// MODULE 5 OF 8 · SBE CPT PREP v1.0
Processing is seasoning. Most people salt it twice.
EQ
TONEEQ cuts or boosts frequency bands. Speech intelligibility lives around 2–5 kHz; mud collects at 200–400 Hz; a high-pass filter at ~80–100 Hz removes rumble a voice never made. Cut before you boost.
Compression
DYNAMICSA compressor reduces level above a threshold by a ratio (4:1 = 4 dB in, 1 dB out), with attack/release timing and makeup gain. Radio voice: moderate ratio, medium attack so consonants punch through. A limiter is a brick-wall compressor guarding the ceiling.
Loudness
STANDARDSModern delivery measures program loudness in LUFS (streaming targets around -14 to -16 LUFS; broadcast standards like -23/-24 LUFS for TV). Peak-only meters lie about perceived level; loudness normalization is why slamming everything to 0 dBFS gains nothing and costs punch.
On the U-Rock rails
NETWORK TIE-INAzuraCast AutoDJ applies station-level processing so a 1996 demo and a 2026 master can live in the same rotation. Your job upstream: deliver files that don't fight it — no clipped masters, no whisper-quiet rips.
Do this now
HANDS ON- Take one voice recording: high-pass at 90 Hz, gentle 3:1 compression, then A/B.
- Find one song in rotation that sticks out level-wise and diagnose why.