PRESONUS studiolive III series Owner's Manual page 45

5 The Fat Channel
5.1 Fat Channel Navigation
5.1.3.1 Standard Compressor
6. Comp>EQ. The Compressor and EQ can be reordered in the signal path. By
default, the signal passes through the compressor before passing through
through EQ. When reordered, the EQ is placed before the compressor in the
signal path.
Power User Tip: Placing the compressor before the EQ allows you to make dramatic
changes to the EQ settings without needing to alter the compressor setting. However, if
you place the EQ before the compressor, you can better control different frequencies,
achieving a more natural response.
7. Compressor Type. Changes the type of Compressor model.
The Standard Compressor is selected on every channel by default.
1 2 3
COMP COMP COMP
Thresh Ratio Attack
-0.00 dB 2.0:1 20.00 ms
Auto
1. Threshold. Sets the level above which the compressor begins to attenuate
the signal.
2. Ratio. Sets the relationship between the amount a signal goes above the
threshold, and the amount it is attenuated. At a 1-to-1 ratio (often written as 1:1),
no compression occurs. At a 4:1 ratio, a signal that passes the threshold by 8 dB
is attenuated to within 2 dB of the threshold (dividing by four). The higher the
ratio you choose, the more pronounced the compressor effect becomes.
3. Attack. Sets the time it takes for the compressor to begin attenuating a signal,
once it passes the threshold. Press the button below to toggle Auto mode
on or off. When Auto mode is active, the Attack and Release controls become
inoperative, and a preprogrammed attack and release curve is used. In this
mode, the attack is set to 10 ms, and the release is set to 150 ms. All other
compressor parameters can still be adjusted manually.
4. Release. Sets the time it takes for the compressor to stop attenuating a signal
once it falls below the threshold.
Power User Tip: Very short compressor release times can produce a choppy or "jittery"
sound, especially when compressing instruments that have a lot of low-frequency
components, such as bass guitar. Very long release times can result in an over-
compressed, or "squashed, " sound. All ranges of release can be useful, however, and you
should experiment to become familiar with different sonic possibilities.
5. Gain. Sets the amount of "makeup gain" to apply to a signal. Once a signal is
compressed, its overall level is often reduced. This gain control lets you bring it
back up to the proper level after compression occurs.
6. Compressor Knee Soft/Hard. Press this button to toggle the compressor
between soft and hard-knee modes. Soft-knee compression offers a smooth
transition between uncompressed and compressed states. Hard-knee
compression offers a more abrupt transition, and more exacting protection from
stray peaks.
7. Key Filter. This encoder sets, and the scribble displays, the frequency at
which the compressor will engage. The compressor will still process the entire
frequency range, but it is only engaged when the specified frequency is
present. Press the button below to listen to the signal being used to trigger the
compressor (including the effects of the high-pass filter, as set with the Key Filter
control). Press again to switch back to the normal channel signal.
Press the Processor button to turn the Compressor on or off.
When the Fat Channel is in Standard Compressor mode, the touchscreen
shows an overview screen that displays the relevant parameters (as available in the
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COMP COMP COMP COMP
Release Gain Key Fltr
150 ms 0.00 dB Off Off
Soft Key Lstn
StudioLive™ Series III
Owner's Manual
41