About The Effects; What Is Compression; What Is Distortion; What Is A Dual Phasor - Alesis ModFX Bitrman Reference Manual

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Using the Bitrman

About the effects

What is Compression?

Compression makes things sound louder and more sustained. It
reduces the difference between loud sounds and soft sounds.
When it "hears" a soft sound, it increases the gain. When it
"hears" a loud peak, it instantly lowers the gain. It's an automatic
volume control, with a constant "hand on the fader" regulating
the output level faster than any real engineer could. Compression
is used in the recording of almost every vocal, guitar, and bass.

What is Distortion?

Distortion occurs naturally when an amplifier or speaker is driven
beyond its capability. When electronics are pushed beyond their
limits, they generate frequencies that weren't in the original signal.
When the "new" frequencies are an even multiple of the input
frequencies, it's called harmonic distortion. An amp that's driven into
clipping also generates nonharmonic distortions, i.e., noise.
The [DISTORT] feature of the Bitrman is designed to emulate the
classic sound of overdriven electronics: nonlinear, soft clipping
with a blend of harmonic and nonharmonic distortion, but without
blowing up speakers or amps.

What is a Dual Phasor?

Phasing is a swimming, vibrato-like effect that is similar to (but not
the same as) flanging or the effect of a rotating speaker (i.e., a
Leslie™). It changes the phase of the signal at different
frequencies, with multiple filters sweeping across the spectrum.
It's useful on guitars, electric pianos, and other keyboard sounds.
The Dual Phasor.of the Bitrman is a stereo effect: the left channel
and right channel phasors are separate and offset from each other,
giving a unique stereo sound (if the outputs are connected to a
stereo system).
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