APPLICATIONS
The dbx 160A is capable of handling a wide range of applications. In the studio, the 160A can be used on everything
from vocals to percussion. In live sound reinforcement, the 160A can allow the engineer to get that Òfat studio soundÓ
out of the drum kit or provide protection limiting for the speakers. It is also an excellent line driver, perfect for sending
signals down long cables to power amp stacks or from remote broadcast trucks. In radio or television broadcast, the
160A will produce stable voice levels, even with non-professional subjects.
OPERATING CONTROLS
Front Panel
BYPASS Button and LED:
Depress this button to create aÓhard-wire bypassÓ of the 160A's circuitry (i.e., unaltered input signal will pass through
the unit even if it is unplugged).
In Bypass mode, the input is sent directly to the output, bypassing the 160A's processing and controls and presenting
unaltered input signal at the 160A's OUTPUT. Bypass mode is especially useful for making comparisons between
processed and unprocessed signals.
The BYPASS LED turns On in Bypass mode if the 160A is being provided with AC power.
SLAVE Button and LED:
When two 160As are connected via their rear panel STEREO STRAPPING jacks, depressing the SLAVE button on one
160A of the stereo pair determines that the other 160A will be the Master (i.e., the controlling unit).
Note: When two 160As are strapped together and the SLAVE buttons on both units are NOT depressed, the 160As DO NOT operate independently
because the “ring” of the strapping cable still sums the audio of each unit. The strapping cable must be removed for proper single-channel operation. If
both SLAVE buttons are depressed, both units will be bypassed (i.e., fixed at unity gain).
The LED above the SLAVE button turns On when the 160A is in Slave mode, indicating that the front panel functions
(with the exception of BYPASS and LEVEL display) are deactivated and under control of the Master 160A.
THRESHOLD Control:
Adjust this knob to set the threshold of compression -40dBu (7.8mVRMS) to +20dBu (7.8VRMS).
OverEasy Button:
Depress this button to select the OverEasy¨ compression characteristic. The amber THRESHOLD LED turns On when
the signal is in the OverEasy region. When this button is out, the 160A operates as a hard knee compressor/limiter.
In Hard Knee mode, the threshold of compression is defined as that point above which the output level no longer
changes on a 1:1 basis with changes in the input level. See Figure 1.
In OverEasy mode, the threshold of compression is defined as the middle of the OverEasy threshold region, that is,
Òhalf-wayÓ into compression, as shown in Figure 2.
THRESHOLD LEDs:
These three LEDs indicate the relationship of the input signal level to the threshold of compression. The green
ÒBELOWÓ LED is On when the signal is below threshold and the red ÒABOVEÓ LED is On when the signal is above
threshold. When the 160A is switched to OverEasy mode, the amber LED is On when the signal is in the OverEasy
region (See Figure 2).
COMPRESSION RATIO Control:
Rotate this control clockwise to increase the amount of compression from 1:1 (no compression) up to infinity:1 (no
increase in output level, regardless of input level increases above threshold); further clockwise rotation increases com-
pression into the I region, up to a maximum of 1:1 (i.e., a 1dB increase in input level above threshold causes
a 1dB decrease in output level). In the I region, the 160A inverts the program dynamics for special effects.
dbx 160A COMPRESSOR / LIMITER
3
1 6 0 A
C O M P R E S S O R / L I M I T E R
LEVEL
INPUT
OUTPUT
BYPASS
SLAVE
OVEREASY
THRESHOLD
COMPRESSION
RATIO
OUTPUT
GAIN
DISPLAY
+20dBu
+10
0
-40dBu
-1:1
-2:1
-5:1
10:1
6:1
4:1
1:1
+20dB
+10
0
-20dB
-10
2:1
3:1
-30
-20
-10
BELOW
ABOVE
-40
30
20
15
10
8
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
2
4
6
10
20+
GAIN REDUCTION
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