The Technical Stuff
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stereo operation, largely because T4 modules often vary slightly between units in their release times.
While they are similar enough from unit to unit to independently achieve the famous LA-2A sound,
ganging them together can be less than ideal, as these subtle differences in release times can
negatively affect the stereo image. With the 2-LA-2, the T4 modules are stereo matched to tight
tolerances, guaranteeing a smooth and stable stereo image.
The 2-LA-2 also addresses the other limitation to ganging two LA-2As: the sheer hassle of
interconnecting, calibrating and gain-matching two independent units. To do so, the user has to
connect the units with a wire on their barrier-strip screw terminals, then has to send a test tone to
both units while adjusting the sensitivity switch on the rear of the master unit to balance the gain
reduction elements and metering. Furthermore, the wire must be disconnected to return the units to
monophonic use. With the 2-LA-2, alternating between stereo and dual mono operation is completely
simplified, accomplished with a flip of a switch.
We here at Universal Audio, have two goals in mind: to reproduce classic analog recording equipment
designed by Bill Putnam Sr. and his colleagues, and to design new recording tools in the spirit of
vintage analog technology. Today we are realizing those goals, bridging the worlds of vintage analog
and DSP technology in a creative atmosphere where musicians, audio engineers, analog designers and
DSP engineers intermingle and exchange ideas. Every project taken on by the UA team is driven by its
historical roots and a desire to wed classic analog technology with the demands of the modern digital
studio.
Compressor Basics
The function of a compressor is to automatically reduce the level of peaks in an audio signal so that
the overall dynamic range—that is, the difference between the loudest sections and the softest
ones—is reduced, or compressed, thus making it easier to hear every nuance of the music.
Compression is sometimes referred to as
peak reduction
or
gain reduction
, because a compressor (or
“limiter,” when acting more severely) “rides gain” on a signal much like a recording engineer does by
hand when he manually raises and lowers the faders of a mixing console. Its circuitry automatically
adjusts level in response to changes in the input signal: in other words, it keeps the volume up during
softer sections and brings it down when the signal gets louder. The amount of gain reduction is
typically given in dB and is defined as the amount by which the signal level is reduced by the
compressor.
Compression or limiting enables even the quietest sections to be made significantly louder while the
overall peak level of the material is increased only minimally. The dynamic range of human hearing
(that is, the difference between the very softest passages we can discern and the very loudest ones we
can tolerate) is considered to be approximately 120 dB. Early recording media such as analog tape and
vinyl offered much less dynamic range, so compression was a virtual necessity, raising the overall
level of the material (making it “hotter”) without peak levels causing distortion. While many of today's
digital recording media approach or even exceed 120 dB of available dynamic range, quiet passages
of recorded music can still be lost in the ambient noise floor of the listening area, which, in an average
home, is 35 to 45 dB.
