Orban OPTIMOD-FM 8700, Operating Manual

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OPERATION ORBAN MODEL 8700i
these faster release times produce more limiting action. Increasing density can make
sounds seem louder, but can also result in an unattractive busier, flatter, or denser
sound. It is very important to be aware of the many negative subjective side effects
of excessive density when setting controls that affect the density of the processed
sound.
The MB D
RIVE
interacts with the MB R
ELEASE
setting. With slower release time set-
tings, increasing the MB D
RIVE
setting scarcely affects density. Instead, the primary
danger is that the excessive drive will cause noise to be increased excessively when
the program material becomes quiet.
You can minimize this effect by carefully setting the MB G
ATE
T
HRESH
control to “freeze” the gain when the input gets quiet and/or by activat-
ing the single-ended noise reduction.
When the multiband compressor’s release time is set to its faster settings, the setting
of the
MB D
RIVE
control becomes more critical to sound quality because density in-
creases as the control is turned up. Listen carefully as you adjust it. With these fast
release times, there is a point beyond which increasing multiband compressor drive
will no longer yield more loudness and will simply degrade the punch and definition
of the sound.
We recommend no more than 10 dB gain reduction as shown on the meters for
band 3. More than 10 dB, particularly with the
F
AST
release time, will often create a
“wall of sound” effect that many find fatiguing.
To avoid excessive density with the
F
AST
multiband release time, we rec-
ommend using no more than 5 dB gain reduction in band 3 and compen-
sating for any lost loudness by speeding up the
MB R
ELEASE
instead.
MB Release; Speech MB Release control can be switched to any one of seven settings:
The Slow settings produce a very punchy, clean, open sound that is ideal
for Adult Contemporary, Soft Rock, Soft Urban, New Age, and other
adult-oriented formats whose success depends on attracting and holding
audiences for a very long time. The
S
LOW
and S
LOW
2 settings produce an
unprocessed sound with a nice sense of dynamic range. With these set-
tings, the Five-Band structure provides gentle automatic equalization to
keep the frequency balance consistent from record to record (especially
those recorded in different eras). For background music formats, these
settings ensure that your sound doesn’t lose its highs and lows. Because it
creates a more consistent frequency balance between different pieces of
source material than does the Two-Band structure,
S
LOW
is almost always
preferable to the Two-Band structure for any popular music format.
The Medium Slow settings ( M
ED
and M
ED
2 ) are appropriate for more
adult-oriented formats that need a glossy show-business sound, yet
whose ratings depend on maintaining a longer time spent listening than
do conventional Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR) formats. With the single-
ended noise reduction activated, it is also appropriate for Talk and News
formats. This is the sound texture for the station that values a clean, easy-
to-listen-to sound with a tasteful amount of punch, presence, and
brightness added when appropriate. It is an unprocessed sound that