> > ...AM Stereo more easily. That's good.
>
> I doubt Mr. Orban had any specific foresight like that. He
> ...made the 9400's analog and digital sides both
> stereo-capable because that's how the latest Omnia AM
> processor is configured...
Interesting, at NAB the representative from Orban/CRL told me that the 9400 was the 9200 and the 6200 combined into one box. He never mentioned anything about stereo for the analog signal. The selling point was that you save money and rack space by buying one box instead of two. In fact when I asked about AM stereo processing he directed me toward the CRL Amigo AM.
> It also lets Orban finally retire
> the trusty 9100, which is the last remaining analog audio
> processor in their line-up.
Once again, the sales representative that I spoke to said that they were still producing and selling the 9100 and had no immediate plans to retire the unit. He also pointed out that Orban merged with CRL, and that the full line of CRL amigo processors were still in production. He called them their "Legacy line of Analog Processors." We asked him if Orban/CRL would still service the old modular CRL Legend series units, and he reassured us that even though they are no longer in production that the company would still service the old gear.
> Speaking of which, the real proof of the 9400's performance
> will be if major-market AM stations finally replace their
> 9100s with it. Most of the "big boys" have been hanging
> onto the 9100 because so far, no other processor has been
> able to match its combination of loudness and smoothness
> when it comes to analog AM audio processing.
This is true. There is still a lot of loyalty for the 9100. We got one station where the antenna system is totally screwy. We tried just about everything on that station. The only box that makes the station sound good, and in this case better than good, is the good ol' 9100.
Unfotunately now I am getting conflicting information on the new processor and the fate of the gold standard in AM processing. I don't know whether to believe the press release or the Orban Representative at NAB. Maybe he was ill informed. As far as AM Stereo, I think at this point if I had a need to bring back C-Quam processing on the cheap I'd go with an Amigo AM with a digital Ariane in front of it.