Built-In Compressor/Limiter for Home Stereos

[Teasing the Korean]

Many of us - myself included - are not fans of compression, especially if we like more acoustic-based music like symphonic and jazz.

However, many of us have experienced putting something on in the background and, because of the wide dynamic range, not being able to find a suitable listening level.

So I ask: Why do you think basic compressors/limiters never became a standard built-in feature with any kind of consumer-grade stereo system? Were there stereo components that included this feature and I just don't know about them?

Edited October 9, 2009 by Teasing the Korean

[David Ayers]

Many of us - myself included - are not fans of compression, especially if we like more acoustic-based music like symphonic and jazz.

However, many of us have experienced putting something on in the background and, because of the wide dynamic range, not being able to find a suitable listening level.

So I ask: Why do think basic compressor/limiters never became a built-in feature with any kind of consumer-grade stereo system? Were there stereo components that included this feature and I just don't know about them?

My first amp was a NAD that had a loudness button. I'm not sure whether it compressed or just boosted bass frequencies. Otherwise I am not aware of it though I have a now classic QUAD preamp with some functions that I've never been able to understand.

Your point is a good one especially for those who have neighbors. So much modern orchestral music is mainly quiet but occasionally deafening. Depending on choices made by the engineers, authenticity in the reproduction can be pretty antisocial when cranked out through a 100W amp.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

DBX made a CD player that had variable dynamic range. If it wasn't such a piece of junk from a quality point of view, I probably would've bought one. I have a few classical CDs that are barely listenable without an active remote finger. Way too much dynamic range. From "what the hell was that noise" to "turn it DOWN TURN IT DOWN" sometimes in a matter of seconds.

[WD45]

I remember seeing some receivers a few years back that had something similar in the form of a "night" mode for watching movies. It was a compression feature that limited the dynamics so you could hear dialog AND not blast everyone out of bed with SFX explosions and such.

This Teac is an example

"Night Mode

When very dynamic movie soundtracks are played at low volume, such as late at night, Night Mode applies dynamic range compression so that low-level content is not lost and high-level effects are restrained."

I suppose you could put in a rack-mount compressor, but that seems more complicated than most would want to deal with.

Edited October 9, 2009 by WD45

[AllenLowe]

the first thing that would help would be to eliminate surround sound, which is crap and which screws up any real balance of sound. I hate the thing.

Edited October 9, 2009 by AllenLowe

[Kevin Bresnahan]

the first thing that would help would be to eliminate surround sound, which is crap and which screws up any real balance of sound. I hate the thing.

I don't believe the original poster was talking about surround sound and I certainly was not. There are stereo situations where too much dynamic range is a problem. Most old Deutsche Grammophon CDs are pretty bad.

But even though your post does not seem related to the topic, I'll bite: I have heard surround done well and surround done poorly. In most cases, the situations where I've heard it done poorly were the result of improper level settings in the listening area.

And BTW, I disagree with you that surround sound is "crap". I happen to think it can provide a phenomenal listening experience, particularly for movies and even some music. Until you've heard Aerosmith's "Toys In The Attic" in 5.1, you don't know what you're missing (please do me a favor and ignore the fact that you hate Aerosmith, Allen ).

Kevin