maker says measurements stay on-device and audio is neither stored nor transmitted. The remote display link has no encryption or authentication. The app runs on Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows.
Raven Lite
Raven Lite records, saves, and visualizes sounds as spectrograms and waveforms. It is intended for students, educators, and hobbyists, including people learning about sound, recognizing birdsong, or teaching music. Users can combine waveform, spectrogram, spectrogram slice, and selection spectrum views. It opens WAV, AIF, MP3, and FLAC files, supports any number of audio channels, and lets users choose all channels or a subset. Time-frequency selections can be measured in a selection table and annotated; tables can be saved as text, while views and sound windows can be exported as graphics or copied to the clipboard. Paged sound windows support navigation through recordings of any length, and auto-paging enables visual review faster than real time. Raven Lite runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. The free demo runs for 10 minutes at a time until registered with a free serial number for uninterrupted use. Installation requires administrator privileges.