dbx DriveRack 240, User Manual

Page: 37 / 69

®
Detailed Parameters
Section 4
DriveRack
™
27
DriveRack™ User Manual
Dynamics On/Off
Turns the compressor/limiter module on and off.
Dynamics Select Compressor/Limiter
When set to “comp,” the compressor is active. When set to “Lim,” the limiter is active.
OverEasy Off to 10
There are ten levels of OverEasy® that can be used for the limiters. The point when the com-
pressor starts to compress is the "knee." When the compressor starts to reduce the level of a
signal abruptly right as it passes over the threshold this is called "hard knee" compression.
OverEasy® (soft knee as it is sometimes called) is when the volume of the sound is compressed
gradually. OverEasy® compression starts to compress before the level of the signal reaches the
threshold and reaches full compression after the level has gone above the threshold. This
OverEasy® compression, by its very nature sounds much smoother and more natural and will
be used for most applications. When it is gentle (natural sounding or light) compression that
you are looking for, the compressor offers VariKnee™. VariKnee™ gives you ten levels of
OverEasy® compression to choose from (1 being almost hard knee and 10 being the most
OverEasy®). This lets you choose the exact knee that is needed for the dynamic effect you are
looking for.
Threshold -40 to +20dBu
Threshold is the signal level at which the 240 and 241 DriveRack™ units start to compress the
signal. If the level is set to -10 dBu, than any signal larger than -10 dBu is compressed while
any signal that has a level that is lower than -10dBu is left at the same signal level. Light com-
pression is where only the loudest parts of the signal go over the threshold. Very heavy com-
pression can be achieved by setting the threshold low enough that almost the entire signal con-
tent is over the threshold. For most signals the most natural compression is achieved when most
of the signal content remains just below the threshold and only the peaks cross the threshold.
P On/Off and 1-6
This parameter turns the peakstop limiting on and off. P is only in effect when the
ratio is set to INF:1 (Limiter). P is only available when the limiter is selected.
P involves a two-stage process of dynamic limiting. The first stage of P is the
Instantaneous Transient Clamp™ which clamps the signal with a soft logarithmic clamp func-
tion. This logarithmic function ensures that the signal will not exceed the level set by the
P™ LEVEL control by more than 2 dB typically, and that it will not introduce harsh
artifacts. The second stage is a unique program limiter featuring Intelligent Predictive Limiting™.
Its function is to monitor the input signal and intelligently predict the amount of gain reduction
needed to keep the output signal below the ceiling set by the Instantaneous Transient Clamp™.
Note that since the P™ limiter is a fail-safe limiter, it must come after the
OUTPUT
GAIN
control.