On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 12:47:06 -0700, Gian Luca Specchia wrote
(in message ):

I'm working for a satellite television that use a mixer Yamaha DM 2000 .
I would like to work with the maximum level possible before clip.....I mean
near 0 dbfs...
-----------------------------snip----------------------------

Some of the other messages in this thread are incorrect, or at least far
beyond my experience here in LA. The specs typically given for most of the
American cable/sat services to which I've delivered jobs (particularly HBO
and Showtime) usually request an operating level of -20 dB on a digital
scale, with maximum peaks no louder than -10. I assume we're talking about a
standard Lt/Rt stereo mix, as opposed to 5.1 surround.

I have seen shows rejected for air when explosive peaks exceeded -8, but
they'll usually allow you to go a little bit beyond -10, especially if it's
under rare occasions. Home video mixes will usually give you a little more
leeway, but I would make sure the maximum peaks are at least a couple of dB's
under 0. And foreign deliverables seem to come under more scrutiny than
domestic, for some reason.

Dialog intelligibility is actually a much bigger concern. Some networks have
average levels at which they'd like to see their dialog (typically -30 to
-22, or thereabouts), but a lot of that is a question of taste and intent.

For more, check over on the "Post" section of the Digidesign User Conference;
I've seen several good discussions of "acceptable broadcast levels" over
there. Also, you should ask the specific satellite TV network you're dealing
with for a written copy of their specs, just so that you know precisely what
they expect from you as far as channel assignments, set-up tones, identifying
slates, average levels, peak levels, and so on.

--MFW