Stereo Tool

Stereo Tool 7.41 is released! See the download page.

Changes w.r.t. 7.40:

• Big code cleanup.
• Performance: Removed a lot of threads that might cause unpredictable performance behavior.
• Performance: No longer sending data through a separate thread for some final processing.
• Performance: Optimized FM Composite Limiter (50% less CPU), also no more extra latency (was 2 ms).
• Performance: Optimized Natural Dynamics (80% less CPU, apart from channel splitting).
• Performance: Optimized Compressors.
• Performance: Optimized sound card handling (40% less CPU).
• Performance: RF spectrum calculation now uses a lookup table for sin() calculations.
• Performance/Bug fix: RF spectrum calculation analyzed more data than needed before (75% less CPU).
• Performance: Redesigned and optimized Simple Clipper.
• Performance: Optimized clipper bass handling performance.
• Performance: Removed a few 'division by 0' protections that appear to be unnecessary.
• Performance: Optimized RDS encoder.
• Performance: Rewrote code to remove a lot of unnecessary data conversions.
• Performance: Noise Gate/Stereo Boost: Pre-calculating some values values.
• Performance: Optimized for memory caching.
• Memory usage: Reduced by about half (DSP version: From 200 MB to 100 MB, Stand alone: From 197 to 113 MB).
• Sound card: Several optimizations done. Buffer filling might look a bit different than before, but now if you don't see an empty buffer it won't crackle (before it could).
• ASIO: Removed buffering step, this might in some cases allow slightly less latency.
• ASIO: Added hiccup/crackling protection: Preliminary data is placed in the sound card buffer so something gets played in case of hiccups.
• ASIO: Fixed low latency output with ASIO block sizes below 256 samples.
• ASIO: Fixed buffer size calculation. Old versions reported the wrong time in the display.
• Hard Limit: In Composite Clipper mode, it caused very soft (inaudible?) clicking sounds in previous versions. Fixed. Also made spectrum cleaner.
• Low Latency Monitoring: Now uses the normal processing code instead of a separate code path. Sounds more like real output.
• Low latency: Improved AGC behavior.
• Low latency: Fixed AZIMUTH behavior.
• Low latency: Fixed Phase Rotation frequency effects (now compensating for loss at certain freqs).
• Low latency: Improved Multiband and Singleband limiting and compression.
• Low latency: Clipper 'Advanced Bass Distortion Protection' did not work properly at latency 128.
• Low latency: Slightly improved equalizer behavior to sound more like the higher latencies.
• AGC: Added Power Highs filter (similar to Power Bass, under AGC).
• AGC: Moved Power Bass and Power Highs to before the wideband AGC to improve volume level consistency.
• AGC: Power Bass and Highs: Sudden fast rise of bass or highs is limited, new slider 'Release boost' added.
• AGC: Power Bass: Sidechain option removed.
• Stereo Image: Fixed most of the artifacts! No longer marked as Deprecated.
• Fixed 'Post filter for DC offset' problem.
• Bug fix: Carbon Coder Stereo Tool TV plugin hangup when normalizing for R128, reported by FOX TV.
• Added HQ mode. Not available for users.
• FM output for input sample rates below 30 kHz is no longer possible!

Is that CPU usage correct for multicore?

_________________
Urban Junglist

Yes why not ?
Depending on what you use , but this is the middle CPU usage with Advanced clipper.

At the 64 bit Windows version there is the word 'experimental'. I don't know how many users use this 64 bit Windows version, but I guess that the word experimental can be removed. As the former 7.40 and 7.31 64 bit one works fine for a longer time. I didn't test the 64 bit one that just came out yet.

The Mac standalone version has as date 2 January 2014, is there a wrong date setting at the Mac where this one is build?

Hi Hans,

good stuff !!!

a question: is this normal, in the previous version did not.

What is

Added HQ mode. Not available for users.

Something we will have access to later? A license thing?
I'm curious, dammit.

Otherwise, fantastic release! Thanks Hans.

Edit: This is a very annoying forum "feature" while trying to search:

The following words in your search query were ignored because they are too common words: mode hq.

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I just use ST Winamp to listen to music.

I tried to the Linux GUI version. It appears to be an x64 binary now rather than an x86 one?

Might be worth noting that in the change log... I run an x86 installation purely for Stereo Tool so I guess I'll have to update it now!

What's that TV-version? Is it some proprietary version that's made for FOX exclusively? R128 is big name in the business to I think no live loudness processing based on that would be released for free nor this ridiculously cheap price as the FM-version is today.

http://tv.soundaudioprocessing.com/

dj_szpajda: Yes, Stereo Tool currently uses 2 threads (1 per audio channel) for most of the processing. Another thread is used for the GUI but it doesn't use much processing power.

Edgar: Ok, I haven't really heard back from people if the 64 bit version is stable. It probably is though - I will remove it. DONE About the Mac date: I have a VMware image that I run to build the Mac version, I guess it doesn't update the date if I just put it to sleep and wake it up later to do a new build.

NRG: Hm, that's indeed a bug - should have no impact but it shouldn't be displayed.

tjh: Can't tell you yet - but it's not and will not be available in Stereo Tool.

AaronHorn: I think something went wrong in either the build or the upload - will rebuild it. It's still 32 bits (I should really make a 64 bit environment to build a 64 bit version). DONE

Modulator: R128 is not live, just multi-pass processing. It's also available in the command line version.