Attachment J-3 - Specification 1202 (March 2025).pdf

Version 1.4 February 2025

Specification 1202:2025 Audiobook Mastering

NLS Spec No. 1202:2025 February 2025

Revision History Revision Issue Date Change Description Rev. 1.0 09/30/2008 First release Rev. 1.1 04/30/2011 Removed requirements for reviewing on CD media

Removed requirements for labeling and packaging Added requirements for narrator criteria Added requirements for foreign-language books Added requirements for speaking written text Added requirements for location of notes

Rev. 1.2 12/15/2014 Removed announcement file requirement Removed checksum file requirement Revised file naming conventions Revised navigation announcement Added special instructions for bi-lingual books

Rev. 1.3 05/31/2018 Removed narration requirements (moved to 1201) Revised technical characteristics requirements Revised file naming conventions Revised quality assurance section Created appendices for requirements specific to production type:

Removed children’s books announcements Added requirements for Multi-title DTBs Added requirements for magazines

Rev 1.4 2/10/2025 Updated branding Removed reference to QA201401 Widened acceptable signal level Expanded list of unacceptable characteristics Update announcement scripts Removed multi-title DTB requirements Updated bilingual requirements Added acoustical compliance inspection requirements

Table of Contents

1. Scope 4

2. Reference Documents 4

2.1 Specifications 4

2.2 Standards 5

3. Technical Requirements of the Audio Recording 6

3.1 Conversion from Compressed Audio Coding Formats Prohibited 6

3.2 Conversion from Analog Prohibited 6

3.3 Audio Recording Signal Level for Spoken Text 6

3.4 Background Noise Level in the Audio Recording 6

3.5 Audible Characteristics of the Audio Recording 6

3.6 Acoustical Quality and Speech Intelligibility 7

3.7 Primary Audio File Configuration 7

3.8 Primary Audio File Content 7

3.9 Headings File 7

3.9.1 Headings File Configuration 7

3.9.2 Headings File Content 7

4. Announcements for Standard DTBs 8

4.1 Content of DTB Opening Announcement 8

4.2 Content of the DTB Closing Announcement 9

4.3 Bilingual Books 9

5. Announcements for Magazines 9

5.1 Content of Magazine Opening Announcement 10

5.2 Table of Contents 11

5.3 Main Content - Reading Times 11

5.4 Content of Magazine Closing Announcement 11

6. Quality Assurance 12

6.1 Library of Congress (NLS) Inspection 12

6.1.1 Audio Recording Inspection 12

6.1.2 Acoustical Compliance Inspection 12

6.1.3 Facility Inspection 12

6.2 Contractor Inspection 12

6.2.1 Quality Assurance Procedures (QAP) 12

6.2.2 Reporting of Inspection Results 12

6.2.3 Test Equipment and Inspection Facilities 12

6.2.4 Responsibility for Compliance 12

6.2.5 Contractor’s Acceptance Inspection 13

6.3 Warranty 13

1. Scope

This specification defines the requirements for mastering digital audio (WAV) files for digital talking-books (DTBs) produced for the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS), Library of Congress and compliant with ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2002.

2. Reference Documents

The following documents and publications form a part of this specification. In the event of conflict between the documents and publications referenced herein and the content of this specification, the content of this specification shall be considered a superseding requirement.

2.1 Specifications

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2002

Specifications for the Digital Talking Book

The document cited above is available from:

American National Standards Institute, Inc.

25 West 43rd St.

4th Floor New York, NY 10036 Tel: (212) 642-4900 Fax: (212) 398-0023 http://www.daisy.org/z3986/specifications/Z39-86-2002.html

National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled

NLS Specification 1201 Narration Requirements

NLS Specification 1203 Digital Talking-Book Requirements

NLS Specification 1206 Uploading Digital Talking Books and Magazines

NLS Document QA201801 Instructions for Applying Navigation Markers

The documents cited above are available from:

Library of Congress National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled 101 Independence Ave., S.E (mail stop #4960) Washington, DC 20540-4960 http://www.loc.gov/nls/specs/

International Standards Organization

ISO 8601 Numeric Representation of Date and Time http://www.daisy.org/z3986/specifications/Z39-86-2002.html http://www.loc.gov/nls/specs/ http://www.iso.org/iso/home/standards/iso8601.htm

2.2 Standards

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

ANSI/ASQ Z1.4-2003 (R2018)

Sampling Procedures and Tables for Inspection by Attributes

The document cited above is available from:

American Society for Quality Quality Press 611 East Wisconsin Ave.

P.O. Box 3005 Milwaukee, WI 53201-3005 https://asq.org/quality-resources/z14-z19 Audio Engineering Society

AES17

AES standard method for digital audio engineering Measurement of digital audio equipment

The document cited above is available from:

Audio Engineering Society 697 3rd Avenue, Ste. 405 New York, NY 10017 www.aes.org/publications/standards/

Microsoft Corporation

Multimedia Programming Interface and Data Specification v1.0 (RIFF/WAVE) https://www.aelius.com/njh/wavemetatools/doc/riffmci.pdf http://www.iso.org/iso/home/standards/iso8601.htm https://asq.org/quality-resources/z14-z19 http://www.aes.org/publications/standards/ https://www.aelius.com/njh/wavemetatools/doc/riffmci.pdf

3. Technical Requirements of the Audio Recording

3.1 Conversion from Compressed Audio Coding Formats Prohibited

All audio must be initially recorded as uncompressed linear PCM of 16 bits/sample or higher at a sample rate of 44.1 kHz.

Conversion from a compressed audio coding format, whether lossless or lossy, is not permitted.

3.2 Conversion from Analog Prohibited

All audio must be initially recorded digitally.

Conversion of analog recordings to digital format under this specification is not permitted.

3.3 Audio Recording Signal Level for Spoken Text

The average un-weighted RMS signal level for the spoken text in the audio recording shall not be less than -24 dB FS, nor greater than -16 dB FS. Average RMS signal level shall be measured using a section of the signal that is 1 minute in length.

No clipping or distortion shall occur.

Audio recordings shall have no abrupt level changes as a result of corrections or file transitions.

3.4 Background Noise Level in the Audio Recording

The average A-weighted RMS signal level for the background noise level in the audio recording(s) shall not exceed -72 dB FS. Background noise includes both acoustical and electrical noise.

3.5 Audible of the Audio Recording

When the audio recording is reviewed, certain characteristics shall not be audible in the recording.

Examples of such characteristics include, but are not restricted to the following:

a. Clipping

b. Distortion

c. Hum

d. Background noise in the narration environment (see Section 3.4)

e. A difference between a section of sound track that has a correction and any other section of the same sound track

f. Gaps, seams, or transients in edits

g. Artifacts, anomalies, and/or effects resulting from hardware and/or software audio processors (such as automatic gain controls, compressors, limiters, noise gates, downward expanders, equalizers, noise reduction, etc.)

h. Radio frequency interference (RFI) or electromagnetic interference (EMI)

3.6 Acoustical Quality and Speech Intelligibility

When the audio recording of a book is reviewed, it shall be judged for acoustical and speech intelligibility.

An audio recording may be subject to rejection because of the following:

a. The recording is judged to have an overly muffled, bassy, or tinny quality

b. The recording exhibits an objectionable degree of sibilance

c. The recording has other undesirable acoustical characteristics judged to be audible to an objectionable degree

d. The spoken text is of poor clarity

3.7 Primary Audio File Configuration

NLS will supply a production identifier that shall be used for the files names.

Each primary audio file shall be written as linear PCM data in RIFF/WAV-file format at a sample rate of

44.1 kHz, 16 bits per sample, with dither, block alignment = 2.

A primary audio file shall be named nnnnnn-mmmm.wav, where “nnnnnn” is the production identifier as supplied by NLS and “-mmmm” is the four-digit sequence indicator (e.g., DB56123-0001.wav or DMu-s-news_2016-08-22-0001.wav). The first file number shall start with -0001 and continue consecutively until the narrated text recording is complete.

3.8 Primary Audio File Content

The narration of the print text as required by NLS specification 1201 (current version) and the appropriate DTB announcements for the production as defined in the specific announcement sections below (4, 5 and 6), shall be the content of the primary audio file(s).

3.9 Headings File

3.9.1 Headings File Configuration

The headings file shall be written as linear PCM data in RIFF/WAV-file format at a sample rate of

44.1 kHz, 16 bits per sample, with dither, block alignment = 2.

The headings file shall be named “nnnnnnhdgs.wav,” where “nnnnnn” is the production identifier as supplied by NLS.

3.9.2 Headings File Content

The heading file shall contain all audio clips referenced by the NCX file, the docTitle, docAuthor, and navLabels (see section 3.4 of NLS Specification 1203 [current version]). The audio clips shall be copied from their respective source primary audio file locations and concatenated together to form the headings WAV file.

4. Announcements for Standard DTBs

The first (-0001) primary audio file shall begin with the DTB Announcement. The narration of the main content of the source material shall begin after the content of the DTB announcement.

4.1 Content of DTB Opening Announcement

The contractor shall record the following opening announcements, in the following order, for all titles except where noted:

a. “[Title]”

b. “By [author name(s)]”

c. “DB[production identifier]” (e.g., DB56123)

d. “Copyright [date and holder(s)].”

e. “This is a new recording of [book number].” This announcement shall be used only when instructed by NLS .

f. “Read by [narrator name].”

g. “This book contains [x] pages.”. Where [x] is the last numbered page in the source material. When the source material does not contain numbered pages this announcement shall be omitted.

h. “Approximate reading time: [h] hours, [m] minutes.” Rounded to the nearest five minutes, accurate to within +/- fifteen minutes of the value of “dtb:totalTime.” See section 3.5.3.2 of NLS Specification 1203 (current version).

i. Navigation Announcement:

1. If all navigation items are at level 1:

“This book contains markers allowing direct access to the [book item(s)].”

or

2. If the book contains more than one level of hierarchical navigation:

“This book contains markers allowing direct access to: at level 1 the [book item(s)], at level 2 the [book item(s)], … and at level [lowest hierarchical level for the recording] the [book item(s)].”

(E.g. This book contains markers allowing direct access to: at level 1 the preface and parts, and at level 2 the chapters.)

3. If the book contains pages append the following phrase to the end of navigation announcement:

“… and the pages.”

Note:

The navigation announcement shall include a reference to all hierarchical navPoints. Page numbers, if marked, in the recording shall also be referenced in this announcement. In the sample announcement paragraph above the term used in place of “book item” shall be the appropriate name for the book division marked with a hierarchical navPoint. The term shall conform to the items listed in the Book Structure column of the table found in appendix A of NLS Specification 1203 unless the table does not have a corresponding term for the division found in the book in which case the producer may use a resource file with the appropriate term from the book itself.

Resource files may be used upon approval from NLS Content Quality Assurance Section, see section 3.1.8 of NLS Specification 1203 [current version].

j. “Library of Congress annotation: . . .” (To be supplied by NLS.)

k. “From the book jacket: . . .” (Publisher’s information about the book, excluding reviews.

Information may be given in several locations. Narrator may combine the various selections, if appropriate. Include web content)

l. “About the author. . .” (Include web content.)

m. “Other books by (author). . .” (Repetitive book title references, which do not add additional information from earlier sections, may be omitted here. Include web content)

n. Introductory items up to and including the table of contents, such as dedication, introduction, preface, foreword, acknowledgments, etc., in the order in which they appear in the source material.

In the table of contents, include page references, preceding each page reference with “page.” When the table of contents does not include page references the table of contents may be omitted.

If the table of contents appears at the end of the source material, it shall be read at the beginning of the recorded book, following items “a” through “m”, but preceding any items (foreword or introduction, for example) listed within the table of contents. If the table of contents is located at the beginning of the book, it shall be read where it appears.

4.2 Content of the DTB Closing Announcement

The following announcements shall be recorded on the last primary audio file after the end of the source material, in the order stated:

a. “End of [Title] by [Author(s) and spelling of author’s name].” (e.g., “End of Troubling a Star by Madeleine L’Engle, M-A-D-E-L-E-I-N-E , L-’-E-N-G-L-E.” In the case of multiple authors all authors’ names shall be pronounced, then spelled.)

b. “Read by [narrator name] in the studios of [name of recording agency], for the Library of Congress, [Month and Year].”

c. “Published by: [Publisher’s name, address and web content if it appears in the source material.] Further reproduction or distribution in other than an accessible format is prohibited.”

d. “If you found this book to be defective, please contact your cooperating network library.”

4.3 Bilingual Books

The first (-0001) primary audio file shall begin with the phrase “This book contains narration in English and [name of other language(s)]” spoken in both English and the additional language(s). The standard DTB opening announcement, as specified in section 4.1, shall follow, delivered in both English and the additional language(s), beginning with the English version.

The narration of the bilingual book shall match the content and structure of the source material.

Following the narration of the source material, the DTB closing announcement, as specified in section 4.2, shall be read in both English and the additional language(s) starting with the English version.

5. Announcements for Magazines

The first (-0001) primary audio file shall begin with the magazine announcement. The magazine table of contents shall follow the announcement. The narration of the main content of the print magazine shall begin after the content of the magazine announcement and table of contents. The last primary audio file shall conclude with a magazine closing announcement.

5.1 Content of Magazine Opening Announcement

The contractor shall record the following opening announcements for all titles:

a. “If you receive this magazine on digital cartridge, please remember it must be returned. Magazine cartridges containing weekly publications must be returned within 3 weeks of receiving them. All others must be returned within 7 weeks. Simply reverse the address card and mail the cartridge back in the container in which it was received.”.

b. “[Title of the magazine as printed on the title page]”

c. “[Date of issue]” (Include volume number and issue number when applicable).

d. “Copyright [date and holder(s)].”

e. “Read by [narrator name(s)].” Include all names of narrators.

f. “This magazine contains [x] pages.” Where [x] shall be the total number of pages for the entire magazine.

g. “Approximate reading time: [h] hours, [m] minutes.” (Rounded to the nearest five minutes, accurate to within +/- fifteen minutes of the value of “dtb:totalTime.” See section 3.5.3.2 of NLS specification 1203 (current version).

h. Navigation announcement:

1. If all navigation items are at level 1:

“This magazine contains markers allowing direct access to the [magazine book item(s)].”

or

2. If the magazine contains more than one level of hierarchical navigation:

“This magazine contains markers allowing direct access to: at level 1 the [magazine item(s)], at level 2 the [magazine item(s)], … and at level [lowest hierarchical level for the recording] the [magazine item(s)].” (E.g. This magazine contains markers allowing direct access to: at level 1 the preface and parts, and at level 2 the chapters.)

Note:

The navigation announcement shall include a reference to all hierarchical navPoints. Page numbers, if marked, in the recording shall also be referenced in this announcement. In the sample announcement paragraph above the term for the “magazine item” shall be the appropriate name for a magazine division marked with a hierarchical navPoint. The term shall conform to the items listed in the Book Structure column of the table found in appendix A of NLS Specification 1203 unless the table does not have a corresponding term for the division found in the book in which case the producer may use a resource file with the appropriate term from the book itself. Resource files may be used upon approval from NLS Content Quality Assurance Section, see section 3.1.8 of NLS Specification 1203 [current version].

i. The appropriate announcements shall be used for the following situations:

When only advertising has been omitted: “This recorded edition contains the entire text of the print edition, except for advertising.”

When NLS provides special instructions to also omit other items: “This recorded edition contains the entire text of the print edition except for advertising and (name of item, or items) omitted by instruction of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled.”

j. “This magazine was produced for the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress.”

5.2 Table of Contents

The table of contents shall be recorded immediately after the opening announcements, regardless of its location in the print edition. The spoken table of contents shall list items in the order of their appearance in the body of the magazine, regardless of the order of their appearance in the written table of contents.

The spoken table of contents shall list each item appearing in the source material’s table of contents in the order of their appearance in the body of the magazine, regardless of the order of their appearance in the written table of contents. The spoken table of contents shall include the page number of the given items and their approximate reading time in minutes to the nearest minute, with minimum duration of one minute(e.g., “Paris in the Fall, page 73, 15 minutes”).

If no heading is found in the print magazine for the table of contents, the heading “Contents” shall be narrated. (Also see NLS section 1203 section C.3.4)

5.3 Main Content - Reading Times

At the beginning of each article or section (e.g., Letters to the Editor), following the title and author, if present, insert the approximate reading time in minutes to the nearest minute, with minimum duration of one minute as follows:

“Reading time [m] minutes.”

5.4 Content of Magazine Closing Announcement

The following announcements shall be recorded at the end of the narration of the print edition, in the order stated:

a. “End of [title of the magazine], [date of issue].”

b. “Recorded in the studios of [name of the recording agency], for the Library of Congress, [month and year].”

c. “Published by: [Publisher's name and address as it appears in the print edition]. Further reproduction or distribution in other than a specialized format is prohibited.”

d. “If you experienced any difficulty with this magazine, please specify the problem on a postcard or letter addressed to:

Library of Congress National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled Collections Division 101 Independence Ave., SE (mail stop #4960) Washington, DC 20540-4960 or send an e-mail message to QAS@loc.gov.”

mailto:QAS@loc.gov

6. Quality Assurance

6.1 Library of Congress (NLS) Inspection

6.1.1 Audio Recording Inspection

NLS reserves the right to reject any audio recording that fails to meet these requirements. Each master recording (See NLS Specification 1206) shall be uploaded to NLS for inspection for specification compliance and/or narration approval.

6.1.2 Acoustical Compliance Inspection

NLS reserves the right to request recording samples and signal flow documentation in order to ascertain the acoustical characteristics and compliance capability of a facility’s recording studio.

NLS will specify the requirements of the samples and documentation at the time of request.

Corrective action may be required if material is deemed non-compliant.

6.1.3 Facility Inspection

NLS reserves the right to inspect plant facilities or recording processes at any reasonable time. An NLS representative shall have the authority, without advance notice, to select at random a sample of the books at any time during the course of the contract for testing to the specified requirements.

6.2 Contractor Inspection

The contractor is responsible for the performance of all inspection requirements specified herein.

6.2.1 Quality Assurance Procedures (QAP)

The contractor shall prepare written documentation that describes the quality-assurance procedures used to achieve the requirements of the specification. Written documentation shall include, but is not limited to, narration, monitoring, and reviewing logs. The contractor shall submit this document to the NLS Content Quality Assurance Section at the beginning of each new contract or at any time required by NLS. NLS reserves the right to require the contractor to improve quality-assurance procedures.

6.2.2 Reporting of Inspection Results

The contractor shall maintain complete records (in English) of all inspection results for the duration of the contract, including the warranty period. NLS reserves the right to request copies, for review, of any documentation related to this specification. These shall be provided at no cost to

NLS.

6.2.3 Test Equipment and Inspection Facilities

The contractor shall ensure that test and inspection facilities of sufficient accuracy, quality, and quantity are established and maintained to permit performance of required inspections. Test equipment shall be calibrated annually. NLS reserves the right to request copies, for review, of any documentation related to this specification. These shall be provided at no cost to NLS.

6.2.4 Responsibility for Compliance

The requirements set forth in this specification shall become a part of the contractor’s overall inspection system or quality program. The absence of any inspection requirements in the specification shall not relieve the contractor of the responsibility of assuring that all products submitted to NLS for acceptance comply with all requirements of the contract. Sampling in quality conformance does not authorize the submission of known defective material, either indicated or actual, nor does it commit NLS to the acceptance of defective material. Should NLS determine that a significant fault or faults are found in production materials, within the warranty period, then correction of the fault or faults and inspections or controls for prevention shall be instituted without additional charge to NLS. Written documentation of the corrective action(s) shall be submitted to NLS Content Quality Assurance Section.

6.2.5 Contractor’s Acceptance Inspection

Acceptance inspection shall be performed by the contractor on 100% of every audio recording.

6.3 Warranty

The contractor shall agree to unconditionally warrant that the audio recording conforms to the requirements set forth in this specification for a period of two (2) years from the date the book is approved by the NLS Content Quality Assurance Section.

6.3 Warranty