Waves Audio Kramer HLS Channel User Guide

WAVES
Kramer HLS Channel
User Guide

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................................
1.1
WELCOME.........................................................................................................................................3
1.2
ABOUT KRAMER HLS CHANNEL.........................................................................................................3
ABOUT THE MODELING ......................................................................................................................4
1.3
1.4
COMPONENTS...................................................................................................................................5
CHAPTER 2 – QUICKSTART GUIDE......................................................................................................
6
CHAPTER 3 – INTERFACE AND CONTROLS.......................................................................................7
INTERFACE........................................................................................................................................7
3.1
CONTROLS........................................................................................................................................8
3.2
CHAPTER 4 – THE WAVESYSTE
4.1
THE WAVESYSTEM TOOLBAR ..........................................................................................................14
M......................................................................................................14
PRESET HANDLING..........................................................................................................................14
4.2
4.3
INTERFACE CONTROLS....................................................................................................................16
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Chapter 1 – Introduction

1.1 Welcome

Thank you for choosing Waves! In order to get the most out of your Waves processor, please take the time to read through this manual.
In conjunct an extensive Answer Base, the latest Tech Specs, detailed Installation guides, new Software Updates, and current information on Authorization and Registration.
By signing up at www.wavesupport.net products, reminders when updates are available, and information on your authorization status.

1.2 About Kramer HLS Channel

The HLS Channel is modeled after the legendary Helios console channels, designed and built by Richard Swettenham, and used by at London’s Olympic Studios. During the early ’60s, Swettenham worked at EMI’s Abbey Road Studios as a service/design engineer, later moving to Olympic studios, where he was asked to design and build an especially “musical” recording desk. The desk was a success, and began a golden era for Olympic studios, which hosted recording sessions for such artists as Jimi Hendrix, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Traffic and many others.
Following the success of the first Olympic desk came its successor. Both desks had silver-faced panels with 3-band EQs that had variable boost or cut for midrange frequencies, a high shelf at 10 kHz, special low filter that could boost at frequencies of 60Hz – 400Hz and cut at 50Hz. Their mic preamps used an especially musical transformer made by Lustraphone, a London-based consumer and pro audio equipment manufacturer.
This success of these designs drew special interest from Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records, who wanted to base a new studio venture on Swettenham’s co Olympic, rather than commissioning Richard Swettenham to build a console, Blackwell funded Swettenham’s going into business for himself, under the brand name Helios. Under the Helios brand, Swettenham continued to produce custom-made recording desks for various studios using Olympic-style EQ’s, with Beyer transformers replacing Lustraphone’s and other small variations.
Swettenham’s channels shared many basic features, but were essentia some user-driven changes. Since the original Olympic desks have since gone through several restorations jobs and lost the original transformers, Waves called upon Eddie Kramer, the engineer at Olympic during its heyday. Kramer helped us find the Helios channel that best characterized the sound of the classic rock recordings we all know and love. Eventually, we chose the first desk revision from the Rolling Stones mobile truck, courtesy of Mr. David Kean and the Audities Foundation. Thanks to them,
ion, we also suggest that you become familiar with www.wavesupport.net
, you will receive personalized information on your registered
Eddie Kramer during the late ’60s to record some of rock’s most classic tracks
sole designs. In order to avoid conflict with
n
lly custom-built to order,
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. There you will find
and a
with
we were able to model original channels that were in the truck from 1970 – 1973, when the console was redone by Helios according to specs from engineer Mick McKenna. Our long, arduous search for the perfect Olympic-style channel reflects the rarity of the original units, and we are truly excited and proud to present the Helios sound for posterity, and for the creative use of generations to come.

1.3 About the Modeling

Many different elements contribute to the unique sonic chara mixing console. Waves painstakingly modeled and incorporated these elements into the Kramer HLS Channel, in order to fully capture and replicate the sound and performance of the original equipment. In addition to modeling the Helios EQs, we also modeled the unique behavior, coloration, and drive of the console’s preamps.
These are some of the most important elements of analog behavior:
Total Harmonic Distortion
Perhaps the most important analog behavior is Total Harmonic Distortion or THD, which is defined as t fundamental frequency. THD is usually caused by amplification, and changes signal shape and content by adding odd and even harmonics of the fundamental frequencies, which can change the overall tonal balance. THD can also change peak output gain, usually by no more than +/- 0.2-0.3 dB.
he ratio of the sum of the powers of all harmonic components to the power of the
Transformers
Some hardware uses transformers to stabilize or change Input/Output loads and signal levels. In earlier days, transformers did not have a flat frequency response, and often introduced low and super-high frequency roll offs. The original channel has transformers which cause high-frequency roll off, so if you encounter loss above 10 kHz, this is due to the modeled transformers.
Hum
Waves modeled both 50 Hz power current and 60 Hz power current. If you listen closely, you will hear that there is a d to each region and dependent upon the local electrical conditions, you may find that the modeled hum is different than the hum already present in your studio, and may not be suitable for your particular use.
ifference in hum level between 50 Hz and 60 Hz. Since hum is unique
Noise
All analog equipment generates internal noise or a noise floor. In vintage equipment, the noise floor is sometimes quite high and colored. Waves modeled the noise to match the level and color of noise exhibited by the original unit, both with and without signal present.
cteristics of analog gear such as the Helios
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1.4 Components

WaveShell technology enables us to split Waves processors into smaller plug-ins, which we call components. Having a choice of co the configuration best suited to your material.
The Kramer HLS has two component processor
Kramer HLS Stereo
Kramer HLS Mono
Latency
HLS latency differs for Native & TDM versions:
Native
161 samples (all supported sample rates)
TDM
292 samples @ 44.1/48 kHz 548 samples @ 88.2/96 kHz
– A 3- band mono channel
mponents for a particular processor gives you the flexibility to choose
s
:
A 3-band stereo channel
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Chapter 2 – Quickstart Guide

At left: The EQ section of the Kramer HLS.
High frequency EQ: Grab and turn the top knob to boost or cut high frequencies.
Midrange EQ is controlled by a combination of two knobs and a
switch:
o
The Mid gain knob sets the amount of midrange frequency gain adjustment.
o
Below it is the switch that determines whether to boost (PK) or cut (TR).
o The knob to the left selects the center frequency of the
midrange EQ (in kHz).
Low frequency adjustment is controlled by two knobs:
o
The top Bass knob specifies the amount of boost for the frequency selected in th
o The lower half of the bottom knob’s scale cuts lows at 50Hz.
(In this mode, the upper
e top half of the bottom knob’s scale. bass knob is inactive.)
To control analog coloration, use the Source switch to select Mic/Line Preamp knob to select the amount of coloration. Higher values introduce more harmonic distortion with increased noise and hum. The overall level will not change significantly, as the HLS recreates the coloration alone, not the amplification itself.
If the noise level is excessive, set the Noise switch to LO. To retain only the mod harmonic distortion, bypass the noise and hum by setting Analog to OFF.
amplification and the
eled
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Chapter 3 – Interface and Controls

3.1 Interface

Mic/Line
Source
Select
Preamp
Coloration
High Freq
Gain Adjust
Mid Freq
Gain Adjust
Mid Freq
Selector
Mid Mode
Select
Low Freq
Boost/Gain
Low Band
and 50Hz
Cut
EQ Cut =
EQ In/Out
Phase
Inversion
Clip LED
VU Meter VU Calibration Meter Select
Noise Mode Analog Switch .
Output Trim
Input Gain Output Gain
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3.2 Controls

Source Select toggles between Mic and Line levels.
Range Mic, Line Default
Line
Preamp determines the amount of preamp coloration. Higher values introduce more harmonic distortion wit recreates the coloration alone, not the amplification itself.
h increased
noise and hum. The overall level will not change significantly, as the HLS
Range 20 – 70 (in 1 Default
20
0 dB steps)
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High Frequency Gain controls high shelf gain at 10 kHz.
Range
-16 dB to +12 dB (-16, -12, -8, -4, 0, 4, 8, 12)
Default
0
Mid Gain se
ts the amount of gain ap
plied to the midrange bell filter, according to the selected mode.
Range
0 to 15 (15 dB in 0.1 steps)
Default
0dB
Mid Frequency selects
Range
700 Hz to 6 kHz (700, 1, 1.4, 2, 2.8, 3.5, 4.5, 6)
Default
2.8
frequency for the midrange bell filter.
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Mid Mode selects between boost (PK) and cut (TR).
Range PK (boost), TR (cut) Default
PK
Low Band Freq/Cut From 60 to 400, this knob is used to used to select the amount of attenuation (in dB) of the 50 Hz low shelf.
select the boost frequency. From 3 to 15, it is
LF Selection (upper half) 0 (Off) to 400 (60, 120, 50 Hz Attenuation (lower half) 0 (Off) to 15 (-3, -6, -9, -12, -15 dB)
Default
0 (Off)
Low Band Boost sets the amount of boost (in d Freq/Cut control described above.
Range
0 to 15 (15 dB boost in 0.1 steps)
Default
0
250, 400 Hz)
B) for the frequency selected using the Low Band
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EQ Cut turns the EQ on (in) and off (
Range
In/Cut
Default
In
cut), while maintaining the analog and preamp characteristics.
Analog controls turns the analog noise and hum modeling on and off, and sets the pitch of the hum to match either European or American currents. To retain only the modeled harmonic distortion, bypass the noise an
Noise pads the modeled noise and hum by 20 d Low.
d hum by setting Analog to Off.
Range 50 Hz, 60 Hz, On/Off Default 60 Hz
B. If the noise level is excessive, set the Noise switch to
Range Original, Low Default Original
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Meter toggles the meter display between input and output monitoring.
Clip LED lights up when levels exceed 0 dBFS. Click to reset.
VU Meter displays input or output level in dBVU. Please note:
displays the sum of both channels. The same signal fed to both channels will show an increase of 6 dB. If this is problematic, use the VU Calibration function to compensate.
The HLS Stereo component meter
Range 24 – 8 dB Default 18 dB of headroom (0 dBVU = -18 dBFS.)
VU Calibrate controls the VU meter headroom calibration.
Please note: The VU Calibration control is represented by the little screw-head right below the VU meter display. It does not have a visible label and, for most users, the 18 should be the best choice. However, if you use outboard gear in your studio and your VU meters are calibrated for 14 dB headroom, the HLS allows you to calibrate its VU meter as well.
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dB default headroom
Trim displays the maximum peak level of the output signal and its distance from 0 dBFS. Clicking on the trim value button will reset it to 0,
and apply the differential to the output trim (up to 12 dB at a time.)
Range
-12 – +12 dB Default 0
Input contro Output controls the output level.
ls the input level.
Range
-18 dB to +18 dB (in 0.1dB steps)
Default
0 dB
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Chapter 4 – The WaveSystem

4.1 The WaveSystem Toolbar

All Waves processors feature the WaveSystem toolbar which takes care of most administrative functions you will encounter while working with your Waves software. The features of the WaveSystem too the same on practically all Waves processors, so familiarity with its features will be helpful whichever processor you are using.
Toolbar Functions
Undo Undoes the last 32 actions. Redo Redoes the last 32 undone actions. Setup A/B
Copy A->B Load Recalls presets from file Save Saves presets in the Wa ? Opens the manual for the processor you are using
Toggles bet settings Copies the current settin
ween two presets. This is useful for close comparison of different parameter
gs to the second preset register ves file formats
lbar are

4.2 Preset Handling

Preset Types
Factory Presets are permanent presets in the Load menu. Factory presets cannot be
deleted. When applicable, different component plug-ins may have different factory presets. User Presets are your favorite settings of the plug-in
Presets’. User Presets can be over-written and deleted. Setup Files may contain more than one preset. For example
session. When you open a Setup File, all its setups become part of your Load pop-up menu for fast access. This can be particularly useful with multiple instances of a plug-in in a single session. By saving all the settings you create into a single Setup File, they can all be quickly available for every instance of that plug-in.
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User Guide
saved as a preset in the Load
, a single file can contain all the presets for a
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over-written
menu, under ‘User
or
Loading Presets and Setups
Click-and-hold on the Load button to see the Load pop-up menu. The menu is divided into four sections.
If a section is not currently available it will not appear in the Load pop-up menu. Open Preset File… Select to op
creations.
‘Filename.xps’: Displays any currently loaded Setup File and its presets. Factory User Presets: Displays any loaded User Presets.
Presets: Displays the default Factory Presets.
en any setup or preset file, whether from the Library or your own
Saving Presets and Setups
Click-and-hold on the Save button to see the Save pop-up menu. Four options are available. If an option is not currently available it will be gra
Save to New File… Select this t
Save ‘File Name’ – “Preset Name” Overwrites the settings of the loaded preset (whether a User Preset
Save to ‘File Name’ As…
Put into Preset Menu As…
yed out and inaccessible.
o start a ne the setup filename, then for the preset name. You must provide a name for both the setup file and the preset. Click OK (ENTER) to complete the save. It is a good idea to create a folder in which to save several setup files for a project.
or a preset from a Setup File) with the current settings. If a Setup File is currently loaded, the name of the Setup File is displayed followed by the name of the preset itself. If a User Preset is loaded, its name is displayed. Saves the current settin open (if one is not open, the option is grayed out). You will be prompted to give the preset a name. Save the current setting your Load menu (until deleted). You will be prompted to give this preset a name. User Presets are stored in the plug-in’s preference file.
w Setup file. There are two prompts - first for
gs as a new preset into the Setup file that is
s into a User Preset that will always be in
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Deleting Presets
You may delete User Presets and presets within a Setup File. Factory Presets and Setup Library files cannot be deleted or overwritten.
1. Hold the Command (Mac)/Contro
2. Click-and-hold the Load button to see the pop-up menu.
3. While still holding the Command/Control key, select the preset or setup to delete.
4. A confirmation box will appear, allowing you to cancel or ‘OK’ the deletion.
l (PC) key down.
A/B Comparison and Copying
The Setup A/Setup B button may be clicked to compare two settings. If you load a preset in the Setup B position, this will not affe
If you want to slightly modify the settings in Setup A, you can copy them t Copy to B button, then alter Setup A and compare with the original Setup B.
The name of the current setup will be shown in the title bar (on platforms which support it), and will switch as you change from Setup A to Setup B.
Note: an asterisk will
ct the preset loaded into the Setup A position, and vice-versa.
o Setup B by clicking on
be added to the preset name when a change is made to the preset -
the

4.3 Interface Controls

Controls can be in one of three states:
Not Selected where the control is
Selected where the con
Selected and Active where the control is the tar
trol is the target of mouse control entry only
Toggle Buttons
Toggle buttons display the state of a control, and allow switching between two or more states. Single­click to cha
current setting, and others (bypass, solo, or monitoring toggles) illuminate when the control is active. Some processors have l
while retaining the offset between the controls.
nge the control’s state. Some toggle buttons have a text display which updates with the
ink buttons between a pair of toggle buttons, allowing click-
not the target of any user entry
get for both mouse and keyboard entry
and-drag adjustment
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Value Window Buttons
Value windows display the value of a control and allow click-and-drag the keyboard.
Using the mouse, click-and-drag on the value window to adjust. Some value windows support left/right, so direction of movement that button supports).
Using the arrow key left/right (depending on the direction supported by that button) to move in the smallest incremental steps across the button’s range (holding down the arrow keys will move faster through the range).
Using ke value from your keyboard. If you enter an out of range number, the button stays selected but remains at the current setting (system beeps? If system sounds are on?)
Some processors have link buttons between a pair of value windows, allowing click- adjustment while retaining the offset between the controls.
me up/down (as you hover over a button, arrows will appear to let you know which
s, click once with mouse to select the button, and then use up/down –
entry, double click on the button to open the value window, and directly enter the
y
adjustment, or direct control via
and-drag
Sliders
Click on the slider itself or anywhere within the sliders track. The numerical value of the slider se displayed in a hover window above the slider path.
ttings is
Hover Box
Hovering boxes will appear and display the control value when hovering with the mouse over the control.
Multiple Selection of Controls
One of the most powerful features of the WaveSystem is the ability to select and adju the same time. Using the mouse, simply drag-select the desired group of button or graphic controls by clicking and holding at a point outside the controls and forming a rectangle to include the controls you wish to adjust. Alternatively, you can hold down Shift while clicking the mouse on any control you wish to link. This second method is useful when you want to select two (or more) controls that are separated on the GUI by other controls you do not wish to select.
st many controls at
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TAB Functions
TAB moves the ‘selected’ status to the next control, with shift-TAB moving in the reverse direction. Additionally, the Mac has an option-TAB function for ‘down’ movement and shift-option-TAB for ‘up’
movement where If you have several Value Window Buttons selected, TAB functions will take you through the selected
controls on
ly.
applicable.
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