9
© SPL electronics GmbH, Stand 04/97
Charisma
Charisma
sing starts earlier, which means you can hear the effect already
at lower D
RIVE
levels in comparison to H
ARD
settings. A medium
D
RIVE
level may already be sufficient to drive the tubes hard
enough.
In a H
ARD
setting you will find yourself using higher D
RIVE
levels, because the processing starts later than in a S
OFT
setting,
but it is very efficient immediately.
When recording to a digital media it is essential to avoid clip-
ping and the tube limiting is a great tool for this purpose. Critical
peaks are smoothed resulting in increased subjective loudness
while controlling the electrical level.
Traditionally, drums have been recorded to analogue tape –
even digital drum tracks are frequently copied to analogue tape
purely to capture the sound of tape saturation. With C
HARISMA
,
you can achieve the same analogue warmth, punch and power
without the inconvenience or noise of an analogue tape
machine. Even sampled drums really start to sound much more
like real drums.
Choose an extreme H
ARD
setting (fully clockwise) for kick
drums or snares. You effectively prevent clips on your digital
recorder while you also have control about the kick of the bass
drum or the ounch of the snare. It is interesting to use C
HARISMA
on room tracks when recording live drums. Choose a S
OFT
setting with a high D
RIVE
level. This will open up your drum
room.
Acoustic guitars benefit from the C
HARISMA
effect with
improved transparency and clarity, yet the recorded instrument
retains the same liveliness and character as the original.
Electronic basses become better focused, or you can add just a
hint of deliberate distortion to help make them stand out in a
busy mix.
When recording vocals, the C
HARISMA
allows the voice to stand
out in the mix without increasing the actual level – any good
studio mic effectively becomes a valve mic. Intelligibility is
greatly enhanced by the tube harmonics, and you can even make
a clean voice sound smoky by driving the C
HARISMA
a little harder.
That´s something a tube mic doesn´t allow you to do.
It is often a good trick to use a compressor before the
C
HARISMA
when processing vocals. This will help you finding an
appropriate D
RIVE
level.
Producers of dancefloor/trance/ambient music will find
C
HARISMA
a remarkable creative tool for distorting bass drums,
snare- and lead sounds absolutely free from noise and hum – a
clear advantage over the guitar-preamps. Even original
303/808 bass and drum sounds gain additional kick and
authority. C
HARISMA
lets you produce really ´in your face´
sounds.
Avoiding clipping when
recording digital.
Capturing the sound of
analogue for digitally
recorded drums.
Controlling the kick of the
bass drum and the ounch
of the snare.
Improving drum room
sound.
Making acoustic guitars
and electronics basses
stand out in busy mix.
Giving extra charisma to
vocals. Improving intelligi-
bility.
Making a tube mic out of
your standard mic.
Creating heavily distorted
´in your face´ sounds.
Tip offs
