Stereo Tool

Omg, is it really necessary to crank up the sound like that for FM broadcasting? Why? Do all radio stations do this? I'm a complete noob on this subject, and never was even aware this is what radio stations do to sound before it goes on air.

Euhm is that a preset of yours?

Trying to make a square wave from a sinus?

Input is way to high to start with. To be honest I see litlle use in the final limiter and single band compressor/limiter when the loudness is being used. Those two last things make the sound pumping and clearness is gone while it sounds less dense actually.

@ Brian..
I will tell you as shortly as possible:

That test preset should compete with O.11 preset used at PFD. I am not using it and it's not finished but well balanced AND protected before it reach loudness filter.!

Preset is not different in recording.. just recording is FM de-emphasized.
AGC is IDEAL! in any OTHER preset even mine older presets are actually not accepted in broadcast world, Example: Try your last preset (which sounds very good) and for example Phoenix's last preset with firsts 3 tracks in PDF mix. 1st, track will be lower, 2nd- higher and 3rd something else. Consistency NO. There is other factors for consistency, like MB, so there speeds must be also good. I told you once. that your prestet and ALL presets that uses gate like that are 100% not acceptable in broadcast world and even in for home listening. Just try to listen some unporcessed talent on microphone where differences in level is more then 12dB and never less then 6dB.
I also explain you 'if i remember corretly' that 'that' is not the way how AGC should work. For that 'windowing' should be added. Ok, once someone said "we use what we have" I agree, but in this case it's NOT better to use gating like that. Recently someone (do not remember) posted preset where after louder track next soft track needed 1 minute to get target level in AGC.. because same reason.. using gate like that.
Bass AGC: i think i will never use it! because that job need to do 1st two bands in MB (if you have 2 bass bands). And even now they do it better. Maybe, just maybe, it better to be after MB, but again name says "AGC" and it works like AGC, so not like Limiter or clipper or compressor. Also just don't need AGCing anywhere after MB and certainly not after existing AGC.

Singleband: check again.. (press diff), it does not work almost at all. (so you said what you said just by watching meter" (?)
I carefully watched to avoid possible punch whole there! Also, how do you think in other way to have loud sound like that? By just using Lodness (limiter) filter? Why then we don't use just that then? Maybe to add add AGC (without gard gate) and that's it? You'll have nice, original, open sound, why not?

Highs: They are not high then are more "compressed" in mb. And belive or not listening FM output actually they are mostly lower. then original. Fact is that MB does not have range like it should, which just lowers number of track that will have more highs than original. With loud preset like this how do you expect highs to sound? Cleaner andless
lazy to explain rest...

Not using multiple protective features in Loudness - It's exactly where it should be, since that settings is not automatic with loudness settings.

Anyway, It's good that you don't hear what i hear, but then unlogical end evaluation.

So when you broadcast something as loud as your example over FM, it will sound normal on a radio? And if you don't make it this loud before broadcasting it will be too soft?

Well you can take that preset.

Do the following steps:
- Pre Amp to about X 5.00
- Open the multiband compressor/limiter and adjust the EQ to only have the lowest and highest band to like +2dB the rest flat, now in that same window, and here is mister density, move that slider next to the equaliser from compress to limit
- then open the limiting and loudness and untick the final clipper and single band compressor/limiter

But this is what they do in a studio? Again, is that necessary? Then I just don't get it at all... Why use a de-clipper if you are only going to make it even louder afterwards? Like I said, I'm a noob.

Maybe we should tell all radiostations that the loudness war is over. And that from now on we only gonna play with minimal processing.

Since you are Dutch (or Belgian?): Ever listened to Radio 538 or Slam FM? Check the distortion there! It's close to unlistenable to me...

Well, because the clipper in Stereo Tool doesn't cause the type of distortion that the declipper fixes. On top of that, on traditional processors the clipping in the source material is actually punishing you 3 times:
1. There's clipping in the original
2. The AGC is usually PEAK based instead of RMS/ITU-1770 based as the one in Stereo Tool, so clipped audio comes louder out of the AGC than non-clipped (and especially dynamic) audio
3. There's a phase rotation used normally, which moves the flat parts to the center, and the 'good' parts to the peaks. So then when you clip it again (and all clippers except for the ones in the Omnia 9, Breakaway and Stereo Tool cause distortion here) you're adding distortion at the only places in the signal that didn't have distortion at the start.

Result: Au

No I'm Dutch alright. So they do this on purpose? Why? And notice that their commercials are even LOUDER!