Fine Tuning Your Sound; About Loudness And Listener Fatigue; Clarifying Your Processing Objectives - Omnia 6EX Installation And Operation Manual

Chapter-5: Fine Tuning Your Sound
Many broadcasters will be amazed at the dramatic sonic improvements Omnia-6EX delivers right out of the box and
using one of the included factory presets. Some will want to tailor one or more of the presets slightly to create a
more "custom" sound for their station. Still others will wish to really delve in and significantly modify the parameter
settings to create their own unique "signature sound."

About Loudness and Listener Fatigue

If you're an audio processing expert, you'll find what we've included within the Omnia-6EX to be the most powerful
tools ever. If you're new to audio processing, we recommend proceeding with caution and with knowledge of your
goals.
Getting the most out of your Omnia-6EX processor (or any other processor for that matter) starts with knowing your
objectives beforehand, and knowing where you can make tradeoffs. If your goal is to be the loudest station on the
dial and obtain extreme amounts of detail and quality, keep in mind that there are limits. Reaching one goal is
usually at the expense of the other. Thus far, we are not aware of any research or ratings information that proves that
being the moment-to-moment loudest station on the dial is of any benefit to the listener. There will always be those
individuals who feel that louder at any cost is better. The added distortion from the endless and pointless pursuit of
raw loudness may generate negative effects on your listeners. Be careful.
Having said all of this, we firmly believe that Omnia-6EX will get you closer to your ideal than any other processor
or combination of processors available today. It is definitely capable of generating moment-to-moment loudness; it
has the muscle. It also maintains that famous Omnia clarity sought after by top programmers all over the world. We
encourage broadcasters to utilize the power of the Omnia-6EX to create good, competitive loudness while
maintaining a higher degree of quality.
Clarify Your Processing Objectives
Whether one is seeking better overall quality or specific spectral improvements, try to articulate and write down
your goals. Do you want a little more loudness or "presence" on the dial? Are there certain characteristics of the
sound of other stations in your market that you like, want to emulate, or just surpass? Are there any you want to
avoid? When adjusting processing, please give thought—real thought, to how you'd like your station to sound. What
do we mean by that? Well, if your desire is to add loudness, and in most cases it probably will be, decide on the
degree of loudness that you want. Is the goal to be competitively loud with respect to other stations on the dial, or
must you be the kingpin, the moment-to-moment loudest thing known to God and Man? This will impact how you
set up the processing.
Engineering, programming, and management should all participate in the development of these objectives. After all,
processing can have a direct effect on the bottom line of your station. A little bit of agreement and cooperation on
the goals before installation can save you a whole lot of disagreement afterwards.
Set Aside Some Time
It can take some time, a good deal of serious time to optimize the audio processing for your station. We realize that
in our business today, time is a precious commodity. But please don't try to install the Omnia-6EX in between other
major projects or during the week your boss or your assistant is on vacation. Make certain in advance that the staff
members who helped you set your objectives will be available to consult with you when you adjust the processing
parameters.
Omnia-6ex Use and Operation Manual – V: 1.10
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