STR-DE697

Audio/Video Receiver
7 Channel Power Rating: 100W Per Channel x 7 (8 ohms 1 kHz, THD 0.7%) Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, dts, dts ES, Dolby Pro Logic II Decoding 2 Component Video Inputs: HD Pass (80 MHz) Preprogrammed Remote Control Front Composite A/V Input 5.1 Multi-Channel Analog Input 3 Optical/2 Coaxial Digital Input/1 Optical Digital Output S-Video In 3/Out 1 Multi-Channel Input (5.1ch)

Features

Amplifier Section Black Finish A/V Receiver 7 Channel Power Rating 100 Watts Per Channel x 7 (8 ohms 1 kHz, THD 0.7%) Stereo Power Rating 100 Watts Per Channel x 2 (8 ohms 20 Hz-20 kHz, THD.09%) Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, dts, 96k/24 bit dts ES, Dolby Pro Logic II Decoding A & B / A or B Speaker Switch 32-bit Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic and dts decoder 32-bit DSP with 11 Acoustic Environments Digital Cinema Sound System with Cinema Studio EX Modes Sound Field Modes (Movie, Music, AFD, 2 Channel): Movie: 3 Modes; Music: 3 Modes; AFD: 4 Modes; 2 Channel: 1 Mode Station Presets 30 Total Circuit Device (Discrete) Sound Field Link Inputs and Outputs 2 Component Video Inputs HD Pass 80 MHz Screw Terminals/Terminals for A & B Speaker Connections Multi-Channel IN (Analog) 5.1 Channel Headphone Jack 1/4" Jack Control A 1 II Analog Audio Input x 3 Analog Audio Output x 1 Digital Audio Input x 5 (3 Optical, 2 Coaxial) Optical Audio Output x 1 Pre-Out x 1 (Subwoofer) Composite Video Input x 4 Composite Video Output x 1 S-Video Input x 3 S-Video Output x 1 Component Video Input x 2 (HD Pass 80 MHz) Component Video Output x 1 (HD Pass 80 MHz) Monitor Out x 2 (1 Composite, 1 S-Video) AC Outlet (switched) x 1 Convenience Pre-Programmed Remote Control n/a

Specifications

Video Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr) Input Sensitivity Impedance 1 Vp-p/75 ohm S-Video (Y)/(C) Input Sensitivity Impedance (Y) 1 Vp-p/75 ohm; (C).286 Vp-p/75 ohm Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr) Input Sensitivity Impedance (Y) 1 Vp-p/75 ohm; (Pb).7 Vp-p/75 ohm; (Pr).7 Vp-p/75 ohm Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr) Input Sensitivity Impedance 1 Vp-p/75 ohm Composite Video Input Sensitivity/Impedance (Y) 1 Vp-p/75 ohm; (C).286 Vp-p/75 ohm S-Video (Y)/(C) Output Sensitivity Impedance (Y)1 Vp-p/75 ohm; (C).286 Vp-p/75 ohm Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr) Output Sensitivity Impedance (Y) 1 Vp-p/75 ohm; (Pb).7 Vp-p/75 ohm; (Pr).7 Vp-p/75 ohm Amplifier Section Channel Power Rating 7 Channel Power Rating: 100 Watts Per Channel x7 (8ohms 1 kHz, THD 0.7%) Output Level and Impedance Display Type (8 Seg.) Line Input S/N Ratio 96 dB Frequency Response Line (CD) 10 Hz -70kHz +.5 dB /-2 dB Line (CD) Input Sensitivity Impedance 500mV/50 k ohm Subwoofer Pre-Out Level Impedance 2V/1 k ohm Record Out Level/Impedance 500mV/10 k ohm General Power Requirements 120V AC , 60 Hz Power Consumption n/a Power Consumption (Standby) n/a

UPC Codes

0272426441990
2004 Sony Electronics Inc. All rights reserved. Features and specifications are subject to change without notice. All trademarks referenced herein are trademarks of Sony or their respective owners.

Supplied Accessories

Instruction Manual Remote Model: RM-PP413
Sony Electronics Inc. 1 Sony Drive Park Ridge, NJ 07656 For more information: http://www.sony.com/dn

Weights & Measures

2.2 Audio material for test program
For both subjective tests, audio source material was taken from NRSC music test samples, NPR speech samples, a sportscast and commercials from Greater Media, Inc. Two principles guided the selection of the genres used for these studies. First, after listening to several recordings with the test receivers in unimpaired conditions, it became evident that the difference in audio quality between 10 kHz and 5 kHz was extremely small in some cases (e.g., speech) and large in other cases (e.g., music). Secondly, current AM programming is dominated by speech, sports, commercials and country music, but future AM programming may include other musical styles as well. Therefore, we felt it prudent to include recordings from a wide variety of genres (Table 1). Audio samples were recorded through the test bed at NPR using industry-standard processors with manufacturers recommended settings. One processor was used for the desired signal; the other was used for the undesired signal. The recording test bed was
3 Each of the processors were tested experimentally with the desired and undesired RF channel; NPR Labs observed no significant difference in transmission characteristics with either unit and they were considered interchangeable.
identical to the one used in objective testing, documented in Appendix A. NPR engineers and Ellyn Sheffield parsed, edited and leveled samples to ensure consistency across samples and trials. Table 1. Source audio material used in subjective evaluations
No. Description 9 Commercial female Commercial male Garth Brooks sample 1 NRSC Cole NRSC Firebird NRSC Santana Speech Female Speech Male Sports Baseball Source Sun Sounds of Arizona Sun Sounds of Arizona Test(s) used in: Pilot Consumer
NPR Reading Services NPR Reading Services Greater Media
Phase 1: Broadcast-Industry Participant Test 2.3.1 Methodology
In order to obtain information from a variety of industry participants, Phase 1 testing included broadcast industry personnel from all over the United States and Canada. Participants took the test at their home or office location. Participants received through the mail a CD containing 55 play lists, experimental instructions (see Appendix B), a pair of Sennheiser HD-201 closed-back headphones and 55 answer sheets (see Appendix C) on which to register their responses. Sound samples were presented to participants over headphones, directly connected to their computers. Participants played all audio files through Media Player Classic v6.4.9. Participants were presented with a total of 55 listening trials. The first trial was repeated in trial 27. The first trial was included to familiarize participants with testing procedures (i.e., listening and response procedures). It was not included in any reported results. The next 54 trials constituted the actual test. In each trial, participants listened to 5 audio samples, side-by-side. Samples included recordings at 5 kHz, 6 kHz, 7 kHz, 8 kHz and 10 kHz bandwidth. The order in which participants heard samples was randomized for each trial, and each sample was simply labeled with a letter, A through E. Therefore, listeners had no knowledge of individual bandwidths for any given set of samples. After listening to all of the samples in the trial, participants were asked to rate each sample using the provided answer sheets (see Appendix C for an example answer sheet). They were encouraged to play the list of audio cuts as many times as necessary to rate each sample. Their job was to rank-order all samples with unique scores, even if they found the quality of the

samples to be very similar or identical4. For fine discrimination, participants were encouraged to rate each sample on a 50-point scale, anchored at increments of 10. This followed the ACR-MOS scale with the exception that participants were able to rate the samples as failed (0). Therefore, participants were advised to assign a number to each sample between 0 and 50; 0 = failure, 10 = bad, 20 = poor, 30 = fair, 40 = good, and 50 = excellent. No recommendation was made concerning the sound cards to be used by participants, however it was required that all participants use the Sennheiser headphones that they received in the mailing. Participants were also encouraged to listen in a quiet listening space, free from both steady-state and temporal environmental noise. Participants were instructed to listen to half of the trials and take a 10-minute break. The total listening time for an experiment was approximately 2 hours. Participants were advised to refrain from taking the test if they were tired, cranky, had a head cold or severe allergies (or any other condition that would interfere with their ability to hear small differences in audio quality), or had too little time to complete the test in one sitting. Three listening conditions were included: (a) a clean or unimpaired RF signal, (b) an impaired signal recorded at +6 dB D/U with first-adjacent channel interference, and (c) an impaired signal recorded at +15 dB D/U with first-adjacent channel interference. Unimpaired samples were included to provide listeners with the best opportunity to critically judge the audio quality. At the same time, +6 dB and +15 dB D/U signals were included so that experts could evaluate transmissions recorded in real-world, impaired conditions. Two receivers were used, the JVC KS-FX490 car in-dash cassette (representing the median-bandwidth receiver), and the Panasonic CQ-CB9900U in-dash CD/HD Radio (representing the 80th percentile bandwidth receiver). Proposed receivers were selected based on objective measurements obtained in NPR objective testing. (See the following section, Audio Measurements of AM Consumer Receivers for a discussion of the selection criteria.) Samples included male speech, female speech, male commercial, female commercial, rock, pop, country, classical and sportscast. Participants returned the answer sheets to Ellyn Sheffield, who supervised the entry of all data.

2.3.2 Participants

Thirty-six industry experts were sent packages. Twenty-one returned their answer sheets, but three had completed 27 or less of the 54 trials, so their data was eliminated from analysis. Of the 18 participants, 16 were male and 2 were female. Since most of the participants were homogeneous in age and predominantly male, preliminary analyses were not conducted on the data.
While most participants followed these directions, some respondents gave samples the same score on various trials. Although this practice did not follow the procedure, the answers were left in tact for data analysis.

Figure 6: Music Results for Three Receiver Bandwidths (20%, Median, and 80%)
1.00 0.90 0.80 0.70 0.60 0.50 0.40 0.30 0.20 0.10 0.00 30dB 0.21 0.35 0.44 15dB 20% 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 0.22 0.36 0.42 0.31 0.37 0.32 0.28 0.41 0.31 6dB 30dB 15dB Median 0.37 0.34 0.29 0.39 0.35 0.26 0.27 0.34 0.39 6dB 30dB 15dB 80% 0.33 0.31 0.36 0.45 0.35 0.19 6dB
Figure 7: Sports Results for Three Receiver Bandwidths (20%, Median, and 80%)
1.00 0.90 0.80 0.70 0.60 0.50 0.40 0.30 0.20 0.10 0.00 30dB 0.18 0.36 0.47 15dB 20% 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 0.15 0.43 0.42 0.27 0.36 0.38 0.20 0.38 0.43 6dB 30dB 15dB Median 0.24 0.33 0.43 0.34 0.39 0.27 0.25 0.31 0.44 6dB 30dB 15dB 80% 0.23 0.36 0.42 0.30 0.33 0.37 6dB
Results: Magnitude of Preferences
Because Broadcast-industry experts indicated that differences in audio quality between bandwidths were reasonably small in a majority of cases, we felt that it was particularly important to characterize the magnitude of consumer responses. Consumers were asked in two ways to qualify their responses: (a) to indicate how large the difference was between the two samples; and (b) to suggest where they might turn the radio off instead of continuing to listen to the broadcast. Obviously the latter question, often referred to as a threshold question, is an extreme measurement of dissatisfaction, and must be interpreted very carefully. It is widely accepted that motivation interacts heavily with a consumers decision to turn off a radio program. That is, if a consumer is invested heavily in the content of a radio program, s/he will be far less likely to turn off the program, regardless of audio quality. Thus, the best way to interpret this data is to focus on the relative differences in bandwidths, not the absolute turn off rates. Figure 8 through Figure 11 show how large a difference they felt they heard between the two samples. Answers ranged from I didnt hear a difference, you made me pick to I heard an extreme difference. For the purpose of analysis and presentation, 5 response categories were collapsed into 3 categories (as shown in Table 3) and receivers were collapsed. For complete data, see Appendix F.
Table 3 Categories collapsed for analysis Original category I didnt hear a difference, you made me pick The difference was noticeable but very small The difference was somewhat noticeable The difference was noticeable The difference was very noticeable Collapsed category No difference Difference Difference Big difference Big difference
Notice that, as with preference responses, speech followed a significantly different pattern than all other genres. Consumers reported hearing much larger differences in speech, particularly in the +6 dB noise conditions. This is not surprising given the density profile of speech versus music, sports and commercials, and the extreme level of impairments found at +6 dB. Nevertheless, because participants reported hearing the biggest differences in the noisiest condition (+6 dB), we may infer that they are most often equating the concept of difference with noise on the sample (in this case 1st adjacent channel noise). These data, taken together with preference data suggests that the single most important criteria consumers use when judging AM transmission audio quality (in this case preferring one bandwidth over another) is the amount of interference noise they hear on the sample, and not necessarily fidelity.

Figure 8: Differences heard in speech for Three Impairment Levels (30dB, 15dB and 6dB)
1.00 0.90 0.80 0.70 0.60 0.50 0.40 0.30 0.20 0.10 0.00
No difference Difference Big difference 5kHz10kHz 0.38 0.60 0.03 5kHz7kHz 30dB 0.45 0.54 0.01 0.51 0.45 0.04 0.07 0.65 0.28 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 15dB 0.36 0.60 0.05 0.04 0.71 0.25 0.05 0.24 0.71 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 6dB 0.25 0.64 0.11 0.03 0.42 0.55 7kHz10kHz
Figure 9: Differences heard in commercials for Three Impairment Levels (30dB, 15dB and 6dB)
No difference Difference Big difference 5kHz10kHz 0.45 0.47 0.08 5kHz7kHz 30dB 0.41 0.55 0.04 0.64 0.34 0.02 0.33 0.62 0.06 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 15dB 0.38 0.57 0.05 0.63 0.36 0.01 0.19 0.62 0.19 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 6dB 0.38 0.55 0.07 0.39 0.52 0.09 7kHz10kHz
Figure 10: Differences heard in music for Three Impairment Levels (30dB, 15dB and 6dB)
No difference Difference Big difference 5kHz10kHz 0.58 0.81 0.11 5kHz7kHz 30dB 0.65 0.77 0.08 0.78 0.68 0.04 0.55 0.83 0.12 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 15dB 0.58 0.85 0.07 0.68 0.78 0.04 0.53 0.87 0.11 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 6dB 0.59 0.86 0.05 0.68 0.75 0.07 7kHz10kHz
Figure 11: Differences heard in sports for Three Impairment Levels (30dB, 15dB and 6dB)
No difference Difference Big difference 5kHz10kHz 0.34 0.59 0.07 5kHz7kHz 30dB 0.39 0.56 0.05 0.43 0.54 0.03 0.36 0.56 0.08 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 15dB 0.34 0.60 0.06 0.47 0.49 0.04 0.33 0.61 0.07 7kHz10kHz 5kHz10kHz 5kHz7kHz 6dB 0.39 0.56 0.05 0.34 0.58 0.08 7kHz10kHz
Figure 12 through Figure 15 show how often consumers would listen to samples or turn them off, divided by genre. Taken as a group, the number of transmissions consumers would keep listening to comprises approximately 65% of the listening samples, compared to 35% of the samples that they would turn off. This suggests that, in general, consumers found the audio quality acceptable, particularly in +30 and +15 dB conditions. However, this also indicates that there was a fairly high percentage of turn-offs. As expected, the number of turn offs increased as the D/U ratio got worse. At +30 dB, the number of turn-offs was 507 (accounting for 19%), whereas at +15 dB, the number increased to 813 (accounting for 31%) and at +6 dB, the number again increased to 813 (or 50%) These results were particularly pronounced in the 20% and 80% receiver. As shown in, in speech the number of turn-offs rises as the noise conditions worsen. This pattern (as shown in Figure 13 through Figure 15) does not hold for the other genres. These results dovetail with both preference ratings and size of perceived impairments.

Figure 12: Would you continue to listen (Speech)? for Three Receiver Bandwidths
1.00 0.90 0.80 0.70 0.60 0.50 0.40 0.30 0.20 0.10 0.00 30dB 15dB 20% All 3 bandwidths 10kHz 6dB 30dB 15dB Median 5kHz 7kHz 6dB 30dB 15dB 80% None of the bandwidths 6dB
Figure 13: Would you continue to listen (Commercial)? for Three Receiver Bandwidths
Figure 14: Would you continue to listen (Music)? for Three Receiver Bandwidths
Figure 15: Would you continue to listen (Sports)? for Three Receiver Bandwidths
Figure 10 shows a further breakdown of the data by genre, focusing on the incidents of consumers reporting they would keep listening to one sample but turn the other off (i.e., Id listen to A, not B). The number of responses at a particular kHz level is a compilation of all trial-pairs which include that kHz level and all other kHz samples with which they were paired. For example, at 5 kHz in Music, consumers reported 13 times that they would continue to listen to 5 kHz but they would turn off the other sample (which could be 7 or 10 kHz). When interpreting this table, remember that reports of Id listen to A and not B represent a reasonably small percentage of consumer reports. Notice that consumers reported they would keep listening to 5 kHz significantly most often in speech.

2.6 Conclusions

Results from both Broadcast-industry and consumer testing suggest the following: The perceived difference in audio quality between 5 and 10 kHz is reasonably small, except when participants are listening to speech. In fact, there is little indication that consumers hear any difference between 7 and 10 kHz when they are listening to music, commercials and sportscasts, regardless of D/U ratios (the rare exceptions indicate people prefer 7 kHz to 10 kHz) In unimpaired or relatively unimpaired (+30 dB D/U) conditions, people tend to prefer higher bandwidths to lower bandwidths. However, as indicated in
broadcast-industry testing, their preference is for 8 kHz, and as indicated in consumer testing, they have no preference between 7 kHz and 10 kHz.5 In speech, consumers prefer lower bandwidths (5and 7 kHz) to higher bandwidths. In +15 dB and +6 dB D/U conditions this preference is overwhelmingly demonstrated. The magnitude of consumers preference varies as a function of D/U ratio and type of audio. In harsher noise conditions, people claim that they hear larger differences. Additionally, in speech conditions, people claim that they hear larger differences than in music, sportscast or commercials. The data suggest that the rather substantial turn-off rate (resulting largely from data in the +6 dB condition) can be ameliorated by switching to a lower transmission bandwidth. The specific preferred bandwidth varies as a function of genre and dB D/U level, but appears to reside between 5 and 7 kHz.

3.3 Discussion of Results
It is apparent from a review of the individual receiver graphs that with only a few exceptions, frequency response falls off above 1 or 2 kHz, although there are wide
differences in slope. Wide variation among the tested receivers made the choice of a dB down reference point for bandwidth comparison more difficult. For example, the 1995 Chevrolet Camaro radio has a -3 dB frequency of 3.7 kHz, while the 2002 Ford Mustang radios -3 dB frequency is 3.2 kHz (both relative to 1 kHz). However the cutoff slope of the Mustang radio is less steep than the Camaro radio, making the -3 dB point less representative of the audible frequency cutoff in AM receivers. Thus, a frequency cutoff of -10 dB was chosen for comparison. For the -10 dB cutoff points, the Camaro audio bandwidth is 4.3 kHz and the Mustangs is 6.1 kHz. The choice of -10 dB reference was reinforced by receiver listening tests during measurement, in which -10 dB correlated better with audible bandwidth than other reference points.
Figure 18 - Frequency Response mean and standard deviation for all tested receivers

-10 dB -1

-15 dB -20 -25 -30 -35 -40
Figure 18 illustrates the combined frequency response of all receivers through the test bed (blue line), with the -3 dB point at 2450 Hz and the -10 dB point at 4100 Hz. The overall variation in audio bandwidths is shown by the standard deviation for the entire test population in green (+1) and brown (-1). For example, first-order standard deviation at the -10 dB point is approximately -2.6 dB and -17.2 dB, a range of 14.6 dB.
Table 4 - Summary of frequency response for all receiver groups Receiver Category -3 dB Frequency (Hz) Home Stereo Shelf/mini systems Portable/CD boom box Clock Car In-dash HD Radio (car) OEM car 3200 -10 dB Frequency (Hz) 4580
Table 4 summarizes the mean -10 dB frequencies by receiver category. It is notable that the category of widest response is the clock radio, which is the group with lowest unit cost. This may be due to relatively low-cost designs having the fewest frequencyselective components that limit audio bandwidth, or to the use of filter devices with less Q, or both. However home stereos exhibited the poorest audio bandwidth, despite the opportunity to use more sophisticated RF and IF filter designs. OEM car radios exhibit a noticeably wider bandwidth than the after-market car radios. Some of the tested radios showed a rise in frequency response below 1 kHz, which combined with the narrow bandwidth to make these radios sound even more boomy and deficient in highs. All the radios exhibited an increasing rate of roll off with frequency, so that slopes above the -10 dB point became very steep. Consequently, within a fraction of an octave above the -10 dB frequency most receiver measurements are dominated by noise. Some receivers with high noise level, such as the Chevrolet Suburban OEM radio, were re-tested at a higher RF level in an attempt to measure higher frequency bandwidth. In addition to basic signal to noise ratio under unimpaired transmission conditions, each receiver was evaluated for change in WQP (psophometer-based) signal to noise ratio with an adjacent channel interference (10 kHz). Measurements were performed using three different audio transmission bandwidths and desired-to-undesired RF signal ratios of +30, +15, +6 and 0 dB. A table showing separate signal WQP to noise ratios for upper and lower channel interference is included with each receiver in Appendix K.

D/U 30 dB Freq. Comb. (kHz) 5/10 5/7 7/10 15dB 5/10 5/7 7/dB 5/10 5/7 7/10 Neither Sample A not B B not A Both Sample 123 4592

Median

5/10 5/7 7/10

Grand Total

Appendix G
Listener Data Arranged by Transmission Bandwidth
Rcvr. 20% D/U Ratio 30dB 15dB 6dB Median 30dB 15dB 6dB 80% 30dB 15dB 6dB 6 Commercial Music 3 Speech 2 Sports 6

Trans. BW 5 kHz

30dB 15dB 6dB

10 kHz

Appendix H
Table of Consumer Test results by individual cut
+30dB +15dB +6dB +30dB +15dB +6dB +30dB +15dB +6dB
Classical Country FemaleCommercial 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 0.27 0.38 0.35 0.18 0.32 0.51 0.14 0.43 0.43 0.28 0.38 0.34 0.18 0.38 0.44 0.23 0.38 0.38 0.47 0.38 0.16 0.26 0.38 0.36 0.38 0.38 0.25 0.27 0.41 0.33 0.33 0.38 0.30 0.31 0.43 0.27 0.43 0.34 0.23 0.35 0.31 0.34 0.31 0.41 0.28 0.51 0.35 0.14 0.40 0.28 0.32 0.35 0.47 0.18 0.28 0.32 0.40 0.32 0.33 0.36 0.20 0.39 0.41 0.39 0.29 0.32 0.29 0.28 0.43 0.30 0.42 0.28 0.49 0.38 0.13 0.43 0.35 0.22 0.58 0.38 0.03 FemaleSpeech 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 0.23 0.44 0.33 0.42 0.51 0.08 0.50 0.43 0.08 0.36 0.38 0.27 0.48 0.47 0.05 0.58 0.42 0.01 0.26 0.38 0.37 0.52 0.40 0.08 0.58 0.39 0.03 MaleSpeech Rock Sports 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 5kHz 7kHz 10kHz 0.28 0.40 0.32 0.19 0.34 0.47 0.18 0.36 0.47 0.37 0.47 0.17 0.19 0.33 0.48 0.15 0.43 0.42 0.55 0.40 0.05 0.20 0.35 0.45 0.27 0.36 0.38 0.25 0.42 0.33 0.24 0.45 0.31 0.20 0.38 0.43 0.51 0.43 0.06 0.33 0.37 0.31 0.24 0.33 0.43 0.63 0.34 0.03 0.27 0.42 0.32 0.34 0.39 0.27 0.21 0.40 0.39 0.21 0.39 0.40 0.25 0.31 0.44 0.53 0.40 0.07 0.30 0.35 0.35 0.23 0.36 0.42 0.63 0.35 0.03 0.43 0.33 0.23 0.30 0.33 0.37
Appendix I - Table of Complete Results of Magnitude of Preference
10kHz 5kHz 7kHz 0.05 0.04 0.05 0.05 0.07 0.06 0.01 0.14 0.06 0.03 0.02 0.03 0.02 0.05 0.03 0.02 0.20 0.08 0.05 0.00 0.02 0.03 0.08 0.06 0.03 0.13 0.08 0.18 0.03 0.08 0.10 0.03 0.06 0.05 0.06 0.04 0.05 0.01 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.01 0.05 0.03 0.05 0.07 0.01 0.06 0.06 0.02 0.05 0.09 0.01 0.13 0.11 0.03 0.08 0.03 0.10 0.06 0.03 0.02 0.04 0.02 0.02 0.08 0.02 0.08 0.11 0.03 0.00 0.04 0.05 0.08 0.11 0.01 0.14 0.04 0.06 0.03 0.10 0.03 0.16 0.18 0.02 0.21 0.13 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.18 0.21 0.00 0.27 0.21 0.06 0.03 0.04 0.04 0.14 0.12 0.03 0.22 0.17 0.08 0.06 0.07 0.04 0.08 0.08 0.03 0.21 0.09 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.01 0.25 0.16 0.00 0.37 0.15 0.05 0.04 0.04 0.01 0.21 0.15 0.01 0.18 0.07 0.13 0.05 0.09 0.19 0.03 0.07 0.11 0.01 0.05 0.06 0.03 0.04 0.06 0.02 0.04 0.11 0.02 0.05 0.08 0.03 0.04 0.03 0.06 0.04 0.01 0.08 0.01 0.09 0.02 0.09 0.10 0.03 0.08 0.07 0.07 0.06 0.08 0.01 0.05 0.05 0.02 0.05 0.06 0.03 0.06 0.08 0.04 0.03 0.08 0.01 0.03 0.06 0.04 0.03 0.05185 0.07487 0.0713 None of All 3 the 3 kHz kHz 0.83 0.03 0.76 0.07 0.50 0.29 0.88 0.05 0.84 0.06 0.49 0.22 0.91 0.03 0.76 0.08 0.62 0.15 0.67 0.03 0.75 0.06 0.63 0.23 0.88 0.04 0.83 0.05 0.71 0.18 0.83 0.05 0.78 0.08 0.68 0.20 0.73 0.03 0.71 0.07 0.54 0.27 0.88 0.03 0.85 0.04 0.70 0.09 0.90 0.03 0.72 0.04 0.17 0.64 0.71 0.11 0.46 0.18 0.23 0.42 0.88 0.05 0.47 0.12 0.21 0.32 0.81 0.07 0.35 0.35 0.23 0.35 0.59 0.21 0.53 0.26 0.22 0.45 0.80 0.10 0.48 0.11 0.24 0.24 0.81 0.06 0.30 0.33 0.15 0.59 0.65 0.08 0.63 0.09 0.58 0.26 0.78 0.09 0.81 0.08 0.70 0.13 0.77 0.08 0.79 0.08 0.67 0.24 0.77 0.03 0.73 0.08 0.58 0.23 0.83 0.03 0.84 0.04 0.76 0.10 0.81 0.04 0.85 0.03 0.78 0.09 0.655 0.1468

20th percentile target median target 80th percentile target

20th percentile receiver

median receiver

80th percentile receiver

Appendix K

- Receiver Measurements

Home Stereos 4.1.1 Sony STR-DE697
Category AGC Threshold (dBm) RF Overload (dBm) RF Test level (dBm) SNR, unweighted (dB) THD, 400 Hz (%) THD, 50 Hz (%) SNR, CCIR (dB) -3 dB Frequency (Hz) -10 dB Frequency (Hz) Home Stereo -75 -10 -2.3 22.1 -3500
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +45 +41 +24 28
Measurement of AM Frequency Response

+0 -10 d B r

500 Hz
Measurement of 2-Tone IM Distortion
700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dB -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 8K 10 10
Measurement of Multi-Tone IM Distortion

-100.0

-120.0 Hz

Yamaha HTR-5740

Category AGC Threshold (dBm) RF Overload (dBm) RF Test level (dBm) SNR, unweighted (dB) THD, 400 Hz (%) THD, 50 Hz (%) SNR, CCIR (dB) -3 dB Frequency (Hz) -10 dB Frequency (Hz)
Home Stereo --2.3 13.5 -4100
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF kHz 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +43 +41 +26 28

-120 Frequency (Hz)

Denon DRA-295
Home Stereo -75 -35 -2.2 7.1 -4400
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF kHz 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +30 +34 +23 30
700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dB -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 8K 10

-120 Hz

Pioneer VSX-D814K
Home Stereo -75 -35 -2.6 10.1 -3200
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF kHz 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +30 +31 +-
+0 -5 d B r -10 -15 -20 -25 -500 Hz 1k 2k 5k 10k

-120.0 Frequency (Hz)

Shelf / Mini Systems 4.2.1 Panasonic SC-EN7
Shelf/mini --2.7 42.9 -8500
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF kHz 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +36 +22 +9 8
+ 10 +0 -10 d B r -20 -30 -40 -500 Hz 1k 2k 5k 10k

GE SuperRadio III

*Upper response hump
Portable CD Boom box Wide Mode -40 -80 -3.-34 2900* 9600*
Narrow Mode -40 -80 -3.-5500
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) Wide +30 +18 D/U (dB) Narrow +30 +34
Measurement of AM Frequency Responses at Wide and Narrow Bandwidth
+ 10 +0 d B r -10 -20 -30
700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dB -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 7K

Crane CCRadio Plus

Portable CD Boom box -70 -20 -45 44.4 3.45 none -3600
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +30 +29 +28 28

-500 Hz 1k 2k 5k 10k

Car In-Dash Radios 4.4.1 Pioneer DEH-P6600
Car in-dash CD -95 >0 -1.1 1.2 -3600
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +50 +49 +38 37
+0 -10 d B r -20 -30 -40 -50

Kenwood KDC-3025

Car in-dash CD -100 -5 -0.6 0.7 -4800
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +49 +36 +32 35
+0 -10 d B r -20 -30 -40 -50 -60

Sony XR-F5100X

Car in-dash cassette --0.8 0.9 -4400
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +52 +50 +37 35
+0 -10 d B r -20 -30 -40 -50 -500 Hz 1k 2k 5k 10k

JVC KS-FX490

Car in-dash cassette -90 -10 -0.-3900
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference LPF (kHz) 10 ----5 D/U (dB) +49 +46 +32 34
700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dBV -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 8K 8K 10 10
OEM Auto Radios 4.5.1 Chevrolet 1995 Camaro
OEM auto -115 -65 -2.3 2.4 -4300
Psophometer-Based Adjacent-Channel Interference

LPF (kHz) D/U (dB)

10 ----5
+0 -5 d B r -10 -15 -20 -25 -500 Hz 1k 2k 5k

Chevrolet 2000 Tahoe

OEM auto -115 >0 -85 -40 1.7 1.4 -4200

TT TT T TT T

+0 -5 d B r -10 -15 -20 -25 -500 Hz 1k 2k
0.700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K -10.0 -20.0 -30.0 -40.0 -50.0 dB -60.0 -70.0 -80.0 -90.0 -100.0 -110.0 Hz 7K 10 10
70 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dB -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 7K

Chevrolet 2000 Suburban

OEM auto -115 >0 -1.3 1.4 -3500
LPF (kHz) D/U (dB) D/U (dB)
AM Frequency Response at -85, -70, -55 & -40 dBm (cyan, green, yellow, red)
+0 -10 d B r -20 -30 -40 -500 Hz 1k 2k

T TT T T T T T T T TT

0.700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K -10.0 -20.0 -30.0 -40.0 -50.0 dB -60.0 -70.0 -80.0 -90.0 -100.0 -110.0 Hz 8K 10 10
700 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 dB -60 -70 -80 -90 -100 -110 Hz 8K

Ford 2002 Mustang

OEM auto -100 -5 -0.7 0.7 -6100

Honda 2002 Accord

OEM auto -105 >0 -1.8 1.9 -4800
Clock Radios 4.6.1 Boston Acoustics Receptor-P

Clock -80 -10 -4.1 1.6 -4500
Acoustic Measurement of AM Frequency Response (see text)
+0 -10 d B V -20 -30 -40 -50
Acoustic Measurement of 2-Tone IM Distortion (see text)
+0 -10 -20 -30 d B r -40 -50 -60 -70 -80 -500 Hz
Acoustic Measurement of 10-Tone IM Distortion (see text)

Curtis CR-4966

Clock -60 -30 -1.4 1.7 -9400

Sima First-Alert WX-39

Clock -50 -30 -3.3 none -5300
T TT TT TT TT T T T T T TT T TT TT TT T T TT TT T

T TT T T TT TT T TT

+0 d B r -10 -20 -30 -40 -500 Hz 1k 2k 5k 10k

Audiovox CE256

Clock -67 >0 -2.3 3.4 -2900

+0 d B r -10 -20 -30 -40

HD Radios 4.7.1 JVC KD-SHX900
HD Car Radio -75 -5 -0.8 0.7 -3000

T T T T

Panasonic CQ-CB9900U
HD Car Radio -105 -5 -0.6 0.6 -6400

Appendix L

- Test Bed Procedure
AM STUDY TASK GROUP TEST PROCEDURES AM BAND OVERALL COMMENTS
1. The test laboratory will provide a detailed certification of the test bed. 2. Appendix A is a list of the test results (resulting from these procedures) which must be included in the laboratory test record to be provided to the AMB of the NRSC at the conclusion of testing. Note that this list is not meant to suggest the format in which those results are to be presented in that record, but is simply an enumeration of those results. 3. Unless otherwise specified, the audio selections to be used as source material for desired and interfering channels are specified in the AM Study Task Group (AMSTG) audio test list. 4. The RF signal levels are set based upon definition in the AM laboratory tests. 5. Digital recordings of analog or digital audio indicated by these procedures are for archival and/or subjective evaluation purposes. All such recordings will be made in the following format: uncompressed linear 16-bit digital audio sampled at 44.1 kHz, and will be suitable for transfer to CD to facilitate further analysis. 6. The detailed procedure for RF noise measurements will be supplied. 7. Unless otherwise specified, 2 transmitters will be used to generate undesired signals in co- and adjacent-channel interference tests. 8. Unless otherwise specified, audio noise and interference measurements will be made using the weighted quasi-peak (WQP, CCIR weighting filter) measurement technique. 9. Unless otherwise specified, modulation interferers, and modulation of signals used for analog reference recordings, will conform to the NRSC standard AM mask (i.e. 10 kHz nominal audio bandwidth). 10. Analog modulation level shall be established using a 400 Hz tone and with the audio processor in bypass mode

AM STUDY TASK GROUP LABORATORY TEST PROCEDURES AM RESPONSE CALIBRATION
Test Group Test & Impairment TEST DESCRIPTION Note: 1. 1 Calibration Power 2 Spectrum (each test day or as needed) 3 Proof-ofperformance 4 Monitor calibration (as needed) 5 Test bed calibration (prior to test) 1. Modulation monitors will be calibrated with 100% modulation by observing the resulting trapezoid pattern in the modulated envelope waveform, using an oscilloscope. NA Objective 1. A spectrum analyzer plot of the system RF spectrum will be taken for each test day (or as needed). M Objective Spectrum plot 2. Spectral occupancy will be measured using a spectrum analyzer with a peak hold of 10 minutes, video bandwidth greater than 10 kHz, RBW 300 Hz, and sweep span of 100 kHz (derived from 47 CFR 73.44). 1. Pulsed USASI noise will be used as the modulation source material for all calibration tests. Average power will be measured. Desired Signal Level NA Type of Evaluation Test Results Data to be Recorded Average power level

Objective

1. A proof-of-performance test will be conducted. A high quality demodulator will be used for this test.

Varying

Frequency response, audio SNR, and audio THD Calibration results
1. All of the critical components in the test bed, including the transmission path simulator, attenuators, combiners, filters, generators, and measuring instruments, will be certified by the testing laboratory prior to tests.

Calibration results

AM STUDY TASK GROUP LABORATORY TEST PROCEDURES AM BAND RESPONSE TEST PROCEDURE Test Group Test & Impairment TEST PROCEDURE Notes: This section of the test program is focused on the electrical audio response of each radio in the test population. Frequency response will be measured at the loudspeaker output or headphone output (if loudspeaker outputs are not available). The receiver under test will be connected to an accepted AM RF Generator that is capable of modulating an NRSC pre-emphasized audio response out to 10 kHz. The modulated test signal should exhibit good characteristics in phase stability, THD and Multitone/IMD. The subsequent received voltage, phase, noise and Multitone/IMD responses will be plotted for each radio tested for its category. Upon completion of receiver testing, an audio bandwidth distribution histogram will be plotted for the receiver population. The distribution of frequency responses will be examined to determine whether any unusual deviation in audio performance exists. A wide difference among the categories may indicate further review by the NRSC AM Study Task Group for changes in receive test populations or test protocol. Response Test Procedure SNR measurements are made using unweighted RMS and CCIR-468 weighted quasi-peak detection. Automobile and portable receivers are connected to 4-ohm loads. Home receivers are connected to 8-ohm loads. Tone controls are set to center positions. Balance and fade controls are set to center positions. Loudness control, if available, is set to off position. All measurements are taken using the left channel unless otherwise noted. The 30 kHz Low Pass Filter on the Audio Analyzer is turned on. The receiver tuning frequency is 1000 kHz. The general configuration of the test bed for receiver audio measurements is illustrated in Figure-1, at the end of the procedural document. All required audio measurements may be performed with the audio analyzer specified herein, including the generation of necessary audio test signals. However, since the analyzer does not include standard lowpass filtering or preemphasis an audio processor is placed ahead of the AM modulation input to the RF Generator. An Audio Tone Generator is shown optionally for miscellaneous modulation lineup purposes. Type of Evaluation Test Results Data to be Recorded

Figure M-2 - THD + Noise for RF generator at 70% modulation
+0 -10 -20 d B -30 -40 -50 -60 20
7. In the course of testing, modulation and test bed frequency response was checked daily with the Belar Wizard modulation monitor. 8. RF output levels were checked periodically with a Hewlett-Packard 437B Power Meter with 8482A Power Sensor. 9. All RF cables were double-shielded coax and a shielded steel enclosure built by Ramsey Electronics was used for testing of radios without shielded metal cases. (Car radios, for example, always had shielded enclosures and antenna inputs.) Radios with supplied external loop antennas, such as the bookshelf systems, were tested with the loop in the shielded test enclosure. The receiver cabinet was kept outside the shielded enclosure as it was found that many receivers radiated enough noise (presumably from their display drivers and digital circuitry) to seriously impair the audio measurements. However, during the testing process it was learned that a few receivers produced a spurious signal at 2.50 kHz that appeared in their distortion spectrum displays, necessitating remeasurement after experimentation with the receivers position outside the shielded enclosure to minimize the spurious signal. The cause of this signal was undetermined despite a recheck of offair signal ingress and instrument shielding. 10. All receiver tests were conducted end-to-end, including audio processing. The Orban Optimod 9200 Digital AM Processor and Telos-Omnia 5EX-HD Processor were operated with standard broadcast settings for tests involving program audio. Both processors were measured to ensure that their audio performance was in accordance with their published specifications. 11. Figure M-4 shows the output signal of the Optimod 9200 as the lowpass filter is stepped from 9.5 kHz (NRSC-1 or "10 kHz" in the context of the current report) to 4.5 kHz in 500 Hz increments. This is the power spectrum at the processor's output measured according to the NRSC standard using pulsed USASI noise as a source and making a "maximum peak hold" measurement with a Hewlett Packard 3562A Dynamic Signal Analyzer. The processor was preset to GEN MEDIUM and the input levels were adjusted for 10 dB of indicated gain reduction on the processor's AGC meter. This measurement shows the effect of all audio processing (including clipping) on the output spectrum. 12. Figure M-5 shows the output signal of the Omnia 5EX-HD processor as the lowpass filter is stepped from 10 kHz to 8, 7, 6, 5.5, and 5 kHz. Differences in the instrumentation used by Orban and Telos caused differences in the way the power spectrum of each processor was displayed. 13. The overall test bed was evaluated for amplitude linearity and distortion. Figure M-3 shows the demodulated end-to-end performance of the system using the Optimod 9200 processor for preemphasis (compression and limiting were disabled). All tones should register at -23.1 dB [20*log (0.7/10)].

Figure M-3 - Overall test bed spectrum using 10-tone signal at 70% total modulation (top scale)

10000 100000

Level rel. to 70% Mod. (dB)
Figure M-4 - Spectral output mask of Optimod 9200 using USASI noise at lowpass filter bandwidths from 4.5 kHz to 9.0 kHz in 500 Hz increments.
Figure M-5 - Spectral output mask of Omnia 5EX processor using USASI noise at lowpass filter bandwidths 10, 8. 7, 6, 5.5 and 5.