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2. THE DESIGN CONCEPT

2.1 High Quality Components And Design

The philosophy behind Behringer products guarantees a no-compromise circuit design and employs the best

choice of components. The operational amplifiers NJM4580 which are used in the COMPOSER PRO, are

exceptional. They boast extreme linearity and very low distortion characteristics. The most important aspect

of the COMPOSER PRO design is a radical VCA implementation which results in outstanding technical

specification and excellent performance. To complement this design the choice of components includes high

tolerance resistors and capacitors, detent potentiometers, gold plated relay contacts and several other strin-

gently selected elements.
For the first time, the COMPOSER PRO MDX 2200 uses SMD technology (Surface Mounted Device). These

sub-miniature components known from aerospace technology allow for an extreme packing density, plus the

unit’s reliability could be improved. Additionally, the unit is manufactured in compliance with a ISO9000 certi-

fied management system.

2.1.1 Failsafe Relays

Failsafe relays have been incorporated into the design of the Behringer COMPOSER PRO, which automati-

cally and silently bypass the unit in the event of power supply disconnection or failure. These relays are also

active at switch-on to isolate the COMPOSER PRO until the power rails have settled, thus preventing the

possibility of a potentially damaging switch-on thump.

2.2 Inputs And Outputs

2.2.1 Balanced Inputs And Outputs

As standard, the Behringer COMPOSER PRO is installed with electronically servo-balanced inputs and out-

puts. The new circuit design features automatic hum and noise reduction for balanced signals and thus allows

for trouble-free operation, even at high operating levels. Externally induced mains hum etc. will be effectively

suppressed. The automatic servo-function recognizes the presence of unbalanced connectors and adjusts the

nominal level internally to avoid level differences between the input and output signals (correction 6 dB).

2.2.2 Transformer Balanced Outputs (Optional)

In contrast to electronic balancing, the use of transformer-balanced outputs offers the advantage of galvanic

separation between units. Electrical potential differences and ground loops in audio installations do not therefore

impair the performance of the units. The transformer-balanced outputs, commonly used in radio and TV

engineering, can also be fitted retrospectively upon request. The Behringer transformer OT-1 is designed to

the highest exacting standards and is available as an accessory.

2. THE DESIGN CONCEPT

Summary of Contents for COMPOSER PRO MDX2200

Page 1: ...1 E User s Manual Bedienungsanleitung D COMPOSER PRO MDX2200 Version 1 1 May 1998 www behringer de...

Page 2: ...ct COMPOSER PRO MDX2200 Type designation and if applicable Article No which refers to this declaration is in accordance with the following standards or standardized documents x EN 60065 x EN 61000 3 2...

Page 3: ...air through the ventilation openings Heat The appliance should be situated away from heat sources such as radiators heat registers stoves or other appliance including amplifiers that produce heat Powe...

Page 4: ...e Gain Control peak limiter combines clipper with program limiter circuits s Extremely low noise operational amplifiers and high grade VCA s s High quality detent potentiometers and backlit switches s...

Page 5: ...se you are the most important member of the BEHRINGER family With your highly competent suggestions for new products you ve greatly contributed to shaping our company and making it successful In retur...

Page 6: ...1 Controlling Leakage In The Studio 20 5 2 2 Initial Settings For The Expander Gate Section 21 5 2 3 Reducing Leakage In Stage Mics 21 5 2 4 Reducing Feedback In Stage Mics 21 5 2 5 Noise Reduction On...

Page 7: ...As A De Esser 29 7 2 2 Frequency Selective Filtering Of Unwanted Signals 30 7 2 3 Suppressing Instruments During Recording 30 7 2 4 Emphasizing Musical Instruments During Recording 30 7 3 Anticipated...

Page 8: ...are essential to the loudness perceived by the listener the midrange frequencies IRC Interactive Ratio Control Expander A basic problem in the use of a compressor is the fact that the noise floor is h...

Page 9: ...is heard as noise Even the best possible tape biasing can only provide signal to noise ratios of about 70 dB which is not acceptable today since the demands of listeners have increased Due to the law...

Page 10: ...e gain is reduced Of course it is fairly obvious that this kind of manual control is rather restrictive it is difficult to detect signal peaks and it is almost impossible to level them out Manual cont...

Page 11: ...Audio in general is only as good as the source from which it was derived The dynamic range of signals will often be restricted by noise Synthesizers effects devices guitar pickups amplifiers etc gener...

Page 12: ...e unit in the event of power supply disconnection or failure These relays are also active at switch on to isolate the COMPOSER PRO until the power rails have settled thus preventing the possibility of...

Page 13: ...sure that your local voltage matches the voltage required by the unit The fuse holder on the female mains connector has 3 triangular markers with two of these triangles opposing each other Your COMPO...

Page 14: ...have to be bridged Fig 3 2 Different plug types Never use unbalanced XLR connections with microphone cables as this would short circuit any phantom power transmitted over these cables 3 4 Selecting t...

Page 15: ...elements of expander gate section 2 Use the THRESHOLD control to determine the threshold point below which expansion occurs The range of this control is from OFF to 15 dB 3 The RATIO control is used t...

Page 16: ...the increase or decrease of the output signal by a maximum of 20 dB Thus a level loss due to the compression or limiting process can be compensated for Please note when using the THRESHOLD control of...

Page 17: ...displayed The meter is referenced to the operating level 10 dBV or 4 dBu adjusted with the OPERATING LEVEL switch 4 3 Peak Limiter Section Fig 4 4 Control elements of the peak limiter section 19 The p...

Page 18: ...apter 24 AUDIO IN These are the audio inputs of your COMPOSER PRO available both as balanced 6 3 mm jack and XLR connectors 25 AUDIO OUT These are the audio outputs of your COMPOSER PRO Matching phone...

Page 19: ...ly the threshold is set quite low in order to be able to increase low level signals Levelling requires slow attack and release times combined with a high ratio Because of the very slow response time l...

Page 20: ...e balanced program material Since the expander gate adapts itself automatically to the program mate rial you will note that the new IRC Interactive Ratio Control circuit produces considerably better r...

Page 21: ...o 1 8 If the controls are set correctly the drum sounds will be dry sharp and clearly defined If you do not have enough mics or COMPOSER PRO channels to record each instrument separately try to create...

Page 22: ...the decay of the instrument In SLOW mode the signal is gently faded out in FAST mode the duration of the reverberation can be removed completely 5 3 Compressor Section The task of a compressor is to r...

Page 23: ...he INPUT OUTPUT LEVEL meter Final adjustments of the controls can then be made to suit your particular requirements including the RATIO ATTACK and RELEASE controls The AUTO function of the attack and...

Page 24: ...s of both kick drum and bass guitar are usually processed individually The side chain filter is therefore ideally suited to apply overall compression in the mix down to compress the music while increa...

Page 25: ...ding If the LIM comes on regularly or is on constantly the OUTPUT control of the Compressor section must be turned down as this control sets the level of the signal which is routed to the Peak Limiter...

Page 26: ...d heavily distorted In order to avoid these effects the Peak Limiter section of the COMPOSER PRO should be placed before for example a sampler As a result of this process a digital recording or a samp...

Page 27: ...ng console output and the power amplifier input It is used as the last link in the chain preceding the power amp Thus you can effectively avoid the technical knockout of the midrange tweeter range cau...

Page 28: ...placing adverts What is volume Volume is defined as the relationship between the average level of program material to peak to peak level in response to amplitude and duration The higher the average l...

Page 29: ...an sometimes cause an otherwise normal and undistorted voice to sound very harsh shrill and sometimes unintelligible The solution is frequency conscious compression or limiting The unit responds only...

Page 30: ...n the previous chapter 7 2 1 The COMPOSER PRO As A De Esser This will result in compression of the selected frequencies and thus a decrease in the gain of the program material 7 2 3 Suppressing Instru...

Page 31: ...led by the announcer s microphone which is connected to the SC RETURN input via a preamplifier The music output and the announcer s voice are then mixed This application is known as voice over compres...

Page 32: ...0 kHz 0 0 5 dB Frequency Response 0 35 Hz to 200 kHz 0 3 dB Noise 95 dBu unweighted 22 Hz to 22 kHz THD 0 008 typ 4 dBu 1 kHz Gain 1 0 04 typ 20 dBu 1 kHz Gain 1 IMD 0 01 typ SMPTE Crosstalk 100 dB 22...

Page 33: ...omes master INDICATORS GAIN REDUCTION 12 element LED display 1 2 4 6 9 12 15 18 21 24 27 30 dB INPUT OUTPUT LEVEL 12 element LED display 30 24 18 12 6 0 3 6 9 12 18 dB Expander Gate Threshold 2 LED fo...

Page 34: ...all not entitle the buyer to claim consequential damages In no event shall the liability of BEHRINGER INTERNA TIONAL exceed the invoiced value of the product 7 OTHER WARRANTY RIGHTS This warranty does...

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