Possible Omnia 11 Phantom Sightings..

[oldiesstation]

Could that be an 11 on B101 in Philly? Of course they always sound great.They seem louder but lacked some punch but being an AC maybe that's the preset they like.Is Corny's old Cleveland FM running an 11? There may be more 11's on air.With no offense to Mr. Orban,everyone i've spoke to about the 8600 says it sounds like a much improved 6EXI,kinda Omnia like.But it sure has been well received in the market and stations love the sound..Maybe these stations are using the 8600.

 

[fm-engineer]

I have heard great things about both of them. The only complaint I hear about the 8600 is the same outdated hardware. Of course, does it really matter what it looks like? I remember those rack mount "project boxes" thay we spray painted black!

 

[dtube1]

I remember those rack mount "project boxes" thay we spray painted black!

I always painted mine green just to be different ;D
-D

 

[satech]

I have heard great things about both of them. The only complaint I hear about the 8600 is the same outdated hardware. Of course, does it really matter what it looks like? I remember those rack mount "project boxes" thay we spray painted black!

Orban fans can at least take comfort that all of their money spent on the 8600 goes towards a redesigned and upgraded DSP core, and not on a visual makeover. After all, a new coat of paint is a heck of a lot cheaper than building the equivalent of an iPad into the front panel!

 

[Groove1670]

Give me a 8100 any day.

 

[RealityCheckr]

Some questions for you (if your really want to play this game)...

1) What format?

2) What market?

3) With or without mods?

4) With or without XT Chassis?

5) With or without a pre-processor?

6) With or without a composite clipper?

7) Do you *really* like treble that sounds like sandpaper castanets?

8) Have you demoed (e.g. not only heard but played with) the 11 or the 8600?

Just let us know the answer so we can judge if you are serious or just "blowing steam".

Happy New Years!

Give me a 8100 any day.

 

[earshot]

Some questions for you (if your really want to play this game)...

1) What format?

2) What market?

3) With or without mods?

4) With or without XT Chassis?

5) With or without a pre-processor?

6) With or without a composite clipper?

7) Do you *really* like treble that sounds like sandpaper castanets?

8) Have you demoed (e.g. not only heard but played with) the 11 or the 8600?

Just let us know the answer so we can judge if you are serious or just "blowing steam".

Happy New Years!

Give me a 8100 any day.

In the 90s, we ran the 8100 with a Prism on a mainstream AC and sounded good...especially on music from the 80s. An exception to that was when we played Roxette "Fading Like a Flower," which sounded really harsh (especially right after the intro when the song get to that first loud hit).

Ten years and a market later, that damn 8100 and Prism followed me when my company bought the group of stations that included the AC I had worked for previously. In this case, we pulled the 8200 off the oldies station in my group and installed the 8100/Prism. I thought those 60s songs sounded better with the analog processing.

I wouldn't want to be in a major market with this setup or using it on rock or any format that plays a lot of Urban. But as long as it's not being pushed beyond it's capabilities in some kind of loudness war, I think it sounds respectable. Especially when you consider it's 30 year old technology.

It's usually when a PD or GM, who wants to be louder than somebody else, tweaks it and sacrifices a good sound for modulation. And if you're running this type of setup, competing with the guy across town with an 8500 or an Omnia, you're comparing apples to oranges.

I'd always prefer a new Omnia or Optimod but the 8100 with an XT or perhaps a Prism, can still sound good. You just have to have a good ear and understand what the limitations are.

 

[listner1]

I have heard great things about both of them. The only complaint I hear about the 8600 is the same outdated hardware. Of course, does it really matter what it looks like? I remember those rack mount "project boxes" thay we spray painted black!

Ah, c'mon. The 8500 impresses school and cub scout tours through the rack room. I tell them that Fisher Price even makes radio equipment!

 

[earshot]

I have heard great things about both of them. The only complaint I hear about the 8600 is the same outdated hardware. Of course, does it really matter what it looks like? I remember those rack mount "project boxes" thay we spray painted black!

Ah, c'mon. The 8500 impresses school and cub scout tours through the rack room. I tell them that Fisher Price even makes radio equipment!

listner1, not just school and cub scouts. I had an engineer who knew what equipment to put in the rack facing the hallway because the GM liked blinking lights and moving analog meters! lol

 

[satech]

I wouldn't want to be in a major market with this setup or using it on rock or any format that plays a lot of Urban. But as long as it's not being pushed beyond its capabilities in some kind of loudness war, I think it sounds respectable. Especially when you consider it's 30 year old technology.

Since its limiter primarily employs multi-band clipping, the 8100+XT2 works best with source material that has not already been heavily clipped in the mastering stage. That's why it's not ideal for modern rhythmic music -- not because it can't handle a heavy bass beat (see: Disco, '80s Pop!), but because it only ends up amplifying the clipping distortion inherent in the source audio. Garbage in = Garbage out.

 

[BabyDJ]

I wouldn't want to be in a major market with this setup or using it on rock or any format that plays a lot of Urban. But as long as it's not being pushed beyond its capabilities in some kind of loudness war, I think it sounds respectable. Especially when you consider it's 30 year old technology.

Since its limiter primarily employs multi-band clipping, the 8100+XT2 works best with source material that has not already been heavily clipped in the mastering stage. That's why it's not ideal for modern rhythmic music -- not because it can't handle a heavy bass beat (see: Disco, '80s Pop!), but because it only ends up amplifying the clipping distortion inherent in the source audio. Garbage in = Garbage out.

100% correct.

I heard B-101 down in Philly when I was in to cover the snowed out Vikings-Eagles game. I thought the audio sounded clean but wimpy. It emulated the source but had no impact.

 

[Sgeirk]

I agree. An 8100, refurbished and tuned properly, with some good multiband processing ahead of it, and tasteful clipping following it, can still sound competitive to this day....however, the source material had better not be anything after about 1993!

Kind of narrows it's usefulness, though, doesn't it?

 

[satech]

I agree. An 8100, refurbished and tuned properly, with some good multiband processing ahead of it, and tasteful clipping following it, can still sound competitive to this day....however, the source material had better not be anything after about 1993!

Kind of narrows it's usefulness, though, doesn't it?

Some mastering engineers use look-ahead limiting, instead of hard clipping. The difference is obvious if you run the track through "SeeDeClip", which attempts to calculate and restore up to 6 dB of clipped-off peaks, but obviously has no effect on non-clipped material:

http://www.cutestudio.net/data/products/audio/seedeclip/index.php

Also beware of HDCD-encoded audio when "ripping" CDs. HDCD has a "peak extension" feature which allows the decoder to recover up to 6 dB of peak headroom, compared to the un-decoded CD audio.

 

[BabyDJ]

I agree. An 8100, refurbished and tuned properly, with some good multiband processing ahead of it, and tasteful clipping following it, can still sound competitive to this day....however, the source material had better not be anything after about 1993!

Kind of narrows it's usefulness, though, doesn't it?

As far as I'm concerned there hasn't been anything decent recorded after 1993 anyway

 

[HHH]

[/quote]

As far as I'm concerned there hasn't been anything decent recorded after 1993 anyway
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