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KORE 2 – 13
3.8.7 Easy Compressor
The e
aSy
C
oMPreSSor
is a simple but powerful tool to control dynamic range.
A compressor is a preamp with variable gain depending on the input signal.
When the input signal exceeds the
t
HreSHold
, the gain goes down to reduce
the output level. The amount of reduction depends on the r
atio
control.
For example, with a :1 ratio, a dB increase in the input level results in
a 1dB output level increase. With an infinite (inf)
r
atio
, the output signal
will not increase above the t
HreSHold
, regardless of how much the input
level exceeds the t
HreSHold
.
Compression has many uses: You can use it to control filter resonance
with synthesizers, compensate for singers with a poor microphone
technique, and increase guitar sustain by reducing peaks and creating
a more consistent level. However, restricting the peaks may make the
average signal level seem softer. Use the o
ut
g
ain
control to compensate
by increasing the output level.
The compressor analyses the incoming signal to decide when to apply
compression. You can influence this process with the
a
ttaCK
and r
eleaSe
parameters.
a
ttaCK
determines how fast the algorithm reacts to signals above
the threshold level, while r
eleaSe
sets how much time it takes for the
compression to stop after the signal drops below the threshold. Optimum
settings depend on the audio material being compressed; with drums, for
instance, a long a
ttaCK
time allows peaks to pass without compression,