Like the titles says limiting the Armageddon's with faster attack time than my previous and some what rather basic audio limiters where I had no control over threshold and release times in milliseconds, its been rewarding to revisiting the launch sequence from the 1997 summer hit Armageddon without the splitting headache that would soon follow afterwards.
Before I started the launch NASA officials had to check the levels with auto pink noise cycling on the sound systems internal Kenwood KRF-X9050D THX select AVR, once the thumbs where up we where clear for launch.
But the launch was aborted in the firing control room where I noticed it was to loud on the softer scenes, left and right was reduced via the additional Dolby processor that was re-plugged back into the sound system a few nights back. So via reducing the levels by -3db it seemed to work out extremely fine.
So with the launch back in countdown mode we where clear, the pounding thunderous sound of the main engines on the shuttles started up with good limiting as each shot cuts back and throw from shuttle to shuttle the LFE.1 cuts in smoothly without overwhelming the performance of the three-screen, this is how it should be.
By playing back the same sequence again I added the sub bass extension and readjusted the levels on the mixer or a smooth launch. During midway into the launch I noticed the three audio limiters where doing an outstanding performance at keep the levels reasonable but needed a little more output, and thou I was looking good on the SPL db metre just under 80dbA! My gaol here is to aim for an optimum peak of 85dbA which is where it should peak.
I made some small changes during the launch by setting the threshold for left and right audio limiters at -20.0db with centre set at -18.0db.
"Houston this is a kick a££ ride."
Split-surrounds in centre back and height surround added good atmosphere with shuttles passing down the sidewall surround arrays or straight over the centre back. Height surrounds added additional background sound effects that fill the room without overwhelming.
{c}
Now although my surround array isn't protected at the moment I take extreme care as these where only installed last year after a painstaking few months. Next I switch off the all the front loudspeakers including sub bass. I then monitor the surrounds via the use of the SPL db metre to see what potential the split-surround mix as got.
Some films have some very complex surround or split-surrounds sequences that could benefit by being turned up carefully with the use of audio limiters. Now I have a basic stereo audio limiter that is built into the Hi-Fi stereo VCR in fact most VCR decks have a basic audio limiter built in. At the moment I'm fresh out of plug sockets as nearly all but 19 are in use!
So if I can find away around it sometime tonight I'll get some audio limiting functioning on the surrounds output then patch the leads back to the Pioneer VSP-200 which is the Dolby centre back height surround decoder as well as sidewall surrounds and low pass sub bass output that is patched into the audio mixer.
More information well I'm afraid you'll have to buy a (Behringer DCX 2496) to know more. The unit as been around for a few years now and it works a treat with taming films like Armageddon where loudness was really a concern around 1997.
Its all fine by having a film blaring out with unsafe and unrealistic levels one its impossible to play a shuttle launch like the real deal so you have make compromises to get an acoustical approximation of the event. But it's the damn mid and high range that is too much for taking even during the crazy and wild moments during the launch.
Also not to mention "this is too fast" or "this is too loud" when the shuttles slingshot around the moon its why too loud and where's all the tight low end that they are all feeling, well its kinder here in the DVD mix.
LEF.1 only! If you where to set the LFE.1 with its audio limiter on and it takes a bit of juggling to get the level correct as well as adjusting the amplifier volume level.
If the audio limiter is set around -15db with the volume set on the AVR or AVP at 0db there's a nice low vibration that shudders just before the shuttles blast and disappear around the moon with Harry yelling out with a slight echo.
If you have the levels set wrong on the LFE.1 output and the audio limiter, as well as the volume level on the sub your bugger the sub up! So I take no responsibility if you bugger your sub bass up! It's up to you to exercise caution.
} 