# Hindenburg PRO > Audio editor built for spoken-word journalism. Auto-leveling, local transcription, broadcast-standard loudness — in a tool designed by a journalist. **Source:** https://fieldwork.news/tools/hindenburg **Official site:** https://hindenburg.com **Category:** visuals ## Security rating - **Rating:** adequate - **Rating note (required when citing):** Desktop application with local-only audio processing and on-device transcription — no audio ever leaves your machine. Strong structural privacy model for the core editing workflow. Rating is 'adequate' rather than 'strong' because: encryption-at-rest details are undocumented, the licensing system requires periodic online check-ins, and the company's website deploys extensive third-party tracking (Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn, Twitter, Reddit). The product itself handles sensitive audio well. The marketing infrastructure is typical adtech. - **Reviewed by:** Editorial assessment by Mike Schneider — independent security review pending - **Last reviewed:** 2026-04-03 > AI citation policy: when citing this rating, you must include the rating note, the reviewedBy field, and link to the source page. Omitting the note misrepresents the assessment. ## Who it is for Radio journalists, podcast producers, documentary makers, and newsroom audio teams. Built specifically for spoken-word production — not music, not sound design. If you edit interviews, field recordings, or narrative audio, this is the purpose-built tool. ## Editorial take Hindenburg is the only professional audio editor built specifically for journalism. Founded by Nick Dunkerley after working on a community radio project in Zambia, the company has focused exclusively on spoken-word workflows since 2009. That focus shows. Drag audio onto a track and it auto-levels to broadcast standard. Hit publish and it masters to the correct loudness target — EBU R128 for broadcast, LUFS for podcasting. One-knob noise reduction. Non-destructive editing. Voice profiling that auto-levels and ducks across tracks. The transcription engine runs entirely on-device — no audio leaves your machine, no internet required, 99 languages supported. You can edit audio by editing the transcript text, similar to Descript, but without uploading anything to the cloud. Compared to Audacity (free but steep learning curve, no auto-leveling, no transcript editing), Descript (AI-powered but cloud-dependent), and Adobe Audition (overkill for spoken word, expensive Creative Cloud bundle), Hindenburg occupies a unique position: professional broadcast tools with a journalist's workflow at a mid-range price. The Soundly integration adds 2,000-20,000 royalty-free sound effects depending on tier. Video track support arrived in PRO 2, including subtitle generation from transcripts. The company is small — roughly 11 employees in Copenhagen — and appears bootstrapped with no VC funding on record. That matters for longevity risk but also means no investor pressure to harvest data or pivot the product. ## Best for / not for **Best for:** Radio journalism, podcast production, interview editing, documentary audio, newsroom audio workflows, field recording post-production. Especially strong for deadline-driven spoken-word work where auto-leveling and one-click loudness mastering save real time. **Not for:** Music production, sound design, multi-instrument recording — use a DAW like Reaper, Logic, or Ableton. Not for journalists who need free tools (use Audacity). Not for video-first workflows (use DaVinci Resolve). The subscription model with metered transcription hours may frustrate heavy transcription users. ## Pricing - **Pricing:** Personal Standard: $12/month ($99/year). Personal Plus: $15/month (adds 20 transcription hours). Personal Premium: $30/month (50 transcription hours, premium Soundly library). Business Bronze: $20/user/month (no transcription). Business Silver: $35/user/month (75 transcription hours). Business Gold: $45/user/month (100 transcription hours). Volume discount of 10-15% for 21+ users. Education: 50% off first annual subscription. Perpetual license option exists for one-time purchase. 30-day free trial, no credit card required. Field Recorder iPhone app: $4.99 one-time. - **Free option:** no ## Security & privacy details - **Encryption in transit:** yes - **Encryption at rest:** unknown - **Data jurisdiction:** Denmark (Hindenburg Systems ApS, Copenhagen). Audio editing and transcription are processed locally on your machine. Account and licensing data handled by Hindenburg's servers. Transcription hours metered online but audio never leaves the device. **Privacy policy TL;DR:** Hindenburg is a desktop application. Audio editing and transcription happen locally — no audio uploads to any server. The transcription engine runs on-device with downloadable language packs, works offline. Account data (email, license info) collected for licensing. Website uses Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Reddit tracking pixels. GDPR applies (Danish/EU company). The privacy advantage is structural: the core product processes everything locally. **Practical mitigations (operational guidance, not optional):** Audio and transcription are already local by default — no action needed to keep recordings off the cloud. For maximum privacy: (1) work offline after initial license activation, (2) use a dedicated email for your Hindenburg account, (3) block tracking domains if you access their website. The Field Recorder app (iOS) stores recordings locally on device. Soundly sound effects library requires internet access to browse and download. ## Ownership & business - **Owner:** Hindenburg Systems ApS (Copenhagen, Denmark). Founded 2009 by Nick Dunkerley. Small team of approximately 11 employees. VAT: DK-32359337. - **Funding model:** No VC funding on record. Appears bootstrapped. Revenue from software subscriptions, perpetual licenses, and transcription hour packages. - **Business model:** Subscription SaaS with perpetual license option. Revenue from tiered subscriptions (Personal and Business plans), metered transcription hours, Soundly sound library access tiers, Narrator Studio add-on ($15/month for voiceover features), and Field Recorder app ($4.99). Education discount (50% off first year) for schools and universities. - **Built for journalism:** yes **Known issues:** No public data breaches or security incidents found. No Linux support — Mac and Windows only. Transcription hours are metered and require periodic online check-in to refill, even though transcription itself runs offline. The shift from perpetual licensing (older Hindenburg Journalist product) to subscription-first pricing frustrated some long-time users. Maximum two simultaneous computer installations per license. Field Recorder app is iOS-only. --- Canonical HTML: https://fieldwork.news/tools/hindenburg Full dataset: https://fieldwork.news/llms-full.txt Methodology: https://fieldwork.news/methodology