DigiDesign DigiRack Plug-ins Manual page 74

To indicate overshoots (when an incoming sig-
nal peak is too fast for the current compression
setting) the cursor temporarily leaves the gain
transfer curve.
The cursor changes color to indicate the amount
of compression applied, as follows:
Dynamics III Plug-in Compression Amount
Cursor Color
white
light orange
dark orange
See "De-Esser Frequency Graph Display" on
page 76 for information on using the De-
Esser's graph display.
Side-Chain Section
For information on using the Side-Chain section
of the Compressor/Limiter or Expander/Gate,
see "Using the Side-Chain Input in Dynamics
III" on page 76.
68 DigiRack Plug-ins Guide
Compression Amount
no compression
below full ratio
full ratio amount
Compressor/Limiter III
Compressor/Limiter III
The Compressor/Limiter plug-in applies either
compression or limiting to audio material, de-
pending on the ratio of compression used.
About Compression
Compression reduces the dynamic range of sig-
nals that exceed a chosen threshold by a specific
amount. The Threshold control sets the level
that the signal must exceed to trigger compres-
sion. The Attack control sets how quickly the
compressor responds to the "front" of an audio
signal once it crosses the selected threshold. The
Release control sets the amount of time that it
takes for the compressor's gain to return to its
original level after the input signal drops below
the selected threshold.
To use compression most effectively, the attack
time should be set so that signals exceed the
threshold level long enough to cause an increase
in the average level. This helps ensure that gain
reduction does not decrease the overall volume
too drastically, or eliminate desired attack tran-
sients in the program material.
Of course, compression has many creative uses
that break these rules.