TC Electronic SYSTEM 6000 MKII Algorithm Manual

5
rEvErb InTrODuCTIOn
The TC Reverb Palette
Until15-20yearsago,digitalreverbwasmostlyused
as a generic effect applied to many sources of a mix.
Nowadays, where more aux send and returns are at
disposal,newapproacheshaveemerged.Elementsofthe
mix are being treated individually, adding room character,
flavor and depth in more creative and complex ways.
At TC, we call this a Source based approach, and we have
put more than 30 man-years of development time into
design and refinement of Source based room simulation.
When Generic digital reverbs were invented, they stretched
the DSP power and memory bandwidth capabilities of their
time; and Source specific processing was completely out of
thequestion.EventhoughwemaynowconsiderGeneric
types to be less than ideal, they still have applications for
which they may be chosen instead of their Source based
cousins.
The large reverb and room simulation palette of Reverb
6000 allows the user to choose whatever principle suits a
present need.
Below you will find a suggestion of when to use what.
Generic Reverb
Generic reverb is primarily a flattering sustain effect which
can be added to many sources of a mix, or a complete
stereo or multichannel stem. It adds little character but also
does no harm, because the effect is blurred or washed out.
If early reflections are offered, there are only few of them
and they play a rudimentary role. Therefore, a strong
localization is not imposed on the signal, which is what you
want when one reverb is used on many sources.
Foragraphicalartist,theequivalenttooltoGenericreverb
would be a paint brush.
Generic Reverb Pros
• 1stchoiceforcomposite,mixedmaterialandstems
• 1stchoicewhenusedwithmultichanneljoystickon
console or DAW
• 1stchoiceforaddingtoclassicalmainmicrophonepick-up
• Workswellonmovingsources
• Prettierthanlife
• Quickandeasytouse
Generic Reverb Cons
• Blurringtakesawaycharacterfromindividualsources
• Pitchmodulationmaybeaproblemwithsomematerial
• Monocompatibilityoftencompromisedtoobtainextra
width
• ImaginginferiortoSourcebasedreverb
Source Reverb
Whenelementsofamixarepickedupindividually,a
chance exists to define exactly how each of them is to be
heard. There is no reason to apply one Generic reverb
to several single sources, unless they are supposed to
present an identical position to the final listener, or you
have run out of aux sends.
When it is desirable to distinguish between single elements
sharing more or less the same panning position, source
based reverb should be a first choice. Subtle discrimination
betweenreflectionpatternsofindividualsourcescanmake
all the difference in the world when it comes to obtaining
depth, expression and natural imaging.
Source Reverbs are able to generate multiple, complex
earlyreflectionpatterns.Forbestresults,ifsome
reflectionsarealreadypickedupbyamicrophone,they
should be excluded from the simulated pattern by using the
appropriate reflection decrease control.
Instruments or sources can alternatively share the same
reverb input in groups, e.g. stage left, center and right,
for a more complex and desirable result than a Generic,
one-send reverb approach.
Foragraphicalartist,theequivalenttooltoSourcereverb
would be a 3D rendering system or Virtual Studio.
Source Reverb Pros
• 1stchoicewheninputsourcescanbeseparated
• 1stchoicewithspotmicrophones
• Moredepthanddistinctionobtainableinamix
• Addscharacteranddefinitiontoasource
• Foranyformat,butespecially5.1and6.1,localization
and the size of the listening area may be improved
compared to Generic Reverb types
Source Reverb Cons
• RequiremoresendsordirectfeedsthanGenericReverb
types
• Noadvantageoncompositesignals
• Notidealformovingsources
Sampling Reverb
Sampling reverbs present a variation of the Source theme:
Animpulseresponseistakenfromanactualroombased
onaspecificsourceandpick-upposition.This“canned
room”withfrozensource,pick-upandspeakerpositioning,
can later be applied to any signal.
Fromexperimentswehavefounditdifficulttotranslatea
roomfeelingtospeakers,duetocompromisesbynature
builtintotheemissionandpick-upprocesswhencapturing
a room response. This is especially true with multichannel
formatssuchas5.1and6.1,whereDSPinsimulatorscan
beusedtooptimizeavirtualroomforaspecificspeaker
configuration.
Currently, no sampling reverbs are available on Reverb
6000.
Sampling Reverb Pros
• “Organic”ornaturalfeeling
• Somepropertiesofanaturalroommaybecaptured
• Differentflavortosimulations
Sampling Reverb Cons
• Littleeditingpossible.Editingoftendoesn’tsoundright
• Difficulttocapturesenseofspaceaswellasitmaybe
simulated
• OnlyonefixedsourcepositionperEngine
• Longrecalltimes
• LowerdynamicrangeandbandwidththanVSS
algorithms

TC Electronic SYSTEM 6000 MKII Specifications

General

Brand	TC Electronic
Model	SYSTEM 6000 MKII
Category	Computer Hardware
Language	English