Pinnacle Systems Pro Tools - 2018.12 User's Guide

Audio Plug-Ins Guide
Version 2018.12
Legal Notices
© 2018 Avid Technology, Inc., (“Avid”), all rights reserved. This guide may not be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of Avid.
For a current and complete list of Avid trademarks visit: www.avid.com/legal/trademarks-and-other-notices.
Bonjour, the Bonjour logo, and the Bonjour symbol are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.
Thunderbolt and the Thunderbolt logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Product features, specifications, system requirements, and availability are subject to change without notice.
Guide Part Number 9329-65997-00 REV A 1
2/18

Contents

Part I Introduction to Audio Plug-Ins
Chapter 1. Audio Plug-Ins Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Plug-In Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Avid Audio Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Using Plug-Ins in Pro Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
System Requirements and Compatibility for Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Avid Application Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Conventions Used in Pro Tools Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Chapter 2. Installing and Authorizing Avid Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Installing Plug-Ins for Pro Tools and Media Composer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Installing Plug-Ins from the Avid Marketplace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
About iLok . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Authorizing Avid Audio Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Removing Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Chapter 3. Adjusting Plug-In Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Dragging Plug-In Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Editing Control Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Dragging in Graphic Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Toggle Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Adjusting Controls with Fine Resolution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Resetting Controls to Default Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
General Effects Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
MIDI Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Audio Plug-Ins Guide iii
Part II EQ Plug-Ins
Chapter 4. EQ III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
EQ III Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Adjusting EQ III Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
EQ III I/O Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
EQ III EQ Band Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1-Band EQ III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
7-Band EQ III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Chapter 5. Eleven Effects Graphic EQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Graphic EQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Chapter 6. Focusrite D2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
D2 Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
D2 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Using D2 in Stereo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Chapter 7. JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
JOEMEEK Meequalizer Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Chapter 8. Pultec Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Pultec EQP-1A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Pultec EQH-2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Pultec MEQ-5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Pultec Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Part III Dynamics Plug-Ins
Chapter 9. BF-2A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
BF-2A Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Using the BF-2A Side-Chain Filter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
BF-2A Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Chapter 10. BF-3A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
BF-3A Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
BF-3A Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Contents iv
Chapter 11. BF76 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
BF76 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
BF76 Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Chapter 12. Channel Strip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Channel Strip Sections and Panes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Channel Strip Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Channel Strip Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Channel Strip FX Chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Channel Strip Dynamics Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Channel Strip EQ/Filters Section. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Chapter 13. Dynamics III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Dynamics III Common Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Compressor/Limiter III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Expander/Gate III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
De-Esser III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Dynamics III Side-Chain Input. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Chapter 14. Eleven Effects Gray Compressor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Gray Compressor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Chapter 15. Fairchild Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Fairchild 660 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Fairchild 670 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Chapter 16. Focusrite D3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
D3 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
D3 Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
D3 Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Using D3 in Stereo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
D3 Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
D3 Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
D3 Limiter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Using the Side-Chain Input in D3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Chapter 17. Impact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Impact Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Using the Impact Compressor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Contents v
Chapter 18. Maxim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
About Peak Limiting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
How Maxim Differs From Conventional Limiters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Maxim Controls and Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Using Maxim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Maxim and Mastering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Chapter 19. JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
JOEMEEK Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
JOEMEEK Compressor Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Chapter 20. Pro Compressor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Pro Compressor Metering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Pro Compressor Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Pro Compressor Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Pro Compressor Dynamics Graph. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Pro Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Pro Compressor Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Chapter 21. Pro Expander . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Pro Expander Metering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Pro Expander Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Pro Expander Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Pro Expander Dynamics Graph. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Pro Expander Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Pro Expander Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Chapter 22. Pro Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Pro Limiter Metering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Pro Limiter Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Pro Limiter Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Pro Limiter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Pro Limiter Loudness Numeric Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Pro Limiter Histogram and Loudness Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
AudioSuite Processing with Pro Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
AudioSuite Processing with Pro Limiter Loudness Analyzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Contents vi
Chapter 23. Pro Multiband Dynamics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
FFT Display and Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Input and Output Gain Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Source Linking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Mini Multichannel Gain Reduction and Output Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Band Pane Controls and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Multiband Splitter Plug-In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Pro Multiband Dynamics and Multiband Splitter Plug-In Sends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Chapter 24. Purple Audio MC77 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Purple Audio MC77 Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Chapter 25. Smack! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Smack! Controls and Meters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Using the Smack! Side-Chain Input. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Part IV Pitch and Time Shift Plug-Ins
Chapter 26. Pitch II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Pitch II Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Chapter 27. Pitch Shift Legacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Pitch Shift Legacy Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Chapter 28. Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Time Shift Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
AudioSuite Input Modes and Time Shift. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
AudioSuite Preview and Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Time Shift as AudioSuite TCE Plug-In Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Processing Audio Using Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Post Production Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks with Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Chapter 29. Vari-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Vari-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Chapter 30. X-Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
X-Form Displays and Controls Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
X-Form AudioSuite Input Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
\AudioSuite TCE Plug-In Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Contents vii
Processing Audio Using X-Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Using X-Form for Post Production Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Part V Reverb Plug-Ins
Chapter 31. D-Verb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
D-Verb Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Selections for D-Verb AudioSuite Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Chapter 32. Eleven Effects Reverb Plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Black Spring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Studio Reverb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Chapter 33. Reverb One. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
About Reverb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Reverb One Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Reverb One Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Other Reverb One Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Chapter 34. ReVibe II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Using ReVibe II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Dragging in the Graphic Display to Adjust Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
ReVibe II Input and Output Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
ReVibe II Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
ReVibe II Decay EQ Graph. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
ReVibe II Decay Color Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
ReVibe II Contour Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
ReVibe II Room Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Chapter 35. Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Space Feature Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Space Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Impulse Response (IR) and Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Space Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Space Snapshots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Space Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Space Display Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Space IR Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Space Primary Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Contents viii
Space Group Selectors and Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Using Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Space IR Library Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Part VI Delay Plug-Ins
Chapter 36. Mod Delay III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Mod Delay III Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Selections for Mod Delay III AudioSuite Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Chapter 37. Moogerfooger Analog Delay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Moogerfooger Analog Delay Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Moogerfooger Analog Delay Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Chapter 38. Reel Tape Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Reel Tape Delay Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Synchronizing Reel Tape Delay to Session Tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Reel Tape Delay Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Chapter 39. Tel-Ray Variable Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Tel-Ray Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Tel-Ray Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Chapter 40. TimeAdjuste r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
TimeAdjuster Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Using TimeAdjuster for Manual Delay Compensation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
When to Compensate for Delays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Part VII Modulation Plug-Ins
Chapter 41. Eleven Effects Modulation Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Black/Shiny Wah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
C1 Chorus/Vibrato . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Flanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Orange Phaser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Roto Speaker. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
Vibe Phaser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
Contents ix
Chapter 42. Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Chapter 43. Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Chapter 44. Moogerfooger Ring Modulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Tips and Tricks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Chapter 45. Reel Tape Flanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Reel Tape Flanger Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Synchronizing Reel Tape Flanger to Session Tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Reel Tape Flanger Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Reel Tape Flanger Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Chapter 46. Sci-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Sci-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Chapter 47. Voce Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Voce Chorus/Vibrato . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Voce Spin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
Part VIII Harmonic Plug-Ins
Chapter 48. Aphex Aural Exciter Type III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Rotary Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Using Aural Exciter III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
Chapter 49. Aphex Big Bottom Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Rotary Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Using Big Bottom Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Contents x
Chapter 50. Eleven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Eleven Input Calibration and QuickStart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Using Eleven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
Eleven Tips and Suggestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Eleven Signal Flow Notes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Chapter 51. Eleven MK II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Eleven MK II Plug-In Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Eleven MK II Cab Plug-In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309
Eleven MK II Input Calibration and QuickStart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Using Eleven MK II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Eleven MK II Tips and Suggestions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
Eleven MK II Signal Flow Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334
Chapter 52. Eleven Effects Harmonic Plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335
Black Op Distortion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335
DC Distortion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
Green JRC Overdrive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
Tri-Knob Fuzz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
White Boost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
Chapter 53. Lo-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Lo-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Chapter 54. Pro Subharmonic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Dynamic Frequency Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
High Pass and Low Pass Filter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Subharmonic Frequency Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
Lower, Upper, and Direct Gain Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Mix Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Surround Send Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Tuning Subharmonics with MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350
Contents xi
Chapter 55. Recti-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Recti-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Chapter 56. Reel Tape Saturation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Reel Tape Saturation Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
Reel Tape Saturation Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
Reel Tape Saturation Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
Chapter 57. SansAmp PSA-1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
PSA-1 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
PSA-1 Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
Part IX Dither Plug-Ins
Chapter 58. Dither. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
Dither Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
Chapter 59. POW-r Dither . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
POW-r Dither Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Part X Sound Field Plug-Ins
Chapter 60. AutoPan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
AutoPan Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Using AutoPan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Chapter 61. Down Mixer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Source. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374
Downmix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374
Part XI Instrument Plug-Ins
Chapter 62. Click II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
Click II Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
Creating a Click Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
Chapter 63. ReWire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379
ReWire Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Using ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Contents xii
MIDI Automation with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382
Quitting ReWire Client Applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
Session Tempo and Meter Changes and ReWire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
Looping Playback with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
Automating Input Switching with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
Part XII Other Plug-Ins
Chapter 64. InTune. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
InTune Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
InTune Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
Using InTune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Chapter 65. MasterMeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
MasterMeter Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
Using MasterMeter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397
MasterMeter Controls and Displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
Chapter 66. Signal Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
Signal Generator Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
AudioSuite Processing with Signal Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
Chapter 67. SoundReplacer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403
Audio Replacement Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403
SoundReplacer Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
Using SoundReplacer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
Getting Optimum Results with SoundReplacer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408
Using the Audio Files Folder for Frequently Used SoundReplacer Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
Chapter 68. Time Compression/Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411
Time Compression/ Expansion Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411
Chapter 69. Trim. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
Trim Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
Chapter 70. Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
DC Offset Removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
Duplicate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415
Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415
Invert. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
Contents xiii
Normalize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
Reverse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418
Contents xiv
Part I: Introduction to Audio
Plug-Ins

Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview

Plug-ins are special-purpose software components that provide additional signal processing and other functionality to ProTools
®
| Ultimate (previously Pro Tools | HD) and Pro Tools software. These in­clude plug-ins that come with your Pro Tools sys­tem, as well as many other plug-ins that can be pur­chased or rented from Avid
®
separately. This guide documents all 64-bit AAX audio plug-ins available from Avid for Pro Tools, VENUE Composer
®
.
Additional plug-ins are available from third­party developers. For more information, visit www.avid.com/plugins.
®
, and Media

Plug-In Formats

AAX (Avid Audio Extension) plug-ins provide real-time plug-in processing using host-based (“Native”) or DSP-based (HDX systems only) pro­cessing. The AAX plug-in format also supports AudioSuite non-real-time, file-based rendered pro­cessing. AAX plug-in files use the “.aaxplugin” file suffix.
There are three plug-in formats used in Pro Tools:
• AudioSuite
ing
• AAX Native: real-time, host-based plug-ins
• AAX DSP: real-time, DSP-based plug-ins
(HDX systems only)
: non-real-time, file-based process-

Avid Audio Plug-Ins

Avid includes a comprehensive set of sound processing, effects, and utility plug-ins with all Pro Tools systems. Other Avid plug-ins are available for purchase or rental from the Avid store (visit shop.avid.com, or, in Pro Tools, choose
Marketplace > Plug-Ins).
Avid Audio Plug-Ins Included with Pro Tools
Pro Tools includes a suite of digital signal process­ing effects, including EQ, dynamics, delay, and other essential audio processing tools. The follow­ing plug-ins are included with Pro Tools:
EQ
• Channel Strip (see “Dynamics”)
• EQ III
•1Band
•7Band
Dynamics
• BF76 Compressor
• Channel Strip
• Dynamics III
• Compressor/Limiter
• Expander/Gate
• De-Esser
•Maxim
Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 1
Pitch and Time Shift
•Pitch II
• Pitch Shift Legacy
•Time Shift
•Vari-Fi
Reverb
•D-Verb
Delay
• Mod Delay III
• TimeAdjuster
Modulation
•Sci-Fi
Harmonic
• Eleven® Lite
•Lo-Fi
• Recti-Fi
• SansAmp PSA-1
Dither
• Dither
• POW-r Dither
Sound Field
• AutoPan
• Down Mixer
Instrument
•Click II
•ReWire
Other
• DC Offset Removal (AudioSuite only)
• Duplicate (AudioSuite only)
• Gain (AudioSuite only)
• Invert (AudioSuite only)
• Normalize (AudioSuite only)
• Reverse (AudioSuite only)
• Signal Generator
• Time Compression/Expansion
• InTune
• MasterMeter
•Trim
Additional Avid Audio Plug-Ins
The following plug-ins are available separately for purchase and rental:
• Aphex Aural Exciter
• Aphex Big Bottom Pro
• BF-2A
• BF-3A
• Eleven
• Eleven
®
guitar amplifier modeling plug-in
®
Mk II guitar amplifier modeling plug-in
• Fairchild 660 and 670
• Focusrite d2/d3
•Impact
®
• JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor
• JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer
• Moogerfooger plug-ins
• Moogerfooger Analog Delay
• Moogerfooger Ring Modulator
• Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser
• Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter
®
Type III
®
Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 2
• Pro Compressor
• Pro Expander
• Pro Limiter
• Pro Multiband Dynamics
• Pro Subharmonic
• Purple Audio MC77
•Reel Tape
plug-ins:
• Reel Tape Saturation
• Reel Tape Delay
• Reel Tape Flanger
• Reverb One
•ReVibe® II
•Smack!
• SoundReplacer
•Space
• Tel-Ray Variable Delay
•Voce Spin
• Voce Chorus/Vibrato
•X-Form

System Requirements and Compatibility for Plug-Ins

To use Pro Tools plug-ins, you need the following:
• An Avid-qualified system running Pro Tools or Pro Tools | Ultimate Software
• An iLok USB key (iLok) for plug-ins that can be purchased or rented that do not support com­puter-based authorization or iLok Cloud.
Avid can only assure compatibility and provide support for hardware and software i t has tested and approved.
For complete system requirements and a list of Avid-qualified computers, operating systems, hard drives, and third-party devices, visit:
www.avid.com/compatibility
Third-Party Plug-In Support
For information on third-party plug-ins for Pro Tools systems, refer to the documentation that came with your plug-in.

Using Plug-Ins in Pro Tools

See the Pro Tools Re fer ence Guide for information on working with plug-ins, including:
• Inserting plug-ins on tracks
• Plug-In Window controls
• Adjusting plug-in controls
• Automating plug-ins
• Using side-chain inputs
• Using plug-in presets

Avid Application Manager

When you install Pro Tools or Media Composer, the Avid Application Manager is also installed. The Avid Application Manager is used to manage your software and entitlements related to your MyAvid account. The Avid Application Manager helps you maintain the most current Pro Tools software and audio plug-in updates that you are entitled to when new versions become available. For more informa­tion about the Avid Application Manager, see the Avid Application Manager Guide (available online through the Avid Knowledgebase).
• Clip indicators
Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 3

Conventions Used in Pro Tools Do cumentation

Pro Tools documentation uses the following conventions to indicate menu choices, keyboard commands, and mouse commands:
Convention Action
File > Save Choose Save from the
Control+N Hold down the Control
Control-click Hold down the Control
Right-click Click with the right
The names of
Commands, Options, and Settings
that appear on-screen are in a different font. The following symbols are used to highlight
important information:
User Tips are helpful hints for getting the most from your system.
File menu
key and press the N key
key and click the mouse button
mouse button
How to Use this PDF Guide
This PDF provides the following useful features:
• The Bookmarks on the left serve as a continu­ously visible table of contents. Click on a sub­ject heading to jump to that page.
• Click a + symbol to expand that heading to show subheadings. Click the – symbol to col­lapse a subheading.
• The Table of Contents provides active links to their pages. Select the hand cursor, allow it to hover over the heading until it turns into a fin­ger. Then click to locate to that subject and page.
• All cross references in Click to follow the reference.
• Select Find from the Edit menu to search for a subject.
• When viewing this PDF on an iPad, it is rec­ommended that you open the file using iBooks to take advantage of active links within the document. When viewing the PDF in Safari, touch the screen, then touch
“iBooks”
.
blue are active links.
Open in
Important Notices include information that could affect your data or the performance of your system.
Shortcuts show you useful keyboard or mouse shortcuts.
Cross References point to related sections in this guide and other Avid documentation.
Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 4

Resources

The Avid website (www.avid.com) is your best on­line source for information to help you get the most out of Pro Tools.
Account Activation and Product Registration
Activate your product to access downloads in your Avid account (or quickly create an account if you do not have one). Register your purchase online, download software, updates, documentation, and other resources.
www.avid.com/account
Support and Downloads\
Contact Avid Customer Success (technical sup­port), download software updates and the latest on­line manuals, browse the Compatibility documents for system requirements, search the online Knowl­edge Base or join the worldwide Avid user commu­nity on the User Conference.
www.avid.com/support
Training and Education
Study on your own using courses available online, find out how you can learn in a classroom setting at an Avid-certified training center, or view video tu­torials and webinars.
www.avid.com/education
Products and Developers
Learn about Avid products, download demo soft­ware, or learn about our Development Partners and their plug-ins, applications, and hardware.
www.avid.com/products
Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 5

Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Plug-Ins

A core set of audio plug-ins is installed automati­cally with your version of Pro Tools. No additional steps are required to authorize these plug-ins for use on your Pro Tools system.
Installers for additional plug-ins purchased or rented from the Avid store (shop.avid.com) can be downloaded from your online Avid account. These plug-ins are authorized using an iLok license that can be saved to an iLok USB key, iLok Cloud, or your computer.

Installing Plug-Ins for Pro Tools and Media Composer

For information on installing plug-ins for VENUE, refer to your VENUE documenta­tion..
To install a plug-in:
1 Log in to your Avid Master Account online
(my.avid.com).

Installing Plug-Ins from the Avid Marketplace

All plug-ins purchased from the Avid Marketplace through Pro Tools are installed silently and—fol­lowing activation—are available for use without having to restart Pro Tools.
To install a plug-in from the Avid Marketplace:
1 Launch Pro Tools. 2 Either choose Marketplace > Plug-Ins or select
Avid Marketplace from any plug-in insert in your
Pro Tools session.
3 Find the plug-in you want in the Avid Market-
place and follow the on-screen instructions.
You can also access the Avid Marketplace on­line at shop.avid.com.
2 Download the appropriate installer for your
operating system (Mac or Windows) from you A vid Master Account. After downloading, make sure the installer is uncompressed (.dmg or .exe).
3 Locate and double-click the plug-in installer. 4 Follow the on-screen instructions to complete
the installation.
Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Plug-Ins 6

About iLok

The plug-ins documented in this guide can be au­thorized using an iLok USB key from PACE Anti­Piracy. Plug-ins may also be authorized to iLok Cloud or to your computer using iLok License Manager application.
iLok USB key (3rd generation)
An iLok can hold hundreds of authorizations for all of your iLok-enabled software. After a software license is placed on an iLok, you can use the iLok to authorize that software on any computer.
An iLok USB key is not supplied with plug-ins or software options. You can use the iLok included with certain Pro Tools systems, or purchase one separately.
To authorize Avid Audio plug-ins:
1 If you don’t already have an iLok account, visit
www.ilok.com to sign up for an account.
2 Visit avid.com/redemption and log into your
A vid account (if you don’t already have an A vid account, click “Create Your Account”).
3 Enter your activation code and your iLok.com
User ID.
4 Follow the on-screen instructions to deposit
your license into your iLok.com account.
5 Once the activation process is complete, the
download links for your Avid audio plug-in will be available in the
My Products section of your
Avid account.
6 Download and install the plug-in that you
purchased.
7 If you are authorizing a plug-in using an iLok,
make sure your iLok is connected to an available USB port on your computer.
For more information, visit the iLok website (www.iLok.com).
8 Launch Pro Tools (or Media Composer) and fol-
low the on-screen instructions to transfer the plug-in license to your iLok, iLok Cloud, or your computer and authorize the plug-in.

Authorizing Avid Audio Plug-Ins

When you purchase a boxed version of an Avid Au­dio plug-in, you receive an activation code on an activation card. If you purchase or rent a plug-in through the Avid Marketplace, the license is depos­ited directly to your iLok account and you can skip the following procedure (see “Installing Plug-Ins from the Avid Marketplace” on page 6).
If you open a session that uses plug-ins that are not installed and authorized on your system, you are prompted to rent or purchase those missing plug-ins though the Avid Marketplace if available.
Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Plug-Ins 7

Removing Plug-Ins

If you need to remove a plug-in from your Pro Tools system, follow the instructions below for your computer platform.
Removing Plug-Ins on Mac
To remove a plug-in:
1 Locate and open the Plug-Ins folder on your
Startup drive (Library/Application Support /Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins).
2 Do one of the following:
• Drag the plug-in to the Plug-Ins (Unused) folder.
• Drag the plug-in to the Trash and empty the Trash.
Removing Plug-Ins on Windows
To remove a plug-in:
1 Choose Start > Control Panel. 2 Click Programs and Features. 3 Select the plug-in from the list of installed
applications.
4 Click Uninstall. 5 Follow the on-screen instructions to remove the
plug-in.
Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Plug-Ins 8

Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls

You can adjust plug-in controls by dragging on-screen controls, by editing control values, or by dragging in graphic displays.

Dragging Plug-In Controls

Rotary Controls
Some plug-ins have rotary controls that can be ad­justed by dragging over them horizontally or verti­cally.
To adjust a rotary control:
1 Click on the control. 2 Do any of the following:
• Drag up or to the right to increment the control.
• Drag down or to the left to decrement the control.
Slider Controls
Some plug-ins have slider controls that can be ad­justed by dragging horizontally.
Some sliders are bipolar, meaning that their zero position is in the center of the slider’s range. Drag­ging to the right of center yields a positive value, and dragging to the left of center yields a negative value.
To adjust a slider control:
1 Click on the control. 2 Do any of the following:
• Drag to the right to increment the control.
• Drag to the left to decrement the control.
Adjusting a rotary control by dragging (EQ III)
Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 9
Adjusting a slider control by dragging (ReVibe II)

Editing Control Values

Dragging in Graphic Displays

Some controls have text boxes that display the cur­rent control value. You can edit the control value directly.
To edit control values:
1 Click in the text box corresponding to the con-
trol that you want to adjust.
2 Do any of the following:
• Type a new value. For controls that support val­ues in kilohertz, typing “k” after a numeric value will multiply the value by 1000.
• T o increment the value, scroll up with a mouse or scroll wheel, or press the Up Arrow key.
• To decrement the value, scroll down with a mouse or scroll wheel, or press the Down Arrow key.
3 Do one of the following:
• Press Enter on the numeric keyboard to input the value and remain in keyboard editing mode.
• Press Return (Mac) or Enter (Windows) on the alpha keyboard to enter the value and leave key­board editing mode.
Some plug-ins have graphic displays with control points that you can drag to adjust the corresponding controls.
Dragging a control point (EQ III)
Dragging a control point (ReVibe II)

Toggle Controls

Some plug-ins have toggles that let you set differ­ent effects modes or even bypass the plug-in.
Typing a control value (EQ III)
To move forward through control text boxes in a plug-in:
Press the Tab key.
To move backward through control text boxes in a plug-in:
Press Shift+ Tab.
Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 10
To change the state of a toggle control:
Click the toggle switch or button.
Clicking a toggle switch (BBD Delay)
Clicking a toggle button
LED
toggle
(BBD Delay)

Adjusting Controls with Fine Resolution

Controls and control points can be adjusted with fine resolution by holding the Command key (Mac) or the Control key (Windows) while adjusting the control.

Resetting Controls to Default Values

You can reset any on-screen control to its default value by Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt­clicking (Windows) directly on the control or on its corresponding text box.
Line/Inst
to your source signal. If the source is an instrument level signal (like an electric guitar), select the source is a line level signal (such as a drum loop), select
Input
into the plug-in from –20 to 12 dB.
Mix
the Dry (source) signal. Set the Mix control to 0% for all dry signal, to 50% for equal wet and dry sig­nal, and to 100% for all wet signal.
Output
from the plug-in from –20 to 12 dB.
Lets you set the input gain as appropriate
Inst. If
Line.
Lets you adjust the audio signal input gain
Lets you mix the Wet (processed) signal and
Lets you adjust the audio signal output gain
Bypass Toggle and LED
All of the “stomp box” plug-ins provide a Bypass toggle. This has the same effect as the standard By­pass in the Plug-in window header. These plug-ins also provide a Bypass LED to show the current by­pass state. The LED is lit when the effect is active, and is unlit when the effect is bypassed.

General Effects Controls

Line/Inst, Input, Mix, and Output
Some plug-ins provide Line/Inst, Input, Mix, and/or Output controls at the bottom of the Plug-in window (though not all of the plug-ins provide all four of these controls).
Input, Mix, and Output controls
Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 11
Bypass toggle and LED
Sync
The time-based effects (such as Chorus, Delay, and Flanger) can be set to synchronize with the Session tempo (including tempos set with the Tap Tempo button). Simply enable the Sync parameter in the effect you want to synchronize to the Session tempo.
When the Sync control on these effects is set to a rhythmic subdivision of the incoming tempo, the effect locks to it. When Sync is set to Off, or the Rate or Delay control is moved, manual control takes over, and the rate of modulation or delay can be set by hand.

MIDI Control

Avid effects plug-ins support MIDI Control Change (CC) messages, meaning that plug-in pa­rameters can be controlled remotely by any con­nected CC-capable MIDI device.
MIDI Learn lets you quickly map plug-in controls to a MIDI foot pedal, switch, fader, knob, or other CC-compatible trigger. You can also manually as­sign controls to specific MIDI CC values.
To map a MIDI controller to a plug-in control:
1 Make sure your external MIDI device is con-
nected to your system, and recognized by your MIDI Studio Setup (Windows) or Audio MIDI Setup (Mac).
2 Create a MIDI track. 3 Set the input of the MIDI track to accept input
from your external MIDI device.
4 Set the output of the MIDI track to the plug-in
you want to control.
MIDI control assignments are saved and restored with the Pro Tools session in which they are de­fined. Settings files (presets) for Avid effects plug­ins do not store or recall MIDI Learn assignments.
Once you set up a session with your preferred plug-in configuration, save it as a Pro Tools session template. The template will save your MIDI control assignments and you can create future sessions based on this template.
VENUE and Media Composer do not support MIDI.
Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 12
Assigning a MIDI Track Output to a plug-in
5 Right-click on any control in the plug-in, and do
one of the following:
•Click
Learn, then move a control on your MIDI
controller. Pro Tools maps whichever control you touch to that plug-in parameter.
• If you know the MIDI CC value of your foot con­troller or other device, select it from the Assign menu.
MIDI Control and Mulit-Mono Plug-ins
Multi-mono plug-ins report virtual MIDI nodes for each channel. For example, a multi-mono plug-in inserted on a stereo track reports two separate MIDI nodes, one for the left channel and one for the right (Black/Shiny Wah 1 and Black/Shiny Wah 2).
As long as the channels of the mulit-mono plug-in are linked, any one MIDI node will control the plug-in on all channels. However, if the channels are unlinked, only the corresponding MIDI node will control the multi-mono instance of that plug-in on that channel. For example, if a multi-mono in­stance of Black/Shiny Wah is inserted on a stereo track, and it is unlinked, the MIDI node Black/Shiny Wah 1 controls the multi-mono in­stance on the left channel only, and Black/Shiny Wah 2 controls the right.
Right-clicking a plug-in control to Learn MIDI CC
On Mac, you can Control-click a parameter to show the MIDI Assign menu. However, note that you won’t be able to use the Control key modifier to “clutch” a Grouped control.
To clear a MIDI assignment:
Right-click the control and choose Forget.
Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 13

Part 2: EQ Plug-Ins

Chapter 4: EQ III

The EQ III plug-in provides high-quality 1-Band and 7-Band EQ for adjusting the frequency spec­trum of audio material.
EQ III is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
EQ III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
EQ III operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.
EQ III has a Frequency Graph display that shows the response curve for the current EQ settings on a two-dimensional graph of frequency and gain. The frequency graph display also lets you modify fre­quency, gain and Q settings for individual EQ bands by dragging their corresponding points in the graph.
EQ III supports EQ Curve in Pro Tools
2018.1 and later.

EQ III Configurations

The EQ III plug-in appears as two separate choices in the plug-in insert selector and in the AudioSuite menu:
• EQ3 1-Band
• EQ3 7-Band
1-Band EQ
The 1-Band EQ has its own window, with six selectable filter types for a single band of EQ.
1-Band EQ
Chapter 4: EQ III 15
7-Band EQ
The 7-Band EQ has its own window, with up to seven separate bands, each with it its own set of fi l­ter types.
Dragging in the Frequency Graph Display
You can adjust the following by dragging the con­trol points directly in the Frequency Graph display:
7 Band EQ

Adjusting EQ III Controls

In addition to dragging controls and typing control values, there are other ways to adjust EQ III con­trols.
Inverting Filter Gain
(Peak EQ Bands Only)
Gain values can be inverted on any Peak EQ band by Shift-clicking its control dot in the Frequency Graph display, or its Gain knob in the plug-in win­dow. This changes a gain boost to a cut (+9 to –9) or a gain cut to a boost (–9 to +9). Gain values can­not be inverted on Notch, High Pass, Low Pass, or shelving bands.
Frequency
Dragging a control point to the right in­creases the Frequency setting. Dragging a control point to the left decreases the Frequency setting.
Gain
Dragging a control point up increases the Gain setting. Dragging a control point down de­creases the Gain setting.
Q
Control-dragging (Mac) or Start-dragging (Win­dows) a control point up decreases the Q setting. Control-dragging (Mac) or Start-dragging (Win­dows) a control point down increases the Q setting.
Dragging a control point in the Frequency Graph display
Chapter 4: EQ III 16
Using EQ III in Band-Pass Mode
You can temporarily set any EQ III control to Band-Pass monitoring mode. Band-Pass mode cuts monitoring frequencies above and below the Fre­quency setting, leaving a narrow band of mid-range frequencies. It is especially useful for adjusting limited bandwidth in order to solo and fine-tune each individual filter before reverting the control to notch filter or peaking filter type operations.
Band-Pass mode does not affect EQ III Gain controls.
When monitoring in Band-Pass mode, the Fre­quency and Q controls function differently.
Frequency
Sets the frequency above and below which other frequencies are cut off, leaving a nar­row band of mid-range frequencies.
Q
Sets the width of the narrow band of mid-range
frequencies centered around the Frequency setting .
To switch an EQ III control out of Band-Pass mode:
Release Control+Shift (Mac) or Start+Shift
(Windows).
To switch an EQ III control to Band-Pass mode:
Hold Control+Shift (Mac) or Start+Shift (Win-
dows), and drag any rotary control or control point horizontally or vertically.
EQ III interactive graph displaying Band-Pass mode
Controlling EQ III from a Control Surface
EQ III can be controlled from any supported con­trol surface, including EUCON-compatible control surfaces, D-Control, D-Command, C|24, and 003. Refer to the guide that came with the control sur­face for details.
Chapter 4: EQ III 17

EQ III I/O Controls

Input
Output Gain
Input and Output Meters
Gain
Input
Polarity
Clip Indicators
Control
Control
Control
Certain Input and Output controls are found on all EQ III configurations, except where noted other­wise.
I/O controls and meters for 7-Band EQ (top) and 1-Band EQ (bottom)
Input Gain Control
The Input Gain control sets the input gain of the plug-in before EQ processing, letting you make up gain or prevent clipping at the plug-in input stage.
Input Polarity Control
The Input Polarity button inverts the polarity of the input signal to help compensate for phase anoma­lies occurring in multi-microphone environments, or because of mis-wired balanced connections.
Input and Output Meters
(7-Band EQ Only)
The plasma-style Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after EQ processing, and indicate them as follows:
Green
Indicates nominal levels
Yellow
Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
–6 dB below full scale
Red
Indicates full scale levels (clipping)
When using the stereo version of EQ III, the Input and Output meters display the sum of the left and right channels.
The Clip indicators at the far right of each mete r in­dicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indicator.
Output Gain Control
(7-Band EQ Only)
The Output Gain control sets the output gain after EQ processing, letting you make up gain or prevent clipping on the channel where the plug-in is being used.
Chapter 4: EQ III 18

EQ III EQ Band Controls

Individual EQ bands on each EQ III configuration have a combination of controls.
EQ Type Selector
On the 1-Band EQ, the EQ Type selector lets you choose any one of six available filter types: High Pass, Notch, High Shelf, Low Shelf, Peak, and Low Pass.
On the 7-Band EQ, the HPF, LPF, LF, and HF sec­tions have EQ Type selectors to toggle between the two available filter types in each section.
Band Enable Button
(7-Band EQ Only)
The Band Enable button on each EQ band toggles the corresponding band in and out of circuit. When a Band Enable button is highlighted, the band is in circuit. When a Band Enable button is dark gray, the band is bypassed and available for activation.
Band Enable button
Band Gain Control
Each Peak and Shelf EQ band has a Gain control for boosting or cutting the corresponding frequen­cies. Gain controls are not used on High Pass, Low Pass, or Notch filters.
EQ Type Selectors (7-Band EQ)
Band Gain control
Chapter 4: EQ III 19
Frequency Control
Frequency
response
curve
Control dot
Frequency Graph
display
EQ Type selector
Gain, Freq and
Input Level and
Polarity controls
Q controls
Each EQ band has a Frequency control that sets the center frequency (Peak, Shelf and Notch EQs) or the cutoff frequency (High Pass and Low Pass fil­ters) for that band.
Frequency control
Q Control
Peak and Notch
control changes the width of the EQ band. Higher Q values represent narrower bandwidths. Lower Q values represent wider bandwidths.
Shelf
On Shelf bands, the Q control changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher Q values represent steeper shelving curves. Lower Q values represent broader shelving curves.
On Peak and Notch bands, the Q

1-Band EQ III

The Frequency Graph display in the 1-Band EQ shows a control dot that indicates the center fre­quency (Peak, Shelf and Notch Filters) or the cutoff frequency (High Pass and Low Pass filters) for the currently selected filter type.
Frequency Graph display
Band Pass
On High Pass and Low Pass bands, the Q control lets you select from any of the following Slope values: 6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave.
1-Band EQ
The 1-Band EQ may be set to any one of six EQ types: High Pass, Notch, High Shelf, Low Shelf, Peak, and Low Pass, by clicking the corresponding icon in the EQ Type selector.
Q control
Chapter 4: EQ III 20
Band Controls
Notch Filter
The individual EQ types have some combination of the following controls, as noted below.
Control Value
Frequency Range (All) 20 Hz to 20 kHz
Frequency Default (All) 1 kHz
Q Range (Low/High Shelf) 0.1 to 2.0
Q Range (Peak/Notch) 0.1 to 10.0
Q Default (All) 1.0
Gain Range (Low/High Shelf) –12 dB to +12 dB
High Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
1-Band EQ III Types
High Pass Filter
The High Pass filter attenuates all frequencies be­low the Frequency setting at the selected rate (6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave) while letting all frequencies above pass through. No gain control is available for this filter type.
The Notch Filter attenuates a narrow band of fre­quencies centered around the Frequency setting. No gain control is available for this EQ type. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.
1-Band EQ set to Notch Filter
High Shelf EQ
The High Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at and above the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.
1-Band EQ set to High Shelf EQ
1-Band EQ set to High Pass Filter
Chapter 4: EQ III 21
Low Shelf EQ
Low Pass Filter
The Low Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at and below the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q set­ting determines the shape of the shelving curve.
1-Band EQ set to Low Shelf EQ
Peak EQ
The Peak EQ boosts or cuts a band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.
The Low Pass filter attenuates all frequencies above the cutoff frequency setting at the selected rate (6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave) while letting all frequencies below pass through. No gain control is available for this filter type.
1-Band EQ set to Low Pass Filter
1-Band EQ set to Peak EQ
Chapter 4: EQ III 22

7-Band EQ III

High Pass/
Low Pass/
Low
Shelf/Peak
Mid
Peak
High
Shelf/Peak
Low Mid
Peak
High Mid
Peak
Input/Output Level meters
Frequency Graph
Display
Input/Output Level
and
Polarity controls
Low Notch
High Notch
The 7-Band EQ has the following available bands: High Pass/Low Notch, Low Pass/High Notch, Low Shelf/Low Peak, Low Mid Peak, Mid Peak, High Mid Peak, and High Shelf/High Peak.
All seven bands are available for simultaneous use. In the factory default setting, the High Pass/Low Notch and Low Pass/High Notch bands are out of circuit, the Low Shelf and High Shelf bands are selected and in circuit, and the Low Mid Peak, Mid Peak, High Mid Peak bands are in circuit.
7-Band EQ
Chapter 4: EQ III 23
7-Band EQ III High Pass/Low
High Pass Filter
button
Frequency
control
Slope
control
Frequency
controlQcontrol
Band
Enable
button
Low Notch EQ
button
Band
Enable
button
Low Pass Filter
button
Frequency
control
Slope
control
Frequency
controlQcontrol
Band Enable button
High Notch EQ
button
Band
Enable
button
Notch
7-Band EQ III Low Pass/High Notch
The High Pass/Notch band is switchable between high pass filter and notch EQ functions. By default, this band is set to High Pass Filter.
High Pass Filter
Attenuates all frequencies below the Frequency setting at the selected slope while letting all frequencies above pass through.
Low Notch EQ
Attenuates a narrow band of fre­quencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.
The Low Pass/Notch band is switchable between low pass filter and notch EQ functions. By default, this band is set to Low Pass Filter.
Low Pass Filter
Attenuates all frequencies above the Frequency setting at the selected slope while letting all frequencies below pass through.
High Notch EQ
Attenuates a narrow band of fre­quencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.
High Pass filter (left) and Low Notch EQ (right)
The High Pass and Low Notch EQ controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in gray. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 20 Hz to 8 kHz
Frequency Default 20 Hz
HPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct
Low Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Low Notch Q Default 1.0
Chapter 4: EQ III 24
Low Pass filter (left) and High Notch EQ (right)
The Low Pass and High Notch EQ controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in gray. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 120 Hz to 20 kHz
Frequency Default 20 kHz
HPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct
High Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
High Notch Q Default 1.0
7-Band EQ III Low Shelf/Low
Low Shelf EQ
button
Frequency
control
Band Enable button
Gain
control
Q
control
Low Peak EQ
button
Frequency
control
Band
Enable
button
Gain
control
Q
control
Frequency
control
Band
Enable
button
Gain
control
Q
control
Peak
The Low Shelf/Peak band is switchable between low shelf EQ and low peak EQ functions. By de­fault, this band is set to Low Shelf.
Low Shelf EQ
low the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.
Low Peak EQ
centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.
Boosts or cuts frequencies at and be-
Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies
The Low Shelf and Low Peak Gain controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in red. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 20 Hz to 500 Hz
Frequency Default 100 Hz
Low Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0
Low Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Q Default 1.0
Low Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB
Low Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
7-Band EQ III Low Mid Peak
The Low Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.
Low Shelf EQ (left) and Low Peak EQ (right)
Chapter 4: EQ III 25
Low Mid Peak EQ
The Low Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in brown.
The following control values are available:
Frequency
control
Band
Enable
button
Gain
control
Q
control
Frequency
control
Band
Enable
button
Gain
control
Q
control
7-Band EQ III High Mid Peak
Control Value
Frequency Range 40 Hz to 1 kHz
Frequency Default 200 Hz
Low Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Low Mid Peak Q Default 1.0
Low Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
7-Band EQ III Mid Peak
The Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies cen­tered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.
The High Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.
High Mid Peak EQ
The High Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in green. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 200 Hz to 18 kHz
Frequency Default 2 kHz
Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Mid Peak EQ
The Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph
Mid Peak Q Default 1.0
Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
elements are displayed on-screen in yellow. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 125 Hz to 8 kHz
Frequency Default 1 kHz
Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Mid Peak Q Default 1.0
Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
Chapter 4: EQ III 26
7-Band EQ III High Shelf/High
High Shelf EQ
button
Frequency
control
Band Enable button
Gain
control
Q
control
High Peak EQ
button
Frequency
control
Band Enable button
Gain
control
Q
control
Peak
The High Shelf/Peak band is switchable between high shelf EQ and high peak EQ functions. By de­fault, this band is set to High Shelf.
High Shelf EQ
above the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q set­ting determines the shape of the shelving curve.
High Peak EQ
centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.
Boosts or cuts frequencies at and
Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies
The High Shelf and High Peak Gain controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in blue. The following control values are available:
Control Value
Frequency Range 1.8 kHz to 20 kHz
Frequency Default 6 kHz
High Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0
High Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
Q Default 1.0
High Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB
High Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
High Shelf EQ (left) and High Peak EQ (right)
Chapter 4: EQ III 27
Frequency Graph Display
High Pass control dot
Low Mid
control dot
High Mid
control dot
Low Pass control dot
(gray) (brown) (green) (gray)
Low
control dot
(red)
Mid
control dot
(yellow)
High
control dot
(blue)
Frequency
response
curve
(7-Band EQ Only)
The Frequency Graph display in the 7-Band EQ shows a color-coded control dot that corresponds to the color of the Gain control for each band. The filter shape of each band is similarly color-coded. The white fre­quency response curve shows the contribution of each of the enabled filters to the overall EQ curve.
Frequency Graph display for the 7-Band EQ
Chapter 4: EQ III 28

Chapter 5: Eleven Effects Graphic EQ

Graphic EQ

Graphic EQ is useful for simple frequency sculpt­ing. Use Graphic EQ before other effects, such as Distortion, to shape the sonic results of additional processing.
Graphic EQ is available as a Mono or Stereo plug-in.
Frequency Band Gain
Graphic EQ provides gain controls for five fre­quency bands:
3.25 kHz.
The
370 Hz, 800 Hz, and 2kHz bands can be
boosted by up to 18 dB and attenuated down by as much as –18 dB.
100 Hz and 3.25 kHz bands can be boosted by
The up to 12 dB and attenuated down by as much as –12 dB.
Output Gain
The Output gain control lets you boost the plug-in output by as much as +6 dB or attenuate the output by as much as – 20 dB.
100 Hz, 370 Hz, 800 Hz, 2kHz, and
Chapter 5: Eleven Effects Graphic EQ 29

Chapter 6: Focusrite D2

Focusrite D2 is a high-quality digital equalizer plug-in for Pro Tools. Developed in cooperation with Focusrite, the D2 is based on the acclaimed Red Range 2 It provides up to six simultaneous bands of EQ, in­cluding: high-pass, low-shelf, low-mid peak, high­mid peak, high-shelf, and low-pass filters. D2 in­cludes a highly accurate Cartesian graph that dis­plays EQ curves in real-time as EQ controls are ad­justed.
D2 is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
D2 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz,
176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates. D2 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
plug-in.
dual EQ, designed by Rupert Neve.

D2 Configurations

There are three configurations of the Focusrite D2 plug-in.
1–2 Band EQ
D2 1-2 Band can use up to two filters simultane­ously, depending on which you enable. The high­pass, low-shelf, and low-pass filters each utilize the entire module and cannot be used in combination with another filter. The low-mid peak, high-mid peak, or high-shelf filters can be used in combina­tion with each other (up to two bands total).
4-Band EQ
D2 4-Band can use up to four filters simultane­ously. Any combination of filters can be engaged, up to a total of four bands.
6-Band EQ
D2 6-Band can use up to six filters simultaneously. Any combination of filters can be engaged, up to a total of six bands. By default, the low-pass and high-pass filters are in Bypass mode when the 6-Band EQ is first opened.
Focusrite D2
Focusrite D2 supports EQ Curve in Pro Tools
2018.1 and later.
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 30

D2 Controls

Input Level
Input Level allows you to attenuate signal input level to the D2. The range of this control is from –18 dB to +12 dB.
When you use D2 in stereo, each channel has its own separate Input Level knob. To adjust input lev­els for both channels simultaneously, select the Link button, then drag either knob.
input Level
Output Level
Output Level allows you to adjust the overall out­put gain. The range of this control is from –18 dB to +12 dB.
Meters
The D2 high-resolution plasma-style meters indi­cate signal levels and detect clipping at the input, algorithm, or output stage. When D2 is used in ste­reo, two meters appear, one for each channel.
A Clip Indicator is located above each meter. It in­dicates clipping by increasing its brightness as suc­cessive samples are clipped. Click the Clip Indica­tor to clear it. Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt­clicking (Windows) clears both channels when D2 is used in stereo.
Meters (Stereo mode)
The following metering indications are used:
Output Level
When you use the D2 plug-in in stereo, each chan­nel has its own separate output level knob. To ad­just output levels for both channels simultaneously, select the Link button.
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 31
• Green = nominal levels
• Yellow = pre-clipping at –6 dB below full scale signal
• Red = full scale signal (clipping)
Frequency Display
EQ Filter Controls
The frequency display is a visual representation of the current EQ settings. As you adjust the controls of any currently active filter, the display plots the changes to the EQ curve in real-time. If you are us­ing D2 in stereo, the frequency display shows the EQ curve for the right channel in red and the left channel in blue.
Cartesian Graph
To reset all D2 controls to their default settings, Option-click (Mac) or Alt-click (Windows) the frequency display. To reset controls for both channels when in Stereo mode, Option-Shift-click (Mac) or Alt-Shift-click (Windows) the frequency display.
Each of the six different EQ filters has its own con­trols and its own icon. The icons act as three-state switches for enabling, disabling, or bypassing the specific filter. The current state of a filter is indi­cated by its color:
• White = enabled. In this state the filter is active, audible, and using available DSP resources.
• Black = disabled. In this state the filter is not us­ing any DSP resources and has no effect on au­dio.
• Gray = bypassed. In this state the filter is not ac­tive, but is still using available DSP resources. The effect of the filter is not audible.
High-Pass Filter
The 18 dB/octave High-Pass Filter provides a ro­tary control for adjusting the corner (cutoff) fre­quency, variable from 20 Hz to 6.4 kHz.
High-Pass Filter
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 32
Low-Shelf Filter
High-Mid Peak Filter
The Low-Shelf Filter provides two rotary controls: The upper rotary control adjusts the corner fre­quency, variable from 33 Hz to 460 Hz. The lower rotary control adjusts the filter’s amplitude gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB from unity.
Low-Shelf Filter
Low-Mid Peak Filter
The Low-Mid Peak Filter provides three rotary controls. The upper rotary control adjusts the center frequency, variable from 33 Hz to 6.4 kHz. The lower left rotary control adjusts the filter’s ampli­tude gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB from unity (utilizing a reciprocal curve for both gain and attenuation). The lower right rotary control adjusts filter “Q” which is variable from 0.7 to 4.0.
The High-Mid Peak Filter provides three rotary controls. The upper rotary control adjusts the center frequency, variable from 120 Hz to 18 kHz. The lower left rotary control adjusts the filter’s ampli­tude gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB from unity (utilizing a reciprocal curve for both gain and attenuation). The lower right rotary control adjusts filter “Q” which is variable from 0.7 to 4.0.
High-Mid Peak Filter
High-Shelf Filter
The High-Shelf Filter provides two rotary controls: The upper rotary control adjusts the corner fre­quency, variable from 3.3 kHz to 18 kHz. The lower rotary control adjusts the filter’s amplitude gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB from unity.
Low-Mid Peak Filter
High-Shelf Filter
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 33
Low-Pass Filter
The 18 dB/octave Low-Pass Filter provides a ro­tary control for adjusting the filter’s cutoff fre­quency, variable from 100 Hz to 18 kHz.
Low-Pass Filter
Enabling, Disabling and Bypassing EQ Filters
You can enable, disable, or bypass specific EQ fil­ters by clicking them.
To disable a filter:
Control-click (Mac) or Start-click (Windows)
the EQ Filter icon. When disabled, the icon is black.

Using D2 in Stereo

Because Focusrite D2 has a single set of Filter con­trol knobs, when it is used in stereo, you must select which channel, left or right, you want to edit.
Left Channel and Right Channel Buttons
The Left Channel and Right Channel buttons are used to select which controls are active.
To re-enable a filter:
Click the EQ filter icon. When enabled, the icon
Left Channel, Right Channel, and Link buttons
is white.
To bypass a filter:
Click the EQ filter icon a second time. When by-
passed, the icon is gray.
If you are using all available bands of the 1–2 Band or 4–Band EQ and want to change fil­ter types, you must disable one filter before you can enable a different one.
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 34
Link Button
The Link button lets you adjust controls for both channels simultaneously. By default, Link mode is enabled so that you can maintain parity between channels.
You can also use Link mode to help you maintain a relative offset between control settings on the two channels.
To maintain an offset between channels:
1 Deselect the Link button. 2 Select a channel button, left or right, and adjust
the controls for that channel.
3 Select Link mode and adjust the same controls
for the opposite channel. D2 will maintain the relative offset between the two channels.
To copy the control settings of the active channel to the opposite channel, Option-click (Mac) or Alt-click (Windows) while linking channels.
Chapter 6: Focusrite D2 35

Chapter 7: JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer

The JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer is an EQ plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
VC5 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
VC5 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.
JOEMEEK Meequalizer VC5 EQ
The VC5 offers simple controls with incredibly warm, musical results. Among countless other achievements, Joe Meek built custom gear to get the sounds in his head onto tape. One device was a treble and bass circuit with a sweepable mid con­trol, built into a tiny tobacco tin. The Meequalizer VC5 virtually recreates the exact circuitry used by Joe Meek in this device.

JOEMEEK Meequalizer Controls

Operation of the Meequalizer is simple and to the point.
Bass
The Bass control adjusts low frequencies
±11.
Mid and Mid Freq
allow you to adjust mid frequencies, from 500Hz to
3.5KHz, ±11.
Treble
The Treble control adjusts high frequencies
±11.
Gain
The Gain control allows you to adjust the out-
put level ±11.
The Mid and Mid Freq controls
VC5 supports EQ Curve in Pro Tools 2018.1 and later.
Chapter 7: JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer 36

Chapter 8: Pultec Plug-Ins

The Pultec plug-ins are a set of EQ plug-ins that are available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. The following plug-ins are included:
• Pultec EQP-1A
• Pultec EQH-2
• Pultec MEQ-5 The Pultec plug-ins support 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
The Pultec plug-ins operate as mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-ins.
Pultec plug-ins support EQ Curve in Pro Tools
2018.1 and later.

Pultec EQP-1A

The Pultec EQP-1A provides smooth, sweet EQ and an extremely high quality tube audio signal path. Use it on individual tracks, critical vocals, or even across a stereo mix for mastering applications.
Built in the early 1960s, the Pultec EQP-1A offers gentle shelving program equalization on bass and highs, and offers a variable bandwidth peak boost control. A custom (and secret) filter network pro­vides all its equalization functionality. Quality transformers interface it to real-world studio equip­ment. A clean and well-designed tube amplifier provides a fixed amount of make-up gain.
Pultec EQP-1A Controls
Low Frequency Section
using the Boost and Atten knobs and the Low Fre­quency switch, located at the left side of the unit. All low-frequency equalization is a gentle shelving type, 6 dB per octave.
High Frequency Boost Section
high frequencies using the Bandwidth and Boost knobs and the High Frequency switch.
High Frequency Attenuate Section
quencies using the Atten knob and the Atten Sel switch located at the right side of the plug-in.
Use caution, because the Sharp bandwidth setting results in up to 10 dB higher output than Broad bandwidth at maximum Boost, just like on the orig­inal. But don’t feel like you’re getting cheated. Consider anything that encourages very careful and infrequent use of peaky boosts to be a Very Good Thing.
Adjust low frequencies
Boost mid and
Cut high fre-
Pultec EQP-1A
Chapter 8: Pultec Plug-Ins 37

Pultec EQH-2

Pultec MEQ-5

The Pultec EQH-2 is a program equalizer similar to the Pultec EQP-1A. It is designed to provide smooth equalization across final mixes or individ­ual tracks.
Pultec EQH-2
The Pultec EQH-2 offers three equalization sec­tions: low frequency boost and attenuation, mid­range boost only, and 10k attenuation. Like its EQP-1A sibling, it features high-quality transform­ers and a tube gain stage. But unlike the EQP-1A, the tube stage in the EQH-2 is a push-pull design. As a result, the EQH-2 offers a beefier tone.
Pultec EQH-2 Controls
Low Frequency Section
using the top row of Boost and Atten knobs and the CPS (cycles per second) switch. All low-frequency equalization is a gentle shelving type, 6 dB per oc­tave.
Adjust low frequencies
The Pultec MEQ-5 is the most unique equalizer in the Pultec family. It is particularly useful on indi­vidual tracks during mixdown.
Pultec MEQ-5
Pultec MEQ-5 Controls
The Pultec MEQ-5 offers three equalization sec­tions: low frequency boost, mid frequency boost, and wide-range attenuation. Like all Pultecs, it fea­tures quality transformers and a tube gain stage.
Low Frequency Peak
300, 500, 700, 1000 Hz) using the upper left con­trols.
Mid Frequency Peak
2k, 3k, 4k, 5k) using the controls at the upper right.
Wide-Range Dip
trols on the bottom row.
Boost low frequencies (200,
Boost mid-frequencies (1.5k,
Cut frequencies using Dip con-
High Frequency Boost Section
Boost mid and high frequencies using the KCS (kilocycles per second) and Boost knobs on the second row.
High Frequency Attenuate Section
Cut high fre­quencies using the 10k Atten knob located at the right side of the plug-in.
Chapter 8: Pultec Plug-Ins 38

Pultec Tips and Tricks

“Q” and A
You may wonder why the Pultec EQP-1A has sep­arate knobs for boost and cut. The short answer is that they connect to different circuitry in the unit.
You can use the “extra” knob to your advantage. Because the filters are not phase perfect, a Boost setting of 3 and an Atten setting of 3 can make a huge difference, even though a frequency plot wouldn’t show much difference in tone. You’re hearing the phase shift, not the tone shift.
Our ears are very sensitive to phase, and using the two knobs together, you can adjust phase at the low end while also making tonal adjustments.
On the high end, you can set Boost to 10k and Atten to 10k, then adjust Boost and Atten simultaneously. However, because Boost is a peak equalizer and Atten is a shelving equalizer, the results are much different, and you don’t get independent control of phase.
Guitars
Have multiple guitars that sound like mush in the mix? The Pultec MEQ-5 is a classic tool for achiev­ing amazing guitar blends. Try boosting one guitar and cutting another to achieve an octave of separa­tion. For example, cut one guitar using 1.5 (1500 Hz) Dip, then boost the other using 3 (3000 Hz) Peak. View the matched pairs of presets (such as Guitar 1A and 1B or 2A and 2B) for fur­ther examples of this technique.
“Q” and Boost
In the high frequency boost section, the Bandwidth and Boost controls affect one another. This is dif­ferent from modern equalizers, where adjusting Q typically doesn’t affect the amount of equalization applied.
Chapter 8: Pultec Plug-Ins 39

Part 3: Dynamics Plug-Ins

Chapter 9: BF-2A

BF-2A is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
BF-2A supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
BF-2A operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.
BF-2A
Designed and manufactured in the early 1960s, the LA-2A achieved wide acclaim for its smooth com­pression action and extremely high quality audio signal path. The BF-2A has been meticulously crafted to capture every nuance of the legendary LA-2A tube studio compressor, providing the most authentic vintage compression sound available.
Originally designed as a limiter for broadcast au­dio, a Comp/Limit switch was added to LA-2A compressors after serial number 572. The subse­quent addition of a Comp (Compress) setting made the LA-2A even more popular for use in audio pro­duction. However, the switch was inconveniently located on the back of the unit next to the terminal strips and tube sockets in the original version. In the BF-2A plug-in, the switch has been placed on the front panel, where you can make better use of it.
The heart of the LA-2A is its patented T4B Electro-Optical Attenuator, which provides the compression action. The T4B consists of a photo­conductive cell, which changes resistance when light strikes it. It is attached to an electrolumines­cent panel, which produces light in response to voltage. Audio (voltage) is applied to the light source, and what happens as the audio converts to light and back to voltage gives the LA-2A its unique compression action (BF-2A preserves all the subtle characteristics of this unique electronic circuit). After compression, gain brings the signal back to its original level. The LA-2A’s gain comes from a tube amplifier, which imparts further char­acter to the tone. In fact, it’s common to see engi­neers using the LA-2A simply as a line amp, with­out any compression applied to the signal.
One beautiful side effect of the LA-2A’s elegant design is that it’s easy to hear the compression ac­tion. When the BF-2A’s two knobs are set properly, you know you got it right.
Chapter 9: BF-2A 41

BF-2A Controls

The Peak Reduction and Gain controls combine with the Comp/Limit switch to determine the amount and sound of the compression. The follow­ing controls and meters are provided:
Gain
Gain provides makeup gain to bring the signal
back after passing through peak reduction.
Peak Reduction
amount of signal entering the side-chain, which in turn affects the amount of compression and the threshold. The more Peak Reduction you dial in, the more “squashed” the sound. Too little peak re­duction and you will not hear any compression ac­tion; too much and the sound becomes muffled and dead sounding.
Comp/Lim
compression ratio. The common setting for audio production is Comp, which provides a maximum compression ratio of approximately 3:1. In Limit mode, the unit behaves more like a broadcast lim­iter, with a higher threshold and compression ratio of approximately 12:1.
Meter
Both Gain Reduction and Output metering
are provided. The Meter knob operates as follows:
• When set to Gain Reduction, the meter needle
moves backward from 0 to show the amount of compression being applied to the signal in dB.
• When set to Output, the needle indicates the out-
put level of the signal. The meter is calibrated with 0 VU indicating –18 dBFS.
Peak Reduction controls the
The Comp/Limit switch affects the

Using the BF-2A Side-Chain Filter

The BF-2A provides an extra, a side-chain filter, that does not have a control on the plug-in inter­face, but that can be accessed on-screen through Pro Tools automation controls. In addition, the side-chain filter can be adjusted directly from any supported control surface.
This side-chain filter reproduces the effect of an ad­justable resistor on the back panel of the LA-2A. This control cuts the low frequencies from the side­chain, or control signal, that determines the amount of gain reduction applied by the compressor.
By increasing the value of the side-chain filter, you filter out frequencies below 250 Hz from the con­trol signal, and decrease their effect on gain reduc­tion.
A setting of zero means that the filter is not ap-
plied to the side chain signal.
A setting of 100 means that all frequencies be-
low 250 Hz are filtered out of the side chain signal.
To access the side-chain filter on-screen:
1 Click the Plug-In Automation button in the
Plug-In window to open the Automation Enable window.
2 In the list of controls at the left, click to select
Side-Chain Filter and click click a control in the list).
3 Click OK to close the plug-in automation win-
dow.
Add (or just double-
Chapter 9: BF-2A 42
4 In the Edit window, do one of the following:
• Click the Track View selector and select Side-
Chain Filter from the BF-2A sub-menu.
• Reveal an Automation lane for the track, click
the Automation Type selector and select Side­Chain Filter from the BF-2A sub-menu.
5 Edit the breakpoint automation for the BF-2A
side-chain filter. Control range is from 0 (the de­fault setting where no filtering is applied to the side-chain) to 100% (maximum side-chain fil­tering).
To access the side-chain filter from a control surface:
1 Focus the BF-2A plug-in on your control sur-
face.
2 Adjust the encoder or fader current targeting the
Side-Chain Filter control.
For more information on plug-in automation, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide

BF-2A Tips and Tricks

AudioSuite Processing
When using the AudioSuite version of the BF-2A, be sure to select an auxillary side-chain input (nor­mally the track you’re processing). The default is “None” and if you leave it set like this, there is nothing feeding the detector and you will not hear any compression action.
Line Amp
Turn the Peak Reduction knob full counterclock­wise (off) and use the Gain control to increase the signal level. Although the BF-2A does not com­press the sound with these settings, it still adds its unique character to the tone.
Feed the BF-2A into the BF76
Or vice versa. Glynn Johns (who has worked with the Stones, the Who, and others) popularized the early ‘70s British trick of combining a slower com­pressor with a faster one. The effect can produce very interesting sounds! Try applying Peak Reduc­tion using the BF-2A, then squash the missed at­tacks using the faster BF76.
Chapter 9: BF-2A 43

Chapter 10: BF-3A

BF-3A is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
BF-3A supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
BF-3A operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.
BF-3A
BF-3A is based on the classic LA-3A that adds a smoothness and sonic texture that makes sounds jump right out of the mix. Designed and manufac­tured in the late 1960s, the original LA-3A shares many components in common with the LA-2A compressor. Just like the LA-2A, the heart of the LA-3A is the T4B Electro-Optical Attenuator. This is a device that converts audio to light and back and is largely responsible for the compression character of the unit.
While the LA-2A’s gain comes from a tube ampli­fier, the LA-3A's gain comes from a solid-state (transistor) amplifier. This gives the LA-3A a solid midrange and more aggressive tone. Other subtle modifications change the behavior of the T4B, causing it to respond differently—particularly in response to percussive material.
The LA-3A is famous for its unique sonic imprint on guitar, piano, vocals and drums. Because it's so easy to control, you'll be getting classic tones in no time with the BF-3A.

BF-3A Controls

The Peak Reduction and Output Gain controls combine with the Comp/Limit switch to determine the amount and sound of the compression. The fol­lowing controls and meters are provided:
Peak Reduction
amount of signal entering the side-chain. The more Peak Reduction you dial in, the more “squashed” and compressed the sound will be. Too little peak reduction and you won’t hear any compression ac­tion; too much and the sound becomes muffled and dead sounding.
Output Gain
make the signal louder after passing through the peak reduction.
Peak Reduction controls the
Output Gain provides makeup gain to
Chapter 10: BF-3A 44
Comp/Lim
compression ratio. The common setting for audio production is Comp, which provides a maximum compression ratio of approximately 3:1. In Limit mode, the unit behaves more like a broadcast lim­iter, with a higher threshold and compression ratio of approximately 15:1.
Meter
are provided. The Meter knob operates as follows:
• When set to Gain Reduction, the meter needle
moves backward from 0 to show the amount of compression being applied to the signal in dB.
• When set to Output, the needle indicates the out-
put level of the signal. The meter is calibrated with 0 VU indicating –18 dBFS.
The Comp/Limit switch affects the
Both Gain Reduction and Output metering

BF-3A Tips and Tricks

AudioSuite Processing
When using the AudioSuite version of the BF-3A, be sure to select an auxillary side-chain input (nor­mally the track you are processing). The default is “None” and if you leave it set like this, there is nothing feeding the detector and you will not hear any compression action.
Line Amp
Turn the Peak Reduction knob full counterclock­wise (off) and use the Gain control to increase the signal level. Although the BF-3A does not com­press the sound with these settings, it still adds its unique character to the tone.
Chapter 10: BF-3A 45

Chapter 11: BF76

BF76 is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
BF76 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
BF76 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.
BF76
Modeled after the solid-state 1176 studio compres­sor, BF76 preserves every sonic subtlety of this classic piece of studio gear.
The 1176 Compressor, originally introduced in the late 1970s, uses a FET (field-effect transistor). The 1176 also uses solid state amplification. The 1176 still provides an extremely high quality audio sig­nal path, but because of these internal differences, offers a much different compression sound than other compressors.
Four selectable compression ratios are provided, along with controls allowing variable attack and re­lease times.

BF76 Controls

BF76 provides the following controls:
Input
The Input control sets the input signal level to the compressor, which, in the 1176 design, deter­mines both the threshold and amount of peak re­duction.
Output
The Output control sets output level. Use it to bring the signal back to unity after applying gain reduction.
Attack and Release
trols set the attack and release times of the com­pressor. Full counterclockwise is slowest, and full clockwise is fastest. Attack times vary between 0.4 milliseconds to 5.7 milliseconds. Release times vary between 60 and 1,100 milliseconds.
Ratio
The Ratio Push switches select the compres-
sion ratio from 4:1 to 20:1.
Meter
The Meter Push switches affect the meter-
ing.
• GR shows the amount of gain reduction.
• –18 and –24 show the output level (calibrated so
that 0VU indicates –18dB FS and –24dB FS re­spectively).
• The “Off” switch turns off the meter.
The Attack and Release con-
Chapter 11: BF76 46

BF76 Tips and Tricks

Selecting Proper Attack and Release Times
AudioSuite Processing
When using the AudioSuite version of BF76, be sure to select a side-chain input (normally the track you are processing). The default is “None” and if you leave it set like this, there’s nothing feeding the detector and you won’t hear any compression ac­tion.
Unexpected Visit from A&R Weevil Yields Instant Hit Mix
A favorite feature on one megabuck mixing con­sole is its stereo bus compressor. With the flick of a switch, a punchy 8:1 compressor grabs the current mix producing “instant radio hit.” It’s also a handy way to make quick headphone submixes when tracking overdubs.
Give the Kids What They Want
Shift-click one of the Ratio Push switches to enable the “All Buttons In” mode. The compression ratio is still only 20:1, but the knee changes drastically and the compressor starts (mis)behaving a little bit like an expander—watch the meter for details. Hey, try it—sometimes it even sounds good.
As on the original unit, setting either the attack or release time too fast generates signal distortion. Again, this may or may not be a effect. A good starting point for attack and release is “6” and “3” (the defaults), and you can adjust as follows:
When compressing, use the slowest attack you can that preserves a dynamic range. Faster attacks re­move the “punch” from the performance; slower attacks inhibit the compression you need to smooth things out.
When limiting, use the fastest attack time you can before you start to hear signal distortion in the low end. With BF76, the attack time ranges from “in­credibly fast” to “really damn fast” by modern stan­dards. It can be hard to hear the difference.
Release times are more critical with BF76. To set release times, listen for loud attacks and what hap­pens immediately after the peaks. Set the release time fast enough that you don’t hear unnatural dy­namic changes, but slow enough that you don’t hear unnecessary pumping between two loud pas­sages in rapid succession.
Chapter 11: BF76 47

Chapter 12: Channel Strip

Avid Channel Strip is available in DSP , Native, and AudioSuite formats. Channel Strip provides EQ, Dynamics, Filter, and Gain effects. Channel Strip processing algorithms are based on the Euphonix System 5 console channel strip effects.
Channel Strip supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
Channel Strip supports mono, stereo, and greater­than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.
Greater-than-stereo formats are only available with Pro Tools Ultimate.
In addition to standard knob and fader controls, Channel Strip also provides a graph to track the gain transfer curve for the Expander/Gate, Com­pressor/Limiter, and Side Chain effects, and a Fre­quency Graph display that shows the response curve for the current EQ setting on a two-dimen­sional graph of frequency and gain. The frequency graph display also lets you modify frequency, gain, and Q settings for individual EQ bands by dragging their corresponding points in the graph.
Channel Strip provides different sections for signal metering and gain adjustment, signal path ordering, dynamics processing, and equalization and filter­ing.
Channel Strip, Compressor/Limiter tab shown
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 48

Channel Strip Sections and Panes

The Channel Strip plug-in window is organized in several sections: Input, FX Chain, Output, Dynam­ics, and EQ/Filters. The Dynamics and EQ/Filters sections can be independently shown or hidden. This lets you access controls or free up screen space, depending on your needs.
When showing the Dynamics or EQ/Filters sec­tions, several tabbed panes of controls are available for each section. You can click a tab to show the controls for that tabbed pane. For Expand/Gate and Compressor/Limiter, and also for the For the EQ and Filter effects, clicking the corresponding con­trol point on the graph display automatically shows the tab for Expander/Gate or the Compressor/Lim­iter, or the corresponding EQ band or Filter.
Showing or Hiding the Dynamics and EQ/Filters Sections
You can independently show or hide the Dynamics and EX/Filters sections of the Channel Strip plug­in to use less screen space. These sections are shown by default.
To hide (or show) the Dynamics or EQ/Filters section of the plug-in window:
Click the Show/Hide triangle to the left of the
section you want to show or hide.
Channel Strip, Dynamics section hidden
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 49
Disabling or Enabling Channel Strip Effects
You can independently disable effects in the Dy­namics and EQ/Filters sections of the Channel Strip plug-in. For example, you may want to apply Comp/Limit processing to the signal, but not Exp/Gate; or, you may want to only apply only a high pass filter.
Dynamics section, Exp/Gate disabled
To enable effects in the Dynamics or EQ/Filters section:
Click the Enable/Disable button for the effect
you want to enable so that it is highlighted.
To disable effects in the Dynamics or EQ/Filters section:
Click the Enable/Disable button for the effect
you want to disable so that it is not highlighted.
Listen Mode
The Side Chain tab in the Dynamics section, and the EQ and Filter tabs in the EQ/Filter section pro­vide a Listen button.
When enabled for the Side Chain, Listen mode
lets you hear the input signal that feeds the dynamic section. This can be either the external key input or the internal side chain (including the applied filter).
When enabled for any of the EQ bands, Listen
solos the corresponding EQ band and (temporarily) inverts the EQ Type so that you can tune the Fre­quency and the Q for that EQ band.
When enabled for either of the Filter effects,
Listen solos the enabled Filter band and inverts the Filter. This allows you to hear only hear the portion of the audio signal that is being removed by the filter.
To enable (or disable) Listen on the Side Chain effect, EQ band, or a Filter effect:
Click the Listen button for the Dynamics or
EQ/Filter tab you want so that it is highlighted. Click it again so that it is not highlighted to dis­able it.
Channel Strip, Chain Listen mode enabled
Control-Shift-click (Mac) or Start-Shift-click (Windows) and hold an EQ or Filter control point in the Frequency Graph to temporarily switch to Listen mode for that EQ band or Filter effect.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 50

Channel Strip Input Section

The Input section provides input metering, and controls for trimming the input signal and inverting its phase. It can also be toggled to show post-pro­cessing gain reduction meters.
Input Meters
The Input meters show peak signal levels before processing:
Dark Blue
–12 dB.
Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
Input section (5.1 channel format shown)
Input Trim Control
The Input Trim control sets the input gain of the plug-in before EQ processing, letting you make up gain or prevent clipping at the plug-in input stage.
To Trim the input signal, do one of the following:
Click in the Input Trim field and type a Trim
value (–36.0 dB to +36.0 dB).
Click Trim and drag up or down to adjust the
Input Trim setting.
Light Blue
Indicates pre-clipping levels, from
–12 dB to 0 dB.
White
Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to
+6 dB.
Gain Reduction Meters
The Input meter can be switched to show Gain Re­duction metering for the processed signal from 0 dB to –36 dB.
The Gain Reduction meters are usually displayed in yellow. When the the Expander and the Compressor is greater than 0 dB, the Gain Reduction meter displays the amount of the Knee level in amber over the meter’s usual yellow display.
To toggle between the Gain Reduction and Input meters:
Click the Input/Gain Reduction toggle in the top
right-hand corner of the Input section.
Knee setting for either or both
Phase Invert
The Phase Invert button at the top of the Input sec­tion inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal, to help compensate for phase anomalies that can occur either in multi-microphone environments or because of mis-wired balanced connections.
To enable (or disable) phase inversion on input:
Click the Phase Invert button so that it is high-
lighted. Click it again so that it is not highlighted to disable it.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 51
Toggling between Input and Gain Reduction meters

Channel Strip Output Section

The Output section provides output metering and controls for adjusting the level of the output signal.
Output Meters
The Output meters show peak signal levels after processing:
Dark Blue
–12 dB.
Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
Output section (5.1 channel format shown)
Output Volume Control
The Output Volume control sets the output volume after processing, letting you make up gain or pre­vent clipping on the channel where the Channel Strip plug-in is being used. The Output Volume control can be set to apply at the end of the FX Chain (POST) or before the FX Chain (PRE), see “Channel Strip FX Chain” on page 53.
To adjust the Output Volume, do one of the following:
Click in the Output Volume field and type a
value (–INF dB to +12 dB).
Click VOL and drag up or down to adjust the
Output Volume setting.
Light Blue
Indicates pre-clipping levels, from
–12 dB to 0 dB.
White
Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to
+6 dB (which can result in distortion and clipping).
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 52

Channel Strip FX Chain

Channel Strip lets you determine the signal path through the available Equalizer (EQ), Filter (FILT), Dynamics (DYN), and Volume (VOL) processing modules. This way you can determine the best signal path for the type of processing you want.
To set the FX Chain:
1 Click the FX Chain show/hide button to reveal
the Process Order options.
Showing the FX Chain Process Order
2 Click an effects chain ordering option to select
it. The available options include:
• EQ > FILT > DYN
• EQ > DYN > FILT
• DYN > EQ > FILT
• FILT > DYN > EQ
Bypassing or Unbypassing Individual Effects Modules
In the FX Chain display, you can deselect or select individual effects modules to bypass or unbypass the effect.
FX Chain, FILT bypassed
To bypass an effect module:
Click the module so that it is not highlighted.
To unbypass an effect module:
Click the module so that it is highlighted.

Channel Strip Dynamics Section

The Dynamics section of Channel Strip provides Expander/Gate, Compressor/Limiter, and Side Chain processing all in one. This section also pro­vides a dynamics graphic display for the Compres­sor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins. The dis­play shows a curve that represents the level of the input signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the amount of gain reduction applied (on the vertical y–axis). The vertical line represents the threshold.
3 Select PRE or POST to place the Output V olume
control at the beginning or at the end of the ef­fects signal chain.
Dynamics section, All tab shown
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 53
Dynamics Graph
Input signal
level (x-axis)
Expander/Gate Threshold
Compressor/Limiter Threshold
Output signal level (y-axis)
Graph Resolution toggle
Dynamics graph display
The Dynamics Graph display—used with Ex­pander/Gate and Compressor/Limiter processing— shows a curve that represents the level of the input signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the amount of gain reduction applied (on the vertical y–axis). The display shows two vertical lines representing the Threshold setting for the Expander/Gate and Com­pressor/Limiter, respectively.
The Dynamics Graph display also features an ani­mated red ball in the gain transfer curve display. This ball shows the amount of input gain (x-axis) and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in­coming signal at any given moment. To indicate overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too fast for the current compression setting), the cursor temporarily leaves the gain transfer curve.
Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how much dynamics processing you are applying to the incoming audio signal.
Dynamics Graph Gain Reduction Resolution
Channel Strip lets you view the gain reduction scale on the Dynamics Graph display either in 3 dB increments from 0 dB to 18 dB or in 6 dB incre­ments from 0 dB to –36 dB.
To change the Dynamics Graph Gain Reduction resolution:
Click the Graph Resolution toggle.
Using the Dynamics Graph to Adjust Controls
You can drag in the Dynamics Graph display to ad­just the corresponding Expander/Gate and Com­pressor/Limiter controls. The cursor updates to show which control is being adjusted:
• Expander/Gate Ratio
• Expander/Gate Knee
• Expander/Gate Threshold
• Gate Depth
• Hysteresis
• Compressor/Limiter Ratio
• Compressor/Limiter Knee
• Compressor/Limiter Threshold
• Limiter Depth
For the Expander/Gate and Compressor Lim­iter effects, adjusting a control in the Dynam­ics Graph display automatically shows the pane that includes the adjusted control if it is not already shown (except when the All tab is shown).
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 54
Expander/Gate Controls
Depth
The Depth control sets the depth of the Ex­pander/Gate when closed. Setting the gate to higher range levels allows more and more of the gate d au­dio that falls below the threshold to peek through the gate at all times.
Dynamics section, Expander/Gate tab
Threshold
The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level be­low which an input signal must fall to trigger ex­pansion or gating. Signals that fall below the threshold will be reduced in gain. Signals that are above it will be unaffected.
The Dynamics Graph display shows the threshold as a vertical line.
Attack
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio setting to control how soft the Expander’s gain reduction curve is.
Ratio
The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion. For example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower signals be­low the threshold by one half. At higher ratio levels the Expander/Gate functions like a gate by cutting off signals that fall below the threshold. As you ad­just the ratio control, refer to the Dynamics Graph display to see how the shape of the expansion curve changes.
Hold
The Hold control specifies the duration (in seconds or milliseconds) during which the Expander/Gate will stay in effect after the initial attack occurs. This can be used as a function to keep the Ex­pander/Gate in effect for longer periods of time with a single crossing of the threshold. It can also be used to prevent gate chatter that may occur if varying input levels near the threshold cause the gate to close and open very rapidly.
Release
The Release control sets how long it takes for the gate to close after the input signal falls below the threshold level and the hold time has passed.
Knee
The Knee control sets the rate at which the Ex­pander/Gate reaches full effect once the threshold has been exceeded.
Hysteresis
The Hysteresis (Hyst) control lets you adjust whether or not the gate rapidly opens and closes when the input signal is fluctuating near the Threshold. This can help prevent undesirably rapid gating of the signal.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 55
Hysteresis applies a differential threshold for sig­nals that are rising, as opposed to signals that are falling, to reduce the chance of the gate opening when you don’t want it to. For example, if the threshold is set to –30 and Hysteresis (
Hyst) is set to
10, the gate opens when the signal reaches –20 and closes when signal reaches the set threshold of –30. This control is only available when
Gate, otherwise it is grayed out.
Ratio is set to
Compressor/Limiter Controls
Ratio
The Ratio c ontrol sets the compression ratio, or t he amount of compression applied as the input signal exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compres­sion ratio means that a 2 dB increase of level above the threshold produces a 1 db increase in output. The compression ratio ranges from 1.0:1 to 20.0:1.
Once the
Ratio control passes 20.0:1 the Compres-
sor/Limiter effect functions as a limiter rather than a compressor.
Dynamics section, Compressor/Limiter tab
Threshold
The Threshold control sets the level that an input signal must exceed to trigger compression or limit­ing. Signals that exceed this level will be com­pressed. Signals that are below it will be unaf­fected.
Attack
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold.
The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The faster the attack, the more rapidly the Compres­sor/Limiter applies attenuation to the signal. If you use fast attack times, you should generally use a proportionally longer release time, particularly with material that contains many peaks in close proximity.
At the limiter setting (
LMTR), for every decibel that
the incoming signal goes over the set Threshold, 1 dB of gain reduction is applied.
Compressor/Limiter Ratio set to LMTR
Once the
Ratio control passes the LMTR setting, it
provides negative ratio settings from –20.0:1 to 0:1.
Compressor/Limiter Ratio set to a negative value
With these settings, for every decibel that the in­coming signal goes over the set Threshold, more than 1 dB of gain reduction is applied according to the negative
Ratio setting. For example, at the set-
ting of –1.0:1, for each decibel over the set thresh­old, 2 db of gain reduction is allied. Consequently, the output signal is both compressed and made softer. You can use this as an creative effect, or as a kind of ducking effect when used with an external key input.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 56
Depth
Gain
The Depth control sets the amount of gain reduc­tion that is applied regardless of the input signal. For example, if the Limiter is set at a Threshold of –20 dB and Depth is set at 0 dB, up to 20 dB of gain reduction is applied to the incoming signal (at 0 dB). If you set Depth to –10 dB, no more than 10 dB of gain reduction is applied to the incoming signal.
Release
The Release control sets the l ength of time it take s for the Compressor/Limiter to be fully deactivated after the input signal drops below the threshold.
Release times should be set long enough that if sig­nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud section of the audio material could cause gain re­duction that continues through soft sections of pro­gram material without recovering.
Knee
The Gain control lets you boost overall output gain to compensate for heavily compressed or limited signals.
Side Chain Processing Controls
Dynamics section, Side Chain tab
Dynamics processors typically use the detected amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re­duction. This split-off signal is known as the side- chain. Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate processing features external key capabilities and filters for the side-chain.
With external key side-chain processing, you trig­ger dynamics processing using an external signal (such as a separate reference track or audio source) instead of the input signal. This external source is known as the key input.
The Knee control sets the rate at which the com­pressor reaches full compression once the threshold has been exceeded.
As you increase this control, it goes from applying “hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” compre s-
With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics processing more or less sensitive to certain fre­quencies. For example, you might configure the side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a drum track trigger dynamics processing.
sion:
• With hard-knee compression, compression be­gins when the input signal exceeds the threshold. This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting.
• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression begins and increases gradually as the input signal approaches the threshold, and reaches full com­pression after exceeding the threshold. This cre­ates smoother compression.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 57
Source
Detection
The Source selector lets you set the source for side chain processing:
Internal
If Internal is selected, the plug-in uses the
Internal, Key, or All-Linked.
amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynamics processing. With greater-than-stereo multichannel processing, the input signal for each stereo pair ef­fects only those same channels, and likewise mono channels are effected only by their own input sig­nal. For example, with an LCR multichannel for­mat, the processing for the Center channel is only triggered when the Center channel input signal reaches the threshold. However, when the input signal reaches the threshold on the Left or the Right channel, processing is triggered for both the Left and the Right channel.
Key
If Key is selected, the plug-in uses the ampli­tude of a separate reference track or external audio source to trigger dynamics processing. The refer­ence track used is selected using the Plug-In Key Input selector in the Plug-In window header. With greater-than-stereo multichannel processing, the key signal triggers dynamics processing for all pro­cessed audio channels equally.
All-Linked
If All-Linked is selected, dynamics pro­cessing is applied equally to all channels when the input signal reaches the threshold on any input channel, except for the LFE channel (if present). The LFE channel is processed independently based on its own input signal.
The Detection options include Peak or Avg (Aver­age).
Peak
Select the Peak option to apply side-chain processing according to the detected peak ampli­tude.
Average
Select the Average option to apply side­chain processing according to the detected average amplitude.
Filter Frequency
The Filter Frequency control lets you set the fre­quency for the selected
Filter Type
Filter Type.
Four Filter Type options are available for si de-chain processing:
Low Pass
Select the Low Pass option to apply a low pass filter to the side-chain processing at the selected frequency.
High Pass
Select the High Pass option to apply a high pass filter to the side-chain processing at the selected frequency.
Notch
Select the Notch option to apply a notch fil­ter to the side-chain processing at the selected fre­quency.
Band Pass
Select the Band Pass option to apply a band pass filter to the side-chain processing at the selected frequency.
Side Chain Processing Graph
The Side Chain Processing Graph display shows the frequency curve for the selected
Selecting the Source setting for Side Chain processing
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 58
the selected
Filter Frequency.
Filter Type at

Channel Strip EQ/Filters Section

Frequency
(x-axis)
Gain (y-axis)
Graph Resolution toggle
EQ control point
Filter control point
The EQ/Filters section of Channel Strip provides a high-quality 4-band parametric equalizer for adjusting the frequency spectrum of audio material.
EQ/Filters Graph
The EQ/Filters section provides an interactive Frequency Graph display t hat sho ws the response curve for the current EQ settings on a two-dimensional graph of frequency and gain. The Frequency Graph display also lets you modify frequency, gain, and Q settings for individual EQ bands by dragging their correspond­ing points in the graph. The Frequency Graph display also plots the frequency, Q, and filter shape of the two filters (when either or both are enabled).
EQ/Filters graph
Frequency Graph Gain Re solution
Channel Strip lets you view the gain scale on the Frequency Graph display either in 3 dB increments from –12 dB to +12 dB or in 6 dB increments from –24 dB to +24 dB.
To change the Frequency Graph Gain resolution:
Click the Graph Resolution toggle.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 59
Clicking and Dragging in the Frequency Graph to Adjust Controls
You can adjust the following EQ controls by drag­ging the control points directly in the Frequency Graph display:
Control-Shift-click (Mac) or Start-Shift-click (Windows) the control point for any frequency band to solo that frequency band. Drag left or right to change the frequency value.
Common Controls
Each Frequency band EQ and Filter provides the following common controls:
• Enable/disable
• Listen mode
Enable/Disable
Click the Enable/Disable button to enable or
Frequency
Dragging a control point t o the righ t in­creases the Frequency setting. Dragging a control point to the left decreases the Frequency setting.
You can press the Shift key while clicking and dragging an EQ control point up or down to adjust the Gain setting without changing the Frequency. Likewise, press the Shift key while clicking and dragging an EQ control point left or right to adjust the Freque ncy set­ting without changing the Gain setting.
Gain
Dragging a control point up increases the Gain setting. Dragging a control point down de­creases the Gain setting.
Option-Shift-click (Mac) or Alt-Shift-click
(Windows) an EQ control point to invert its
Gain setting.
Q
Click within the curve of an EQ control point and drag up or down to increase or decrease the Q set­ting.
You can also Control-click (Mac) or Start-click (Windows) and drag a control point up or down to increase or decrease the Q setting.
Low Frequency EQ Controls
EQ/Filters section, Low Frequency tab
The LF tab provides controls for the low frequency band of the EQ. The low frequency band can be set to be a Peak or Low Shelf EQ.
EQ Type
Select either the Peak or Low Shelf button to set the EQ type for the low frequency band.
Frequency
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre­quency for the low frequency band (Peak or Shelf EQ).
Gain
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the corresponding frequencies for the low frequency band.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 60
Q
Q
With the low band EQ set to Peak, the Q control changes the width of the EQ band. Higher represent narrower bandwidths. Lower
Q values
Q values
represent wider bandwidths. With the low band EQ set to Shelf, the
changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher ues represent steeper shelving curves. Lower
Q control
Q val-
Q val-
ues represent broader shelving curves.
Low Mid Frequency EQ Controls
EQ/Filters section, Low Mid Frequency tab
The LMF tab provides controls for the low mid fre­quency band of the EQ. This band is a peak EQ.
The Q control changes the width of the low mid peak EQ band. Higher bandwidths. Lower
Q values represent narrower
Q values represent wider band-
widths.
High Mid Frequency EQ Controls
EQ/Filters section, High Mid Frequency tab
The HMF tab provides controls for t he high mid fre­quency band of the EQ. This band is a peak EQ.
Frequency
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre­quency for the peak high mid frequency band.
Frequency
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre­quency for the peak low mid frequency band.
Gain
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the corresponding frequencies for the high mid fre­quency band.
Gain
Q
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the corresponding frequencies for the low mid fre­quency band.
The Q control changes the width of the high mid peak EQ band. Higher bandwidths. Lower
Q values represent narrower
Q values represent wider band-
widths.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 61
High Frequency EQ Controls
EQ/Filters section, High Frequency tab EQ/Filters section, Filter 1 tab shown
Filter 1 and Filter 2 Controls
The High Frequency EQ tab provides controls for the high frequency band of the EQ.
Filter Type
The High Frequency band can be set to be a Peak or High Shelf EQ.
Frequency
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre­quency for the high frequency band (Peak or Shelf EQ).
Gain
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the corresponding frequencies for the high frequency band.
Q
With the high band EQ set to Peak, the Q control changes the width of the EQ band. Higher represent narrower bandwidths. Lower
Q values
Q values
represent wider bandwidths. With the high band EQ set to Shelf, the
changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher ues represent steeper shelving curves. Lower
Q control
Q val-
Q val-
ues represent broader shelving curves.
The Filter 1 and Filter 2 tabs provide the same set of controls for each filter.
Filter Type
Both Filter 1 and Filter 2 can be set independently. Select from the following Filter Type options: High Pass, Low Pass, Band Pass, and Notch.
Frequency
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre­quency for the selected Filter Type (from 20 Hz to
21.0 kHz).
Slope
When the Filter Type is set to Low Pass or High Pass, the
Slope control is available. The Slope con-
trol lets you set the slope for the filter from the se­lected Frequency to –INF (12 dB/O or 24 dB/O).
Q
When the Filter Type is set to Band Pass or Notch, the
Q control is available. The Q control changes
the width of the filter around the center frequency band. Higher widths. Lower
Q values represent narrower band-
Q values represent wider band-
widths.
Chapter 12: Channel Strip 62

Chapter 13: Dynamics III

Gain Reduction meter
Threshold
arrow
Phase Invert
Input
meter
Output meter
Peak hold
indicators
Peak hold indicators
Dynamics III is a suite of three dynamics plug-ins available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats:
• Compressor/Limiter (see “Compressor/Limiter
III” on page 66)
• Expander/Gate (see “Expander/Gate III” on
page 69)
• De-Esser (see “De-Esser III” on page 72) Dynamics III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate mod­ules support mono, stereo, and greater-than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.
Greater-than-stereo formats are only available with Pro Tools Ultimate.
The De-Esser module supports mono and stereo formats only.
In addition to standard controls in each module, Dynamics III also provides a graph to track the gain transfer curve in the Compressor/Limiter and Ex­pander/Gate plug-ins, and a frequency graph to dis­play which frequencies trigger the De-Esser and which frequencies will be gain reduced.

Dynamics III Common Controls

The Levels section, the LFE Enable button, and the Dynamics Graph display of the user interface are shared between the Compressor/Limiter, Ex­pander/Gate, and De-Esser plug-ins.
Dynamics III Levels Section
The indicators and controls in the Dynamic III Lev­els section let you track input, output, and gain re­duction levels, as well as work with phase invert and the threshold setting.
See “De-Esser III Level Meters” on page 72 for more information on De-Esser III In­put/Output Level controls.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 63
I/O Meter display (stereo instance shown)
Input and Output Meters
Gain Reduction Meter
The Input (In) and Output (Out) meters show peak signal levels before and after dynamics processing:
Green
Indicates nominal levels.
Yellow
Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
–6 dB below full scale.
Red
Indicates full scale levels (clipping).
The clip indicators at the top of the Output meters indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indicator.
The Input and Output meters display differently depending on the type of track (mono, stereo, or multichannel) on which the plug-in has been inserted.
When Side-Chain Listen is enabled, the Output meter only displays the levels of the side-chain signal. See “Dynamics III Side­Chain Listen” on page 75.
Toggling Multichannel Input and Output Meters
With multichannel track types LCRS and higher, both Input and Output meters cannot be shown at the same time. Click either the Input or Output but­ton to display the appropriate level meter. The In­put/Output meters display is toggled to Output by default.
The Gain Reduction (GR) meter indicates the amount the input signal is attenuated (in dB) and shows different colors during dynamics process­ing:
Light Orange
Indicates that gain reduction is within the “knee” and has not reached the full ratio of compression.
Dark Orange
Indicates that gain reduction is being
applied at the full ratio (for example, 2:1).
Threshold Arrow
The orange Threshold arrow next to the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold. When a multi­channel instance of the plug-in has been configured to show only the Output meter, the Threshold ar­row is not displayed.
Phase Invert
The Phase Invert button at the top of the Levels sec­tion inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal, to help compensate for phase anomalies that can occur either in multi-microphone environments or because of mis-wired balanced connections.
Input (left) and Output (right) meter buttons
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 64
Dynamics III LFE Enable
Input signal
level (x-axis)
Output signal level (y-axis)
Threshold
(Pro To ols Ultimate Only)
The LFE Enable button (located in the Options sec­tion) is on by default, and enables plug-in process­ing of the LFE (low frequency effects) channel on a multichannel track formatted for 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 surround formats. To disable LFE processing, de­select this button.
Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how much dynamics processing you are applying.
LFE Enable button (Compressor/Limiter III shown)
The LFE Enable button is not available if the plug-in is not inserted on an applicable track.
Dynamics III Graph Display
The Dynamics Graph display—used with the Com­pressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins— shows a curve that represents the level of the input signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the level of the output signal (on the vertical y–axis). The orange vertical line represents the threshold.
Dynamics graph display
The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug­ins also feature an animated, multi-color cursor in their gain transfer curve displays.
The gain transfer curve of the Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins shows a moving ball cursor that shows the amount of input gain (x-axis) and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in­coming signal.
Gain transfer curve and cursor showing amount of compression
To indicate overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too fast for the current compression setting) the cursor temporarily leaves the gain transfer curve.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 65
The cursor changes color to indicate the amount of compression applied, as shown in the following ta­ble:
Cursor Color Compression Amount
white no compression
light orange below full ratio
dark orange full ratio amount
See “De-Esser III Frequency Graph Display” on page 73 for information on using the De-Esser graph display.
Dynamics III Side-Chain Section
For information on using the Side-Chain section of the Compressor/Limiter or Expander/Gate, see “Using Dynamics III Key Input for Side-Chain Processing” on page 77.
About Compression
Compression reduces the dynamic range of signals that exceed a chosen threshold by a specific amount. The Threshold control sets the level that the signal must exceed to trigger compression. 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 transients in the program material.
Of course, compression has many creative uses that break these rules.

Compressor/Limiter III

The Compressor/Limiter plug-in applies either compression or limiting to audio material, depend­ing on the ratio of compression used.
About Limiting
Limiting prevents signal peaks from ever exceed­ing a chosen threshold, and is generally used to pre­vent short-term peaks from reaching their full am­plitude. Used judiciously, limiting produces higher average levels, while avoiding overload (clipping or distortion), by limiting only some short-term transients in the source audio. To prevent the ear from hearing the gain changes, extremely short at­tack and release times can be used.
Limiting is used to remove only occasional peaks because gain reduction on successive peaks would be noticeable. If audio material contains many peaks, the threshold should be raised and the gain
Compressor/Limiter III
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 66
manually reduced so that only occasional, extreme peaks are limited.
Limiting generally begins with the ratio set at 10:1 and higher. Large ratios effectively limit the dy­namic range of the signal to a specific value by set­ting an absolute ceiling for the dynamic range.
Compressor/Limiter III Input/Output Level Meters
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev­els before and after dynamics processing. See “Dy­namics III Levels Section” on page 63 for more in­formation.
Threshold arrow on input meter
Unlike scales on analog compressors, metering scales on a digital device reflect a 0 dB value that indicates full scale (fs)—the full-code signal level.
Compressor/Limiter III Graph Display
The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see how much expansion or gating you are applying to your audio material. See “Dynamics III Graph Dis­play” on page 65.
Compressor/Limiter III Threshold Control
The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level that an input signal must exceed to trigger compression or limiting. Signals that exceed this level will be compressed. Signals that are below it will be unaf­fected.
This control has an approximate range of –60 dB to 0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no com­pression or limiting. The default value for the Threshold control is –24 dB.
An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can also be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold setting.
The Dynamics Graph display also shows the threshold as an orange vertical line.
Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display
This control ranges from –60 dB (lowest gain) to 0 dB (highest gain).
Compressor/Limiter III Ratio Control
The Ratio control sets the compression ratio, or the amount of compression applied as the input signal exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compres­sion ratio means that an input level that is 2 dB above the threshold will be attenuated, resulting in an output level that is 1 dB over the threshold.
This control ranges from 1:1 (no compression) to 100:1 (hard limiting).
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 67
Compressor/Limiter III Attack Control
Compressor/Limiter III Knee Control
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold.
The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The faster the attack, the more rapidly the Compres­sor/Limiter applies attenuation to the signal. If you use fast attack times, you should generally use a proportionally longer release time, particularly with material that contains many peaks in close proximity.
This control ranges from 10 s (fastest attack time) to 300 ms (slowest attack time).
Compressor/Limiter III Release Control
The Release control sets the length of time it takes for the Compressor/Limiter to be fully deactivated after the input signal drops below the threshold.
Release times should be set long enough that if sig­nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud section of the audio material could cause gain re­duction that continues through soft sections of pro­gram material without recovering.
This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time) to 4 seconds (slowest release time).
The Knee control sets the rate at which the com­pressor reaches full compression once the threshold has been exceeded.
As you increase this control, it goes from applying “hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” com pre s­sion:
• With hard-knee compression, compression be-
gins when the input signal exceeds the threshold. This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting.
• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression
begins and increases gradually as the input signal approaches the threshold, and reaches full com­pression after exceeding the threshold. This cre­ates smoother compression.
Graph examples of hard knee (left) and soft knee (right) compression
For example, a Knee setting of 10 dB would be the gain range over which the rat io gradually increased to the set ratio amount.
The Gain Reduction meter displays light orange while gain reduction has not exceeded the knee set­ting, and switches to dark orange when gain reduc­tion reaches the full ratio.
This control ranges from 0 db (hardest response) to 30 db (softest response).
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 68
Compressor/Limiter III Gain Control
The Gain control lets you boost overall output gain to compensate for heavily compressed or limited signals.
This control ranges from 0 dB (no gain boost) to +40 dB (loudest gain boost), with the default value at 0 dB.
For more information on the LFE channel, refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.
Compressor/Limiter III Side-Chain Section
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by the plug-in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing. The Side-Chain section lets you toggle the side­chain between the internal input signal or an exter­nal key input, and tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics processing becomes frequency-sensitive. See “Dy­namics III Side-Chain Input” on page 74.

Expander/Gate III

The Expander/Gate plug-in applies expansion or gating to audio material, depending on the ratio set­ting.
Expander/Gate III
About Expansion
Expansion decreases the gain of signals that fall be­low a chosen threshold. They are particularly use­ful for reducing noise or signal leakage that creeps into recorded material as its level falls, as often oc­curs in the case of headphone leakage.
About Gating
Gating silences signals that fall below a chosen threshold. To enable gating, simply set the Ratio and Range controls to their maximum values.
Expanders can be thought of as soft noise gates since they provide a gentler way of reducing noisy low-level signals than the typically abrupt cutoff of a gate.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 69
Expander/Gate III
Input/Output Level Meters
Expander/Gate Control
III
Threshold
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev­els before and after dynamics processing. See “Dy­namics III Levels Section” on page 63 for more in­formation.
Expander/Gate
III
Dynamics
Graph Display
The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see how much expansion or gating you are applying to your audio material. See “Dynamics III Graph Dis­play” on page 65.
Expander/Gate
III
Look Ahead
Button
Normally, dynamics processing begins when the level of the input signal crosses the threshold. When the Look Ahead button is enabled, dynamics processing begins 2 milliseconds before the level of the input signal crosses the threshold.
The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level be­low which an input signal must fall to trigger ex­pansion or gating. Signals that fall below the threshold will be reduced in gain. Signals that are above it will be unaffected.
An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can also be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold setting.
Threshold arrow on Input meter
The Dynamics Graph display also shows the threshold as an orange vertical line.
Look Ahead control
The Look Ahead control is useful for avoiding the loss of transients that may have been otherwise cut off or trimmed in a signal.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 70
Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display
This control has an approximate range of –60dB to 0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no com­pression or limiting. The default value for the Threshold control is –24 dB.
Expander/Gate
The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion. For example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower sig­nals below the threshold by one half. At higher ra­tio levels (such as 30:1 or 40:1) the Expander/Gate functions like a gate by cutting off signals that fall below the threshold. As you adjust the ratio control, refer to the built-in graph to see how the shape of the expansion curve changes.
This control ranges from 1:1 (no expansion) to 100:1 (gating).
Expander/Gate
III
Ratio Control
III
Attack
Control
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio setting to control how soft the Expander’s gain re­duction curve is.
This control ranges from 10 s (fastest attack time) to 300 ms (slowest attack time).
Expander/Gate
The Hold control specifies the duration (in seconds or milliseconds) during which the Expander/Gate will stay in effect after the initial attack occurs. This can be used as a function to keep the Ex­pander/Gate in effect for longer periods of time with a single crossing of the threshold. It can also be used to prevent gate chatter that may occur if varying input levels near the threshold cause the gate to close and open very rapidly.
III
Hold Control
Expander/Gate
III
Release
Control
The Release control sets how long it takes for the gate to close after the input signal falls below the threshold level and the hold time has passed.
This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time) to 4 seconds (slowest release time).
Expander/Gate
The Range control sets the depth of the Ex­pander/Gate when closed. Setting the gate to higher range levels allows more and more of the gate d au­dio that falls below the threshold to peek through the gate at all times.
This control ranges from –80 dB (lowest depth) to 0 dB (highest depth).
Expander/Gate
III
Range Control
III
Side-Chain
Section
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by the plug-in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing. The Side-Chain section lets you toggle the side­chain between the internal input signal or an exter­nal key input, and tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics processing becomes frequency-sensitive. See “Dy­namics III Side-Chain Input” on page 74.
This control ranges from 5 ms (shortest hold) to 4 seconds (longest hold).
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 71

De-Esser III

Gain Reduction meter
Input
meter
Output meter
The De-Esser reduces sibilants and other high fre­quency noises that can occur in vocals, voice­overs, and wind instruments such as flutes. These sounds can cause peaks in an audio signal and lead to distortion.
The De-Esser reduces these unwanted sounds using fast-acting, frequency-dependent compression. The Threshold control sets the level above which compression starts, and the Frequency (Freq) con­trol sets the frequency band in which the De-Esser operates.
De-Esser III
To improve de-essing of material that has both very loud and very soft passages, automate the Range control so that it is lower on soft sections.
.
The De-Esser has no control to directly ad­just the threshold level (the level that an inpu t signal must exceed to trigger de-essing). The amount of de-essing will vary with the input signal.
De-Esser III Level Meters
These controls let you track input, output, and gain reduction levels.
Using De-Essing Effectively
To use de-essing most effectively, insert the De-Es­ser after compressor or limiter plug-ins.
The Frequency control should be set to remove sib­ilants (typically the 4–10 kHz range) and not other parts of the signal. This helps prevent de-essing from changing the original character of the audio material in an undesired manner.
Similarly, the Range control should be set to a level
De-Esser III I/O Meter display
Input and Output Meters
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev­els before and after dynamics processing:
Green
Indicates nominal levels.
Yellow
Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
–6 dB below full scale.
Red
Indicates full scale levels (clipping).
low enough so that de-essing is triggered only by sibilants. If the Range is set too high, a loud, non­sibilant section of audio material could cause un­wanted gain reduction or cause si bilants to be ov er­attenuated.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 72
The Clip indicators at the top of each meter indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indi­cator.
De-Esser III Gain Reduction
Frequency
(x-axis)
Gain
(y-axis)
Frequency
Range
Current gain reduction
Meter
The Gain Reduction meter indicates the amount the input signal is attenuated, in dB. This meter shows different colors during de-essing:
Light Orange
applied, but has not reached the maximum level set by the Range control.
Dark Orange
reached the maximum level set by the Range con­trol.
Indicates that gain reduction is being
Indicates that gain reduction has
De-Esser III Frequency Control
The Frequency (Freq) control sets the frequency band in which the De-Esser operates. When HF Only is disabled, gain is reduced in frequencies within the specified range. When HF Only is en­abled, the gain of frequencies above the specified value will be reduced.
This control ranges from 500 Hz (lowest fre­quency) to 16 kHz (highest frequency).
De-Esser III Listen Control
When enabled, the Listen button lets you monitor the sibilant peaks used by the De-Esser as a side­chain to trigger compression. This is useful for lis­tening only to the sibilance for fine-tuning De-Es­ser controls. To monitor the whole output signal without this filtering, deselect the Listen button.
De-Esser III Frequency Graph Display
The De-Esser Frequency Graph display shows a curve that represents the level of gain reductio n (on the y-axis) for the range of the output signal's fre­quency (on the x-axis). The white line represents the current Frequency setting, and the animated or­ange line represents the level of gain reduction be­ing applied to the signal.
Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how much dynamics processing you are applying at dif­ferent points in the frequency spectrum.
De-Esser III Range Control
The Range control defines the maximum amount of gain reduction possible when a signal is detected at the frequency set by the Frequency control.
This control ranges from –40 dB (maximum de­essing) to 0 dB (no de-essing).
De-Esser III HF Only Control
When the HF Only button is enabled, gain reduc­tion is applied only to the active frequency band set by the Frequency control. When the HF Only but­ton is disabled, the De-Esser applies gain reduction to the entire signal.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 73
De-Esser graph display

Dynamics III Side-Chain Input

(Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Only)
Dynamics processors typically use the detected amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re­duction. This split-off signal is known as the side- chain. The Compressor/Limiter and Ex­pander/Gate plug-ins feature external key capabili­ties and filters for the side-chain.
With external key side-chain processing, you trig­ger dynamics processing using an external signal (such as a separate reference track or audio source) instead of the input signal. This external source is known as the key input.
With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics processing more or less sensitive to certain fre­quencies. For example, you might configure the side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a drum track trigger dynamics processing.
Dynamics III Side-Chain Controls
The controls in the Side-Chain section let you tog­gle the side-chain between the internal input signal or an external key input, listen to the side-chain, and tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics processing be­comes frequency-sensitive.
Dynamics III Side-Chain External Key
The External Key toggles external side-chain pro­cessing on or off. When this button is highlighted, the plug-in uses the amplitude of a separate refer­ence track or external audio source to trigger dy­namics processing. When this button is dark gray, the External Key is disabled and the plug-in uses the amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynam­ics processing.
External Key button
Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Side-Chain
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 74
Dynamics III Side-Chain Listen
When enabled, this control lets you listen to the in­ternal or external side-ch ain inpu t by itse lf, as well as monitor its levels with the Output meter. This is especially useful for fine-tuning the plug-in’s filter settings or external key input.
Dynamics III Side-Chain High-Frequency (HF) Filter Type
The HF filter section lets you filter higher frequen­cies out of the side-chain signal so that only certain bands of high frequencies or lower frequencies pass through to trigger dynamics processing. The HF side-chain filter is switchable between Band Pass and Low Pass filters.
Side-Chain Listen button
Side-Chain Listen is not saved with other plug-in presets.
Dynamics III Side-Chain HF and LF Filter Enable Buttons
The HF Filter Enable and LF Filter Enable buttons toggle the corresponding filter in or out of the side­chain. When this button is highlighted, the filter is applied to the side-chain signal. When this button is dark gray, the filter is bypassed and available for activation.
Band Pass Filter
Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies within the narrow band centered around the Frequency set­ting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.
Band-Pass filter
Low Pass Filter
Makes triggering of dynamics pro­cessing more sensitive to frequencies below the Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.
Low Pass filter
HF and LF Filter Enable buttons
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 75
Dynamics III Side-Chain HF Frequency Control
The HF frequency control sets the frequency posi­tion for the Band Pass or Low Pass filter, and ranges from 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
High Pass Filter
Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies above the Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.
High Pass filter
HF frequency controls
Dynamics III Side-Chain Low-Frequency (LF) Filter Type
The LF filter section lets you filter lower frequen­cies out of the side-chain signal so that only certain bands of low frequencies or higher frequencies are allowed to pass through to trigger dynamics pro­cessing. The LF side-chain is switchable between Band Pass and High Pass filters.
Band-Pass Filter
Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies within the narrow band centered around the Frequency set­ting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.
Dynamics III Side-Chain LF Frequency Control
The Frequency control sets the frequency position for the Band-Pass or High Pass filter, and ranges from 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
LF frequency controls
Band-Pass filter
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 76
Using Dynamics III Key Input for Side-Chain Processing
To use a filtered or unfiltered external key input to trigger dynamics processing:
1 Click the Key Input selector and select the input
or bus carrying the audio from the reference track or external audio source.
Selecting a Key Input
2 Click External Key to activate external side-
chain processing.
External Key
4 To filter the key input so that only specific fre-
quencies trigger the plug-in, use the HF and LF controls to select a frequency range.
5 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the input or
bus that you chose as an external key input to trigger its effect.
6 Adjust the plug-in’s Threshold (Thresh) control
to fine-tune external key input triggering.
Using a Filtered Input Signal for Side-Chain Processing with Dynamics III
To use the filtered input signal to trigger dynamics processing:
1 Ensure the Key Input selector is set to No Key
Input.
Key Input selector
2 Ensure that the External Key button is disabled
(dark gray).
3 To listen to the signal that will be used to control
side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to en­able it (highlighted).
Side-Chain section
Side-Chain Listen
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 77
3 To listen to the signal that will be used to control
side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to en­able it (highlighted).
Side-Chain section
4 To filter the side-chain input so that only specific
frequencies within the input signal trigger the plug-in, use the HF and LF controls to select a frequency range.
5 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the filtered in-
put signal to trigger dynamics processing.
6 To fine-tune side-chain triggering, adjust the
plug-in controls.
Chapter 13: Dynamics III 78

Chapter 14: Eleven Effects Gray Compressor

Gray Compressor

Inspired by a well-loved ’70s solid-state compres­sor pedal, Gray Compressor can add singing sus­tain to leads or lend power and girth to chunky rhythm guitar parts.
Gray Compressor is available as a Mono (or Multi-Mono) plug-in only.
Level
The Level control sets the overall output volume of the effect.
Sustain
The Sustain control lets you adjust the threshold, and thus, the amount of compression, in the Com­pressor effect.
Chapter 14: Eleven Effects Gray Compressor 79

Chapter 15: Fairchild Plug-Ins

The Fairchild plug-ins are a pair of vintage com­pressor plug-ins that are available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.
The Fairchild plug-ins support 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates.
The Fairchild plug-ins operate as mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-ins.

Fairchild 660

Fairchild 660
Re-introducing the undisputed champion in price, weight, and performance: the $35,000, one-hun­dred pound, Fairchild 660. Avid’s no-compromise replica captures every detail of this studio classic.
Designed in the early 1950s, the Fairchild 660 is a variable-mu tube limiter. Variable-mu designs use an unusual form of vacuum tube that is capable of changing its gain dynamically.
The result? In addition to featuring a tube audio stage like the LA-2A, the Fairchild actually achieves gain reduction through the use of tubes!
The heart of the Fairchild limiter—a 6386 triode — is one such variable-mu tube. In fact, four of these tubes are used in parallel. A key part of the Fair­child design, it ensures that the output doesn’t get darker as the unit goes further into gain reduction, and also reduces distortion as the tubes are biased further into Class-B operation.
Tubes, wires, and iron
Chapter 15: Fairchild Plug-Ins 80
Fairchild 660 Controls
Fairchild 660 Tips and Tricks
Adjust the Input Gain and Threshold controls to­gether until you get the sound you want. Like many classic compressors, after a little bit of tweaking, you’ll know immediately when you get it right.
Input Gain
Input Gain sets the input level to the unit and the compression threshold, just like the In­put control on an 1176. Full clockwise is loudest.
Threshold
Threshold adjusts the gain to the side­chain, just like the Peak Reduction control on an LA-2A.
Time Constant
Selects the attack and release times for the compressor. One is fastest, and six is slow­est. Seven and eight are custom presets.
5,6,7,8…
The Fairchild manual documents Time Constant settings 5 and 6 as user presets—although you have to go inside with a soldering iron to change them. We used the “factory default” values.
Bonus Settings
Settings 7 and 8 do not exist on real-world units— well, at least most of them. These settings are taken from a real-world Fairchild modification invented by Dave Amels many years before he designed the plug-in version.
What do they do? Settings 7 and 8 offer versions of Time Constant 2 with a gentler release useful for compressing vocals and other program material where you desire more subtlety in the compression action. Give them a try—you’ve already heard them on hit songs on the radio.
Pump It Up
With a carefully adjusted Input Gain and Thresh­old, you can use Time Constant 1 to achieve a cool pumping effect on drums. The sound gets darker and fuller, and sits beautifully in a mix.
Chapter 15: Fairchild Plug-Ins 81

Fairchild 670

Avid’s no-compromise replica captures every de­tail of the Fairchild 670. The Fairchild 670 is a dual-channel unit and, as such, is only available on stereo tracks.
Note that the companion Fairchild 660 also sup­ports stereo operation. Both a Fairchild 660 and a Fairchild 670 were modeled from scratch using two different hardware units. This gives you a choice of two different-sounding Fairchild units to try on your stereo tracks!
Fairchild 670 Controls
Adjust the Input Gain and Threshold controls to­gether on both channels until you get the sound you want. Like many classic compressors, after a little bit of tweaking, you’ll know immediately when you get it right.
Input Gain
compression threshold, just like the Input control on an 1176. Full clockwise is loudest.
Threshold
like the Peak Reduction control on an LA-2A.
Sets the input level to the unit and the
Adjusts the gain to the sidechain, just
Fairchild 670
The internal design of the Fairchild 670 is similar to the Fairchild 660. However, the Fairchild 670 of­fers two channels of compression instead of one. Combined with the AGC control, this gives you even more compression options on stereo tracks.
Time Constant
Selects the attack and release times. One is fastest, and six is slowest. Seven and eight are custom presets. See “Fairchild 670” on page 82 for details on these custom settings.
AGC
Lets you select Left/Right processing or Lat/Vert processing of the two channels. Left/Right works like a dual-mono compressor with separate controls for the left and right channels. In Lat/Vert mode the top row of controls affects the in-phase (Lat) information and the bottom row of controls affects the out of phase (Vert) information. Al­though originally designed for vinyl mastering where excess Vert (vertical) information could cause the needle to jump out of the groove, you can use the Lat/Vert mode to achieve some amazing ef­fects – especially on drums.
Fairchild 670 Tips and Tricks
To exactly match the settings between channels, hold down the Shift key while adjusting a control. This is useful when trying to preserve the existing Left/Right balance on stereo material.
Chapter 15: Fairchild Plug-Ins 82

Chapter 16: Focusrite D3

Focusrite D3 is a high-quality dynamics processor plug-in. Developed in cooperation with Focusrite, the D3 is based on the highly acclaimed Red Range 3
dual mono/stereo compressor &
limiter designed by Rupert Neve. D3 is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite
formats. D3 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz,
176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates. D3 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-
in.
Focusrite D3
D3 features include:
Compressor+Limiter . This configuration allows
you to use both the compressor and the limiter at the same time. The Compressor+Limiter plug-in requires twice as much DSP as the Compres­sor/Limiter.
Compressor/Limiter. This configuration allows
you to use either the compressor or the limiter—but not both at the same time. The Compressor/Limiter plug-in uses half as much DSP as the Compres­sor+Limiter . It is provided so t hat you can conserve DSP , since you may not need both compression and limiting at the same time.
The Compressor/Limiter defaults to the compres­sor being enabled and the limiter disabled.

D3 Compressor

The D3 compressor reduces the dynamic range of audio signals that exceed a user-selectable thresh­old by a specific amount. This is accomplished by reducing output levels as input levels increase above the threshold.
The amount of output level reduction that D3 ap­plies as input levels increase is referred to as the compression ratio. This parameter is adjustable. If you set the compression ratio to 2:1, for example, for each 2 dB that the signal exceeds the thre shold, the output level will be reduced to 1 dB above the threshold. With a compression ratio of 4 :1, an 8 dB increase in input will produce only a 2 dB increase in output.
Chapter 16: Focusrite D3 83

D3 Limiter

Compressor
Limiter

D3 Side-Chain Processing

The D3 limiter operates as a fast-attack compressor with a high compression ratio. It does not attack in­stantaneously or look ahead in or der to attack ahead of time, but instead uses a very fast, 1-millisecond attack time. As such, the D3 is not a “brick wall” limiter, but limits the overall dynamic range of sig­nals in a sonically-pleasing way.
Like the Compressor, the Limiter is activated when the signal exceeds the user-selected threshold. The Limiter then compresses any signal above the se­lected threshold down to the threshold limit that you have set.
To enable the limiter:
1 Disable the compressor by Control-clicking
(Mac) or Start-clicking (Windows) its icon.
2 Click the Limiter icon.
Compressors and limiters generally use the de­tected amplitude of the input signal as a control source. Other signals can also be used as a control source by using a key input. With de-essing, for ex­ample, a frequency-modified version of the input signal is used as a trigger. This is known as side­chain processing.
Side-chain processing allows the D3 compression or limiting to be controlled by another independent audio signal. In this way you can compress or limit one track’s audio using the dynamics of a different track’s audio.

Using D3 in Stereo

In stereo configurations, all D3 controls except the Input Level affect both channels of the stereo sig­nal. The D3 RMS detector (which derives the con­trol signal that drives the dynamics processing) uses a composite of the two channels. Because of this, when stereo processing occurs, there is no im­age shift when signal levels differ between the two channels (since the composite control signal drives processing for both channels).
Compressor and Limiter icons
Chapter 16: Focusrite D3 84

D3 Common Controls

External
Key
Key Listen
Input Level
Input Level attenuates signal input level to the compressor or limiter. The range of this control is from –30 dB to 0 dB.
When you use the stereo version of the D3 plug-in, each channel has its own separate Input Level knob. To adjust input levels for both channels si­multaneously, Shift-drag. Option-Shift clicking (Mac) or Alt-Shift-clicking (Windows) either Input Level knob resets both channels to 0 dB.
Input Level
Output Level
Output Level adjusts the overall output gain. Be­cause large amounts of compression can restrict dynamic range, the Output Level knob is useful for compensating for heavily compressed signals and making up the resulting difference in level.
When you use the stereo version of the D3 plug-in, this single knob controls the master output for both channels. The range of this control is from –12 dB of attenuation to +18 dB of gain.
External Key and Key Listen
The side-chain is the split-off sign al used by a plug­in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing. Exter­nal Key lets you designate an external source (known as the key input) for the side-chain, while Key Listen lets you monitor the key input.
External Key and Key Listen toggles
See “Using the Side-Chain Input in D3” on
page 88 for detailed information on external
side-chain processing.
Meters
The meters indicate gain reduction (the top meter) and output level (the bottom meter). The Gain Re­duction meter indicates the amount of gain reduc­tion in dB. The Output Level meter indicates the output signal level in dB.
In Stereo mode, two Output Level meters appear, one for each channel. However, a single Gain Re­duction meter is used for both channels, since the D3 RMS detector uses a composite control signal.
A red Clip Indicator appears to the right of the out­put meter(s). Clicking on the Clip Indicator clears it. Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt-clicking (Win­dows) clears both channels when the plug-in is used in stereo.
Output Level
Meters
Chapter 16: Focusrite D3 85
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