ORBAN USER REPORT
John-Arne Sviggum
Technical Manager
P4 Radio Hele Norge AS
Norwegian national commercial radio station, operating since 1993. Marketshare about 23%. Main office in Lillehammer, the host city for the Winter Olympics in 1994. Region offices in Oslo, Kristiansand, Bergen and Tromsø.
FM coverage: ~80% of the population.
DAB coverage: ~80% of the population.
Channels:
P4 Norge: FM, DAB & web simulcast. Adult contemporary music, news, traffic services etc.
Orban 8500, analog output: FM net.
Orban 8500, digital output (HD): DAB net.
Optimod PC-1100 for processing on web, WMA 96kbps. (mms://mmscluster2.nextra.no/p4_norge)
P4 Bandit: (Rock Non Stop). DAB and web only. Rock music.
Orban 6300 digital output for DAB. Optimod PC-1100 for web, WMA 96kbps. (mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/p4_bandit)
P4 also offers 5 web-only music stations, WMA 96kbps, all using Optimod PC-1100, WMA, 96kbps:
mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/p4_hits
mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/p4_jukebox
mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/p4_radioretro
mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/p4_ballade
mms://mms-cluster2.nextra.no/P4_Jul
FM broadcasting in Norway is challenging due to the topology with lots of hills, mountains and long fjords. As a consequence of this and the fact that P4 is self-operated, good dynamic processing was essential from the very beginning. Back in 1993 we only had one station (P4 Norge transmitting on FM), and we have been using Orban all the way, starting off with 8200. After about 10 years in service feeding our FM network, the 8200 was replaced by 8400 for a short period of time, before finally implementing the 8500 few years ago.
When we implemented the 8500, for the first time we were able to feed the DAB net with a full frequency range signal, using the HD output. (We also use several 8200 for monitoring in the on-air studios, due to latency issues and the fact that we are broadcasting from several studios outside the main office, where the on-air processors are situated). When we launched the fully digital DAB and web-only "Rock-Non-Stop" station Bandit, one year ago, the Orban 6300 was an obvious choice. We have tried several different dynamic processors during the last 14 years, but always turned to Orban. The Orbans are easy operational, especially with TCP/IP remote capabilities, and it's very convenient from a users point of view to be able to choose whether you prefer to use the "Less-More-knob" or more advanced settings. "The sound of P4" has been developed since the very beginning and we have harvested many words of praise for the "P4 signature", from both listeners, audio professionals and musicians and producers, hearing their "work of art" on air.
John-Arne Sviggum
Technical Manager
P4 Radio Hele Norge AS
Circuit Research Labs, Inc. Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Management's anticipation of future events is based upon assumptions regarding levels of competition, research and development results, raw material markets, the markets in which the company operates, and stability of the regulatory environment. Any of these assumptions could prove inaccurate; and therefore, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking information will prove to be accurate.
About Circuit Research Labs, Inc.
Circuit Research Labs, Inc. is a manufacturer of high-quality digital and analog audio processing, transmission encoding, and noise reduction equipment. Circuit Research Labs, Inc. is in the market for radio, TV and Internet audio processing. As technology evolves, Circuit Research Labs continues to innovate with state-of-the-art audio processing products for DAB, DTV and streaming media. The Company purchased Orban® in May of 2000. Orban was founded in 1970 by Bob Orban, who is the world's foremost expert in transmission audio processing for broadcast. Orban leads the industry in the design and manufacture of audio processors for radio, television and Internet broadcasting. Recognized for its standard-setting Optimod® digital audio processors and the Opticodec® codecs, the Orban name has become synonymous with reliable, high performance products. Today, its versatile audio processing equipment and codecs are the products of choice in fast-paced production environments worldwide.
For more information contact David Rusch at phone +1 (480) 403-8300, fax +1 (480) 403-8301 or e-mail: drusch@orban.com. Information is also available at www.orban.com and www.orban-europe.com.