Stereo Tool

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.


IDT DIGITAL BAND PROCESSOR 7+4


PREFACE: The signature French profile for trance, house and other flavours of EDM. Loud, punchy, bassy. Everything a dance club could want.

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.

IDT DBP 7+4 Impact (EDM Trance) [PulsRadio FR v1.0] [ST9.70 WEB].sts

STATION: PulsRadio France
YEAR: 2024
STATUS: Active (as of 2024)
MODEL: IDT DBP 7+4
FORMAT: Electronic Dance Music
COMP RANGE: ~15dBFS
COMP BANDS: 7/4
EQ RANGE: 30Hz - 20KHz
INPUT ALIGNMENT: 0dBFS@1KHz = -3dBFS (analog)/0dBFS (digital)
OUTPUT: 0dBFS, appx. -10 to -8LKFS (ITU BS.1770)
ST VERSION: 9.70+
ST MINIMUM LICENSE: Basic + Advanced Dynamics
PROCESSES: Noise Gate, Phase Rotator, Auto EQ, Current AGC, Stereo Boost + ACR Stereo, True Bass, Multiband 1 + Multiband 2, Legacy Bass Boost, Bass Clipper, Advanced Clipper

DESCRIPTION: The first aspect of this profile which a listener may notice is the bass overdrive. I'm unsure if it was intentional design on the part of IDT, or if it's the result of bad settings custom engineered by a member of the PulsRadio team, but either way the extreme phase delay and overdrive from 200Hz down does help to better translate sub-bass frequencies to smaller speakers. In addition the dense/heavy but smooth compression, along with stereo enhancing, brings out details, shine and reverb even at lower listening levels. Despite the dense processing, a significant amount of punch is retained.

NOTES: This profile may not be precisely accurate, as the level of bass overdrive present in the hardware is not possible in Stereo Tool due to the floating-point precision DSP which allows near infinite headroom. I felt the level of bass distortion on the hardware was far beyond excessive anyway, so I pushed the level of overdrive as much as felt comfortable to me. Additionally the level of overall bass is a couple dB less than the hardware in order to push more loudness into the final clipper, as I felt the audio from the stream recordings I heard tended to sacrifice a higher-than-needed level of bass against competitive loudness. I created this preset by A/B comparing on-air samples to the processor.

The following tracks were used in the creation of this preset, and best exemplify the expected timbre and microdynamic behavior:
> Inna - Imagination
> Medina - You and I (Deadmau5 Remix)
> Above & Beyond pres. Oceanlab - Lonely Girl (Original Mix)
> Narcotic Thrust - When The Dawn Breaks
> Fred V, DNMO, Paul Dowling - Collide
> Paul van Dyk - For An Angel (Original Mix)
> Calvin Harris & Rag'n'Bone Man - Giant
> Above & Beyond ft. Richard Bedford - Sun and Moon
> Spencer And Hill - Back in the Love (Club Mix)
> Modjo - Lady
> Sam Feldt & Rosa Linn - Heart Like Mine (Extended Mix)
> Robin Schulz ft. Erika Sirola - Speechless
> Michael Gray - The Weekend

I have briefly tested this on a modified CZE-05B FM transmitter, and it performs as expected with the standard European 50us pre-emphasis. I have included the Web Only version here, however.

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!

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!