Input Agc Menu - Omnia .9 Installation & User Manual

FM MENU INTERMEDIATE MODE

Input AGC Menu

The Input AGC Menu is used to set the ratio, maximum gain, attack rate, release rate, target level, gate threshold and freeze
threshold of the input Automatic Gain Control.
The Input AGC is the first gain control stage in Omnia.9 following Undo, and is designed to be used as a slower-acting leveler
ahead of the Wideband AGC1 (if active) and multiband sections that follow it.
It is worth noting that traditional processors only act upon audio above a particular threshold. They are driven into various
amounts of gain reduction, but once the audio falls below the threshold, they "run out of room" or "top out," and are incapable
of increasing the audio any further. They require some sort of make-up gain control later in the audio chain. The compressors
in Omnia.9 operate above AND below threshold, controlling the dynamics over a much wider range and do not require makeup
gain.
The Ratio control determines how much the output audio will be increased or decreased in relationship to the input
♦
audio of the Input AGC section. For example, a ratio of 3:1 means for every 3dB of change in the level of the input audio,
the output will be changed by 1dB. Lower (looser) settings provide less control of the dynamics in this section but
provide a more open sound, while higher (tighter) settings provide more control at the expense of openness. The range
of this control is 1.0:1 (effectively bypassed) to Infinity:1.
The Maximum Gain control works in conjunction with the Ratio control to determine how much gain is available below
♦
threshold. If the Input AGC Ratio is set at Infinity:1 and the Input AGC Maximum Gain is set to 36dB, the Input AGC has
36dB of range below threshold. At a ratio of 2.0:1 and the same Maximum gain setting, the range is reduced by half to
18dB. The scale to the left of the Input AGC meter automatically adjusts as needed when changes are made to the Input
AGC Maximum Gain or the Input AGC Ratio to accurately reflect how much range is available below threshold.
The Attack control determines the speed with which the Input AGC acts to reduce audio above threshold. Lower settings
♦
represent slower attack speeds and allow more audio to pass unprocessed by the Input AGC into subsequent processing
stages. Higher settings result in faster attack speeds and allow less unprocessed audio to enter subsequent sections.
Because all of Omnia.9's processing stages are to some extent program-dependent, putting actual measures of time on
these controls would be pointless, and so the numbers on the various Attack and Release controls throughout are simply
relative numbers.
The Release control determines the speed with which the Input AGC increases audio below threshold. Lower settings
♦
provide slower release speeds, while higher settings result in faster release speeds.
The Target control sets the target output level of the Input AGC. A lower setting results in a lower output level, while
♦
higher settings provide a higher output level. This is similar to a traditional "threshold" control when the levels are below
the target.
CHAPTER 11 |
53