Stereo Tool

I have just found a bug in my bypass code (there also was no audio in Bypass mode!), which is fixed now. So I hope that that also resolves this issue. (Which, so far, I still haven't been able to reproduce).

Also new in the next build...

Is this just an interface for the old eq or does it use a new algorithm with better sound?

Just a GUI thing. Sound is the same.

This parametric EQ is probably the 2nd or 3rd most sought-after feature people bug Hans about. Good work, Hans!

Windows 32 bit:
Windows stand alone: http://www.stereotool.com/download/ster ... 25-020.exe
Winamp DSP: http://www.stereotool.com/download/dsp_ ... 25-020.exe
VST: http://www.stereotool.com/download/vst_ ... 25-020.dll

Windows 64 bit:
Windows stand alone: http://www.stereotool.com/download/ster ... 25-020.exe
VST: http://www.stereotool.com/download/vst_ ... 25-020.dll

Raspberry Pi 2/3 (and other similar ARM-based devices):
32 bit command line: http://www.stereotool.com/download/ster ... ETA825-020
32 bit ALSA/Jack stand alone: http://www.stereotool.com/download/ster ... ETA825-020
32 bit Jack (old) stand alone: http://www.stereotool.com/download/ster ... ETA825-020

Note: The Pi versions are now far more optimized than before, and they support ALSA (via PortAudio). The 'Ignore high frequencies' checkbox works now, and I urge you to turn that one on (actually I should probably make that the default setting for ARM-based devices... For FM presets with 192 kHz sample rate it reduces the total CPU load by 20%!). On my Pi 3 with Wolfson/Cirrus Logic sound card, I've been able to run a *FULL FM PRESET* with stereo/rds and composite clipping at Quality 40, Latency 2048, with some other tweaks to lower the CPU usage (no Natural Dynamics, Declipper Step size reduced from .87 to .70, Stokkemask strictness reduced to 4, probably some more things that I forgot). With proper cooling I should be able to go higher.

CHANGES:
- Add real PEQ, with low/high shelves
- Put PEQ in SST interface
- Fixed bug in Bypass code that might have caused all kinds of weird things.
- Natural Dynamics: Changed the dB value calculation for "Reduce for jump above" (display only); changed default setting to 6 dB (instead of 13). This reduces the effect of ND if the input signal is more dynamic. With some more tweaks I can probably make it sound better.
- Raspberry Pi version: Stokkemask causes silence.
- Hard Limit: Check report of overshoots - Solved, at least for any logical situations
- Fixed daylight saving time bug introduced in 8.23.
- PFFFT resampler!!! YEAH! 20% CPU load reduction on the Pi
- Generic plugin in debug mode shows PEQ too often assert, why?
- In the AM configuration When we use Asymmetry, the output markers show the red color all the time even if with fm transmitter it continues to generate pilot tone at the AM output. As you can see in the attached figure. Thank you for your attention .... -> Fixed pilot issue, restored Headroom slider.
- It appears when RDS RT Text is sent to StereoTool and it contains a “/” that ST separates it into two messages. Is this how you intended it to work? PS Text doesn’t appear to be affected. -> Fixed (but PS should also have been affected, odd).
- The DSP-Plugin still works correct. But somehow some trial features are activated when i am using the commandlinetool. What you have to know is this, that i am also totaly blind so i cant use the interface for configuring. I allways thought that the commandlineversion uses the DSP_Stereo_Tool.ini created by the winamp-plugin to set the different options. I think something changed cause i am getting the message that the program cant find or cant read the dsp_stereo_tool settings in the user-folder. So the stereotool_cmd.exe uses some settings wich are not completely available in the free Version. So i am getting this two beeps every minute. -> Oops, it was accidentally using the .ini file without .ini at the end... so not the Winamp settings file (which is the default).

OLD CHANGES:
- Linux and Raspberry versions: Now linking PortAudio statically.
- Make PortAudio work properly on Linux - it works but with weird warnings and it takes a long time to start. -> Fixed by removing sample rate check on startup. --> Appears to be a PortAudio ALSA backend issue!!! For now, keep the Jack version as well.
- Allow Linux version no GUI to run on Raspberry Pi without X11. (Hm, Windows version probably too - already basically there for service). - TODO: Test if it really works
- Fixed: Raspberry Pi version: AGC, Multiband 1 & 2 and some other filters can cause dropsouts
- - Fixed: Raspberry Pi version: Clipper can cause silence
- Fixed: All versions: Using Composite Clipper with Strictness 1 or 2 + Hard Limit can cause weird drops in the audio. Fixed, Hard Limit works different from before now! (and sounds better! Hint: Use this same trick for all limiters!!!!!!)
- PortAudio linked statically on Mac
- GiPHouse build warnings
- PortAudio weird jumps in buffer filling and glitches
- Put all PortAudio calls in 1 thread - was needed for WASAPI
- Made PortAudio work on Mac - weird hack needed (?)
- Synchronize PortAudio input and output starts
- Make sure that in case of no input audio, the error is reported for the input. Added the watchdog tick to be always called when the callback is called, even if no audio is being played.
- Make buffer filling 50% on start - Wait for first input to return. Only then allow outputs. Also needed for VLC (so the delay can be big!) In fact, the best way might be to connect it to when the first callback of the input sound card happens... enable the other callbacks INSIDE that input callback. But if I do that I need special solutions for VLC and ASIO. And that won't take the calculation time into account, and it might actually be a good thing to take that into account to make the buffer at least not too empty.
- Updated PortAudio to latest version
- Added FM/HD synchronziation slider. You will hear glitches when adjusting it, but no complete dropouts as with changing the buffer size.
- Changed PortAudio callback block size to let PortAudio decide the best size. This might slightly reduce latency and also help against hiccups.
- Added display of supported sample rates (and MME) to sound card selection.
- SST help
- Delossifier Spectral hole filler CPU load is much higher in 8.23 than in 8.00 - no obvious change in the code. - Wasn't true, slightly optimized it anyway.
- Removed old WINMM audio card code, replaced by PortAudio.

TODO:
- Make 'Ignore high frequencies' enabled by default on ARM.
- Add WASAPI mode that uses exclusive sound card control to set sample rate.
- Test if FM lossy link protection improves reception!!!
- Possibly also lower latency (based on what I read it should be possible to get close to ASIO latency - thread priority must be set too in that case, both with a flag and a value).
- Check if BASS is usable for streaming...
- Limiters: Make same change as in Hard Limit (from l + l * .01 to l + .01).
- Compare Stokkemask vs Multipath Clipper
- Maybe support ISO 226 curves for AGC and other side chains instead of ITU1770? See http://www.sengpielaudio.com/Acoustics226-2003.pdf ; curves look similar to the "old" curves but less to the new ones.
- Send out RDS texts
- Fix 31N
- Show low input level warning for inputs below - say - around -9 dB or so. For extended periods. Reason; I hear on a local station here that they probably have a too low input level and they didn;'t know that that was a problemn, but the sound on one of the built-in presets wasn't as consistent as it should be, and some tracks sound muffled probably due to too much noise gating.

Please make sure this can be turned off (or is only active for built-in presets). A pop-up window would be more of a disturbance than of any use for us.

Hi,
Is there any (for sure) compatible and more powerful than raspberry Pi board ?
Who can run stereo tool with more cpu headroom ? (raspberry Pi has NO cpu headroom, as i understood)
Without lowering quality etc ?

Thank you ?

There are some boards that have 8 cores instead of the 4 that the Pi has, which should be sufficient to run at full quality. And some boards have higher CPU clock speeds. As long as they are compatible with the chip in the Pi 2 it should run on it. You still need to be able to connect a good sound card to it.

I still have to check how much higher I can go when I add cooling.

Pi3 is 1.2Ghz (4 core) , it still can`t be enough ?