Daking Audio FET III, Руководство пользователя

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1.4 Front Panel
1.4.1 In General: Rotary Switches and Potentiometers
Your compressor is equipped with both rotary switches (Ratio Control)
and with precision potentiometers. Switches make a big click when you
turn them and potentiometers offer a smooth continuously variable feel as
you rotate them.
One of the big advantages of switches is that you can reproduce the same
settings over and over again. The big advantage of continuously variable
potentiometers is that you can get all of the setting in-between the
positions on the switch. The FET III uses switches on the Ratio control so
that it is easy to use the exact same ratio on both the left and right side of
the compressor.
1.4.2 The Threshold Knob (-10 dB to +10dB)
The Threshold knob controls at what level in decibels the compressor
starts to work. When a signal goes above the Threshold, the compressor
starts to attenuate (reduce the level of) the signal. Signals below the
threshold get left alone. If the knob is set to “0,” then all the sounds above
0 dB will be reduced in gain and the sounds below will be untouched.
If you want more compression, then you should lower the Threshold. If
you want less compression then you should raise the Threshold. See
Figure 2.
1.4.3 Ratio Knob (1.5:1, 2:1, 3:1, 5:1, 10:1, 20:1)
The Ratio knob controls how much attenuation (gain reduction) happens
to the signal above the Threshold. The Ratio is a comparison of the input
to the output, when the signal is above threshold.
For instance, imagine you have set a 3:1 ratio and set the Threshold to 0
dB. Note in Figure 2 below, the audio input signal rises +9 dB above 0
dB Threshold. As you can see the output signal is only +3 dB above
Threshold. The increase of 3 dB input above Threshold yields only 1 dB
above the Threshold output.
Higher ratios are easier to hear because they are making a bigger change
from the original. So if you are trying to be subtle, stick with generally
lower ratios. Sometimes of course you will need to use heavy
compression to achieve the results that you are after.
Compressors with ratios of 10:1 or higher are called limiters. Limiters are
often used after preamps to protect recorder inputs from sudden overloads,
like intermittent screaming or someone dropping a mic during a live
recording. The limiter helps prevent the recording from being ruined!