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omx.comp~ - OctiMax Compressor / Gate

Downward Expander:
A noise gate is effective for reducing background hiss when no other signal is
present. Here, it's implemented as a Ratio 2:1 Downward Expander.

Threshold:
Thresholds are independent for each band, specified in dB below full scale.

Compressor:
The Compressor has an unlimited range of gain reduction, and up to 36dB of gain
amplification. Any signal above the threshold will be reduced, and any signal below
the threshold will be amplified.

Dual Band:
The Compressor can be used in either wideband or dual band mode. In dual band, a
crossover filter around 200hz splits the audio into two bands, thus preventing bass
pumping.

Sidechain Filter:
A selectable Sidechain Filter filters out part of the upper midrange, to make the
compressor less sensitive to vocals, producing a much gentler response at any ratio
- however this will also produce more output overshoots (over 0dB).

Sidechain Delay:
An adjustable Sidechain Delay enables you to emulate vintage "opto" compressors by
delaying compressor action, thus introducing large peaks at transients. This is
very useful for percussion and string instruments.

Range:
Specifies the maximum amount of gain amplification allowed. The Range setting does
not take Ratio into account.

Example: If range is set to 24 dB, and the ratio is 2:1, the most gain
amplification you can get (after the ratio is applied) is in fact 12 dB.

Range only applies to gain amplification! If the input audio is above the set
threshold, gain reduction will occur no matter what the Range is set to.

Gating / Freeze Thresholds:

Gating is not the same thing as noise gating (downward expansion). The purpose of
Gating is to prevent gain amplification (release action) when there is no usable
signal anyway. This effectively combats background hiss build-up.

When the input signal drops below the Gating threshold, release speeds will be
slowed by a factor of three. When the input signal drops below the Freeze
threshold, release will seize completely.

Attack/Release Parameters:
Signify "rate", not "time". Higher value = faster. The scale is logarithmic, range
0 - 150.

Progressive Release:
At higher settings, the compressor will release faster at lower gain (= more gain
reduction) values. This means that the audio will be more heavily compressed when
the input signal is louder. This can create an illusion of dynamics. Especially
useful at ratio Infinite:1, which could sound over-compressed without this option.
Ratio:
Specifies the compression ratio, between 1:1 and Infinite:1.

Threshold:
Specifies where the unity-point of the compressor should be. i.e. if threshold is
-12.00 and you input a -12 signal, the compressor will adjust itself to unity (i.e.
no gain change). In the same scenario, if you raise the threshold to -6, the
compressor will apply up to 6dB of gain (depending on both the Ratio and Range
controls).

Smoothing:
Applies a low-pass filter to the control signal. Useful both to prevent artifacts
(gain fluttering) from high attack/release values, and to intentionally make the
compressor sluggish, which can create a nice effect for percussion instruments, and
add that extra "snap" to any transient.

Channel Coupling:
Stereo, Left or Right.
In Stereo mode, the gain control signal is derived from whichever channel is
loudest, unlike in Left or Right mode where the gain control signal will only be
derived from the selected channel. Also useful for "keying" or "ducking" effects
where the energy of one sound can modulate the level of another sound such as
reverb.

Limiter Response: Punchy / Smooth

Controls a tradeoff in the limiter.
Punchy Response yields extremely short attack and release times, useful for
transparent limiting, or to create loudness. However, if over-used, intermodulation
distortion may result.
Smooth uses longer attack and release times - still a fast look-ahead limiter, but
much less intermodulation distortion. However, the resulting sound isn't as punchy
as with Punchy Response.

Internal Presets: These presets are to be considered "starting points" and should
be tweaked for your particular purpose or desired sound.
Guitar
Bass
Vocal
Drums
Program Material - An attempt at smooth "gain riding" of mixed program material as
well as can be done with a non-multiband processor

Copyright � Octiv Inc. 2000 - 2003

www.octiv.com