From the “Guardian” 25 Oct 2016:
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Dave Plowman
From the article:
“…Audio signal compression is sometimes confused with “data compression”, a separate process (also known as source coding), in which the size of files is reduced in order to make storage or transmission easier…”
Err, no pet. Audio compression was around long before data compression was a gleam in its mother’s eye. It’s data compression which is usually incorrectly named.
And I didn’t realise audio compression was new. Those in use 50 years ago or so must have been a mirage.
That article reminded me of most jokes or flared trousers. Youngsters think they’ve invented them.
John Howell
73 Years ago, in fact.
Herrick G. Q, (1943) “A Volume Compressor for Radio Stations” Electronics December 1943.
Hugh Sheppard
It’s always seemed to me that Radio 3 does itself no favours for in-car listeners by playing classical music far less-compressed than Classic FM. Road and engine noise often overwhelms the former when trying to be true to the original, while the latter is overly compressed with no quiet passages at all, but is much more popular as a result. Or might the inconsistency of Radio 3 also have something to do with it?
Dave Plowman
But why should in car listeners be catered for to the disadvantage of others? There is no reason why a car radio can’t have its own compressor. I think DAB was meant to offer this option.
Bernie Newnham
In the US they now have the CALM Act. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commercial_Advertisement_Loudness_Mitigation_Act
I’m just in the middle of writing a load of PowerPoint’s about loudness – so confusing, so complicated. And a pity that legislation was required.
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