How can I get more volume for sound effects.

I am already modifying the .wav files to the level of distortion and they sound great on my computer but after uploading to SL they are virtually useless at maximum volume, even when up close.

Some of those gesture audio tracks are incredibly loud and don't appear to have any significant fall off.

How do they do that and can I use the technique to make my sound effects functional?

Compression and limiting are the best techniques for achieving decent audio levels. And that's compresson the effect not reduction of size.

If you post what audio software you are using I may be able to help more

I'm using a program called Anvil Studio. I load from .wav and save back as .wav. I can trim the length. I can increase volume although I get warnings about distortion - which is rarely a problem for sound effects. But even then the volume is too low by the time I upload to SL. I've not looked at the compression options - I thought they were only length compacting.

Some of those gesture type audios are VERY loud. There must be some technique I'm missing.

Django is talking about audio compression.

This means you are reducing the dynamics of an audio signal.

This way, you get the impression, that the signal is louder.

I dont know, if Anvil Studio has a compressor and a limiter plugin, but there should be freeware around.

And take care, good compressing is one of the most difficult tasks in audio engeneering.

I think Anne Marie wants to know if there is a way to dynamically influence the volume of the sound in world (besides having to adjust the volume, roll-off, distance settings on the client side)