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Arena
reverb emulates a huge physical
space such as an indoor sports venue or
stadium. The characteristics of
Arena
reverb are long secondary reflection times
and a reduced amount of high frequency
content.
Arena
is a mostly mid- and low-
frequency dominant reverb, and is an ideal
selection for “special effect” type applica-
tions that require extremely long reverb
times. It is not a good choice for a very
busy mix, since it can reduce intelligibility.
A
Spring
reverb is created by a pair of
piezoelectric crystals—one acting as a
speaker and the other acting as a micro-
phone—connected by a simple set of
springs. The characteristic ‘boing’ of a
spring is an important component of many
classic rock and rockabilly guitar sounds.
Reverb Controls
Pre Delay
Creates an additional time delay between
the source signal and the onset of rever-
beration. This control is not intended to
precisely mimic the time delays in natural
spaces, as the build-up of reverberation is
gradual, and the initial time gap is usually
relatively short. For the most natural effect,
the
Pre Delay
values should be set in the
range of 10-25 milliseconds. However, if a
mix is very busy or overly cluttered,
increasing the
Pre Delay
time may help
clarify it, and set each instrument apart
from each other.
Decay
Controls the amount of time the reverb can
be heard. Higher settings increase rever-
beration times which are usually associat-
ed with larger acoustical environments, but
can decrease intelligibility. Lower settings
shorten reverb times and should be used
when a smaller apparent space or a more
subtle effect is desired.
Liveliness
Adjusts the amount of high frequency con-
tent in the reverberation tails. Higher set-
tings increase high frequency response,
creating brighter reverbs; lower settings
create darker reverbs with more bass fre-
quency emphasis.
Diffusion
Controls the initial echo density. High set-
tings of Diffusion result in high initial echo
density, and low settings cause low initial
density. In a real-world situation, irregular
walls cause high diffusion, while large flat
walls cause low diffusion. For drums and
percussion, try using higher Diffusion set-
tings.
Shape
This control helps give a sense of both
room shape and room size. Low values for
Shape keep the majority of sound energy
in the early part of the reverb tail. High val-
ues move the energy to later in the reverb,
and are helpful in creating the sense of a
strong rear wall or “backslap.
Boing
This is a unique parameter to the
Spring
reverb, designed to increase or decrease
the amount of spring rattle that is a physi-
cal characteristic of spring tank reverbs.
Spring Reverb
Mono In/Stereo Out
Arena Reverb
Stereo
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