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BUS Compressor
1 THRESHOLD Sets the minimum amplitude needed
for the Compressor circuit to kick in.
2 GAIN MAKE-UP Adds gain to the output of the
Compressor to compensate for the level lost from
the dynamic range reduction.
3 ATTACK Sets how long the Compressor takes to
react once a signal passes the threshold level.
Faster attacks pick up transients but become
more noticeable. Slower attacks will miss sudden
transients but give a more subtle compression.
4 RELEASE Sets how long it takes the Compressor
to switch off once the signal drops below the
threshold level. Again a faster release is more
noticeable and a slower release is more subtle.
5 RATIO Sets the amount of level reduction once the
amplitude passes the threshold level. 2:1 decreases
it by a factor of 2 where as 10:1 decreases it by a
factor of 10.
6 BASS EXPAND; adds a 350Hz high pass filter to
the sidechain meaning low frequencies don’t
cause the Compressor to activate. This stops bass
frequencies from ‘pumping’ and gives a more full,
consistent low-end.
7 IN Adds the Compressor to the Mix Bus when
engaged.
8 GAIN REDUCTION METER ; The Gain Reduction
Meter displays the amount of gain that is being
reduced when the Compressor is active.
Just getting the needle to bounce slightly is a
great trick for ‘sticking’ the mix together.
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A compressor can be switched into the main stereo
signal path when required. Note that it is located
after the mix insert point but before the main fader.
The compressor characteristics are optimised for
use in mix processing while many of the parameters
remain under the control of the engineer.
Threshold, Gain Make Up, Attack, Release and Ratio
are all adjustable while the entire processor can be
switched out of circuit when not required.
A bar-graph meter indicates the amount of
compression applied to the signal. When compression
is taking place this should show some very healthy
activity. Please do not try to over compress the mix
output as the results will sound terrible. Sometimes
only a small amount of movement on the meter is
required to ‘glue’ a mix together.
A good use of the compressor may be to limit peak
signals by setting a highish threshold with a high
ratio. Thus when the threshold is reached the signal is
barely allowed to increase beyond it.
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