Historical or Hysterical?
"The louder the station, the higher the ratings !"
In the 1970's, FM radio took off. It had a lot of advantages over AM. FM sounded better and listeners noticed the difference. A lot of the theories that applied to AM radio carried over to FM and were simply not valid. One theory, "The louder the station, the higher the ratings", seems to linger on. Did you know that loudness has nothing to do with the coverage contours of an FM station? And I have yet to see a study proving that the louder the station, the better the ratings.
The "louder the better" theory is still strong in the minds of many programmers and managers. You can clearly see that the equipment manufacturers have reacted to this belief and continue to manufacture processing that is reaching the theoretical limits of loudness! Fortunately most of this equipment when adjusted properly can be loud and clean at the same time. This was not possible back in the '70s.
WISH LIST
"I want it louder, cleaner, brighter, better bass , less noise, more highs, more separation .......than the competition!"
Sounds like a wish alright !
1. Try to be competitively loud, but remember, loudness isn't everything.
2. Keep the distortion and clipping to a minimum to achieve long listening times (minimizing clipping and distortion can reduce station loudness)
3. Don't go crazy with the equalization, the music you play on the air should approximate what comes off the lp or cd.
4. Use compression and limiting in moderation. (Compression reduces the dynamic range of the station, and limiting controls the peaks of the program material and prevents overmodulation.....high levels of limiting and compression can contribute to listener fatigue). Give your listeners ears a break!
Compromise is the best solution to tailoring the sound of any radio station. There is a definite trade-off between loudness and reduced distortion, and only careful listening will tell you what combination is right for your station.
DEPARTMENT OF REDUNDANCY
"Yes we have all of the latest processing equipment on the air now!"
From the redundant department of redundancy.
One compressor is good, two are redundant and three are ridiculous!
Don't not to fall into the trap of trying to use too many compressor/processors at once. Justify the use of each piece of equipment in your processing chain. Use just enough processing to get the job done. Remember, the less equipment the signal has to go through, the better your station is going to sound. The shortest path between your studio and your listeners ears is usually the best.
STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN
Audio processing is more like cooking than science.
The bottom line... let your engineer look at the manufacturers specifications and test data, but always let your ears be the judge. Take time to develop your listening skills. Always listen to your station on at least three types of different receivers ( clock radio, car radio, and home stereo). Listen to your competition. If changes to your on-air sound are necessary, make them gradually so you don't loose your frame of reference. Don't play with the processing! Find the combination that works well for you and then leave the dials alone. Remember, audio processing is more like cooking than science. Just the right combination of ingredients results in a clean, competitive sound that will give your station that winning edge.
Garbage In / Garbage Out
Replace old studio equipment before spending thousands of dollars on audio processing.
In cooking, you always start with fresh ingredients. If you were making tomato sauce with rotten tomatoes, there is nothing you could add to the recipe to make the sauce taste good. The same is true for audio processing. Start with good studios that have up-to-date equipment. Make sure the studios are wired properly, and yes, neatness does count. If what comes out of your studios is clean (it should sound as good or better than your home stereo), than you're way ahead of the game. If your facility is old, you may want to consider replacing studio equipment before spending thousands of dollars on a new processor. Audio processing is not the way to correct for deficiencies in your studios!
When you feed clean audio into your audio processing equipment, you'll be surprised how good your station can sound and how easy it is to achieve a good on-air sound.