Dynamic Processing Flashcards
What is a compressor?
A dynamic processor that results in higher lows and lower highs for a more consistent sound
What are the parameters of a compressor?
Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release, Make up gain and Knee
What is the threshold of a compressor
The threshold is a limit set that when passed by the level, the compressor activates
What is the ratio of a compressor?
How harshly the sound is reduced, for e.g. a ratio of 4:1 means for every one db passed, 4 db are reduced
What is the make up gain?
The make up gain is where additional volume can be added to the track. It makes for a thick sound once the dynamic range has been compressed
What is the attack of a compressor?
The speed at which the compressor activates after the threshold is passed by a signal
What is the release of a compressor?
The speed at which the compressor stops applying gain reduction after the signal retreats below the threshold.
What is the knee?
The knee is how the compressor reacts to signals once the threshold is passed.
What is a FET?
- Field Effect Transistor
- Very fast attack and punchy tone
- Great for parallel compression and on quick transients
- Not the most transparent form of compression
What is a VCA?
- Voltage Controlled Amplifier
- Aggressive gain reduction
- Good for smoothing out loud spikes
- Versatile
- Not good for adding warmth or colour
What is an OPTO?
- Optical Compression
- Slow and smooth
- Adds warmth
- Not great at controlling hard transients or achieving aggressive compression
What is a multiband limiter?
It splits individual signals into different band and limits them individually before they are summed up again.
What is a noise gate?
- A noise gate are extreme expanders
- They have a ratio set as close to 1:infinite as possible and any signal is reduced to silence when it passes below the threshold
- They can be used to remove background noise
