Quote:
why built-in presets only load processing? Now you never know which preset Declipper uses or doesn't use etc.
Load built-in presets for what it is intended for. I think it is better to separate built-in presets that are intended for HD or FM as it always was
The reason for this is that many settings in presets were region or situation specific. .For example, in some places it's mandatory to enable Stokkemask, in others it's not. Previously, loading an FM preset would also reset the pilot and RDS levels, and set Stokkemask to whatever setting was used in the preset, etc.
For Declipper, the same thing is true: Some presets use the Declipper, others don't. Some use the Delossifier, others don't. Some presets contained Declipper settings optimized for low bitrate inputs, others for FLAC audio without any resampling. So you never got the optimal behavior for your specific setup, only whatever someone happened to have configured together with their audio settings.
Load a preset with Stokkemask disabled in an area where Stokkemask is mandatory and it could even lead to fines. But if you load a preset with Stokkemask in an area where that's not required, you might not get the optimal audio. Load any non-BS412 preset in a place with BS412 requirements, and the same is true.
Similarly, some FM presets contained streaming settings that were optimized for extremely low bitrates (HD stations in the US with bitrates of often < 48 kbit), while other FM presets have streaming settings that are optimized for hit bitrate streams, sometimes even uncompressed (FLAC) streams. If you like some settings on FM, that shouldn't affect what the "Normal output" signal is optimized for - and there's a mismatch there you'll get very suboptimal results.
Because of this, it makes much more sense if you tell Stereo Tool (by selecting Repair and Broadcast presets separately) what your situation is, and then select a processing preset which only determines what it sounds like. And now you can just configure things to match your setup, and then you can safely switch between built-in presets without having to think about whether your signal is still compliant.
Nearly all the built-in streaming presets that also had an FM version were 100% identical anyway.
If someone sends you a preset, which is set up for your specific situation, they can still send a full preset with everything included. But for built-in presets it just doens't really make sense.