DigiDesign Bomb Factory, Manual

Page: 20 / 84

Bomb Factory Plug-ins Guide 14
The Attack and Release controls set the attack
and release times of the compressor. Full coun-
terclockwise is slowest, and full clockwise is fast-
est. Attack times vary between 0.4 milliseconds
to 5.7 milliseconds. Release times vary between
0.06 and 1.1 seconds.
The Ratio Push switches select the compression
ratio from 4:1 to 20:1.
Finally, the Meter Push switches affect the me-
tering.
• GR shows the amount of gain reduction.
• –18 and –24 show the output level (cali-
brated so that 0VU indicates –18dB FS and
–24dB FS respectively).
• The “Off” switch turns off the meter.
Tips and Tricks
AudioSuite Processing
When using the AudioSuite version of the Bomb
Factory BF76, be sure to select a side-chain input
(normally the track you are processing). The de-
fault is “None” and if you leave it set like this,
there’s nothing feeding the detector and you
won’t hear any compression action.
Unexpected Visit from A&R Weevil Yields
Instant Hit Mix
A favorite feature on one megabuck mixing con-
sole is its stereo bus compressor. With the flick
of a switch, a punchy 8:1 compressor grabs the
current mix producing “instant radio hit.” Al-
though Bomb Factory strongly disapproves of
anything which adds further chaos to the al-
ready opaque A&R decision-making process,
you may find that the Bomb Factory BF76 set to
8:1 ratio on a stereo mix provides a fast, easy al-
ternate mix that can provide fresh ideas. It’s also
a handy way to make quick headphone sub-
mixes when tracking overdubs.
Give the Kids What They Want
Shift-click one of the Ratio Push switches to en-
able the “All Buttons In” mode. The compres-
sion ratio is still only 20:1, but the knee changes
drastically and the compressor starts (mis)be-
having a little bit like an expander—watch the
meter for details. Hey, try it—sometimes it even
sounds good.
Selecting Proper Attack and Release Times
As on the original unit, setting either the attack
or release time too fast generates signal distor-
tion. Again, this may or may not be the desired
effect. A good starting point for attack and re-
lease is “6” and “3” (the defaults), and you can
adjust as follows:
When compressing, use the slowest attack you
can that preserves the desired dynamic range.
Faster attacks remove the “punch” from the per-
formance; slower attacks inhibit the compres-
sion you need to smooth things out.
When limiting, use the fastest attack time you
can before you start to hear signal distortion in
the low end. But don’t sweat it too much: on the
Bomb Factory BF76, the attack time ranges from
“incredibly fast” to “really damn fast” by mod-
ern standards. It can be hard to hear the differ-
ence.
Release times are more critical on the Bomb Fac-
tory BF76. To set release times, listen for loud at-
tacks and what happens immediately after the
peaks. Set the release time fast enough that you
don’t hear unnatural dynamic changes, but slow
enough that you don’t hear unnecessary pump-
ing between two loud passages in rapid succes-
sion.