ARC IK Multimedia

[janpetter]

Any thought's about this software ?
Link:http://www.ikmultimedia.com/Main.html?arc/index.php
All the best
Jan

[HarBal]

You should ask hitmaker about it. He has the hardware implementation of Audyssey, which this product is based on. How it compares withe hardware version I don't know though I suspect it has lower resolution filters.

My understanding is it is like Har-Bal for rooms in as much as if uses high resolution matched filtering to EQ your room response.

Cheers,


Paavo.

[Hitmaker]

Hi Jan ,

Oddly enough , it was researching the IKMedia plug that got me interested in the hardware unit ... and my use of Har-Bal ( among other things ) , that had me abandon thoughts of the plug .. To explain , that plug is meant to be used as the last in your DAW chain ... i.e. you'd need a DAW open on your PC , and your sound routed through it , to avhieve the effect . I had thought I might be able to route signal through my soundcard , to get CD/DVD playback through it ... but using HB would have been the no-go ....

Paavo is correct in his surmise that the plug ( like the Denon , Marantz , Onkyo & other AV receivers that employ the technology ) is not as refined in resolution as the hardware unit ... the former is MultEQ , the latter MultXT .....

Regards it's effect , it bears an uncanny similarity to using HB in mastering at your sweet spot ... which is hardly surprising ... both are high-resolution FIR eq filters .... However , some time domain tweakin' is also performed .. which may , or may not , be at the heart of it's claim to even out the sound throughout your room (a concept that incited some lively debate as to it's feasibility , as it seems technically impossible ) ... That said ... it does in fact work as claimed ... and the words 'balanced' and 'even' were consistent comments from listeners ...'Clearer' also was a common comment ...
I found , in my untreated room's case , that the bass response ( which was my concern ) became very even both between positions in the room , and at each position ... Another factor that I wasn't expecting , was that , with it engaged , I was using less reverb over my mixes ... it had successfully emulated a 'real' acoustic treatment of the room ...
In my circumstance ( 2.0 near-field ) , the hardware unit was overkill , but , with it's 8 channels , did allow similarly balancing my 'main stacks' , which worked very well ...

Cheers ,

Evan .

[janpetter]

Paavo and Evan, thanks for the info. I just purchased the software and hope it will be a helpfull tool, while listening and mixing
All the best
Jan

[Hitmaker]

Cool Jan ,

I'd be intrigued to hear your impressions ....
One bonus ... you will have a calibrated mic for use with another RTA ... should you wish to examine your room in greater detail ....

Cheers ,

Evan .

[janpetter]

Here is a screen shot of my first measurement with the ARC system. The orange line is my room acoustic the white line is the correction and the green line is the target line. I took 16 measurements around my listening position and it really works as described For me that is After listening to some of my favorite Cd's for hours without any fatigue to get used to the new sound I am convinced that this software works. Cant wait to start with my own mixes
All the best
Jan Petter

[Hitmaker]

Hi Jan ,

That worked out a nice Xmas persent for yas .. huh ???

Wonderful ...

Do remember to turn it off before you bounce/mix to stereo ...

Cheers,

Evan .