Loudness/Compression

[Labarum]

I have read posts complaining about dynamic compression and the fact radio stations are getting forever "louder".

I notice when listening to classical radio stations some are very much louder at the same volume setting. Classic FM and Venice Radio come over much louder than Bartok and the East European OGG transmissions.

Is this the "loudness" effect? For, when listening on a portable or car radio in bad conditions the dynamic range has to be limited, so the radio engineers can transmit at a hight general amplitude. Have I got it right?

The less "loud" stations sound better, but they also have the higher bitrates.

[BlueScreenJunky]

It's hard to say... maybe the other stations are just quieter. The problem is not really loudness in itself but compression (the fact that everything is evenly loud, instead of some parts being quieter than others).
So maybe those stations are just playing a little louder, which is fine. But maybe they're also using compression in order to get everything loud, and it's not fine anymore ;-)