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cancel each other out. Whenever using two microphones on an instrument the phase should be
checked.
Two Waveforms That Are Opposite Phase
Dynamic Processors
Digital mixers and expensive analog recording consoles will typically have some sort of dynamic
processing available on each individual channel. A dynamic processor simply provides control of
the signals level. Here are the different types of dynamics processors in the AW2816 and what
they do:
Compressor:
A compressor does just what the name it implies; it compresses the signal.
Signals that exceed a specified level will be reduced by a set amount. This will even out
the level of the signal and provide a more consistent level. The threshold is the level at
which the compressor will begin to reduce the signal. The ratio is how much the signal
will be reduced when it passes the threshold level. Take for example a compressor that
has a threshold setting of –20dB and a ratio setting of 4:1. This means that only 1 dB of
output gain is allowed for every 4dB of input above –20 dB. So a signal with a level of –
16 dB would be reduced to –19 dB, a signal with a level of –12 dB would be reduced to -
18 dB, etc.
The output gain adds gain to compensate for any level that compression may have taken
away.
The attack
controls how fast the compression will be applied after the signal passes
the threshold. The release
controls how long the compressor will continue to act after the
signal has fallen back below the threshold. The knee controls the curve of the
compressor. A soft knee (a setting of 5 on the AW2816) will provide smooth sounding
compression settings while a hard knee (a setting of 1 or below) will provide more drastic
compression.
Limiter:
: A limiter is basically a specialized compressor. A limiter is used to control
peak levels without overly compressing the signal. A limiter is most often used on the
entire mix of all the tracks. To make a compressor act like a limiter, set the ratio very
high (20:1 or higher), the threshold close to 0 dB, a hard knee, and the attack to close to 0
ms.
