Linear Acoustic Leads Loudness Charge at NAB With Presentations

Linear Acoustic is leading the loudness charge at NAB with presentations at two sessions, “Audio Processing Requirements for Portable/Mobile Applications” and “Dynamic Range Control — The Other Part of Loudness Management,” during the Broadcast Engineering Conference at NAB 2010. Tim Carroll, founder and president of Linear Acoustic, and Ed Simeone, field application engineer for the company, will offer technical papers addressing the most recent developments in broadcast technology, sharing the company’s in-the-field experience and expertise with conference attendees.

The “Audio Processing Requirements” educational session, led by Simeone, will be held on Sunday April 11 at 4:30-5 p.m. in Room S219. He will discuss the new challenges inherent in providing compelling audio for mobile television, including dialogue intelligibility, dynamic-range tolerance, variable listening environments, background noise, receiver limitations, and metadata manipulation. Demonstrating the company’s experience developing loudness-control solutions for television, Simeone will illustrate the various methods used to prepare audio content originally produced for HDTV for best use within the limitations of mobile-device applications. Further, he will expand upon the challenges broadcasters face when producing content for multiple target platforms.

Carroll’s presentation, “Dynamic Range Control,” will be part of the IEEE BTS Tutorial on Monday April 12 at 2:30-3 p.m. in Room S228. During the session, he will share his expert insight into the digital transition and its surrounding audio-volume issues, focusing on the techniques for dynamic-range control. Although the industry has made progress in incorporating loudness control and measurement tools into the broadcast workflow, Carroll asserts that additional consideration must be given to the dynamic range of content in order to provide a consistent, compelling entertainment experience. He will also explain how new techniques, including combining advanced metadata and signal processing, can help maintain a successful balance between control and creative quality.