diff --git a/tests/tools/test_audio_mixer_segmented_music.py b/tests/tools/test_audio_mixer_segmented_music.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ebbf51ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/tools/test_audio_mixer_segmented_music.py
@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+"""Regression tests: segmented_music must not attenuate narration.
+
+`_segmented_music` mixed the video's audio with the shaped music via
+`amix=inputs=2`, whose default `normalize=1` divides every input by the input
+count (x0.5 / -6 dB). Unlike `_mix` / `_full_mix`, this path has no `loudnorm`
+stage afterward, so the narration was permanently attenuated across the whole
+timeline — including stretches where the music volume expression is 0. The fix
+adds `normalize=0` (music is already scaled by the `volume` expression, so
+speech must pass at unity).
+"""
+
+import shutil
+import subprocess
+import sys
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pytest
+
+PROJECT_ROOT = Path(__file__).resolve().parent.parent.parent
+sys.path.insert(0, str(PROJECT_ROOT))
+
+from tools.audio.audio_mixer import AudioMixer  # noqa: E402
+
+
+def test_segmented_music_amix_disables_normalize(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    """The generated amix must carry normalize=0 (offline, no ffmpeg)."""
+    video = tmp_path / "v.mp4"
+    music = tmp_path / "m.wav"
+    video.write_bytes(b"stub")
+    music.write_bytes(b"stub")
+
+    captured = []
+
+    def fake_run(self, cmd, **kwargs):
+        captured.append(list(cmd))
+
+        class _R:
+            stdout = "10.0\n"
+            stderr = ""
+
+        return _R()
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(AudioMixer, "run_command", fake_run)
+
+    AudioMixer().execute(
+        {
+            "operation": "segmented_music",
+            "video_path": str(video),
+            "music_path": str(music),
+            "music_volume": 0.2,
+            "segments": [{"start": 1.0, "end": 2.0}],
+            "output_path": str(tmp_path / "out.mp4"),
+        }
+    )
+
+    ffmpeg_cmds = [c for c in captured if c and c[0] == "ffmpeg"]
+    assert ffmpeg_cmds, "no ffmpeg command was built"
+    fc = ffmpeg_cmds[0][ffmpeg_cmds[0].index("-filter_complex") + 1]
+    assert "amix=inputs=2" in fc
+    assert "normalize=0" in fc, f"amix must disable normalize; got: {fc}"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.skipif(shutil.which("ffmpeg") is None, reason="ffmpeg required")
+def test_segmented_music_preserves_narration_level(tmp_path):
+    """End-to-end: narration in a no-music region is not ~6 dB quieter."""
+
+    def _mean_db(path, ss, t):
+        out = subprocess.run(
+            ["ffmpeg", "-ss", str(ss), "-t", str(t), "-i", str(path),
+             "-vn", "-af", "volumedetect", "-f", "null", "-"],
+            capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=60,
+        )
+        for line in out.stderr.splitlines():
+            if "mean_volume" in line:
+                return float(line.split("mean_volume:")[1].strip().split(" ")[0])
+        raise AssertionError("no mean_volume in ffmpeg output")
+
+    video = tmp_path / "vspeech.mp4"
+    music = tmp_path / "mus.wav"
+    subprocess.run(
+        ["ffmpeg", "-y", "-f", "lavfi", "-i", "color=c=black:s=320x240:d=5",
+         "-f", "lavfi", "-i", "sine=frequency=300:duration=5",
+         "-c:v", "libx264", "-c:a", "aac", "-shortest", str(video)],
+        capture_output=True, check=True, timeout=60,
+    )
+    subprocess.run(
+        ["ffmpeg", "-y", "-f", "lavfi", "-i", "sine=frequency=800:duration=3", str(music)],
+        capture_output=True, check=True, timeout=60,
+    )
+
+    # Baseline: the same stereo/aac conversion the tool applies, without any mix.
+    baseline = tmp_path / "base.mp4"
+    subprocess.run(
+        ["ffmpeg", "-y", "-i", str(video),
+         "-af", "aformat=sample_fmts=fltp:sample_rates=44100:channel_layouts=stereo",
+         "-c:a", "aac", "-b:a", "192k", str(baseline)],
+        capture_output=True, check=True, timeout=60,
+    )
+
+    out = tmp_path / "out.mp4"
+    result = AudioMixer().execute(
+        {
+            "operation": "segmented_music",
+            "video_path": str(video),
+            "music_path": str(music),
+            "music_volume": 0.2,
+            "segments": [{"start": 1.0, "end": 2.0}],  # music only during [1,2]
+            "output_path": str(out),
+        }
+    )
+    assert result.success, result.error
+
+    baseline_db = _mean_db(baseline, 3, 1)   # no-music region baseline
+    out_db = _mean_db(out, 3, 1)             # no-music region through the tool
+
+    # Narration must track the conversion baseline, not sit ~6 dB below it.
+    assert out_db > baseline_db - 2.0, (
+        f"narration attenuated: baseline {baseline_db} dB, output {out_db} dB"
+    )
diff --git a/tools/audio/audio_mixer.py b/tools/audio/audio_mixer.py
index 04a052e3..dd58d4a5 100644
--- a/tools/audio/audio_mixer.py
+++ b/tools/audio/audio_mixer.py
@@ -653,7 +653,13 @@ class AudioMixer(BaseTool):
             f"volume='{vol_expr}':eval=frame[music_shaped];"
             f"[0:a]aformat=sample_fmts=fltp:sample_rates=44100:channel_layouts=stereo[speech];"
             f"[music_shaped]aformat=sample_fmts=fltp:sample_rates=44100:channel_layouts=stereo[music_fmt];"
-            f"[speech][music_fmt]amix=inputs=2:duration=first:dropout_transition=2[aout]"
+            # normalize=0: amix's default normalize=1 divides every input by the
+            # input count (here x0.5 / -6 dB), which would permanently attenuate
+            # the narration across the whole timeline — including stretches where
+            # the music volume expression is 0. The music is already scaled by the
+            # `volume` expression, so speech must pass at unity. Unlike _mix/
+            # _full_mix, this path has no loudnorm stage to mask the halving.
+            f"[speech][music_fmt]amix=inputs=2:duration=first:dropout_transition=2:normalize=0[aout]"
         )
 
         cmd = [