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Optimod 8100 or Omnia One

weskeene said:
All good points on the 2200. I feel like in fairness I should say I wouldn't let experiences with the 2200 keep me from trying the similarly priced 5500. That box features a 5 band compressor/limiter and even composite limiting for a little extra loudness. I wouldn't expect it to run circles around an 8500 but it might be a competitor to a O1 FM.

I'd like to hear one actually.

Wes
Click to expand...


The 5500 has been a very successful product for us.

The 2200 was designed around 1992 and its features and performance were limited by the DSP power available at the time. The 5500 is in a very different league than the 2200. 5-band vs. 2-band (although you can run the 5500 in 2-band mode if you want). Much better limiter/clipper/overshoot compensator with "intelligent" distortion control. "Half-cosine interpolation" composite limiter. Ethernet remote control. Automation via internal clock with Internet time sync. Very power-efficient and cool-running due to switching power supply and latest Freescale dual-core DSPs. Sonically, it's very similar to the "low latency" ("LL") presets in an 8400. (Don't confuse these with the "ultra-low-latency" [UL] presets, which don't use intelligent distortion control.)

Bob Orban
 
I have an 8300 on my Hip-Hop station. I think it does a very good job. I wanted to buy one for my CHR, but was told it was an 8 week lead time... So, I got a 5500, since it would ship the next day (time mattered). I am quite impressed by it. It can't do what the 8300 can, but it does well for me.
 
I've got a 8300 on a "Classic Hits" station that plays everything from Elvis to Frankie Goes to Hollywood and some Air Supply and Beejees thrown in for good measure. They even toss in a 50s from time to time. Needless to say I tweeked the box a lot via the remote web interface. I'm VERY happy with it's sound, especially for 6k in 2005. I can hear things pop out on that station in vocals that I have never been able to understand on any other station. It's an amazing box!
 
The 8300 is great. That is why I wanted to buy another. I wonder why Orban has such a long time on shipping these? Maybe Robert could chime in on this.

I tried to order one just 2 weeks ago. I was told 8 weeks after BSW talked to Orban.

I think the 8300 is a wonderful processor at a great price. It is the sweet spot in my opinion. Especially after that last software update with the AGC Window... That helps so much on Hip-Hop & CHR content that is hypercompressed.
 
chriscollins said:
Price was not the issue. Orban said it was 8 weeks to ship.
Click to expand...

It probably has something to do with the 8300 being made in Germany. At least the last 8300 I installed was made in Germany. I would think most of the production is concentrated on the 8600 and 5500, being the two new flagships. I personally do not like the old 8600 graphic display and chassis. It dates back to the 8400, but the sound is what matters I guess.
 
To be honest, the AGC is quite capable in the 5500. It sounds far better than I expected it to. I'm just happy to use my AES feed from my D75.

It sounded good enough that I told my owner that it may be time for him to replace all of our 8100A/XT2's. With the price 8100A/XT2 combos are going for on ebay, you can get a 5500 for about 400 out of pocket.

What I like most about digital processors is consistency. Every 8100A/XT2 we have sounds different, based on the age of the caps, etc... In the DSP world, presets translate perfectly from box to box.
 
Never met an agc that couldn't get caught by surprise or have a hole blown in it,like for example the start of stevie nicks "Talk to me".i've used the Ariane in front of every box i've used,including 8100,8500,6exi...You should really demo one.That box has magic in it...
 
oldiesstation said:
Never met an agc that couldn't get caught by surprise or have a hole blown in it,like for example the start of stevie nicks "Talk to me".i've used the Ariane in front of every box i've used,including 8100,8500,6exi...You should really demo one.That box has magic in it...
Click to expand...

I agree that it is a better AGC. I just don't have the $ for it right now. I suppose I was trying to say that the 5500 AGC is far beyond what you would expect in a budget digital processor.
 
chriscollins said:
The 8300 is great. That is why I wanted to buy another. I wonder why Orban has such a long time on shipping these? Maybe Robert could chime in on this.

I tried to order one just 2 weeks ago. I was told 8 weeks after BSW talked to Orban.

I think the 8300 is a wonderful processor at a great price. It is the sweet spot in my opinion. Especially after that last software update with the AGC Window... That helps so much on Hip-Hop & CHR content that is hypercompressed.
Click to expand...

We have more 8300s coming in from our German contract manufacturer. Meanwhile, you might want to check again with Orban sales because my current info shows a few in stock in Germany, although I don't know if these are already spoken for.

Bob Orban
 
fm-engineer said:
I personally do not like the old 8600 graphic display and chassis. It dates back to the 8400, but the sound is what matters I guess.
Click to expand...

Part of it does indeed date back to the GUI that we designed for the 8400, which many people find to be very intuitive and easy to deal with, particularly because of the Less-More control. That being said, when we introduced the 8500, we upgraded the display hardware from a passive matrix LCD to an active matrix LCD, which has more contrast and a much wider viewing angle. So strictly speaking, the 8600's GUI really dates back to the 8500.

There were a number of reasons that we retained the 8500 GUI, but the most important ones were that it was already well proven and debugged, and that the 8600 design allows for 8500s to be upgraded to full 8600 sound quality by swapping the DSP board and installing new software. This protects the investments of the thousands of 8500 users out there. We expect to release the upgrade kits next month.

Bob Orban
 
rorban said:
chriscollins said:
The 8300 is great. That is why I wanted to buy another. I wonder why Orban has such a long time on shipping these? Maybe Robert could chime in on this.

I tried to order one just 2 weeks ago. I was told 8 weeks after BSW talked to Orban.

I think the 8300 is a wonderful processor at a great price. It is the sweet spot in my opinion. Especially after that last software update with the AGC Window... That helps so much on Hip-Hop & CHR content that is hypercompressed.
Click to expand...

We have more 8300s coming in from our German contract manufacturer. Meanwhile, you might want to check again with Orban sales because my current info shows a few in stock in Germany, although I don't know if these are already spoken for.

Bob Orban
Click to expand...

Thanks Bob. I am actually pretty happy with the 5500. Since I have already have it, I think I will keep it.
 
Suppliers like to sell what's in stock for the most part,can;t blame them for that.(Same as a car dealer,they hate doing dealer trades).I just find it hard to believe that some dealer did not have an 8300 in stock.It pays to shop around!!i get bids...levels the playing field.
 
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