Any and all feedback is appreciated, even if it's a quick "This sucks" or "This is good." Please let me know what you think by commenting below the post.
ANALOG ORBAN OPTIMOD 8100A/XT2
PREFACE: The essence of college rock. Loud, grungy, in-your-face... all qualities that describe the heart of traditional garage bands everywhere. This sonic profile definitely has bite.
As far as dynamics are concerned, it's not going to produce a homogeneous wall of sound the way a CHR preset would, but it certainly packs a punch. Core dynamic processing drops off around -12 to -15dBFS, leaving lots of room for soft passages to remain relatively quiet. What it lacks in competitive loudness, it makes up for in equalization. With a very pronounced EQ spike and fast limiting between 300-600Hz, this preset will add a sparkle of garage band "grunge" to just about anything that goes through it.
Please note that any modules omitted from the processing chain (such as Natural Dynamics) are intentionally left out to help prevent extreme audible pumping, breathing and compression fluttering artefacts.
Attachment:
STATION: KLSU-FMYEAR: 2005 (date of sample capture)
STATUS: Defunct
MODEL: Optimod 8100a XT/2
FORMAT: College rock/indie rock
COMP RANGE: ~12dBFS
COMP BANDS: 6/6 (with XT/2 crossover configuration)
EQ RANGE: 30Hz - 16KHz
INPUT ALIGNMENT: 0dBFS@1KHz = -3dBFS (analog)/0dBFS (digital)
OUTPUT: 0dBFS, appx. -10 to -11LKFS (ITU BS.1770)
ST VERSION: 8.54+
ST MINIMUM LICENSE: Basic + Advanced Dynamics
PROCESSES: Noise Gate, Phase Rotator, Auto EQ, Sidechained Legacy AGC, Stereo Boost + ACR Stereo, True Bass, Multiband 1 + Multiband 2, Bass Boost, Advanced Clipper
DESCRIPTION: The most noticeable aspect of this preset is the prominence it places on the lower midrange, between roughly 300 to 600Hz. This gives a distinct grungy harmonic resonance to the upper bass frequencies and lower midrange when combined with fast limiting. It is not as loud or driven as harder CHR format presets, and has a very subtle processing rolloff between -12 and -15dBFS. The bass is not terribly punchy, but does provide a small amount of distortion for artistic effect. High frequencies are not limited as harshly, and are not as shrill or tinny as they would be in a CHR preset, but do exhibit some high-hat "muddiness" as expected of an Optimod due to extremely fast compression and limiting above 12kHz.
NOTES: I created this preset entirely from memory. Physical samples I recorded from the radio were lost in a hard drive crash many years ago. KLSU now uses newer equipment with different settings than it used in past years, so unfortunately comparisons for accuracy are not possible. This is as close as I could get to the way I remember the station sounding.
The following tracks were used in the creation of this preset, and best exemplify the expected timbre and microdynamic behavior:
> Maximo Park - Apply Some Pressure
> Skates - Green Vans (Superargo Remix)
> Ratatat - 17 Years
> Ben Folds - Landed
> Cornershop - Topknot
> Cornershop - Brimful of Asha
> Deerhoof - Running Thoughts
> Wilco - Random Name Generator
> Avi Buffalo - So What
> Arcade Fire - Everything Now
> Architecture in Helsinki - The Owls Go
> ... several others
I have not tested this on an FM transmitter, as I don't have one with an MPX input at my disposal -- only a Whole House FM 3.0 unit. However, I did route the 192KHz output of ST through Virtual Cable into MPX Tool for testing.
I am interested in hearing feedback about potential issues, things that need changes, and maybe even listen to modified versions, if anyone decides to make any. Let me know what you think!
And of course, if anyone has any LPFM transmitting hardware to test this thing out on, do please let me know the bench test results.