Audio Plug-Ins Guide

Version 11.1
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Digital Choreography, Digital Nonlinear Accelerator, DigiTest,
DigiTranslator, DigiWear, DINR, DNxchange, Do More,
DPP-1, D-Show, DSP Manager, DS-StorageCalc, DV Toolkit,
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iS36, ISIS, IsoSync, LaunchPad, LeaderPlus, LFX, Lightning,
Link & Sync, ListSync, LKT-200, Lo-Fi, MachineControl,
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make manage move|media, Marquee, MassivePack,
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MediaFlow, MediaLog, MediaMix, Media Reader,
Media Recorder, MEDIArray, MediaServer, MediaShare,
MetaFuze, MetaSync, MIDI I/O, Mix Rack, Moviestar,
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SimulRecord, Slightly Rude Compressor, Smack!,
Soft SampleCell, Soft-Clip Limiter, SoundReplacer, SPACE,
SPACEShift, SpectraGraph, SpectraMatte, SteadyGlide,
Streamfactory, Streamgenie, StreamRAID, SubCap,
Sundance, Sundance Digital, SurroundScope, Symphony,
Cont e nt s

Part I Introduction to Pro Tools Plug-Ins

Chapter 1. Audio Plug-Ins Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Plug-In Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Avid Audio Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Using Plug-Ins in Pro Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Conventions Used in Pro Tools Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
System Requirements and Compatibility for Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
About www.avid.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Chapter 2. Installing and Authorizing Avid Paid Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Authorizing Avid Audio Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Installing Plug-Ins for Pro Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
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
Adjusting Controls with Fine Resolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Resetting Controls to Default Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Part II EQ Plug-Ins
Chapter 4. EQ III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
EQ III Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Adjusting EQ III Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
EQ III I/O Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
EQ III EQ Band Controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1-Band EQ III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
7-Band EQ III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Audio Plug-Ins Guide iii

Chapter 5. Focusrite D2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
D2 Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
D2 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Using D2 in Stereo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Chapter 6. JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

JOEMEEK Meequalizer Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Chapter 7. Pultec Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Pultec EQP-1A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Pultec EQH-2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Pultec MEQ-5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Pultec Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Part III Dynamics Plug-Ins

Chapter 8. BF-2A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
BF-2A Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Using the BF-2A Side-Chain Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
BF-2A Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Chapter 9. BF-3A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
BF-3A Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
BF-3A Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Chapter 10. BF76 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

BF76 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
BF76 Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Chapter 11. Channel Strip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Channel Strip Sections and Panes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Channel Strip Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Channel Strip Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Channel Strip FX Chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Channel Strip Dynamics Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Channel Strip EQ/Filters Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Contents iv
Chapter 12. Dynamics III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Dynamics III Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Compressor/Limiter III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Expander/Gate III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
De-Esser III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Dynamics III Side-Chain Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Chapter 13. Fairchild Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Fairchild 660 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Fairchild 670 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Chapter 14. Focusrite D3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

D3 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
D3 Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
D3 Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Using D3 in Stereo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
D3 Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
D3 Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
D3 Limiter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Using the Side-Chain Input in D3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Chapter 15. Impact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Impact Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Using the Impact Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Chapter 16. JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

JOEMEEK Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
JOEMEEK Compressor Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Chapter 17. Maxim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

About Peak Limiting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
How Maxim Differs From Conventional Limiters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Maxim Controls and Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Using Maxim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Maxim and Mastering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Contents v
Chapter 18. Pro Compressor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Pro Compressor Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Pro Compressor Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Pro Compressor Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Pro Compressor Dynamics Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Pro Compressor Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Pro Compressor Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Chapter 19. Pro Expander . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Pro Expander Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Pro Expander Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Pro Expander Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Pro Expander Dynamics Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Pro Expander Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Pro Expander Side-Chain Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Chapter 20. Pro Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Pro Limiter Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Pro Limiter Input Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Pro Limiter Output Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Pro Limiter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Pro Limiter Loudness Numeric Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Pro Limiter Histogram and Loudness Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
AudioSuite Processing with Pro Limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
AudioSuite Processing with Pro Limiter Loudness Analyzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Chapter 21. Purple Audio MC77 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Purple Audio MC77 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Chapter 22. Smack! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Smack! Controls and Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Using the Smack! Side-Chain Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Contents vi
Part IV Pitch and Time Shift Plug-Ins
Chapter 23. Pitch II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Pitch II Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Chapter 24. Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Time Shift Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
AudioSuite Input Modes and Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
AudioSuite Preview and Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Time Shift as AudioSuite TCE Plug-In Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Processing Audio Using Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Post Production Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks with Time Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

Chapter 25. Vari-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Vari-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Chapter 26. X-Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

X-Form Displays and Controls Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
X-Form AudioSuite Input Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
\AudioSuite TCE Plug-In Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Processing Audio Using X-Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Using X-Form for Post Production Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Part V Reverb Plug-Ins

Chapter 27. D-Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
D-Verb Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Selections for D-Verb AudioSuite Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Chapter 28. Reverb One. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

About Reverb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Reverb One Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Reverb One Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Other Reverb One Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Chapter 29. ReVibe II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Using ReVibe II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Dragging in the Graphic Display to Adjust Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
ReVibe II Input and Output Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Contents vii
 ReVibe II Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
ReVibe II Decay EQ Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
ReVibe II Decay Color Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
ReVibe II Contour Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
ReVibe II Room Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Part VI Delay Plug-Ins

Chapter 30. Mod Delay III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Mod Delay III Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Selections for Mod Delay III AudioSuite Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Chapter 31. Moogerfooger Analog Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Moogerfooger Analog Delay Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Moogerfooger Analog Delay Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Chapter 32. Reel Tape Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Reel Tape Delay Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Synchronizing Reel Tape Delay to Session Tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Reel Tape Delay Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Chapter 33. Tel-Ray Variable Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Tel-Ray Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Tel-Ray Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Chapter 34. TimeAdjuster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

TimeAdjuster Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Using TimeAdjuster for Manual Delay Compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
When to Compensate for Delays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Part VII Modulation Plug-Ins

Chapter 35. Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

Chapter 36. Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Contents viii
Chapter 37. Moogerfooger Ring Modulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

Chapter 38. Reel Tape Flanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Reel Tape Flanger Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Synchronizing Reel Tape Flanger to Session Tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Reel Tape Flanger Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Reel Tape Flanger Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Chapter 39. Sci-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Sci-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Chapter 40. Voce Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Voce Chorus/Vibrato . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Voce Spin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Part VIII Harmonic Plug-Ins

Chapter 41. Aphex Aural Exciter Type III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Rotary Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Using Aural Exciter III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Chapter 42. Aphex Big Bottom Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Meters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Rotary Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Using Big Bottom Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Chapter 43. Eleven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Eleven Input Calibration and QuickStart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Using Eleven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Eleven Tips and Suggestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
Eleven Signal Flow Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

Contents ix
Chapter 44. Lo-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Lo-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Chapter 45. Recti-Fi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Recti-Fi Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Chapter 46. Reel Tape Saturation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Reel Tape Common Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Reel Tape Saturation Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Reel Tape Saturation Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Reel Tape Saturation Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

Chapter 47. SansAmp PSA-1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

PSA-1 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
PSA-1 Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

Part IX Dither Plug-Ins

Chapter 48. Dither. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Dither Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270

Chapter 49. POW-r Dither . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272

POW-r Dither Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272

Part X Sound Field Plug-Ins

Chapter 50. AutoPan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
AutoPan Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Using AutoPan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Chapter 51. Down Mixer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

Source. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Downmix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Contents x
Part XI Instrument Plug-Ins
Chapter 52. Click II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Click II Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Creating a Click Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Chapter 53. ReWire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

ReWire Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
Using ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
MIDI Automation with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Quitting ReWire Client Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
Session Tempo and Meter Changes and ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
Looping Playback with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
Automating Input Switching with ReWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295

Part XII Other Plug-Ins

Chapter 54. InTune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
InTune Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
InTune Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
Using InTune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Chapter 55. MasterMeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

MasterMeter Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
Using MasterMeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
MasterMeter Controls and Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308

Chapter 56. Signal Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

Signal Generator Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
AudioSuite Processing with Signal Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312

Chapter 57. SoundReplacer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

Audio Replacement Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
SoundReplacer Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Using SoundReplacer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Getting Optimum Results with SoundReplacer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Using the Audio Files Folder for Frequently Used SoundReplacer Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Contents xi
Chapter 58. Time Compression/Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Time Compression/ Expansion Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

Chapter 59. Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Trim Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Chapter 60. Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324

DC Offset Removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
Duplicate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Invert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Normalize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Reverse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328

Contents xii
Pa rt I : I nt roduc t ion t o
Pro T ools Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 1 : Audio Plug-I ns Ove r vie w

Plug-Ins are special-purpose software components

that provide additional signal processing and other Avid Audio Plug-I ns
functionality to Pro Tools|HDX, Avid includes a comprehensive set of sound
Pro Tools|HD Native, and Pro Tools systems. processing, effects, and utility plug-ins with all
These include plug-ins that come with your Pro Tools systems. Other Avid plug-ins are
Pro Tools system, as well as many other plug-ins available for purchase or rental from the Avid store
that can be purchased or rented from Avid® sepa- (visit shop.avid.com, or, in Pro Tools, choose
rately. This guide documents all 64-bit AAX Marketplace > Plug-Ins).
plug-ins available from Avid for Pro Tools 11.

Additional plug-ins are available from third- Avid Audio Plug-I ns I nclude d
party developers. For more information, visit w it h Pro Tools
www.avid.com/plugins. Pro Tools includes a suite of digital signal process-
ing effects, including EQ, dynamics, delay, and
other essential audio processing tools. The follow-
Plug-I n For m at s ing plug-ins are included with Pro Tools 11:
AAX (Avid Audio Extension) plug-ins provide
EQ
real-time plug-in processing using host-based
(“Native”) or DSP-based (Pro Tools|HDX systems • Channel Strip (see “Dynamics”)
only) processing. The AAX plug-in format also • EQ III
supports AudioSuite non-real-time, file-based ren-
• 1 Band
dered processing. AAX plug-in files use the
“.aaxplugin” file suffix. • 7 Band

There are three plug-in formats used in Pro Tools: Dynamics

™
• AudioSuite : non-real-time, file-based • BF76 Compressor
processing • Channel Strip
• AAX Native: real-time, host-based plug-ins • Dynamics III
• AAX DSP: real-time, DSP-based plug-ins • Compressor/Limiter
(Pro Tools|HDX systems only) • Expander/Gate
• De-Esser
• Maxim™

Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 2

Pitch and Time Shift Other
• Pitch II • DC Offset Removal (AudioSuite only)
• Time Shift • Duplicate (AudioSuite only)
• Vari-Fi ™ • Gain (AudioSuite only)
• Invert (AudioSuite only)
Reverb
• Normalize (AudioSuite only)
• D-Verb
• Reverse (AudioSuite only)
Delay
• Signal Generator
• Mod Delay III
• Time Compression/Expansion
• TimeAdjuster
• InTune™
Modulation • MasterMeter™
• Sci-Fi™ • Metro™
• Trim
Harmonic
• Eleven Free™
Addit iona l Avid Audio Plug-I ns
• Lo-Fi™
The following plug-ins are available separately for
• Recti-Fi™
purchase and rental:
• SansAmp PSA-1
• Aphex Aural Exciter® Type III
Dither • Aphex Big Bottom Pro®
• Dither • BF-2A
• POW-r Dither • BF-3A
• Eleven™ guitar amplifier modeling plug-in
Sound Field
• AutoPan™ • Fairchild 660 and 670

• Down Mixer • Focusrite d2/d3

• Impact®
Instrument
• JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor
• Click II
• JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer
• ReWire
• Moogerfooger plug-ins
• Moogerfooger Analog Delay
• Moogerfooger Ring Modulator
• Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser
• Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter

Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 3

• Pro Compressor
U sing Plug-I ns in Pro Tools
• Pro Expander
See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for information
• Pro Limiter
on working with plug-ins, including:
• Purple Audio MC77
• Inserting plug-ins on tracks
• Reel Tape™ plug-ins:
• Plug-In Window controls
• Reel Tape Saturation
• Adjusting plug-in controls
• Reel Tape Delay
• Automating plug-ins
• Reel Tape Flanger
• Using side-chain inputs
• Reverb One™
• Using plug-in presets
• ReVibe® II
• Clip indicators
• Smack!™
• SoundReplacer™
• Tel-Ray Variable Delay
• Voce Spin
• Voce Chorus/Vibrato
• X-Form

Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 4

Conve nt ions U se d in Syst e m Re quire m e nt s a nd
Pro Tools Doc um e nt at ion Com pat ibilit y for Plug-I ns
Pro Tools documentation uses the following To use Pro Tools plug-ins, you need the following:
conventions to indicate menu choices, keyboard • An Avid-qualified system running Pro Tools or
commands, and mouse commands: Pro Tools HD
Convention Action • An iLok USB key (iLok) for plug-ins that can be
purchased or rented
File > Save Choose Save from the
File menu Avid can only assure compatibility and provide
Control+N Hold down the Control
support for hardware and software it has tested and
key and press the N key approved.

Control-click Hold down the Control For complete system requirements and a list of
key and click the mouse Avid-qualified computers, operating systems, hard
button drives, and third-party devices, visit:
Right-click Click with the right www.avid.com/compatibility
mouse button

The names of Commands, Options, and Settings T hird-Pa rt y Plug-I n Suppor t

that appear on-screen are in a different font. For information on third-party plug-ins for
Pro Tools systems, refer to the documentation that
The following symbols are used to highlight
came with your plug-in.
important information:

User Tips are helpful hints for getting the

most from your system.

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 5

About w w w.avid.c om
The Avid website (www.avid.com) is your best on-
line source for information to help you get the most
out of your Pro Tools system. The following are
just a few of the services and features available.

Product Registration Register your purchase

online.

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 Pro Tools community on the User
Conference.

Training and Education Study on your own using

courses available online or find out how you can
learn in a classroom setting at a certified Pro Tools
training center.

Products and Developers Learn about Avid

products; download demo software or learn about
our Development Partners and their plug-ins,
applications, and hardware.

News and Events Get the latest news from Avid or

sign up for a Pro Tools demo.

Chapter 1: Audio Plug-Ins Overview 6

Cha pt e r 2 : I nst a lling a nd Aut horizing Avid
Pa id Plug-I ns

A core set of audio plug-ins is installed automati-

cally with your version of Pro Tools. No additional Aut horizing Avid Audio
steps are required to authorize these plug-ins for Plug-I ns
use on your Pro Tools system. When you purchase or rent an Avid Audio plug-in,
you receive an activation code, either on an activa-
Installers for additional plug-ins purchased or
tion card or through your Avid account.
rented from the Avid store (shop.avid.com) can be
downloaded from your online Avid account. These To authorize your plug-in, follow the steps below,
plug-ins are authorized using an iLok USB key. or visit www.avid.com/activationcard and follow
the online instructions.
About iLok
To authorize Avid Audio plug-ins:
All paid plug-ins from Avid are authorized using an
1 If you don’t already have an iLok account, visit
iLok USB key from PACE Anti-Piracy.
www.ilok.com to sign up for an account.
2 Visit www.avid.com/activation and log into your
Avid account (if you don’t already have an Avid
account, click “Create Your Account”).
iLok USB key (2nd generation) 3 Enter your activation code and your iLok.com
User ID.
An iLok can hold hundreds of authorizations for all
of your iLok-enabled software. After a software 4 Follow the on-screen instructions to deposit
license is placed on an iLok, you can use the iLok your license into your iLok.com account.
to authorize that software on any computer.
5 Once the activation process is complete, the
An iLok USB key is not supplied with plug-ins or download links for your Avid audio plug-in will
software options. You can use the iLok included be available in the Products section of your
with certain Pro Tools systems, or purchase one Avid account (accessed by clicking the Your
separately. Products or View My Product Details links in
your user account).
For more information, visit the iLok website
6 Download and install the plug-in that you
(www.iLok.com).
purchased.

Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Paid Plug-Ins 7

7 Make sure your iLok is connected to an avail-
able USB port on your computer. Re m oving Plug-I ns
8 Launch Pro Tools and follow the on-screen in- If you need to remove a plug-in from your
structions to transfer the plug-in license to your Pro Tools system, follow the instructions below for
iLok and authorize the plug-in. your computer platform.

Re m oving Plug-I ns on M a c
I nst a lling Plug-I ns for
To remove a plug-in:
Pro Tools
1 Locate and open the Plug-Ins folder on your
I nst a lling Pa id Plug-I ns on M a c Startup drive (Library/Application Support
/Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins).
To install a plug-in on Mac:
2 Do one of the following:
1 Download the installer for Mac from
• Drag the plug-in to the Plug-Ins (Unused) folder.
www.avid.com. After downloading, make sure
the installer is uncompressed (.dmg). • Drag the plug-in to the Trash and empty the
Trash.
2 If Pro Tools is running, quit Pro Tools.
3 Locate and double-click the plug-in installer Re m oving Plug-I ns on Window s
disk image.
To remove a plug-in:
4 Drag the plug-in (.aaxplugin) to the Plug-Ins
folder alias in the disk image. 1 Choose Start > Control Panel.
2 Click Programs and Features.
I nst a lling Pa id Plug-I ns on 3 Select the plug-in from the list of installed
Window s applications.
To install a plug-in on Windows: 4 Click Uninstall.
1 Download the installer for Windows from
5 Follow the on-screen instructions to remove the
www.avid.com. After downloading, make sure
plug-in.
the installer is uncompressed (.ZIP).
2 If Pro Tools is running, quit Pro Tools.
3 Locate and double-click the plug-in installer.
4 Follow the on-screen instructions to complete
the installation.
5 When installation is complete, click Finish.

Chapter 2: Installing and Authorizing Avid Paid Plug-Ins 8

Cha pt e r 3 : Adjust ing Plug-I n Cont rols

You can adjust plug-in controls by dragging Slide r Cont rols

on-screen controls, by editing control values, or by
Some plug-ins have slider controls that can be ad-
dragging in graphic displays.
justed by dragging horizontally.

Some sliders are bipolar, meaning that their zero

Dra gging Plug-I n Cont rols position is in the center of the slider’s range. Drag-
ging to the right of center yields a positive value,
Rot a r y Cont rols and dragging to the left of center yields a negative
value.
Some plug-ins have rotary controls that can be ad-
justed by dragging over them horizontally or verti- To adjust a slider control:
cally.
1 Click on the control.
To adjust a rotary control: 2 Do any of the following:
1 Click on the control. • Drag to the right to increment the control.
2 Do any of the following: • Drag to the left to decrement the control.
• Drag up or to the right to increment the control.
• Drag down or to the left to decrement the control.

Adjusting a rotary control by dragging (EQ III)

Adjusting a slider control by dragging (ReVibe II)

Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 9

Edit ing Cont rol Va lue s Dra gging in Gra phic Displa ys
Some controls have text boxes that display the cur- Some plug-ins have graphic displays with control
rent control value. You can edit the control value points that you can drag to adjust the corresponding
directly. controls.

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 val-
ues in kilohertz, typing “k” after a numeric value
will multiply the value by 1000.
• To increment the value, scroll up with a mouse or Dragging a control point (EQ III)
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 Dragging a control point (ReVibe II)
alpha keyboard to enter the value and leave key-
board editing mode.
Adjust ing Cont rols w it h Fine
Re solut ion
Controls and control points can be adjusted with
fine resolution by holding the Command key (Mac)
Typing a control value (EQ III) or the Control key (Windows) while adjusting the
control.
To move forward through control text boxes in a
plug-in:

 Press the Tab key. Re se t t ing Cont rols t o De fa ult

To move backward through control text boxes in a
Va lue s
plug-in: You can reset any on-screen control to its
 Press Shift+ Tab. default value by Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt-
clicking (Windows) directly on the control or on its
corresponding text box.

Chapter 3: Adjusting Plug-In Controls 10

Pa rt I I : EQ Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 4 : EQ I I I

The EQ III plug-in provides high-quality

1-Band and 7-Band EQ for adjusting the frequency EQ I I I Configurat ions
spectrum of audio material. The EQ III plug-in appears as two separate choices
in the plug-in insert selector and in the AudioSuite
EQ III is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite
menu:
formats.
• EQ3 1-Band
EQ III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
• EQ3 7-Band
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

EQ III operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo 1 -Ba nd EQ

plug-in.
The 1-Band EQ has its own window, with six
EQ III has a Frequency Graph display that shows selectable filter types for a single band of EQ.
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 fre-
quency, gain and Q settings for individual EQ
bands by dragging their corresponding points in the
graph.

1-Band EQ

Chapter 4: EQ III 12
7 -Ba nd EQ Dra gging in t he Fre que ncy Gra ph
Displa y
The 7-Band EQ has its own window, with up to
seven separate bands, each with it its own set of fil- You can adjust the following by dragging the con-
ter types. trol points directly in the Frequency Graph display:

Frequency Dragging a control point to the right in-

creases 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 de-
creases the Gain setting.

Q Control-dragging (Mac) or Start-dragging (Win-

dows) a control point up decreases the Q setting.
Control-dragging (Mac) or Start-dragging (Win-
dows) a control point down increases the Q setting.
7 Band EQ

Adjust ing EQ I I I Cont rols

In addition to dragging controls and typing control
values, there are other ways to adjust EQ III con-
trols.

I nve rt ing Filt e r Ga in

(Peak EQ Bands Only)
Dragging a control point in the Frequency Graph
Gain values can be inverted on any Peak EQ band display
by Shift-clicking its control dot in the Frequency
Graph display, or its Gain knob in the plug-in win-
dow. This changes a gain boost to a cut (+9 to –9)
or a gain cut to a boost (–9 to +9). Gain values can-
not be inverted on Notch, High Pass, Low Pass, or
shelving bands.

Chapter 4: EQ III 13
U sing EQ I I I in Ba nd-Pa ss M ode When monitoring in Band-Pass mode, the Fre-
quency and Q controls function differently.
You can temporarily set any EQ III control to
Band-Pass monitoring mode. Band-Pass mode cuts Frequency Sets the frequency above and below
monitoring frequencies above and below the Fre- which other frequencies are cut off, leaving a nar-
quency setting, leaving a narrow band of mid-range row band of mid-range frequencies.
frequencies. It is especially useful for adjusting
limited bandwidth in order to solo and fine-tune Q Sets the width of the narrow band of mid-range
each individual filter before reverting the control to frequencies centered around the Frequency setting.
notch filter or peaking filter type operations.
To switch an EQ III control out of Band-Pass mode:
Band-Pass mode does not affect EQ III Gain  Release Control+Shift (Mac) or Start+Shift
controls. (Windows).
To switch an EQ III control to Band-Pass mode:
Cont rolling EQ I I I from a Cont rol
 Hold Control+Shift (Mac) or Start+Shift (Win- Surfa c e
dows), and drag any rotary control or control
point horizontally or vertically. EQ III can be controlled from any supported con-
trol surface, including EUCON-compatible control
surfaces, D-Control, D-Command, C|24, and 003.
Refer to the guide that came with the control sur-
face for details.

EQ III interactive graph displaying Band-Pass mode

Chapter 4: EQ III 14
 I nput Pola rit y Cont rol
EQ I I I I /O Cont rols
The Input Polarity button inverts the polarity of the
Certain Input and Output controls are found on all input signal to help compensate for phase anoma-
EQ III configurations, except where noted other- lies occurring in multi-microphone environments,
wise. or because of mis-wired balanced connections.

Input and Output Meters

I nput a nd Out put M e t e rs
(7-Band EQ Only)
Clip
Indicators The plasma-style Input and Output meters show
peak signal levels before and after EQ processing,
and indicate them as follows:
Input
Polarity Green Indicates nominal levels
Control Input Output Gain
Control Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
Gain
Control –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
I/O controls and meters for 7-Band EQ (top) and
1-Band EQ (bottom)
right channels.

The Clip indicators at the far right of each meter in-

I nput Ga in Cont rol dicate clipping at the input or output stage of the
The Input Gain control sets the input gain of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking
plug-in before EQ processing, letting you make up the indicator.
gain or prevent clipping at the plug-in input stage.

Out put Ga in Cont rol

(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 15
 Ba nd Ena ble But t on
EQ I I I EQ Ba nd Cont rols (7-Band EQ Only)
Individual EQ bands on each EQ III configuration
The Band Enable button on each EQ band toggles
have a combination of controls.
the corresponding band in and out of circuit. When
a Band Enable button is highlighted, the band is in
EQ Type Se le c t or circuit. When a Band Enable button is dark gray,
On the 1-Band EQ, the EQ Type selector lets you the band is bypassed and available for activation.
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 sec-

tions have EQ Type selectors to toggle between the
two available filter types in each section.

Band Enable button

Ba nd Ga in Cont rol
Each Peak and Shelf EQ band has a Gain control
for boosting or cutting the corresponding frequen-
cies. 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 16
Fre que ncy Cont rol
1 -Ba nd EQ I I I
Each EQ band has a Frequency control that sets the
center frequency (Peak, Shelf and Notch EQs) or The Frequency Graph display in the 1-Band EQ
the cutoff frequency (High Pass and Low Pass fil- shows a control dot that indicates the center fre-
ters) for that band. quency (Peak, Shelf and Notch Filters) or the cutoff
frequency (High Pass and Low Pass filters) for the
currently selected filter type.

Control dot

Frequency
Frequency control response
curve
Q Cont rol
Frequency Graph display
Peak and Notch On Peak and Notch bands, the Q
control changes the width of the EQ band. Higher
Q values represent narrower bandwidths. Lower Q Input Level and
Polarity controls Frequency Graph
values represent wider bandwidths. display
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.

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.
EQ Type Gain, Freq and
selector Q controls

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 17
Ba nd Cont rols Not ch Filt e r

The individual EQ types have some combination of The Notch Filter attenuates a narrow band of fre-
the following controls, as noted below. quencies centered around the Frequency setting.
No gain control is available for this EQ type. The
Control Value width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q
Frequency Range (All) 20 Hz to 20 kHz
setting.

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 set to Notch Filter

H igh She lf EQ
1 -Ba nd EQ I I I Type s
The High Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at
H igh Pa ss Filt e r and above the Frequency setting. The amount of
boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The
The High Pass filter attenuates all frequencies be- Q setting determines the shape of the shelving
low the Frequency setting at the selected rate (6 dB, curve.
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.

1-Band EQ set to High Shelf EQ

1-Band EQ set to High Pass Filter

Chapter 4: EQ III 18
Low She lf EQ Low Pa ss Filt e r

The Low Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at and The Low Pass filter attenuates all frequencies
below the Frequency setting. The amount of boost above the cutoff frequency setting at the selected
or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q set- rate (6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave)
ting determines the shape of the shelving curve. while letting all frequencies below pass through.
No gain control is available for this filter type.

1-Band EQ set to Low Shelf EQ

1-Band EQ set to Low Pass Filter
Pe a k 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.

1-Band EQ set to Peak EQ

Chapter 4: EQ III 19
7 -Ba nd EQ I I I
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.

Input/Output Level meters

Input/Output Level
and
Polarity controls
High Pass/ Frequency Graph
Low Notch Display

Low Pass/
High Notch

Low Mid High

Shelf/Peak Peak Shelf/Peak
Low Mid High Mid
Peak Peak
7-Band EQ

Chapter 4: EQ III 20
7 -Ba nd EQ I I I H igh Pa ss/Low 7 -Ba nd EQ I I I Low Pa ss/H igh
N ot ch N ot ch
The High Pass/Notch band is switchable between The Low Pass/Notch band is switchable between
high pass filter and notch EQ functions. By default, low pass filter and notch EQ functions. By default,
this band is set to High Pass Filter. this band is set to Low Pass Filter.

High Pass Filter Attenuates all frequencies below Low Pass Filter Attenuates all frequencies above
the Frequency setting at the selected slope while the Frequency setting at the selected slope while
letting all frequencies above pass through. letting all frequencies below pass through.

Low Notch EQ Attenuates a narrow band of fre- High Notch EQ Attenuates a narrow band of fre-
quencies centered around the Frequency setting. quencies centered around the Frequency setting.
The width of the attenuated band is determined by The width of the attenuated band is determined by
the Q setting. the Q setting.

High Pass Filter Low Notch EQ Low Pass Filter High Notch EQ
button button button button
Band Band Band Band
Enable Enable Enable Enable
button button button button

Frequency Slope Frequency Q Frequency Slope Frequency Q

control control control control control control control control

High Pass filter (left) and Low Notch EQ (right) Low Pass filter (left) and High Notch EQ (right)

The High Pass and Low Notch EQ controls and The Low Pass and High Notch EQ controls and
their corresponding graph elements are displayed their corresponding graph elements are displayed
on-screen in gray. The following control values are on-screen in gray. The following control values are
available: available:

Control Value Control Value

Frequency Range 20 Hz to 8 kHz Frequency Range 120 Hz to 20 kHz

Frequency Default 20 Hz Frequency Default 20 kHz

HPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct HPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct

Low Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0 High Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Low Notch Q Default 1.0 High Notch Q Default 1.0

Chapter 4: EQ III 21
7 -Ba nd EQ I I I Low She lf/Low The Low Shelf and Low Peak Gain controls and
Pe a k their corresponding graph elements are displayed
on-screen in red. The following control values are
The Low Shelf/Peak band is switchable between
available:
low shelf EQ and low peak EQ functions. By de-
fault, this band is set to Low Shelf. Control Value
Low Shelf EQ Boosts or cuts frequencies at and be- Frequency Range 20 Hz to 500 Hz
low the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or
cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting Frequency Default 100 Hz
determines the shape of the shelving curve. Low Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0

Low Peak EQ Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies Low Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
centered around the Frequency setting. The width
Q Default 1.0
of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.
Low Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB
Low Shelf EQ Low Peak EQ
button button Low Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
Q Q
control control 7 -Ba nd EQ I I I Low M id Pe a k
Band Band The Low Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies
Enable Enable centered around the Frequency setting. The width
button button
of the band is determined by the Q setting.

Q
control

Band
Frequency Enable
control button

Gain Gain
control control
Frequency Frequency Gain
control control control
Low Shelf EQ (left) and Low Peak EQ (right) Low Mid Peak EQ

The Low Mid Gain control and its corresponding

graph elements are displayed on-screen in brown.

Chapter 4: EQ III 22
The following control values are available: 7 -Ba nd EQ I I I H igh M id Pe a k
Control Value The High Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies
centered around the Frequency setting. The width
Frequency Range 40 Hz to 1 kHz of the band is determined by the Q setting.
Frequency Default 200 Hz
Q
control
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 Band

Frequency Enable
control button
7 -Ba nd EQ I I I M id Pe a k
The Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies cen-
tered around the Frequency setting. The width of
the band is determined by the Q setting. Gain
control
Q High Mid Peak EQ
control
The High Mid Gain control and its corresponding
graph elements are displayed on-screen in green.
Band The following control values are available:
Frequency Enable
control button Control Value

Frequency Range 200 Hz to 18 kHz

Frequency Default 2 kHz

Gain Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

control
Mid Peak EQ Mid Peak Q Default 1.0

The Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph 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 23
7 -Ba nd EQ I I I H igh She lf/H igh The High Shelf and High Peak Gain controls and
Pe a k their corresponding graph elements are displayed
on-screen in blue. The following control values are
The High Shelf/Peak band is switchable between
available:
high shelf EQ and high peak EQ functions. By de-
fault, this band is set to High Shelf. Control Value
High Shelf EQ Boosts or cuts frequencies at and Frequency Range 1.8 kHz to 20 kHz
above the Frequency setting. The amount of boost
or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q set- Frequency Default 6 kHz
ting determines the shape of the shelving curve. High Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0

High Peak EQ Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies High Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0
centered around the Frequency setting. The width
Q Default 1.0
of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.
High Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB
High Shelf EQ High Peak EQ
button button High Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB
Q Q
control control

Band Band
Enable Enable
button button

Gain Gain
control control
Frequency Frequency
control control
High Shelf EQ (left) and High Peak EQ (right)

Chapter 4: EQ III 24
Fre que ncy Gra ph Displa y
(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 fre-
quency response curve shows the contribution of each of the enabled filters to the overall EQ curve.

Low Mid High

control dot control dot control dot
(red) (yellow) (blue)

Frequency
response
curve

High Pass Low Mid High Mid Low Pass

control dot control dot control dot control dot
(gray) (brown) (green) (gray)
Frequency Graph display for the 7-Band EQ

Chapter 4: EQ III 25
Cha pt e r 5 : Foc usrit e D2

Focusrite D2 is a high-quality digital equalizer

plug-in for Pro Tools. Developed in cooperation D2 Configurat ions
with Focusrite, the D2 is based on the highly-ac- There are three configurations of the Focusrite D2
claimed Red Range 2™ dual EQ, designed by Ru- plug-in.
pert Neve. It provides up to six simultaneous bands
of EQ, including: high-pass, low-shelf, low-mid
peak, high-mid peak, high-shelf, and low-pass fil-
1 –2 Ba nd EQ
ters. D2 includes a highly accurate Cartesian graph D2 1-2 Band can use up to two filters simultane-
that displays EQ curves in real-time as EQ controls ously, depending on which you enable. The high-
are adjusted. pass, low-shelf, and low-pass filters each utilize the
entire module and cannot be used in combination
D2 is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite
with another filter. The low-mid peak, high-mid
formats.
peak, or high-shelf filters can be used in combina-
D2 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, tion with each other (up to two bands total).
176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
4 -Ba nd EQ
D2 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
plug-in. D2 4-Band can use up to four filters simultane-
ously. Any combination of filters can be engaged,
up to a total of four bands.

6 -Ba nd 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

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 26
 M e t e rs
D2 Cont rols
The D2 high-resolution plasma-style meters indi-
I nput Leve l cate signal levels and detect clipping at the input,
algorithm, or output stage. When D2 is used in ste-
Input Level allows you to attenuate signal input reo, two meters appear, one for each channel.
level to the D2. The range of this control is from
–18 dB to +12 dB. A Clip Indicator is located above each meter. It in-
dicates clipping by increasing its brightness as suc-
When you use D2 in stereo, each channel has its cessive samples are clipped. Click the Clip Indica-
own separate Input Level knob. To adjust input lev- tor to clear it. Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt-
els for both channels simultaneously, select the clicking (Windows) clears both channels when D2
Link button, then drag either knob. is used in stereo.

input Level

Out put Leve l

Output Level allows you to adjust the overall out-
put gain. The range of this control is from –18 dB
to +12 dB.

Meters (Stereo mode)

The following metering indications are used:

Output Level • Green = nominal levels

• Yellow = pre-clipping at –6 dB below full scale
When you use the D2 plug-in in stereo, each chan-
signal
nel has its own separate output level knob. To ad-
just output levels for both channels simultaneously, • Red = full scale signal (clipping)
select the Link button.

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 27
Fre que ncy Displa y EQ Filt e r Cont rols
The frequency display is a visual representation of Each of the six different EQ filters has its own con-
the current EQ settings. As you adjust the controls trols and its own icon. The icons act as three-state
of any currently active filter, the display plots the switches for enabling, disabling, or bypassing the
changes to the EQ curve in real-time. If you are us- specific filter. The current state of a filter is indi-
ing D2 in stereo, the frequency display shows the cated by its color:
EQ curve for the right channel in red and the left • White = enabled. In this state the filter is active,
channel in blue. audible, and using available DSP resources.
• Black = disabled. In this state the filter is not us-
ing any DSP resources and has no effect on au-
dio.
• Gray = bypassed. In this state the filter is not ac-
tive, but is still using available DSP resources.
The effect of the filter is not audible.

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.

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 28
H igh-Pa ss Filt e r Low -M id Pe ak Filt e r

The 18 dB/octave High-Pass Filter provides a ro- The Low-Mid Peak Filter provides three rotary
tary control for adjusting the corner (cutoff) fre- controls. The upper rotary control adjusts the center
quency, variable from 20 Hz to 6.4 kHz. frequency, variable from 33 Hz to 6.4 kHz. The
lower left rotary control adjusts the filter’s ampli-
tude 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-Pass Filter

Low -She lf Filt er

The Low-Shelf Filter provides two rotary controls:

The upper rotary control adjusts the corner fre-
quency, variable from 33 Hz to 460 Hz. The lower
rotary control adjusts the filter’s amplitude gain or Low-Mid Peak Filter
attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB from unity. H igh-Mid Pe a k Filt e r

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 ampli-
tude gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is
±15 dB from unity (utilizing a reciprocal curve for
both gain and attenuation). The lower right rotary
Low-Shelf Filter
control adjusts filter “Q” which is variable from 0.7
to 4.0.

High-Mid Peak Filter

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 29
H igh-She lf Filt e r Ena bling, Disa bling a nd
Bypa ssing EQ Filt e rs
The High-Shelf Filter provides two rotary controls:
The upper rotary control adjusts the corner fre- You can enable, disable, or bypass specific EQ fil-
quency, variable from 3.3 kHz to 18 kHz. The ters by clicking them.
lower rotary control adjusts the filter’s amplitude
gain or attenuation. Amplitude range is ±15 dB To disable a filter:
from unity.  Control-click (Mac) or Start-click (Windows)
the EQ Filter icon. When disabled, the icon is
black.

To re-enable a filter:

 Click the EQ filter icon. When enabled, the icon

is white.

High-Shelf Filter To bypass a filter:

 Click the EQ filter icon a second time. When by-

Low -Pa ss Filt er
passed, the icon is gray.
The 18 dB/octave Low-Pass Filter provides a ro-
tary control for adjusting the filter’s cutoff fre- If you are using all available bands of the 1–2
quency, variable from 100 Hz to 18 kHz. Band or 4–Band EQ and want to change fil-
ter types, you must disable one filter before
you can enable a different one.

Low-Pass Filter

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 30
 Link But t on
U sing D2 in St e re o
The Link button lets you adjust controls for both
Because Focusrite D2 has a single set of Filter con- channels simultaneously. By default, Link mode is
trol knobs, when it is used in stereo, you must select enabled so that you can maintain parity between
which channel, left or right, you want to edit. channels.

Le ft Cha nne l a nd Right Cha nne l You can also use Link mode to help you maintain a
But t ons relative offset between control settings on the two
channels.
The Left Channel and Right Channel buttons are
used to select which controls are active. 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.

Left Channel, Right Channel, and Link buttons

Chapter 5: Focusrite D2 31
Cha pt e r 6 : J OEM EEK VC5 M e e qua lize r

The JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer is an EQ plug-in

that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite J OEM EEK M e e qua lize r
formats. Cont rols
Operation of the Meequalizer is simple and to the
VC5 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
point.
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
Bass The Bass control adjusts low frequencies
VC5 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
±11.
plug-in.
Mid and Mid Freq The Mid and Mid Freq controls
allow you to adjust mid frequencies, from 500Hz to
3.5KHz, ±11.

Treble The Treble control adjusts high frequencies

±11.
JOEMEEK Meequalizer VC5 EQ
Gain The Gain control allows you to adjust the out-
The VC5 offers simple controls with incredibly put level ±11.
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 con-
trol, built into a tiny tobacco tin. The Meequalizer
VC5 virtually recreates the exact circuitry used by
Joe Meek in this device.

Chapter 6: JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer 32

Cha pt e r 7 : Pult e c Plug-I ns

The Pultec plug-ins are a set of EQ plug-ins that are Built in the early 1960s, the Pultec EQP-1A offers
available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. gentle shelving program equalization on bass and
The following plug-ins are included: highs, and offers a variable bandwidth peak boost
• Pultec EQP-1A control. A custom (and secret) filter network pro-
vides all its equalization functionality. Quality
• Pultec EQH-2 transformers interface it to real-world studio equip-
• Pultec MEQ-5 ment. A clean and well-designed tube amplifier
provides a fixed amount of make-up gain.
The Pultec plug-ins support 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates. Pult e c EQP-1 A Cont rols
Low Frequency Section Adjust low frequencies
The Pultec plug-ins operate as mono, multi-mono,
using the Boost and Atten knobs and the Low Fre-
or stereo plug-ins.
quency switch, located at the left side of the unit.
All low-frequency equalization is a gentle shelving
type, 6 dB per octave.
Pult e c EQP-1 A
High Frequency Boost Section Boost mid and
The Pultec EQP-1A provides smooth, sweet EQ high frequencies using the Bandwidth and Boost
and an extremely high quality tube audio signal knobs and the High Frequency switch.
path. Use it on individual tracks, critical vocals, or
even across a stereo mix for mastering applications. High Frequency Attenuate Section Cut high fre-
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 orig-
inal. 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.
Pultec EQP-1A

Chapter 7: Pultec Plug-Ins 33

Pult e c EQH -2 Pult e c M EQ-5
The Pultec EQH-2 is a program equalizer similar to The Pultec MEQ-5 is the most unique equalizer in
the Pultec EQP-1A. It is designed to provide the Pultec family. It is particularly useful on indi-
smooth equalization across final mixes or individ- vidual tracks during mixdown.
ual tracks.

Pultec MEQ-5

Pultec EQH-2 Pult e c M EQ-5 Cont rols

The Pultec EQH-2 offers three equalization sec- The Pultec MEQ-5 offers three equalization sec-
tions: low frequency boost and attenuation, mid- tions: low frequency boost, mid frequency boost,
range boost only, and 10k attenuation. Like its and wide-range attenuation. Like all Pultecs, it fea-
EQP-1A sibling, it features high-quality transform- tures quality transformers and a tube gain stage.
ers and a tube gain stage. But unlike the EQP-1A, Low Frequency Peak Boost low frequencies (200,
the tube stage in the EQH-2 is a push-pull design. 300, 500, 700, 1000 Hz) using the upper left con-
As a result, the EQH-2 offers a beefier tone. trols.

Pult e c EQH -2 Cont rols Mid Frequency Peak Boost mid-frequencies (1.5k,
2k, 3k, 4k, 5k) using the controls at the upper right.
Low Frequency Section Adjust low frequencies
using the top row of Boost and Atten knobs and the Wide-Range Dip Cut frequencies using Dip con-
CPS (cycles per second) switch. All low-frequency trols on the bottom row.
equalization is a gentle shelving type, 6 dB per oc-
tave.

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 fre-

quencies using the 10k Atten knob located at the
right side of the plug-in.

Chapter 7: Pultec Plug-Ins 34

 Guit a rs
Pult e c T ips a nd Trick s
Have multiple guitars that sound like mush in the
“Q” a nd A mix? The Pultec MEQ-5 is a classic tool for achiev-
ing amazing guitar blends. Try boosting one guitar
You may wonder why the Pultec EQP-1A has sep- and cutting another to achieve an octave of separa-
arate knobs for boost and cut. The short answer is tion. For example, cut one guitar using 1.5
that they connect to different circuitry in the unit. (1500 Hz) Dip, then boost the other using 3
(3000 Hz) Peak. View the matched pairs of presets
You can use the “extra” knob to your advantage.
(such as Guitar 1A and 1B or 2A and 2B) for fur-
Because the filters are not phase perfect, a Boost
ther examples of this technique.
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.

“Q” a nd Boost
In the high frequency boost section, the Bandwidth
and Boost controls affect one another. This is dif-
ferent from modern equalizers, where adjusting Q
typically doesn’t affect the amount of equalization
applied.

Chapter 7: Pultec Plug-Ins 35

Pa rt I I I : Dyna m ic s Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 8 : BF-2 A

BF-2A is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is Originally designed as a limiter for broadcast au-
available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. dio, a Comp/Limit switch was added to LA-2A
compressors after serial number 572. The subse-
BF-2A supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, quent addition of a Comp (Compress) setting made
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. the LA-2A even more popular for use in audio pro-
BF-2A operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo duction. However, the switch was inconveniently
plug-in. 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 photo-
conductive cell, which changes resistance when
light strikes it. It is attached to an electrolumines-
cent panel, which produces light in response to
voltage. Audio (voltage) is applied to the light
BF-2A source, and what happens as the audio converts to
light and back to voltage gives the LA-2A its
Designed and manufactured in the early 1960s, the
unique compression action (BF-2A preserves all
LA-2A achieved wide acclaim for its smooth com-
the subtle characteristics of this unique electronic
pression action and extremely high quality audio
circuit). After compression, gain brings the signal
signal path. The BF-2A has been meticulously
back to its original level. The LA-2A’s gain comes
crafted to capture every nuance of the legendary
from a tube amplifier, which imparts further char-
LA-2A tube studio compressor, providing the most
acter to the tone. In fact, it’s common to see engi-
authentic vintage compression sound available.
neers using the LA-2A simply as a line amp, with-
out 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 ac-
tion. When the BF-2A’s two knobs are set properly,
you know you got it right.

Chapter 8: BF-2A 37
BF-2 A Cont rols U sing t he BF-2 A Side -Cha in
Filt e r
The Peak Reduction and Gain controls combine
with the Comp/Limit switch to determine the The BF-2A provides an extra, a side-chain filter,
amount and sound of the compression. The follow- that does not have a control on the plug-in inter-
ing controls and meters are provided: face, but that can be accessed on-screen through
Pro Tools automation controls. In addition, the
Gain Gain provides makeup gain to bring the signal
side-chain filter can be adjusted directly from any
back after passing through peak reduction. supported control surface.
Peak Reduction Peak Reduction controls the
This side-chain filter reproduces the effect of an ad-
amount of signal entering the side-chain, which in
justable resistor on the back panel of the LA-2A.
turn affects the amount of compression and the
This control cuts the low frequencies from the side-
threshold. The more Peak Reduction you dial in,
chain, or control signal, that determines the amount
the more “squashed” the sound. Too little peak re-
of gain reduction applied by the compressor.
duction and you will not hear any compression ac-
tion; too much and the sound becomes muffled and By increasing the value of the side-chain filter, you
dead sounding. filter out frequencies below 250 Hz from the con-
trol signal, and decrease their effect on gain reduc-
Comp/Lim The Comp/Limit switch affects the
tion.
compression ratio. The common setting for audio
production is Comp, which provides a maximum  A setting of zero means that the filter is not ap-
compression ratio of approximately 3:1. In Limit plied to the side chain signal.
mode, the unit behaves more like a broadcast lim-
 A setting of 100 means that all frequencies be-
iter, with a higher threshold and compression ratio
low 250 Hz are filtered out of the side chain signal.
of approximately 12:1.

Meter Both Gain Reduction and Output metering To access the side-chain filter on-screen:
are provided. The Meter knob operates as follows: 1 Click the Plug-In Automation button in the
• When set to Gain Reduction, the meter needle Plug-In window to open the Automation Enable
moves backward from 0 to show the amount of window.
compression being applied to the signal in dB. 2 In the list of controls at the left, click to select
• When set to Output, the needle indicates the out- Side-Chain Filter and click Add (or just double-
put level of the signal. The meter is calibrated click a control in the list).
with 0 VU indicating –18 dBFS. 3 Click OK to close the plug-in automation win-
dow.

Chapter 8: BF-2A 38
4 In the Edit window, do one of the following:
BF-2 A T ips a nd Trick s
• Click the Track View selector and select Side-
Chain Filter from the BF-2A sub-menu.
AudioSuit e Proc e ssing
• Reveal an Automation lane for the track, click
the Automation Type selector and select Side- When using the AudioSuite version of the BF-2A,
Chain Filter from the BF-2A sub-menu. be sure to select an auxillary side-chain input (nor-
mally the track you’re processing). The default is
5 Edit the breakpoint automation for the BF-2A “None” and if you leave it set like this, there is
side-chain filter. Control range is from 0 (the de- nothing feeding the detector and you will not hear
fault setting where no filtering is applied to the any compression action.
side-chain) to 100% (maximum side-chain fil-
tering).
Line Am p
To access the side-chain filter from a control Turn the Peak Reduction knob full counterclock-
surface:
wise (off) and use the Gain control to increase the
1 Focus the BF-2A plug-in on your control sur- signal level. Although the BF-2A does not com-
face. press the sound with these settings, it still adds its
unique character to the tone.
2 Adjust the encoder or fader current targeting the
Side-Chain Filter control.
Fe e d t he BF-2 A int o t he BF7 6
For more information on plug-in automation,
see the Pro Tools Reference Guide 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 com-
pressor with a faster one. The effect can produce
very interesting sounds! Try applying Peak Reduc-
tion using the BF-2A, then squash the missed at-
tacks using the faster BF76.

Chapter 8: BF-2A 39
Cha pt e r 9 : BF-3 A

BF-3A is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is While the LA-2A’s gain comes from a tube ampli-
available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. fier, the LA-3A's gain comes from a solid-state
(transistor) amplifier. This gives the LA-3A a solid
BF-3A supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, midrange and more aggressive tone. Other subtle
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates. modifications change the behavior of the T4B,
BF-3A operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo causing it to respond differently—particularly in
plug-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-3 A Cont rols

The Peak Reduction and Output Gain controls
combine with the Comp/Limit switch to determine
the amount and sound of the compression. The fol-
BF-3A lowing controls and meters are provided:
BF-3A is based on the classic LA-3A that adds a
Peak Reduction Peak Reduction controls the
smoothness and sonic texture that makes sounds
amount of signal entering the side-chain. The more
jump right out of the mix. Designed and manufac-
Peak Reduction you dial in, the more “squashed”
tured in the late 1960s, the original LA-3A shares
and compressed the sound will be. Too little peak
many components in common with the LA-2A
reduction and you won’t hear any compression ac-
compressor. Just like the LA-2A, the heart of the
tion; too much and the sound becomes muffled and
LA-3A is the T4B Electro-Optical Attenuator. This
dead sounding.
is a device that converts audio to light and back and
is largely responsible for the compression character Output Gain Output Gain provides makeup gain to
of the unit. make the signal louder after passing through the
peak reduction.

Chapter 9: BF-3A 40
Comp/Lim The Comp/Limit switch affects the
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 lim-
iter, with a higher threshold and compression ratio
of approximately 15:1.

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.

BF-3 A T ips a nd Trick s

AudioSuit e Proc e ssing

When using the AudioSuite version of the BF-3A,
be sure to select an auxillary side-chain input (nor-
mally 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 Am p
Turn the Peak Reduction knob full counterclock-
wise (off) and use the Gain control to increase the
signal level. Although the BF-3A does not com-
press the sound with these settings, it still adds its
unique character to the tone.

Chapter 9: BF-3A 41
Cha pt e r 1 0 : BF7 6

BF76 is a vintage-style compressor plug-in that is

available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. BF7 6 Cont rols
BF76 provides the following controls:
BF76 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. Input The Input control sets the input signal level to
the compressor, which, in the 1176 design, deter-
BF76 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
mines both the threshold and amount of peak re-
plug-in.
duction.

Output The Output control sets output level. Use it

to bring the signal back to unity after applying gain
reduction.

Attack and Release The Attack and Release con-

trols set the attack and release times of the com-
pressor. Full counterclockwise is slowest, and full
BF76 clockwise is fastest. Attack times vary between 0.4
milliseconds to 5.7 milliseconds. Release times
Modeled after the solid-state 1176 studio compres- vary between 60 and 1,100 milliseconds.
sor, BF76 preserves every sonic subtlety of this
classic piece of studio gear. Ratio The Ratio Push switches select the compres-
sion ratio from 4:1 to 20:1.
The 1176 Compressor, originally introduced in the
late 1970s, uses a FET (field-effect transistor). The Meter The Meter Push switches affect the meter-
1176 also uses solid state amplification. The 1176 ing.
still provides an extremely high quality audio sig- • GR shows the amount of gain reduction.
nal path, but because of these internal differences,
• –18 and –24 show the output level (calibrated so
offers a much different compression sound than
that 0VU indicates –18dB FS and –24dB FS re-
other compressors.
spectively).
Four selectable compression ratios are provided, • The “Off” switch turns off the meter.
along with controls allowing variable attack and re-
lease times.

Chapter 10: BF76 42

 Se le c t ing Prope r At t a ck a nd
BF7 6 T ips a nd Trick s Re le a se T im e s
As on the original unit, setting either the attack or
AudioSuit e Proc e ssing
release time too fast generates signal distortion.
When using the AudioSuite version of BF76, be Again, this may or may not be a effect. A good
sure to select a side-chain input (normally the track starting point for attack and release is “6” and “3”
you are processing). The default is “None” and if (the defaults), and you can adjust as follows:
you leave it set like this, there’s nothing feeding the
detector and you won’t hear any compression ac- When compressing, use the slowest attack you can
tion. that preserves a dynamic range. Faster attacks re-
move the “punch” from the performance; slower
attacks inhibit the compression you need to smooth
U nex pe c t e d V isit from A& R things out.
We evil Y ie lds I nst a nt H it M ix
A favorite feature on one megabuck mixing con- When limiting, use the fastest attack time you can
sole is its stereo bus compressor. With the flick of a before you start to hear signal distortion in the low
switch, a punchy 8:1 compressor grabs the current end. With BF76, the attack time ranges from “in-
mix producing “instant radio hit.” It’s also a handy credibly fast” to “really damn fast” by modern stan-
way to make quick headphone submixes when dards. It can be hard to hear the difference.
tracking overdubs. Release times are more critical with BF76. To set
release times, listen for loud attacks and what hap-
Give t he K ids What T he y Wa nt pens immediately after the peaks. Set the release
time fast enough that you don’t hear unnatural dy-
Shift-click one of the Ratio Push switches to enable
namic changes, but slow enough that you don’t
the “All Buttons In” mode. The compression ratio
hear unnecessary pumping between two loud pas-
is still only 20:1, but the knee changes drastically
sages in rapid succession.
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.

Chapter 10: BF76 43

Cha pt e r 1 1 : Cha nne l St rip

Avid Channel Strip is available in DSP, Native, and Channel Strip supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
AudioSuite formats. Channel Strip provides EQ, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
Dynamics, Filter, and Gain effects. Channel Strip rates.
processing algorithms are based on the award win-
ning Euphonix System 5 console channel strip ef- Channel Strip supports mono, stereo, and greater-
fects. than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.

Greater-than-stereo formats are only

available with Pro Tools HD.

In addition to standard knob and fader controls,

Channel Strip also provides a graph to track the
gain transfer curve for the Expander/Gate, Com-
pressor/Limiter, and Side Chain effects, and a Fre-
quency Graph display that shows the response
curve for the current EQ setting on a two-dimen-
sional 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 filter-
ing.

Channel Strip, Compressor/Limiter tab shown

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 44

Cha nne l St rip Se c t ions a nd
Pa ne s
The Channel Strip plug-in window is organized in
several sections: Input, FX Chain, Output, Dynam-
ics, 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 sec-

tions, 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 con-
trol point on the graph display automatically shows
the tab for Expander/Gate or the Compressor/Lim- Channel Strip, Dynamics section hidden
iter, or the corresponding EQ band or Filter.
To hide (or show) the Dynamics or EQ/Filters
section of the plug-in window:
Show ing or H iding t he Dyna m ic s
 Click the Show/Hide triangle to the left of the
a nd EQ/Filt e rs Se c t ions
section you want to show or hide.
You can independently show or hide the Dynamics
and EX/Filters sections of the Channel Strip plug-
in to use less screen space. These sections are
shown by default.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 45

Disa bling or Ena bling Cha nne l List e n M ode
St rip Effe c t s
The Side Chain tab in the Dynamics section, and
You can independently disable effects in the Dy- the EQ and Filter tabs in the EQ/Filter section pro-
namics and EX/Filters sections of the Channel vide a Listen button.
Strip plug-in. For example, you may want to apply
 When enabled for the Side Chain, Listen mode
Comp/Limit processing to the signal, but not
lets you hear the input signal that feeds the dynamic
Exp/Gate; or, you may want to only apply only a
section. This can be either the external key input or
high pass filter.
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 Fre-
quency 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
Dynamics section, Exp/Gate disabled of the audio signal that is being removed by the
filter.
To enable effects in the Dynamics or EQ/Filters
section:
To enable (or disable) Listen on the Side Chain
 Click the Enable/Disable button for the effect effect, EQ band, or a Filter effect:
you want to enable so that it is highlighted.
 Click the Listen button for the Dynamics or
EQ/Filter tab you want so that it is highlighted.
To disable effects in the Dynamics or EQ/Filters
section: Click it again so that it is not highlighted to dis-
able it.
 Click the Enable/Disable button for the effect
you want to disable so that it is not highlighted.

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 11: Channel Strip 46

 I nput M e t e rs
Cha nne l St rip I nput Se c t ion
The Input meters show peak signal levels before
The Input section provides input metering, and processing:
controls for trimming the input signal and inverting
its phase. It can also be toggled to show post-pro- Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
cessing gain reduction meters. –12 dB.

Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from

–12 dB to 0 dB.

White Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to

+6 dB.

Ga in Re duc t ion M e t e rs
The Input meter can be switched to show Gain Re-
duction metering for the processed signal from
Input section (5.1 channel format shown)
0 dB to –36 dB.

The Gain Reduction meters are usually displayed

I nput Trim Cont rol in yellow. When the Knee setting for either or both
The Input Trim control sets the input gain of the the Expander and the Compressor is greater than
plug-in before EQ processing, letting you make up 0 dB, the Gain Reduction meter displays the
gain or prevent clipping at the plug-in input stage. amount of the Knee level in amber over the meter’s
usual yellow display.
To Trim the input signal, do one of the following:
To toggle between the Gain Reduction and Input
 Click in the Input Trim field and type a Trim meters:
value (–36.0 dB to +36.0 dB).
 Click the Input/Gain Reduction toggle in the top
 Click Trim and drag up or down to adjust the right-hand corner of the Input section.
Input Trim setting.

Pha se I nve r t
The Phase Invert button at the top of the Input sec-
tion 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:

Toggling between Input and Gain Reduction meters
 Click the Phase Invert button so that it is high-
lighted. Click it again so that it is not highlighted
to disable it.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 47

 Out put M e t e rs
Cha nne l St rip Out put Se c t ion
The Output meters show peak signal levels after
The Output section provides output metering and processing:
controls for adjusting the level of the output signal.
Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
–12 dB.

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).

Output section (5.1 channel format shown)

Out put Volum e Cont rol

The Output Volume control sets the output volume
after processing, letting you make up gain or pre-
vent 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 49.

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.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 48

 Bypa ssing or U nbypa ssing
Cha nne l St rip FX Cha in I ndividua l Effe c t s M odule s
Channel Strip lets you determine the signal path In the FX Chain display, you can deselect or select
through the available Equalizer (EQ), Filter individual effects modules to bypass or unbypass
(FILT), Dynamics (DYN), and Volume (VOL) the effect.
processing modules. This way you can determine
the best signal path for the type of processing you
want.
FX Chain, FILT bypassed
To set the FX Chain:
To bypass an effect module:
1 Click the FX Chain show/hide button to reveal
the Process Order options.  Click the module so that it is not highlighted.

To unbypass an effect module:

 Click the module so that it is highlighted.

Cha nne l St rip Dyna m ic s

Se c t ion
The Dynamics section of Channel Strip provides
Expander/Gate, Compressor/Limiter, and Side
Chain processing all in one. This section also pro-
vides a dynamics graphic display for the Compres-
Showing the FX Chain Process Order
sor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins. The dis-
2 Click an effects chain ordering option to select play shows a curve that represents the level of the
it. The available options include: input signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the
• EQ > FILT > DYN amount of gain reduction applied (on the vertical
y–axis). The vertical line represents the threshold.
• EQ > DYN > FILT
• DYN > EQ > FILT
• FILT > DYN > EQ
3 Select PRE or POST to place the Output Volume
control at the beginning or at the end of the ef-
fects signal chain.

Dynamics section, All tab shown

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 49

Dyna m ic s Gra ph Dyna mic s Gra ph Ga in Reduc t ion
Re solut ion
Input signal
Channel Strip lets you view the gain reduction
level (x-axis)
scale on the Dynamics Graph display either in 3 dB
Graph increments from 0 dB to 18 dB or in 6 dB incre-
Resolution ments from 0 dB to –36 dB.
toggle
To change the Dynamics Graph Gain Reduction
resolution:
Output signal
level (y-axis)  Click the Graph Resolution toggle.

U sing t he Dyna mic s Gra ph t o Adjust

Cont rols

Compressor/Limiter Threshold You can drag in the Dynamics Graph display to ad-
Expander/Gate Threshold just the corresponding Expander/Gate and Com-
pressor/Limiter controls. The cursor updates to
Dynamics graph display
show which control is being adjusted:
The Dynamics Graph display—used with Ex- • Expander/Gate Ratio
pander/Gate and Compressor/Limiter processing—
shows a curve that represents the level of the input • Expander/Gate Knee
signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the amount of • Expander/Gate Threshold
gain reduction applied (on the vertical y–axis). The • Gate Depth
display shows two vertical lines representing the
Threshold setting for the Expander/Gate and Com- • Hysteresis
pressor/Limiter, respectively. • Compressor/Limiter Ratio

The Dynamics Graph display also features an ani- • Compressor/Limiter Knee

mated red ball in the gain transfer curve display. • Compressor/Limiter Threshold
This ball shows the amount of input gain (x-axis) • Limiter Depth
and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in-
coming signal at any given moment. To indicate For the Expander/Gate and Compressor Lim-
overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too iter effects, adjusting a control in the Dynam-
fast for the current compression setting), the cursor ics Graph display automatically shows the
temporarily leaves the gain transfer curve. pane that includes the adjusted control if it is
not already shown (except when the All tab is
Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how
shown).
much dynamics processing you are applying to the
incoming audio signal.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 50

Ex pa nde r/Gat e Cont rols De pt h

The Depth control sets the depth of the Ex-

pander/Gate when closed. Setting the gate to higher
range levels allows more and more of the gated au-
dio that falls below the threshold to peek through
the gate at all times.

Dynamics section, Expander/Gate tab H old

T hre shold The Hold control specifies the duration (in seconds
or milliseconds) during which the Expander/Gate
The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level be-
will stay in effect after the initial attack occurs.
low which an input signal must fall to trigger ex-
This can be used as a function to keep the Ex-
pansion or gating. Signals that fall below the
pander/Gate in effect for longer periods of time
threshold will be reduced in gain. Signals that are
with a single crossing of the threshold. It can also
above it will be unaffected.
be used to prevent gate chatter that may occur if
The Dynamics Graph display shows the threshold varying input levels near the threshold cause the
as a vertical line. gate to close and open very rapidly.

At t a ck Re le a se

The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at The Release control sets how long it takes for the
which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses gate to close after the input signal falls below the
the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio setting threshold level and the hold time has passed.
to control how soft the Expander’s gain reduction
curve is. K ne e

The Knee control sets the rate at which the Ex-

Rat io pander/Gate reaches full effect once the threshold
The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion. For has been exceeded.
example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower signals be-
low the threshold by one half. At higher ratio levels H yst e re sis
the Expander/Gate functions like a gate by cutting The Hysteresis (Hyst) control lets you adjust
off signals that fall below the threshold. As you ad- whether or not the gate rapidly opens and closes
just the ratio control, refer to the Dynamics Graph when the input signal is fluctuating near the
display to see how the shape of the expansion curve Threshold. This can help prevent undesirably rapid
changes. gating of the signal. This control is only available
when Ratio is set to Gate, otherwise it is greyed out.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 51

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r Cont rols At the limiter setting (LMTR), for every decibel that
the incoming signal goes over the set Threshold,
1 dB of gain reduction is applied.

Dynamics section, Compressor/Limiter tab

T hre shold Compressor/Limiter Ratio set to LMTR

The Threshold control sets the level that an input Once the Ratio control passes the LMTR setting, it
signal must exceed to trigger compression or limit- provides negative ratio settings from –20.0:1 to
ing. Signals that exceed this level will be com- 0:1.
pressed. Signals that are below it will be unaf-
fected.

At t a ck

The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at

which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses
the threshold. Compressor/Limiter Ratio set to a negative value

The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The With these settings, for every decibel that the in-
faster the attack, the more rapidly the Compres- coming signal goes over the set Threshold, more
sor/Limiter applies attenuation to the signal. If you than 1 dB of gain reduction is applied according to
use fast attack times, you should generally use a the negative Ratio setting. For example, at the set-
proportionally longer release time, particularly ting of –1.0:1, for each decibel over the set thresh-
with material that contains many peaks in close old, 2 db of gain reduction is allied. Consequently,
proximity. the output signal is both compressed and made
softer. You can use this as an creative effect, or as a
Rat io kind of ducking effect when used with an external
key input.
The Ratio control sets the compression ratio, or the
amount of compression applied as the input signal De pt h
exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compres-
sion ratio means that a 2 dB increase of level above The Depth control sets the amount of gain reduc-
the threshold produces a 1 db increase in output. tion that is applied regardless of the input signal.
The compression ratio ranges from 1.0:1 to 20.0:1. 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
Once the Ratio control passes 20.0:1 the Compres- reduction is applied to the incoming signal (at
sor/Limiter effect functions as a limiter rather than 0 dB). If you set Depth to –10 dB, no more than
a compressor. 10 dB of gain reduction is applied to the incoming
signal.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 52

Re le a se Side Cha in Proc e ssing Cont rols
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 sig-

nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the
gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release Dynamics section, Side Chain tab
time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as
the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the Dynamics processors typically use the detected
gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re-
section of the audio material could cause gain re- duction. This split-off signal is known as the side-
duction that continues through soft sections of pro- chain. Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate
gram material without recovering. processing features external key capabilities and
filters for the side-chain.
K ne e
With external key side-chain processing, you trig-
The Knee control sets the rate at which the com- ger dynamics processing using an external signal
pressor reaches full compression once the threshold (such as a separate reference track or audio source)
has been exceeded. instead of the input signal. This external source is
known as the key input.
As you increase this control, it goes from applying
“hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” compres- With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics
sion: processing more or less sensitive to certain fre-
• With hard-knee compression, compression be- quencies. For example, you might configure the
gins when the input signal exceeds the threshold. side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a
This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting. drum track trigger dynamics processing.

• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression Sourc e

begins and increases gradually as the input signal
approaches the threshold, and reaches full com- The Source selector lets you set the source for side
pression after exceeding the threshold. This cre- chain processing: Internal, Key, or All-Linked.
ates smoother compression.
Internal If Internal is selected, the plug-in uses the
amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynamics
Ga in
processing. With greater-than-stereo multichannel
The Gain control lets you boost overall output gain processing, the input signal for each stereo pair ef-
to compensate for heavily compressed or limited fects only those same channels, and likewise mono
signals. channels are effected only by their own input sig-
nal. For example, with an LCR multichannel for-
mat, the processing for the Center channel is only
triggered when the Center channel input signal

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 53

reaches the threshold. However, when the input Filt e r Fre quency
signal reaches the threshold on the Left or the Right
The Filter Frequency control lets you set the fre-
channel, processing is triggered for both the Left
quency for the selected Filter Type.
and the Right channel.

Key If Key is selected, the plug-in uses the ampli- Filter Type
tude of a separate reference track or external audio Four Filter Type options are available for side-chain
source to trigger dynamics processing. The refer- processing:
ence track used is selected using the Plug-In Key
Input selector in the Plug-In window header. With Low Pass Select the Low Pass option to apply a
greater-than-stereo multichannel processing, the low pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
key signal triggers dynamics processing for all pro- selected frequency.
cessed audio channels equally.
High Pass Select the High Pass option to apply a
All-Linked If All-Linked is selected, dynamics pro- high pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
cessing is applied equally to all channels when the selected frequency.
input signal reaches the threshold on any input
Notch Select the Notch option to apply a notch fil-
channel, except for the LFE channel (if present).
The LFE channel is processed independently based ter to the side-chain processing at the selected fre-
on its own input signal. quency.

Band Pass Select the Band Pass option to apply a

band pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
selected frequency.

Side Cha in Proc e ssing Gra ph

The Side Chain Processing Graph display shows

Selecting the Source setting for Side Chain processing the frequency curve for the selected Filter Type at
De t e c t ion the selected Filter Frequency.

The Detection options include Peak or Avg (Aver-

age).

Peak Select the Peak option to apply side-chain

processing according to the detected peak ampli-
tude.

Average Select the Average option to apply side-

chain processing according to the detected average
amplitude.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 54

Cha nne l St rip EQ/Filt e rs Se c t ion
The EQ/Filters section of Channel Strip provides a high-quality 4-band parametric equalizer for adjusting
the frequency spectrum of audio material.

EQ/Filt e rs Gra ph
The EQ/Filters section provides an interactive 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 correspond-
ing 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).

Frequency
(x-axis)

Graph Resolution
toggle

Gain
(y-axis)

Filter control point EQ control point

EX/Filters section, High Mid Frequency tab shown

Fre que ncy Gra ph Gain Resolut ion

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 11: Channel Strip 55

Dra gging in t he Fre que ncy Gra ph t o Low Fre que ncy EQ Cont rols
Adjust Cont rols

You can adjust the following EQ controls by drag-

ging the control points directly in the Frequency
Graph display:

Frequency Dragging a control point to the right in-

creases 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
EQ/Filters section, Low Frequency tab
Frequency. Likewise, press the Shift key
while clicking and dragging an EQ control The LF tab provides controls for the low frequency
point left or right to adjust the Frequency set- band of the EQ. The low frequency band can be set
ting without changing the Gain setting. to be a Peak or Low Shelf EQ.

Gain Dragging a control point up increases the EQ Type

Gain setting. Dragging a control point down de-
creases the Gain setting. Select either the Peak or Low Shelf button to set the
EQ type for the low frequency band.
Option-Shift-click (Mac) or Alt-Shift-click
(Windows) an EQ control point to invert its Fre que ncy
Gain setting.
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre-
Q Click within the curve of an EQ control point and quency for the low frequency band (Peak or Shelf
drag up or down to increase or decrease the Q set- EQ).
ting.
Gain
You can also Control-click (Mac) or
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the
Start-click (Windows) and drag a control
corresponding frequencies for the low frequency
point up or down to increase or decrease
band.
the Q setting.
Q

With the low band EQ set to Peak, the Q control

changes the width of the EQ band. Higher Q values
represent narrower bandwidths. Lower Q values
represent wider bandwidths.

With the low band EQ set to Shelf, the Q control

changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher Q val-
ues represent steeper shelving curves. Lower Q val-
ues represent broader shelving curves.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 56

Low M id Fre que ncy EQ Cont rols H igh M id Fre que ncy EQ Cont rols

EQ/Filters section, Low Mid Frequency tab EQ/Filters section, High Mid Frequency tab

The LMF tab provides controls for the low mid fre- The HMF tab provides controls for the high mid fre-
quency band of the EQ. This band is a peak EQ. quency band of the EQ. This band is a peak EQ.

Fre que ncy Fre que ncy

The Frequency control lets you set the center fre- The Frequency control lets you set the center fre-
quency for the peak low mid frequency band. quency for the peak high mid frequency band.

Ga in Ga in

The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the
corresponding frequencies for the low mid fre- corresponding frequencies for the high mid fre-
quency band. quency band.

Q Q

The Q control changes the width of the low mid The Q control changes the width of the high mid
peak EQ band. Higher Q values represent narrower peak EQ band. Higher Q values represent narrower
bandwidths. Lower Q values represent wider band- bandwidths. Lower Q values represent wider band-
widths. widths.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 57

H igh Fre que ncy EQ Cont rols Filt e r 1 a nd Filt e r 2 Cont rols

EQ/Filters section, High Frequency tab EQ/Filters section, Filter 1 tab shown

The High Frequency EQ tab provides controls for The Filter 1 and Filter 2 tabs provide the same set of
the high frequency band of the EQ. controls for each filter.

Filt er Type Filt e r Type

The High Frequency band can be set to be a Peak or Both Filter 1 and Filter 2 can be set independently.
High Shelf EQ. Select from the following Filter Type options: High
Pass, Low Pass, Band Pass, and Notch.
Fre que ncy
Fre que ncy
The Frequency control lets you set the center fre-
quency for the high frequency band (Peak or Shelf The Frequency control lets you set the center fre-
EQ). quency for the selected Filter Type (from 20 Hz to
21.0 kHz).
Ga in
Slope
The Gain control lets you boost or attenuate the
corresponding frequencies for the high frequency When the Filter Type is set to Low Pass or High
band. Pass, the Slope control is available. The Slope con-
trol lets you set the slope for the filter from the se-
Q lected Frequency to –INF (12 dB/O or 24 dB/O).
With the high band EQ set to Peak, the Q control
Q
changes the width of the EQ band. Higher Q values
represent narrower bandwidths. Lower Q values When the Filter Type is set to Band Pass or Notch,
represent wider bandwidths. the Q control is available. The Q control changes
the width of the filter around the center frequency
With the high band EQ set to Shelf, the Q control band. Higher Q values represent narrower band-
changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher Q val- widths. Lower Q values represent wider band-
ues represent steeper shelving curves. Lower Q val- widths.
ues represent broader shelving curves.

Chapter 11: Channel Strip 58

Cha pt e r 1 2 : Dyna m ic s I I I

Dynamics III is a suite of three dynamics plug-ins

available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats: Dyna m ic s I I I Com m on
Cont rols
• Compressor/Limiter (see “Compressor/Limiter
III” on page 62) The Levels section, the LFE Enable button, and the
Dynamics Graph display of the user interface are
• Expander/Gate (see “Expander/Gate III” on
shared between the Compressor/Limiter, Ex-
page 65)
pander/Gate, and De-Esser plug-ins.
• De-Esser (see “De-Esser III” on page 68)

Dynamics III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, Dyna m ic s I I I Leve ls Se c t ion

88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
The indicators and controls in the Dynamic III Lev-
rates.
els section let you track input, output, and gain re-
The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate mod- duction levels, as well as work with phase invert
ules support mono, stereo, and greater-than-stereo and the threshold setting.
multichannel formats up to 7.1.
See “De-Esser III Level Meters” on page 68
Greater-than-stereo formats are only for more information on De-Esser III In-
available with Pro Tools HD. put/Output Level controls.

The De-Esser module supports mono and stereo

formats only. Phase
Invert
In addition to standard controls in each module,
Dynamics III also provides a graph to track the gain Input Output
meter meter
transfer curve in the Compressor/Limiter and Ex-
pander/Gate plug-ins, and a frequency graph to dis- Gain
play which frequencies trigger the De-Esser and Reduction
Peak hold meter
which frequencies will be gain reduced. indicators
Peak hold
indicators
Threshold
arrow

I/O Meter display (stereo instance shown)

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 59

I nput and Out put M et e rs Ga in Re duc t ion M e t e r

The Input (In) and Output (Out) meters show peak The Gain Reduction (GR) meter indicates the
signal levels before and after dynamics processing: amount the input signal is attenuated (in dB) and
shows different colors during dynamics process-
Green Indicates nominal levels.
ing:
Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
Light Orange Indicates that gain reduction is
–6 dB below full scale. within the “knee” and has not reached the full ratio
Red Indicates full scale levels (clipping). of compression.

The clip indicators at the top of the Output meters Dark Orange Indicates that gain reduction is being
indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the applied at the full ratio (for example, 2:1).
plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking
T hre shold Arrow
the indicator.
The orange Threshold arrow next to the Input meter
The Input and Output meters display
indicates the current threshold, and can be dragged
differently depending on the type of
up or down to adjust the threshold. When a multi-
track (mono, stereo, or multichannel)
channel instance of the plug-in has been configured
on which the plug-in has been inserted.
to show only the Output meter, the Threshold ar-
row is not displayed.
When Side-Chain Listen is enabled, the
Output meter only displays the levels of the Pha se I nve rt
side-chain signal. See “Dynamics III Side-
The Phase Invert button at the top of the Levels sec-
Chain Listen” on page 71.
tion inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal,
Toggling Multichannel Input and Output Meters to help compensate for phase anomalies that can
occur either in multi-microphone environments or
With multichannel track types LCRS and higher, because of mis-wired balanced connections.
both Input and Output meters cannot be shown at
the same time. Click either the Input or Output but-
ton to display the appropriate level meter. The In-
put/Output meters display is toggled to Output by
default.

Input (left) and Output (right) meter buttons

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 60

Dyna m ic s I I I LFE Ena ble Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how
(Pro Tools HD Only) much dynamics processing you are applying.

The LFE Enable button (located in the Options sec- Threshold

tion) is on by default, and enables plug-in process-
ing 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, de-
select this button.
Output signal
level (y-axis)

Input signal
LFE Enable button (Compressor/Limiter III shown) level (x-axis)
Dynamics graph display

The LFE Enable button is not available if the The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-
plug-in is not inserted on an applicable track. ins also feature an animated, multi-color cursor in
their gain transfer curve displays.
Dyna m ic s I I I Gra ph Displa y
The gain transfer curve of the Compressor/Limiter
The Dynamics Graph display—used with the Com- and Expander/Gate plug-ins shows a moving ball
pressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins— cursor that shows the amount of input gain (x-axis)
shows a curve that represents the level of the input and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in-
signal (on the horizontal x–axis) and the level of the coming signal.
output signal (on the vertical y–axis). The orange
vertical line represents the threshold.

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 12: Dynamics III 61

The cursor changes color to indicate the amount of About Com pre ssion
compression applied, as shown in the following ta-
Compression reduces the dynamic range of signals
ble:
that exceed a chosen threshold by a specific
Cursor Color Compression Amount amount. The Threshold control sets the level that
the signal must exceed to trigger compression. The
white no compression Attack control sets how quickly the compressor re-
light orange below full ratio sponds to the “front” of an audio signal once it
crosses the selected threshold. The Release control
dark orange full ratio amount sets the amount of time that it takes for the com-
pressor’s gain to return to its original level after the
input signal drops below the selected threshold.
See “De-Esser III Frequency Graph Display”
on page 69 for information on using the To use compression most effectively, the attack
De-Esser graph display. time should be set so that signals exceed the thresh-
old level long enough to cause an increase in the
Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in Se c t ion average level. This helps ensure that gain reduction
For information on using the Side-Chain section of does not decrease the overall volume too drasti-
the Compressor/Limiter or Expander/Gate, see cally, or eliminate desired attack transients in the
“Using Dynamics III Key Input for Side-Chain program material.
Processing” on page 73. Of course, compression has many creative uses that
break these rules.

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I About Lim it ing

The Compressor/Limiter plug-in applies either
Limiting prevents signal peaks from ever exceed-
compression or limiting to audio material, depend-
ing a chosen threshold, and is generally used to pre-
ing on the ratio of compression used.
vent short-term peaks from reaching their full am-
plitude. 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 at-
tack 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
manually reduced so that only occasional, extreme
Compressor/Limiter III
peaks are limited.

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 62

Limiting generally begins with the ratio set at 10:1
and higher. Large ratios effectively limit the dy-
namic range of the signal to a specific value by set-
ting an absolute ceiling for the dynamic range.

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I

I nput /Out put Leve l M e t e rs
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev-
els before and after dynamics processing. See “Dy-
namics III Levels Section” on page 59 for more in-
formation. Threshold arrow on input meter

Unlike scales on analog compressors, metering The Dynamics Graph display also shows the
scales on a digital device reflect a 0 dB value that threshold as an orange vertical line.
indicates full scale (fs)—the full-code signal level.

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I Gra ph

Displa y
The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see
how much expansion or gating you are applying to
your audio material. See “Dynamics III Graph Dis-
play” on page 61.

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display

T hre shold Cont rol This control ranges from –60 dB (lowest gain) to
The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level that 0 dB (highest gain).
an input signal must exceed to trigger compression
or limiting. Signals that exceed this level will be Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I Rat io
compressed. Signals that are below it will be unaf- Cont rol
fected.
The Ratio control sets the compression ratio, or the
This control has an approximate range of –60 dB to amount of compression applied as the input signal
0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no com- exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compres-
pression or limiting. The default value for the sion ratio means that an input level that is 2 dB
Threshold control is –24 dB. above the threshold will be attenuated, resulting in
an output level that is 1 dB over the threshold.
An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the
current threshold, and can also be dragged up or This control ranges from 1:1 (no compression) to
down to adjust the threshold setting. 100:1 (hard limiting).

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 63

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I At t a ck Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I K ne e
Cont rol Cont rol
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate The Knee control sets the rate at which the com-
at which gain is reduced after the input signal pressor reaches full compression once the threshold
crosses the threshold. has been exceeded.

The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The As you increase this control, it goes from applying
faster the attack, the more rapidly the Compres- “hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” compres-
sor/Limiter applies attenuation to the signal. If you sion:
use fast attack times, you should generally use a • With hard-knee compression, compression be-
proportionally longer release time, particularly gins when the input signal exceeds the threshold.
with material that contains many peaks in close This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting.
proximity.

This control ranges from 10 s (fastest attack time)

• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression
begins and increases gradually as the input signal
to 300 ms (slowest attack time). approaches the threshold, and reaches full com-
pression after exceeding the threshold. This cre-
Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I Re le a se ates smoother compression.
Cont rol
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 sig-

nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the
gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release Graph examples of hard knee (left) and soft knee
time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as (right) compression
the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the
For example, a Knee setting of 10 dB would be the
gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud
gain range over which the ratio gradually increased
section of the audio material could cause gain re-
to the set ratio amount.
duction that continues through soft sections of pro-
gram material without recovering. The Gain Reduction meter displays light orange
while gain reduction has not exceeded the knee set-
This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time)
ting, and switches to dark orange when gain reduc-
to 4 seconds (slowest release time).
tion reaches the full ratio.

This control ranges from 0 db (hardest response) to

30 db (softest response).

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 64

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I Ga in
Cont rol Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I
The Gain control lets you boost overall output gain The Expander/Gate plug-in applies expansion or
to compensate for heavily compressed or limited gating to audio material, depending on the ratio set-
signals. ting.

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.

Com pre ssor/Lim it e r I I I

Side -Cha in Se c t ion
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by the
plug-in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing.
Expander/Gate III
The Side-Chain section lets you toggle the side-
chain between the internal input signal or an exter-
About Ex pa nsion
nal key input, and tailor the equalization of the
side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics Expansion decreases the gain of signals that fall be-
processing becomes frequency-sensitive. See “Dy- low a chosen threshold. They are particularly use-
namics III Side-Chain Input” on page 70. ful for reducing noise or signal leakage that creeps
into recorded material as its level falls, as often oc-
curs in the case of headphone leakage.

About Gat ing

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 12: Dynamics III 65

Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I T hre shold
I nput /Out put Leve l M e t e rs Cont rol
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev- The Threshold (Thresh) control sets the level be-
els before and after dynamics processing. See “Dy- low which an input signal must fall to trigger ex-
namics III Levels Section” on page 59 for more in- pansion or gating. Signals that fall below the
formation. threshold will be reduced in gain. Signals that are
above it will be unaffected.
Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Dyna m ic s An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the
Gra ph Displa y current threshold, and can also be dragged up or
The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see down to adjust the threshold setting.
how much expansion or gating you are applying to
your audio material. See “Dynamics III Graph Dis-
play” on page 61.

Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Look Ahe a d

But t on
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 Threshold arrow on Input meter
of the input signal crosses the threshold.
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

Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display
loss of transients that may have been otherwise cut
off or trimmed in a signal. This control has an approximate range of –60 dB to
0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no com-
pression or limiting. The default value for the
Threshold control is –24 dB.

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 66

Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Rat io Cont rol Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Re le a se
Cont rol
The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion.
For example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower sig- The Release control sets how long it takes for the
nals below the threshold by one half. At higher ra- gate to close after the input signal falls below the
tio levels (such as 30:1 or 40:1) the Expander/Gate threshold level and the hold time has passed.
functions like a gate by cutting off signals that fall
This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time)
below the threshold. As you adjust the ratio control,
to 4 seconds (slowest release time).
refer to the built-in graph to see how the shape of
the expansion curve changes.
Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Ra nge Cont rol
This control ranges from 1:1 (no expansion) to
100:1 (gating). The Range control sets the depth of the Ex-
pander/Gate when closed. Setting the gate to higher
range levels allows more and more of the gated au-
Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I At t a ck dio that falls below the threshold to peek through
Cont rol
the gate at all times.
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate
at which gain is reduced after the input signal This control ranges from –80 dB (lowest depth) to
crosses the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio 0 dB (highest depth).
setting to control how soft the Expander’s gain re-
duction curve is. Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I Side -Cha in
This control ranges from 10 s (fastest attack time)
Se c t ion
to 300 ms (slowest attack time). 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 side-
Ex pa nde r/Gat e I I I H old Cont rol chain between the internal input signal or an exter-
The Hold control specifies the duration (in seconds nal key input, and tailor the equalization of the
or milliseconds) during which the Expander/Gate side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics
will stay in effect after the initial attack occurs. processing becomes frequency-sensitive. See “Dy-
This can be used as a function to keep the Ex- namics III Side-Chain Input” on page 70.
pander/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.

This control ranges from 5 ms (shortest hold) to

4 seconds (longest hold).

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 67

 To improve de-essing of material that has both very
De -Esse r I I I loud and very soft passages, automate the Range
The De-Esser reduces sibilants and other high fre- control so that it is lower on soft sections.
.

quency noises that can occur in vocals, voice-

The De-Esser has no control to directly ad-
overs, and wind instruments such as flutes. These
just the threshold level (the level that an input
sounds can cause peaks in an audio signal and lead
signal must exceed to trigger de-essing). The
to distortion.
amount of de-essing will vary with the input
The De-Esser reduces these unwanted sounds using signal.
fast-acting, frequency-dependent compression.
The Threshold control sets the level above which De -Esse r I I I Leve l M e t e rs
compression starts, and the Frequency (Freq) con-
These controls let you track input, output, and gain
trol sets the frequency band in which the De-Esser
reduction levels.
operates.

Output
Input meter
meter
Gain
Reduction
meter

De-Esser III

U sing De -Essing Effe c t ive ly De-Esser III I/O Meter display

To use de-essing most effectively, insert the De-Es- I nput a nd Out put M e t e rs
ser after compressor or limiter plug-ins.
The Input and Output meters show peak signal lev-
The Frequency control should be set to remove sib- els before and after dynamics processing:
ilants (typically the 4–10 kHz range) and not other
Green Indicates nominal levels.
parts of the signal. This helps prevent de-essing
from changing the original character of the audio Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at
material in an undesired manner. –6 dB below full scale.
Similarly, the Range control should be set to a level 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, non- The Clip indicators at the top of each meter indicate
sibilant section of audio material could cause un- clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in.
wanted gain reduction or cause sibilants to be over- Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indi-
attenuated. cator.

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 68

De -Esse r I I I Ga in Re duc t ion De -Esse r I I I List e n Cont rol
Meter
When enabled, the Listen button lets you monitor
The Gain Reduction meter indicates the amount the the sibilant peaks used by the De-Esser as a side-
input signal is attenuated, in dB. This meter shows chain to trigger compression. This is useful for lis-
different colors during de-essing: tening only to the sibilance for fine-tuning De-Es-
ser controls. To monitor the whole output signal
Light Orange Indicates that gain reduction is being
without this filtering, deselect the Listen button.
applied, but has not reached the maximum level set
by the Range control.
De -Esse r I I I Fre que ncy Gra ph
Dark Orange Indicates that gain reduction has Displa y
reached the maximum level set by the Range con-
The De-Esser Frequency Graph display shows a
trol.
curve that represents the level of gain reduction (on
the y-axis) for the range of the output signal's fre-
De -Esse r I I I Fre que ncy Cont rol quency (on the x-axis). The white line represents
The Frequency (Freq) control sets the frequency the current Frequency setting, and the animated or-
band in which the De-Esser operates. When HF ange line represents the level of gain reduction be-
Only is disabled, gain is reduced in frequencies ing applied to the signal.
within the specified range. When HF Only is en-
Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how
abled, the gain of frequencies above the specified
much dynamics processing you are applying at dif-
value will be reduced.
ferent points in the frequency spectrum.
This control ranges from 500 Hz (lowest fre-
Current gain reduction Frequency
quency) to 16 kHz (highest frequency).

De -Esse r I I I Ra nge Cont rol

Gain
The Range control defines the maximum amount of Range
(y-axis)
gain reduction possible when a signal is detected at
the frequency set by the Frequency control.

This control ranges from –40 dB (maximum de-

essing) to 0 dB (no de-essing).

De -Esse r I I I H F Only Cont rol Frequency

(x-axis)
When the HF Only button is enabled, gain reduc-
tion is applied only to the active frequency band set De-Esser graph display
by the Frequency control. When the HF Only but-
ton is disabled, the De-Esser applies gain reduction
to the entire signal.

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 69

 Dyna mic s I I I Side -Cha in Ext er na l Ke y
Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in I nput
(Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Only)
The External Key toggles external side-chain pro-
cessing on or off. When this button is highlighted,
Dynamics processors typically use the detected the plug-in uses the amplitude of a separate refer-
amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re- ence track or external audio source to trigger dy-
duction. This split-off signal is known as the side- namics processing. When this button is dark gray,
chain. The Compressor/Limiter and Ex- the External Key is disabled and the plug-in uses
pander/Gate plug-ins feature external key capabili- the amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynam-
ties and filters for the side-chain. ics processing.

With external key side-chain processing, you trig-

ger 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 fre-
quencies. For example, you might configure the
side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a
drum track trigger dynamics processing.

Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in Cont rols

External Key button
The controls in the Side-Chain section let you tog-
gle 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 be-
comes frequency-sensitive.

Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Side-Chain

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 70

Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in List e n Dyna mic s I I I Side -Cha in High-Fre que ncy
(H F) Filt e r Type
When enabled, this control lets you listen to the in-
ternal or external side-chain input by itself, as well The HF filter section lets you filter higher frequen-
as monitor its levels with the Output meter. This is cies out of the side-chain signal so that only certain
especially useful for fine-tuning the plug-in’s filter bands of high frequencies or lower frequencies
settings or external key input. pass through to trigger dynamics processing. The
HF side-chain filter is switchable between Band
Pass and Low Pass filters.

Band Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics

processing more sensitive to frequencies within the
narrow band centered around the Frequency set-
ting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

Side-Chain Listen button

Side-Chain Listen is not saved with other

plug-in presets.

Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in H F a nd LF Filt e r

Band-Pass filter
Ena ble But t ons
Low Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics pro-
The HF Filter Enable and LF Filter Enable buttons cessing more sensitive to frequencies below the
toggle the corresponding filter in or out of the side- Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per
chain. When this button is highlighted, the filter is octave.
applied to the side-chain signal. When this button is
dark gray, the filter is bypassed and available for
activation.

Low Pass filter

HF and LF Filter Enable buttons

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 71

Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Cha in H F Fre que ncy High Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics
Cont rol processing more sensitive to frequencies above the
Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per
The HF frequency control sets the frequency posi-
octave.
tion for the Band Pass or Low Pass filter, and
ranges from 20 Hz to 20 kHz.

High Pass filter

HF frequency controls Dyna mic s I I I Side -Cha in LF Fre que ncy

Cont rol
Dyna m ic s I I I Side -Chain Low -Fre que ncy
(LF) Filt e r Type The Frequency control sets the frequency position
for the Band-Pass or High Pass filter, and ranges
The LF filter section lets you filter lower frequen- from 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
cies 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 pro-
cessing. 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 set-
ting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

LF frequency controls

Band-Pass filter

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 72

U sing Dyna m ic s I I I Ke y I nput for 4 To filter the key input so that only specific fre-
Side -Cha in Proc e ssing quencies trigger the plug-in, use the HF and LF
controls to select a frequency range.
To use a filtered or unfiltered external key input to
trigger dynamics processing: 5 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the input or
1 Click the Key Input selector and select the input bus that you chose as an external key input to
or bus carrying the audio from the reference trigger its effect.
track or external audio source. 6 Adjust the plug-in’s Threshold (Thresh) control
to fine-tune external key input triggering.

U sing a Filt e re d I nput Signa l for

Side -Cha in Proc e ssing w it h
Dyna m ic s I I I
To use the filtered input signal to trigger dynamics
processing:

Selecting a Key Input 1 Ensure the Key Input selector is set to No Key
Input.
2 Click External Key to activate external side-
chain processing.

Key Input selector

2 Ensure that the External Key button is disabled

External Key (dark gray).

3 To listen to the signal that will be used to control

side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to en-
able it (highlighted).

Side-Chain section

Side-Chain Listen

Chapter 12: Dynamics III 73

3 To listen to the signal that will be used to control
side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to en-
able 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 12: Dynamics III 74

Cha pt e r 1 3 : Fa irchild Plug-I ns

The Fairchild plug-ins are a pair of vintage com-

pressor 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

Fa irchild 6 6 0 The heart of the Fairchild limiter—a 6386 triode—

is one such variable-mu tube. In fact, four of these
Re-introducing the undisputed champion in price,
tubes are used in parallel. A key part of the Fair-
weight, and performance: the $35,000, one-hun-
child design, it ensures that the output doesn’t get
dred pound, Fairchild 660. Avid’s no-compromise
darker as the unit goes further into gain reduction,
replica captures every detail of this studio classic.
and also reduces distortion as the tubes are biased
Designed in the early 1950s, the Fairchild 660 is a further into Class-B operation.
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!

Tubes, wires, and iron

Chapter 13: Fairchild Plug-Ins 75

Fa irchild 6 6 0 Cont rols Fa irchild 6 6 0 T ips a nd Trick s
Adjust the Input Gain and Threshold controls to- 5 ,6 ,7 ,8 …
gether until you get the sound you want. Like many
classic compressors, after a little bit of tweaking, The Fairchild manual documents Time Constant
you’ll know immediately when you get it right. settings 5 and 6 as user presets—although you have
to go inside with a soldering iron to change them.
Input Gain Input Gain sets the input level to the We used the “factory default” values.
unit and the compression threshold, just like the In-
put control on an 1176. Full clockwise is loudest. Bonus Se t t ings

Threshold Threshold adjusts the gain to the side- Settings 7 and 8 do not exist on real-world units—
chain, just like the Peak Reduction control on an well, at least most of them. These settings are taken
LA-2A. from a real-world Fairchild modification invented
by Dave Amels many years before he designed the
Time Constant Selects the attack and release times
plug-in version.
for the compressor. One is fastest, and six is slow-
est. Seven and eight are custom presets. 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 I t U p

With a carefully adjusted Input Gain and Thresh-

old, 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 13: Fairchild Plug-Ins 76

 Fa irchild 6 7 0 Cont rols
Fa irchild 6 7 0
Adjust the Input Gain and Threshold controls to-
Avid’s no-compromise replica captures every de- gether on both channels until you get the sound you
tail of the Fairchild 670. The Fairchild 670 is a want. Like many classic compressors, after a little
dual-channel unit and, as such, is only available on bit of tweaking, you’ll know immediately when
stereo tracks. you get it right.
Note that the companion Fairchild 660 also sup- Input Gain Sets the input level to the unit and the
ports stereo operation. Both a Fairchild 660 and a compression threshold, just like the Input control
Fairchild 670 were modeled from scratch using two on an 1176. Full clockwise is loudest.
different hardware units. This gives you a choice of
two different-sounding Fairchild units to try on Threshold Adjusts the gain to the sidechain, just
your stereo tracks! like the Peak Reduction control on an LA-2A.

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 77
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. Al-
though 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 ef-
Fairchild 670
fects – especially on drums.
The internal design of the Fairchild 670 is similar to
the Fairchild 660. However, the Fairchild 670 of- Fa irchild 6 7 0 T ips a nd Trick s
fers two channels of compression instead of one.
Combined with the AGC control, this gives you To exactly match the settings between channels,
even more compression options on stereo tracks. 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 13: Fairchild Plug-Ins 77

Cha pt e r 1 4 : Foc usrit e D3

Focusrite D3 is a high-quality dynamics processor  Compressor/Limiter. This configuration allows

plug-in. Developed in cooperation with Focusrite, you to use either the compressor or the limiter—but
the D3 is based on the highly acclaimed not both at the same time. The Compressor/Limiter
Red Range 3™ dual mono/stereo compressor & plug-in uses half as much DSP as the Compres-
limiter designed by Rupert Neve. sor+Limiter. It is provided so that you can conserve
DSP, since you may not need both compression and
D3 is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite limiting at the same time.
formats.
The Compressor/Limiter defaults to the compres-
D3 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, sor being enabled and the limiter disabled.
176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

D3 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-

in. D3 Com pre ssor
The D3 compressor reduces the dynamic range of
audio signals that exceed a user-selectable thresh-
old 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 ap-

plies 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 threshold,
Focusrite D3
the output level will be reduced to 1 dB above the
D3 features include: threshold. With a compression ratio of 4:1, an 8 dB
increase in input will produce only a 2 dB increase
 Compressor+Limiter. This configuration allows
in output.
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 Compres-
sor/Limiter.

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 78

D3 Lim it e r D3 Side -Cha in Proc e ssing
The D3 limiter operates as a fast-attack compressor Compressors and limiters generally use the de-
with a high compression ratio. It does not attack in- tected amplitude of the input signal as a control
stantaneously or look ahead in order to attack ahead source. Other signals can also be used as a control
of time, but instead uses a very fast, 1-millisecond source by using a key input. With de-essing, for ex-
attack time. As such, the D3 is not a “brick wall” ample, a frequency-modified version of the input
limiter, but limits the overall dynamic range of sig- signal is used as a trigger. This is known as side-
nals in a sonically-pleasing way. chain processing.

Like the Compressor, the Limiter is activated when Side-chain processing allows the D3 compression
the signal exceeds the user-selected threshold. The or limiting to be controlled by another independent
Limiter then compresses any signal above the se- audio signal. In this way you can compress or limit
lected threshold down to the threshold limit that one track’s audio using the dynamics of a different
you have set. track’s audio.

To enable the limiter:

1 Disable the compressor by Control-clicking U sing D3 in St e re o
(Mac) or Start-clicking (Windows) its icon.
In stereo configurations, all D3 controls except the
2 Click the Limiter icon. Input Level affect both channels of the stereo sig-
nal. The D3 RMS detector (which derives the con-
trol signal that drives the dynamics processing)
uses a composite of the two channels. Because of
this, when stereo processing occurs, there is no im-
age shift when signal levels differ between the two
channels (since the composite control signal drives
processing for both channels).

Compressor Limiter

Compressor and Limiter icons

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 79

 Out put Leve l
D3 Com m on Cont rols
Output Level adjusts the overall output gain. Be-
I nput Leve l cause large amounts of compression can restrict
dynamic range, the Output Level knob is useful for
Input Level attenuates signal input level to the compensating for heavily compressed signals and
compressor or limiter. The range of this control is making up the resulting difference in level.
from –30 dB to 0 dB.
When you use the stereo version of the D3 plug-in,
When you use the stereo version of the D3 plug-in, this single knob controls the master output for both
each channel has its own separate Input Level channels. The range of this control is from –12 dB
knob. To adjust input levels for both channels si- of attenuation to +18 dB of gain.
multaneously, Shift-drag. Option-Shift clicking
(Mac) or Alt-Shift-clicking (Windows) either Input
Level knob resets both channels to 0 dB.

Output Level

Ex t e r na l Ke y a nd Ke y List e n
Input Level
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by a plug-
in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing. Exter-
nal 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
Key Listen

External Key and Key Listen toggles

See “Using the Side-Chain Input in D3” on

page 84 for detailed information on external
side-chain processing.

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 80

M e t e rs • White indicates enabled. In this state the com-
pressor is active and using available DSP re-
The meters indicate gain reduction (the top meter)
sources.
and output level (the bottom meter). The Gain Re-
duction meter indicates the amount of gain reduc- • Black indicates disabled. In this state, the com-
tion in dB. The Output Level meter indicates the pressor is not using DSP resources.
output signal level in dB. • Gray indicates bypassed. In this state the com-
pressor is not active, but is still using available
In Stereo mode, two Output Level meters appear,
DSP resources.
one for each channel. However, a single Gain Re-
duction 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 out-

put meter(s). Clicking on the Clip Indicator clears
it. Option-clicking (Mac) or Alt-clicking (Win-
dows) clears both channels when the plug-in is
used in stereo.
Compressor controls

To disable the compressor:

 Control-click (Mac) or Start key-click (Win-

dows) the icon. When the compressor is dis-
abled, the icon is black.
Meters

The following metering indications are used: To re-enable the compressor:

• Green = nominal levels  Click the icon. When the compressor is enabled,
the icon is white.
• Yellow = pre-clipping at –6 dB below full scale
signal
To bypass the compressor:
• Red = full scale signal (clipping)
 Click the icon a second time. When the com-
pressor is bypassed, the icon is gray.

D3 Com pre ssor Cont rols If you are using the Compressor/Limiter plug-in,
which allows you to use either the compressor or
The Compressor icon, which represents a compres-
the limiter (but not both simultaneously), you must
sion curve, acts as a three-state switch for enabling,
disable one module by Control-clicking (Mac) or
disabling, or bypassing the compressor. Its current
Start-clicking (Windows) the icon before you can
state is indicated by the icon’s color.
enable the other.

Compressor icon

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 81

Rat io Re le a se
Ratio sets the compression ratio. If the ratio is set to Release controls how long it takes for the compres-
2:1 for example, it will compress changes in signals sor to be fully deactivated after the input signal
above the threshold by one half. The range of this drops below the threshold level. In general, this set-
control is from 1.5:1 (very little compression), to ting should be longer than the attack time and long
10:1 (heavy compression, bordering on limiting). enough that if signal levels repeatedly rise above
the threshold, they cause gain reduction only once.
If the release time is too long, a loud section of the
audio material could cause gain reduction that per-
sists through a soft section. The range of this con-
trol is from 25 milliseconds to 2.5 seconds.
Ratio

T hre shold
Threshold sets the threshold level. Signals that ex-
Auto Release
ceed this level will be compressed. Signals that are
below it will be unaffected. The range of this con-
Aut o Re le a se
trol is from 0 dB to –48 dB. A setting of 0 dB is
equivalent to no compression. Auto Release enables the automatic release func-
tion. In this mode the Release control has no effect
on release time. Instead, the D3 uses a release time
value that is program dependent and based on the
audio being processed.
Threshold

At t a ck
Attack sets the compressor attack time. To use
compression most effectively, the attack time Auto Release
should be set so that signals exceed the threshold
level long enough to cause an increase in the aver-
age level. This helps ensure that gain reduction
doesn’t decrease the overall volume. The range of
this control is from 1.0 ms to 150.0 ms.

Attack

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 82

 If you are using the Compressor/Limiter plug-in,
D3 Lim it e r Cont rols which allows you to use either the compressor or
The Limiter icon, which represents a limiter curve, the limiter (but not both simultaneously), you must
acts as a three-state switch for enabling, disabling, disable one module by Control-clicking (Mac) or
or bypassing the limiter. Its current state is indi- Start-clicking (Windows) the icon before you can
cated by the icon’s color: enable the other.

• White indicates enabled. In this state, the limiter

is active and using available DSP resources. Lim it LED
• Black indicates disabled. In this state, the limiter When lit, the Limit LED indicates that limiting is
is not using DSP resources. being applied. When unlit, limiting is not being ap-
plied.
• Gray indicates bypassed. In this state, the limiter
is not active, but is still using available DSP re-
sources.

Limit LED

T hre shold
This sets the threshold level. Signals that exceed
this level will be limited. Signals that are below it
will be unaffected. A setting of 0 dB is equivalent
to no limiting. The range of this control is from
Limiter controls –24 dB to 0 dB.

Limiter In/Out icon

Threshold
To disable the limiter:

 Control-click (Mac) or Start key-click (Win-

dows) the icon. When the limiter is disabled, the
icon is black.

To re-enable the limiter:

 Click the icon. When the limiter is enabled, the

icon is white.

To bypass the limiter:

 Click the icon a second time. When the limiter is

bypassed, the icon is gray.

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 83

 U sing a Ke y I nput for Ex t e rna l
U sing t he Side -Cha in I nput in Side -Cha in Proc e ssing
D3
To use a key input to trigger dynamics processing:
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by a plug-
in's detector to trigger dynamics processing. D3 lets 1 Click the Key Input selector and select the input
you switch between internal and external side- or bus carrying the audio from the reference
chain processing. track or external audio source.

With external side-chain processing, a plug-in's de-

tector is triggered by an external signal (such as a
separate reference track or audio source) known as
the key input.

A typical use for this feature is to use a kick drum

track to gate and tighten up a bass track, or a
rhythm guitar track to gate another instrument.
Selecting a key input
Ex t e r na l Ke y 2 Click External Key to activate external side-
External Key toggles external side-chain process- chain processing.
ing on or off. When this button is enabled, the plug- 3 To listen to the key input that will be used to
in uses the amplitude of an external signal (the key control side-chain processing, click Key Listen
input) to trigger compression or limiting. When this to enable it.
button is disabled, the plug-in uses the amplitude of
the input signal to trigger dynamics processing. 4 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the input or
bus that you chose as an external key input to
trigger its effect.
5 Adjust the plug-in Threshold control to fine-
External Key tune external key input triggering.

Ke y List e n
Key Listen enables and disables auditioning of the
key input controlling the external side-chain. This
is useful for fine-tuning the compressor’s settings
to the key input.

Key Listen

Chapter 14: Focusrite D3 84

Cha pt e r 1 5 : I m pa c t

Impact is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite

formats. Impact plug-in provides critical control I m pa c t Cont rols
over the dynamic range of audio signals, with the
look and sound of a mixing console’s stereo-bus I m pa c t Rat io Cont rol
compressor.
Ratio sets the compression ratio. If the ratio is set to
Impact supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 2:1 for example, it will compress changes in signals
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. above the threshold by one half. This control pro-
vides four fixed compression ratios, 2:1, 4:1, 10:1,
Impact supports mono, stereo, and greater-than- and 20:1. Selecting 2:1 applies very light compres-
stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1. sion; selecting 20:1 applies heavy compression,
bordering on limiting.
Greater-than-stereo formats are only
available with Pro Tools HD.
I m pa c t At t a ck Cont rol
Attack sets the compressor attack time. 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 aver-
age level. This helps ensure that gain reduction
does not decrease the overall volume. The range of
this control is from 0.1 ms to 30.0 ms.

I m pa c t T hre shold Cont rol

Threshold sets the decibel level that a signal must
exceed for Impact to begin applying compression.
Signals that exceed the Threshold will be com-
pressed by the amount of gain reduction set with
the Ratio control. Signals that are below the
Impact
Threshold will be unaffected. The range of the
Threshold control is from –70 dB to –0 dB. A set-
ting of –0 dB is equivalent to no compression.

Chapter 15: Impact 85

I m pa c t Re le a se Cont rol I m pa c t Ex t Cont rol (Side -Cha in)
Release controls the length of time it takes for the External On/Off enables and disables side-chain
compressor to be fully deactivated after the input processing. With side-chain processing you can
signal drops below the threshold level. In general, trigger compression from a separate reference track
this setting should be longer than the attack time or external audio source. The source used for trig-
and long enough that if signal levels repeatedly rise gering side-chain processing is referred to as the
above the threshold, they cause gain reduction only Key Input.
once. If the release time is too long, a loud segment
of audio material could cause gain reduction to per- See “Using the Impact Compressor” on
sist through a low-volume segment (if one fol- page 87 for instructions on setting up and us-
lows). Setting this control to its maximum value, ing a key input.
Auto, selects a release time that is program depen-
dent, based on the audio being processed. The I m pa c t List e n On/Off Cont rol
range of this control is from 20 milliseconds to 2.5 Key Listen On/Off enables and disables audition-
seconds. ing of the Key Input (the reference track or external
audio source used for triggering side-chain pro-
I m pa c t M a ke -up Cont rol cessing). This is useful for fine-tuning Impact’s
compression settings to the Key Input.
Make-Up adjusts the overall output gain. Because
large amounts of compression can restrict dynamic
range, the Make-Up control is useful for compen- I m pa c t Ga in Re duc t ion M e t e r
sating for heavily compressed signals and making The Gain Reduction meter is an analog-style meter
up the resulting difference in level. When Impact is that indicates the amount of gain reduction in dB.
used on stereo or multichannel tracks, the Make-Up The range of this meter is from 0 dB to 40 dB. The
control determines master output levels for all gain reduction meter displays the amount of gain
channels. The range of this control is from 0 dB of reduction linearly from 0–20 db, and non-linearly
attenuation to +40 dB of gain. from 20–40 dB.
Applying large amounts of Make-Up gain
will boost the level of any noise or hiss
present in audio material, making it more
audible.

Chapter 15: Impact 86

I m pa c t M e t e rs Side -Cha in Proc e ssing
The Input/Output meters indicate input and output Compressors generally use the detected amplitude
signal levels in dB. When Impact is used in mono of their input signal as a control source. However,
or stereo, both input and output meters are dis- you can also use other signals, such as a separate
played. When Impact is used in a multichannel for- reference track or an external audio signal as a con-
mat, only output meters are displayed by default. trol source. This is known as side-chain processing.
You can toggle the meter display to show only in-
put meters by clicking the blue-green rectangle at Side-chain processing lets you control Impact com-
the lower right of the meter display. pression using an independent audio signal. In this
way you can compress the audio of one track using
A red clip indicator appears at the top of each me- the dynamics of a different audio track.
ter. Clicking a clip indicator clears it. Alt-clicking
(Windows) or Option-clicking (Mac) clears the clip The reference track or external audio source used
indicators on all channels. for triggering side-chain processing is referred to as
the Key Input.

U sing t he I m pa c t Com pre ssor U sing t he I m pa c t Side -Cha in

I nput
Compressors reduce the dynamic range of audio
signals that exceed a user-selectable threshold by a Impact provides side-chain processing capabili-
specific amount. This is accomplished by reducing ties.Compressors typically use the detected ampli-
output levels as input levels increase above the tude of their input signal to cause gain reduction.
threshold. This split-off signal is called the side-chain. How-
ever, an external signal (referred to as the Key In-
The amount of output level reduction that Impact put) can be used to trigger compression.
applies as input levels increase is referred to as the
compression ratio. This control is adjustable in dis- A typical use for side-chain processing is to control
crete increments. If you set the compression ratio to the dynamics of one audio signal using the dynam-
2:1, for example, for each 2 dB that the signal ex- ics of another signal (referred to as the Key Input).
ceeds the threshold, the output level will be re- For example, you could use a lead vocal track to
duced to 1 dB above the threshold. With a com- trigger compression of a background vocal track so
pression ratio of 4:1, an 8 dB increase in input will that their dynamics match.
produce only a 2 dB increase in output.

Chapter 15: Impact 87

To use a Key Input signal for side-chain
processing:

1 Click the Send button and select a bus path for

the audio track or Auxiliary Input you want to
use as the side-chain signal.
2 From Impact’s Key Input menu, select the input
or bus path carrying the audio you want to use as
the side-chain signal to trigger Impact compres-
sion. The Key Input source must be mono-
phonic.
3 To activate external side-chain processing, click
Ext.

4 Begin playback. Impact uses the input or bus

that you selected as a Key Input to trigger its ef-
fect.
5 If you want to hear the audio source you have se-
lected as the side-chain input, click Listen. (To
stop listening to the side-chain input, click Lis-
ten again).

Remember to disable Listen to resume

normal plug-in monitoring.

6 Adjust Impact’s Threshold control to fine-tune

Key Input triggering.

Chapter 15: Impact 88

Cha pt e r 1 6 : J OEM EEK SC2 Com pre ssor

The JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor is a dynamics

processing plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, J OEM EEK Com pre ssor
and AudioSuite formats. Cont rols
The SC2 Compressor provides the following con-
SC2 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz,
trols:
176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
Input Gain Input Gain adjusts the input level to the
SC2 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
compressor.
plug-in.
Compression The Compression control affects the
gain to the side-chain of the compressor. Use it
along with Slope to adjust the amount of compres-
sion.

Output Gain Output Gain provides makeup gain

after compression.

Slope Slope is similar to the compression ratio

controls found on other compressors. However, on
the JOEMEEK, the actual ratio varies based on
JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor
program material so the term Slope is used instead.
Legendary producer Joe Meek used to say, “If it In practice, 1 is very gentle compression and 2 or 3
sounds right, it is right.” Nowhere is this more ap- are typically right for voice and submixes. The
parent than in Joe Meek’s masterful use of non-lin- higher numbers are better for instruments and ex-
ear, sometimes severe compression in his produc- treme sounds. (At the suggestion of the original de-
tions. In use by top producers the world over, signers, the 5 setting found on the later-model JO-
JOEMEEK compression is the secret weapon that EMEEK SC2.2 were added. Use 5 to create severe
gives your sound the character and excitement it pumping effects.)
deserves!
Attack Attack sets the time that the compressor
The JOEMEEK Compressor is designed purely as takes to act. Slower attacks are typically used when
an effects compressor. Its purpose is to change the the sound of the compression needs to be less obvi-
way the ear perceives sound; its action changes the ous.
clarity, balance, and even rhythmic feel of music.
Release Release sets the time during which signal
returns to normal after compression. With longer
release times, the compression is less noticeable.

Chapter 16: JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor 89

 At t a ck a nd Re le a se T im e s
J OEM EEK Com pre ssor T ips
a nd Trick s It may be difficult to understand the interactions
between the Attack and Release controls, because
N ot Pe rfe c t , Just Right the JOEMEEK Compressor behaves very differ-
ently than typical compressors. Experimentation is
Standard engineering practice says that a compres- the best option, but an explanation may help you
sor should work logarithmically. For a certain in- understand what’s going on.
crease of volume, the output volume should rise
proportionally less, with a result that the more you The JOEMEEK Compressor uses a compound re-
put in, the more it’s pushed down. lease circuit that reacts quickly to short bursts of
volume, and less quickly to sustained volume.
The JOEMEEK compressor doesn’t work this way. While the unit was being prototyped and designed,
As volume increases at the input, a point is reached the values and ranges of these timings were chosen
where the compressor starts to work and the gain by experimentation using wide ranges of program
through the amplifier is reduced. If the input level material.
keeps rising, gradually the gain reduction becomes
less effective and the amplifier goes back to being a Because of these intentional effects produced by
linear amplifier except with the volume turned the compressor, the JOEMEEK makes a perfect
down. tool for general enhancement of tracks to
“brighten,” “tighten,” “clarify,” and catch the at-
This is by design, and is based on an understanding tention of the listener, functions that are difficult or
of how the human ear behaves! The result is that impossible to achieve with conventional compres-
the listener is fooled into thinking that the JOE- sor designs.
MEEK compressed sound is louder than it really
is—but without the strange psychoacoustic effect
of “deadness” that other compressors suffer from.

Ove rshoot
At fast Attack settings, it is possible to make the
JOEMEEK “overshoot” on percussive program
material. This means that the compression elec-
tronics are driven hard before the light cells re-
spond to the increased level. The cells catch up and
overcompress momentarily giving a tiny dip imme-
diately following the start of the note.

To hear it, use a drum track, set Slope to 5, and At-

tack and Release to Fast. Used sparingly, this effect
can contribute to musical drive in your tracks.

Chapter 16: JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor 90

Cha pt e r 1 7 : M a x im

Maxim is a unique and powerful peak-limiting and Maxim features include:

sound maximizing plug-in that is available in DSP, • “Perfect attack-limiting” and look-ahead analy-
Native, and AudioSuite formats. Maxim is ideal for sis accurately preserve transient attacks and the
critical mastering applications, as well as standard character of original program material
peak-limiting tasks.
• A full-color histogram plots input dB history
Maxim offers several critical advantages over tra- during playback and provides visual feedback
ditional hardware-based limiters. Maxim takes full for setting threshold level
advantage of the random-access nature of disk- • A user-adjustable ceiling lets material be level-
based recording to anticipate peaks in audio mate- optimized for recording
rial and preserve their attack transients when per-
• Dither for noise shaping during final mixdown
forming reduction. This makes Maxim more trans-
parent than conventional limiters, since it preserves • Online Help provides descriptions of each con-
the character of the original audio signal without trol, shown by holding the pointer over any of the
clipping peaks or introducing distortion. elements in Maxim’s display.

Maxim supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,

96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

Maxim operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo

plug-in.

Maxim

Chapter 17: Maxim 91

 Lim it ing I ndividua l I nst rum e nt s
About Pe a k Lim it ing
The primary purpose of applying limiting to indi-
Peak limiting is an important element of audio pro- vidual instruments is to alter their dynamic range in
duction. It is the process of preventing signal peaks subtle or not-so-subtle ways. A common applica-
in audio material from clipping by limiting their tion of this type of limiting is to modify the charac-
dynamic range to an absolute, user-selectable ceil- ter of drums. Many engineers do this by applying
ing and not letting them exceed this ceiling. heavy limiting to flatten the snap of the attack por-
Limiters let you select a threshold in decibels. If an tion of a drum hit. By adjusting the release time of
audio signal peak exceeds this threshold, gain re- the limiter it is possible to bring up room tone con-
duction is applied, and the audio is attenuated by a tained in the decay portion of the drum sound.
user-selectable amount. In some cases, this type of limiting can actually
Limiting has two main uses in the audio production change a drum’s character from a very dry sound to
cycle: a relatively wet sound if there is enough room tone
present. This method is not without its drawbacks,
• Adjusting the dynamic range of an entire final however, since it can also bring noise levels up in
mixdown for premastering purposes the source audio if present.
• Adjusting the dynamic range of individual in-
struments for creative purposes

Lim it ing a M ix
The purpose of applying limiting during final mix-
down is to flatten any large peaks remaining in the
audio material to have a higher average signal level
in the final mix. By flattening peaks that would oth-
erwise clip, it is possible to increase the overall
level of the rest of the mix. This results in higher
average audio levels, potentially better signal to
noise ratio, and a smoother mix.

Chapter 17: Maxim 92

H ow M a x im Diffe rs From M a x im Cont rols a nd M e t e rs
Conve nt iona l Lim it e rs
Maxim is superior to conventional limiters in sev- M a x im I nput Leve l M e t e r
eral ways. Unlike traditional limiters, Maxim has This meter displays the amplitude of input signals
the ability to anticipate signal peaks and respond prior to limiting. Unlike conventional meters,
instantaneously with a true zero attack time. Maxim’s Input meter displays the top 24 dB of dy-
namic range of audio signals, which is where limit-
Maxim does this by buffering audio with a 1024-
ing is typically performed. This provides you with
sample delay while looking ahead and analyzing
much greater metering resolution within this range
audio material on disk before applying limiting.
so that you can work with greater precision.
Maxim can then instantly apply limiting before a
peak builds up. The result is extremely transparent
limiting that faithfully preserves the attack tran- M a x im H ist ogra m
sients and retains the overall character of the origi- The Histogram displays the distribution of wave-
nal unprocessed signal. form peaks in the audio signal. This graph is based
In addition, Maxim provides a histogram, that dis- on audio playback. If you select and play a short
plays the distribution of waveform peaks in the au- loop, the histogram is based on that data. If you se-
dio signal. This provides a convenient visual refer- lect and play a longer section, the Histogram is
ence for comparing the density of waveform peaks based on that. Maxim holds peak data until you
at different decibel levels and choosing how much click the Histogram to clear it.
limiting to apply to the material. The Histogram provides a visual reference for
comparing the density of waveform peaks at differ-
Maxim introduces a delay that is proportional
ent decibel levels. You can then base limiting deci-
to the session sample rate. To preserve phase
sions on this data.
synchronicity between multiple audio sources
when Maxim is only applied to one of these The X axis of the Histogram shows the number of
sources, use Delay Compensation or the Time waveform peaks occurring at specific dB levels.
Adjuster plug-in. The Y axis shows the specific dB level at which
these peaks occur. The more waveform peaks that
occur at a specific dB level, the longer the X-axis
line. If there appears to be a pronounced spike at a
certain dB level (4 dB for example), it means that
there are a relatively large number of waveform
peaks occurring at that level. You can then use this
information to decide how much limiting to apply
to the signal.

Chapter 17: Maxim 93

By dragging the Threshold slider downwards, you M a x im Ce iling Slide r
can visually adjust the level at which limiting will
This slider determines the maximum output level.
occur. Maxim displays the affected range in or-
After limiting is performed you can use this slider
ange.
to adjust the final output gain. The value that you
set here will be the absolute ceiling level for limited
peaks.

M a x im At t e nuat ion M e t e r
This meter displays the amount of gain reduction
dB level of
being applied over the course of playback, with the
waveform maximum peak displayed in the numeric readout at
peaks
the bottom of the meter. For example, if the numer-
ical display at the bottom of the Attenuation meter
displays a value of 4 dB, it means that 4 dB of lim-
density of iting has occurred. Since this is a peak-hold read-
waveform out, you can temporarily walk away from a session
peaks at
each level during playback and still know the maximum gain
Histogram reduction value when you come back. To clear the
numeric readout, click it with the mouse.
M a x im T hre shold Slide r
This slider sets the threshold level for limiting. Sig- M a x im Re le a se K nob
nals that exceed this level will be limited. Signals This knob sets how long it takes for Maxim to ease
below it will be unaffected. Limited signal peaks off of its attenuation after the input signal drops be-
are attenuated to match the threshold level, so the low the threshold level. Because Maxim has an at-
value that you set here will determine the amount of tack time of zero milliseconds, the release control
reduction applied. has a very noticeable effect on the character of lim-
iting. In general, if you are using heavy limiting,
M a x im Out put M e t e r you should use proportionally longer release times
in order to avoid pumping that may occur when
This meter displays the amplitude of the output sig-
Maxim is forced to jump back and forth between
nal. The value that appears here represents the pro-
limited and unlimited signal levels. Lengthening
cessed signal after the threshold, ceiling, and mix-
the release time has the effect of smoothing out
ing settings have been applied.
these changes in level by introducing a lag in the
ramp-up or ramp-down time of attenuation. Use
short release times on material with peaks that are
relatively few in number and that do not occur in
close proximity to each other. The Release control
has a default value of 1 millisecond.

Chapter 17: Maxim 94

M a x im M ix Slide r M a x im N oise Sha ping Cont rol
This slider sets the ratio of dry signal to limited sig- When selected, this applies noise-shaped dither.
nal. In general, if you are applying Maxim to a Noise shaping biases the dither noise to less audible
main output mix, you will probably want to set this high frequencies so that it is not as readily per-
control to 100% wet. If you are applying heavy lim- ceived by the ear. Dither must be enabled in order
iting to an individual track or element in a mix to to use Noise Shaping.
modify its character, this control is particularly use-
ful since it lets you control precisely the amount of M a x im Bit Re solut ion But t on
the processed effect mixed with the original signal.
These buttons select dither bit resolution. In gen-
eral, set this control to the maximum bit resolution
M a x im Link But t on
of your destination media.
When depressed, this button (located between the
 16-bit is recommended for output to digital de-
Threshold and Ceiling numeric readouts) links the
vices such as DAT recorders and CD recorders
Threshold and Ceiling controls. These two sliders
since they have a maximum resolution of 16 bits.
will then move proportionally together. As you
lower the Threshold control, the Ceiling control is  18-bit is recommended for output to digital de-
lowered as well. When these controls are linked vices that have a maximum resolution of 18 bits.
you can conveniently compare the effect of limit-
 20-bit is recommended for output to digital de-
ing at unity gain by clicking the Bypass button.
vices that support a full 20-bit recording data path.
It is recommended for use with digital effects de-
M a x im Dit he r But t on vices that support 20-bit input and output, since it
When selected, this applies dither. Dither is a form provides for a lower noise floor and greater dy-
of randomized noise used to minimize quantization namic range when mixing 20-bit signals directly
artifacts in digital audio systems. Quantization arti- into Pro Tools.
facts are most audible when the audio signal is near
the low end of its dynamic range, such as during a
quiet passage or fade-out.

Applying dither helps reduce quantization noise

that can occur when you are mixing from a 24-bit
source to a 16-bit destination, such as CD-R or
DAT. If you are using Maxim on a Master Fader
during mixdown, Maxim’s built-in dither function
saves you the trouble and DSP resources of having
to use a separate Dither plug-in.

If Dither is disabled, the Noise Shaping and Bit

Resolution controls will have no effect.

Chapter 17: Maxim 95

 In general, a value of -0.5 dB or so is a good maxi-
U sing M a x im mum ceiling. Don’t set the ceiling to zero, since the
Following are suggestions for using Maxim most digital-to-analog converters on some DATs and
effectively. CD players will clip at or slightly below zero.

If you are using Maxim on an output mix that

To use Maxim:
will be faded out, enable the dithering options
1 Insert Maxim on a track. you want to improve the signal performance
2 Select the portion of the track containing the of the material as it fades to lower ampli-
most prominent audio peaks. tudes.

3 Loop playback and look at the data displayed by

the Histogram and Attenuator meter. M a x im a nd M a st e ring
4 Select the Link button to link the Threshold and If you intend to deliver audio material as a 32-bit
Ceiling controls. You can then adjust these con- floating point or 24-bit audio file on disk for profes-
trols together proportionally and, using the By- sional mastering, be aware that many mastering en-
pass button, compare the audio with and without gineers prefer material delivered without dither or
limiting. level optimization.
5 Adjust the Threshold downwards until you hear
Mastering engineers typically want to receive au-
and see limiting occur, then bring the Threshold
dio material as undisturbed as possible in order to
back up slightly until you have roughly the
have leeway to adjust the level of the material rela-
amount of limiting you want.
tive to other material on a CD. In such cases, it is
6 Periodically click and clear the Attenuation me- advisable to apply only the limiting that you find
ter to check attenuation. In general, applying creatively appropriate—adding a little punch to
2 dB to 4 dB of attenuation to occasional peaks certain instruments in the mix, for example.
in pop-oriented material is appropriate.
However, if you intend to produce 16-bit output
7 Use the Bypass button to compare the processed from a source with a higher bit depth, use appropri-
and unprocessed sound and to check if the re- ate limiting and add dither. Doing so will optimize
sults are acceptable. the dynamic range and preserve the activity of the
8 Avoid pumping effects with heavier limiting by lower, or least-significant bits in the audio signal,
setting the Release control to longer values. smoothly dithering them into the 16-bit output.

9 When you get the effect you want, deselect the

Link button and raise the output level with the
Ceiling slider to maximize signal levels without
clipping.

Chapter 17: Maxim 96

Cha pt e r 1 8 : Pro Com pre ssor

Avid Pro Compressor is available in DSP, Native, In addition to standard knob and fader controls, Pro
and AudioSuite formats. Pro Compressor provides Compressor also provides a dynamics graph to
dynamic compression processing. The Avid Pro track the gain transfer curve for compression, as
Compressor processing algorithms are based on the well as a frequency graph for side-chain filtering.
award-winning Euphonix System 5 console chan- Additionally, the dynamics graph can be used to
nel strip effects. graphically edit the Threshold, Ratio, Knee, and
Depth settings.
Pro Compressor supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates.
Pro Com pre ssor M e t e ring
Pro Compressor supports mono, stereo, and
Pro Compressor provides combined meters that
greater-than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.
show both sample peak metering and averaged me-
Greater-than-stereo formats are only tering. Pro Compressor uses sample peak meters
available with Pro Tools HD. over average metering for Input and Output
signals. Attenuation metering uses sample peak
metering only.

The Peak Hold value is displayed numerically at

the top of the meter and the Peak Hold indicator ap-
pears as a thin orange line in the meter. This pro-
vides highly accurate visual metering correlation
with the audio signal. Pro Compressor also dis-
plays averaging metering with an integration time
of approximately 400 ms.

Input and Output meters use the following color

coding:

Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –90 to

–20 dB.
Pro Compressor
Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from
–20 dB to 0 dB.

Yellow Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to

+6 dB.

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 97

Attenuation meters show yellow for the entire
dynamic range displayed. Pro Com pre ssor I nput
Se c t ion
Pe a k I ndic at ors The Input section provides input metering and con-
trols for adjusting the level of the input signal.
The Input and Output meters provide graphical rep-
resentation of transient peaks, as well as graphical
and numerical display of the last, greatest regis-
tered peak (Peak Hold). The Attenuation meter pro-
vides similar graphical and numeric representa-
tions for the amount of compression applied to the
input signal.

The numerical display for the Peak value turns

orange when the signal exceeds 0 dB on the meters.
You can click the numerical display to reset the dis-
played value.

Peak Hold value

Peak Hold indicator

Sample Peak indicator
Input section with Meters and Input Level control

I nput Leve l
Average meter
The Input Level control sets the input gain of the
plug-in before processing, letting you boost or at-
tenuate gain at the plug-in input stage.

To adjust the level of the input signal, do one of the

following:

 Click in the Input Level field to type a value

Peak indicators in the Output meters (–36.0 dB to +36.0 dB).
 Click the Input Level control and drag up or
down to adjust the Input Level setting.

I nput M e t e rs
The Input meters show peak signal levels before
processing.

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 98

 Out put Leve l
Pro Com pre ssor Out put
Se c t ion The Output Level control sets the output level after
processing, letting you make up gain or prevent
The Output section provides output metering and clipping on the channel where the Pro Compression
controls for adjusting the level of the output signal. plug-in is being used.
The Output meters can also be toggled to show
post-processing gain attenuation meters. To adjust the output level, do one of the following:

 Click in the Output Level field and type a value

(–INF dB to +12 dB).
 Click the Output Level control and drag up or
down to adjust the Output Level setting.

Out put M e t e rs
The Output meters show peak signal levels after
processing.

At t e nuat ion M e t e rs
The Output meter can be switched to show Attenu-
ation metering for the processed signal from 0 dB
to –36 dB.

To toggle between the Attenuation and Output

Output section with Meters and Output Level control meters:

 Click the Output/Attenuation toggle in the top

right-hand corner of the Output section.

Output/Attenuation toggle (Attenuation meters shown)

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 99

 U sing t he Dyna m ic s Gra ph t o
Pro Com pre ssor Dyna m ic s Adjust Cont rols
Gra ph
You can drag in the Dynamics Graph display to
The Dynamics Graph display shows a curve that adjust the corresponding Compressor controls. The
represents the level of the input signal (on the hor- cursor updates to show which control is being ad-
izontal x–axis) and the amount of gain reduction justed:
applied (on the vertical y–axis). The display shows
• Threshold
a vertical line representing the Threshold setting
for the Compressor. • Ratio
• Knee
Input signal • Depth
level (x-axis)
To adjust the Threshold setting using the
Dynamics graph:

 Position the cursor over the vertical Threshold

Gain reduction line in the graph and drag left or right to make
amount (y-axis) the adjustment.

Threshold
Dynamics graph display

The Dynamics Graph display also features an ani-

mated red ball in the gain transfer curve display. Cursor indicates Threshold adjustment
This ball shows the amount of input gain (x-axis)
To adjust the Ratio setting using the Dynamics
and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in-
graph:
coming signal at any given moment. To indicate
overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too  Position the cursor over the ratio curve in the
fast for the current compression setting), the ball graph and drag up or down (or left or right) to
temporarily leaves the gain transfer curve. make the adjustment.

Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how

much dynamics processing you are applying to the
incoming audio signal.

Cursor indicates Ratio adjustment

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 100

To adjust the Knee setting using the Dynamics De t e c t ion M ode s
graph:
Pro Compressor provides several different detec-
 Position the cursor over the “knee” of the curve
tion options for determining how the compressor
in the graph and drag up or down (or left or
responds to the input signal.
right) to make the adjustment.
To change the detection mode for the compressor:

 Click a detection mode from the options avail-

able above the Dynamics graph.

Detection mode options (Smart mode selected)

Cursor indicates Knee adjustment Detection options include the following:
To adjust the Depth setting using the Dynamics
Smart Select the Smart option for tracks with di-
graph:
verse input signals, or if you are simply not sure
 Position the cursor over the horizontal Depth what detector works best with the given audio ma-
line in the graph and drag up or down (or left or terial. The Smart option analyzes the incoming sig-
right) to make the adjustment. nal and interpolates between the different detection
modes as needed. This lets you apply a lot of com-
pression without distortion or pumping.

RMS Select the RMS option to apply processing ac-

cording to the detected RMS (Root Mean Square)
amplitude of the input signal. The RMS option is
similar to the Average option, but with a faster re-
lease time.
Cursor indicates Depth adjustment
Average Select the Average option to apply pro-
cessing according to the detected average ampli-
tude of the input signal.

Peak Select the Peak option to apply processing

according to the detected peak amplitude of the
input signal.

Fast Select the Fast option for tracks with high and
short transient signals, such as a snare drum track.
The Fast option is similar to the Peak option, but
with faster attack and release times. However, be
careful when using the Fast option as it distorts ear-
lier than the other options. Be sure to configure the
other compressor settings with this in mind.

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 101

At t e nuat ion List e n M ode
Pro Com pre ssor Cont rols
Attenuation Listen mode lets you isolate the gain
reduction part of the processed audio signal. This T hre shold
can help you hear what parts of the input signal are
triggering compression, which, in turn, can help The Threshold control sets the level that an input
you better understand the characteristics of the signal must exceed to trigger compression. A signal
compressor with the current settings. will be compressed if its level exceeds this setting.
If the signal level falls below this value, no com-
To enable (or disable) Attenuation Listen mode: pression will occur.
 Click the Attenuation Listen button (the speaker
icon at the top right of the dynamics graph) so Rat io
that it is highlighted. The button flashes while
The Ratio control sets the compression ratio—the
Attenuation Listen mode is enabled. To disable
amount of compression applied as the input signal
it, click the button again so that it is not high-
exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compres-
lighted.
sion ratio means an input level that is 2 dB above
the threshold will be attenuated, resulting in an out-
put level that is 1 dB over the threshold. The com-
pression ratio ranges from 1.0:1 to 20.0:1.

Once the Ratio control hits 21.0:1, it displays

LMTR. The LMTR setting marks the highest “nor-
mal” compression mode before the onset of nega-
tive compression values (from –20.0:1 to 0:1).

At the LMTR setting, for every decibel that the in-

coming signal goes over the set Threshold, 1 dB of
Attenuation Listen mode enabled gain reduction is applied.

Compressor Ratio set to LMTR

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 102

Once the Ratio control passes the LMTR setting, it At t a ck
provides negative ratio settings from –20.0:1 to
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at
0:1.
which gain is reduced after the input signal level
crosses the threshold.

The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The

faster the attack, the more rapidly the compressor
applies attenuation to the signal. If you use fast at-
tack times, you should generally use a proportion-
ally longer release time, particularly with material
that contains many peaks in close proximity.
Compressor Ratio set to a negative value
The actual compression attack time is also
With these settings, for every decibel that the in- dependent on the selected Detection mode.
coming signal goes over the set Threshold, more Each mode has its own attack and release
than 1 dB of gain reduction is applied according to times that are calculated in advance of com-
the negative Ratio setting. For example, at the set- pression processing. If a slower Detection
ting of –1.0:1, for each decibel over the set thresh- mode is selected (such as AVG), the fastest
old, 2 dB of gain reduction is applied. Conse- possible actual attack time for compression
quently, the output signal is both compressed and can only be about 20 ms. The selected Detec-
made softer. You can use this as a creative effect, or tion mode similarly affects the compressor
as a kind of ducking effect when used with an ex- release time.
ternal key input.
Re le a se
K ne e
The Release control sets the length of time it takes
The Knee control sets the rate at which the com- for compression to be fully deactivated after the in-
pressor reaches full compression once the threshold put signal drops below the threshold.
has been exceeded.
Release times should be set long enough that if sig-
As you increase this control, it goes from applying nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the
“hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” compres- gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release
sion: time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as
• With hard-knee compression, compression be- the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the
gins when the input signal exceeds the threshold. gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud
This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting. section of the audio material could cause gain re-
duction that continues through soft sections of pro-
• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression
gram material without recovering.
begins and increases gradually as the input signal
approaches the threshold, and reaches full com-
pression after exceeding the threshold. This cre-
ates smoother compression.

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 103

De pt h With external key side-chain processing, you can
trigger dynamics processing using an external sig-
The Depth control sets the maximum amount of
nal (such as a separate reference track or audio
gain reduction applied regardless of the input sig-
source) instead of the input signal. This external
nal. For example, if Ratio is set to LMTR (between
source is known as the key input.
20.0:1 and –20.0:1) and Depth is set to Off, up to
20 dB of gain reduction is applied to the incoming With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics
signal (at 0 dB). If you set Depth to –10 dB, no processing more or less sensitive to certain fre-
more than 10 dB of gain reduction is applied to the quencies. For example, you might configure the
incoming signal. side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a
drum track trigger dynamics processing.
Dr y M ix
The Dry Mix control sets the balance between the
compressed signal (wet) and the original signal
(dry). The Dry Mix setting determines how much of
the original signal is sent to the output rather than
the processed signal. For example, at 30%, the out-
put will be 30% dry and 70% wet. Turn the Dry Mix Side-Chain section
knob counterclockwise to 0% to pass only the pro-
cessed signal (100% wet). Turn the Dry Mix knob Sourc e
clockwise to 100% to pass only the input signal
(100% dry). The Source selector lets you set the source for side-
chain processing: Int-Stereo Pairs, Ext-All (w/LFE),
Int All (no LFE), or Int-Front/Rear.
M a ke up
The Makeup control lets you boost overall output
gain to compensate for heavily compressed or lim-
ited signals.

Pro Com pre ssor Side -Cha in

Proc e ssing Selecting the Source for side-chain processing

Dynamics processors typically use the detected I nt e rna l Sourc e —St e re o Pa irs
amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re- When Int-StereoPairs is selected, the plug-in uses
duction. This is known as a side-chain signal. Pro the amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynam-
Compressor provides filters for side-chain process- ics processing based on stereo input. With greater-
ing and supports external key side-chain capabili- than-stereo multichannel processing, the input sig-
ties. nal for each stereo pair affects only those same
channels, and likewise mono channels are affected
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

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 104

channel input signal reaches the threshold. How- I nt e rna l Front /Rea r
ever, when the input signal reaches the threshold on
For LCRS or greater channel formats, when Int
the Left or the Right channel, processing is trig-
Front/Rear is selected, dynamics processing is ap-
gered for both the Left and the Right channel.
plied based on front channel inputs (LCR) and sur-
Ex t e rna l All (w it h LFE) round channel inputs (S) independently. For .1 for-
mats, the LFE channel is processed independently
When Ext-All (w/LFE) is selected, the plug-in uses based on its own input signal.
the amplitude of a separate reference track or exter-
nal audio source to trigger dynamics processing.
Side -Cha in List e n M ode
The reference track used is selected using the
Plug-In Key Input selector in the Plug-In window Listen mode lets you hear the input signal for the
header. With greater-than-stereo multichannel pro- side-chain to the compressor. This can be either the
cessing, the key signal triggers dynamics process- external key input or the internal side-chain (in-
ing for all processed audio channels equally. cluding the applied filter).

To enable (or disable) Listen mode on the side-

chain:

 Click the Listen button in the top-right corner of

the Side-Chain section so that it is highlighted.
The icon flashes while Side-Chain Listen mode
is enabled. To disable it, click the button again
so that it is not highlighted.

Side-Chain Listen mode enabled

Selecting the Source for side-chain processing

Attenuation Listen and Side-Chain Listen
I nt e rna l–All (N o LFE) can be enabled simultaneously, in which
case Attenuation Listen is audible but
When Int-All (no LFE) is selected, dynamics pro-
Side-Chain Listen is not.
cessing 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.

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 105

Side -Cha in Filt e r On/Off Filt e r Q

You can use the side-chain input with or without When the Filter Type is set to Band Pass or Notch,
filtering by enabling or disabling the Side-Chain the Q control is available. The Q control changes
Filter On/Off button. the width of the filter around the center frequency
band. Higher Q values represent narrower band-
To enable (or disable) filtering on the Side-Chain: widths. Lower Q values represent wider band-
 Click the Side-Chain Filter On/Off button on the widths.
right side of the Side-Chain section so that it is
highlighted. To disable it, click the button again Filt e r Type
so that it is not highlighted. Four Filter Type options are available for side-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
Side-Chain Filter enabled
selected frequency.
Side -Cha in Filt e r Notch Select the Notch option to apply a notch
filter to the side-chain processing at the selected
The side-chain-filter applies only to the side-chain
frequency.
signal feeding the Pro Compressor detection algo-
rithm. Compression is triggered only when the sig- Band Pass Select the Band Pass option to apply a
nal exceeds the Threshold setting at the frequencies band pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
passing through the side-chain filter. selected frequency.
Note that the side-chain filter does not apply
Side-Cha in Proc e ssing Gra ph
filtering to the compressed signal. Compres-
sion is applied to all frequencies of the input The Side-Chain Processing Graph display shows
signal when compression is triggered by the the frequency curve for the selected Filter Type at
side-chain. the selected Filter Frequency.

Filt er Fre que ncy

The Freq control lets you set the center frequency

for the selected Filter Type (from 20 Hz to
21.0 kHz).

Chapter 18: Pro Compressor 106

Cha pt e r 1 9 : Pro Ex pa nde r

Avid Pro Expander is available in DSP, Native, and In addition to standard knob and fader controls, Pro
AudioSuite formats. Pro Expander provides dy- Expander also provides a dynamics graph to track
namic expansion and gating processing. The Avid the gain transfer curve for dynamic expansion and
Pro Expander processing algorithms are based on gating, as well as a frequency graph for side-chain
the award-winning Euphonix System 5 console filtering. Additionally, the dynamics graph can be
channel strip effects. used to graphically edit the Threshold, Ratio, Knee,
and Depth settings.
Pro Expander supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates.
Pro Ex pa nde r M e t e ring
Pro Expander supports mono, stereo, and greater-
Pro Expander provides combined meters that show
than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.
both sample peak metering and averaged metering.
Greater-than-stereo formats are only Pro Expander uses sample peak meters over aver-
available with Pro Tools HD. age metering for Input and Output signals. Attenu-
ation metering uses sample peak metering only.

The Peak Hold value is displayed numerically at

the top of the meter and the Peak Hold indicator ap-
pears as a thin orange line in the meter. This pro-
vides highly accurate visual metering correlation
with the audio signal. Pro Expander also displays
averaging metering with an integration time of ap-
proximately 400 ms.

Input and Output meters use the following color

coding:

Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –90 dB to

–20 dB.

Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from

Pro Expander
–20 dB to 0 dB.

Yellow Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to

+6 dB.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 107

Attenuation meters show dark blue for the entire
dynamic range displayed. Pro Ex pa nde r I nput Se c t ion
The Input section provides input metering and con-
Pe a k I ndic at ors trols for adjusting the level of the input signal.

The Input and Output meters provide graphical rep-

resentation of transient peaks, as well as graphical
and numerical display of the last, greatest regis-
tered peak. The Attenuation meter provides similar
graphical and numeric representations for the
amount of compression.

The numerical display for the Peak value turns

orange when the signal exceeds 0 dB on the meters.
You can click the numerical display to reset the dis-
played value.

Peak Hold value

Peak Hold indicator

Sample Peak indicator
Input section with Meters and Input Level control

I nput Leve l
Average meter
The Input Level control sets the input gain of the
plug-in before processing, letting you boost or at-
tenuate gain at the plug-in input stage.

To adjust the level of the input signal, do one of the

following:

 Click in the Input Level field and type a value

Peak indicators in the Output meters (–36.0 dB to +36.0 dB).
 Click the Input Level control and drag up or
down to adjust the Input Level setting.

I nput M e t e rs
The Input meters show peak signal levels before
processing.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 108

 At t e nuat ion M e t e rs
Pro Ex pa nde r Out put Se c t ion
The Output meter can be switched to show Attenu-
The Output section provides output metering and ation metering for the processed signal from 0 dB
controls for adjusting the level of the output signal. to –36 dB.
The Output meters can also be toggled to show
post-processing gain attenuation meters. To toggle between the Attenuation and Output
meters:

 Click the Output/Attenuation toggle in the top

right-hand corner of the Output section.

Output/Attenuation toggle, Attenuation meters shown

Pro Ex pa nde r Dyna m ic s

Gra ph
Output section with Meters and Output Level control The Dynamics Graph display shows a curve that
represents the level of the input signal (on the hor-
Out put Leve l izontal x–axis) and the amount of processing ap-
The Output Level control sets the output level after plied (on the vertical y–axis). The display shows a
processing, letting you boost or attenuate gain on vertical line representing the Threshold setting for
the channel where the Pro Expander plug-in is the Expander.
being used.

To adjust the output level, do one of the following:

 Click in the Output Level field to type a value

(–INF dB to +12 dB).
 Click the Output Volume control and drag up or
down to adjust the Output Volume setting.

Out put M e t e rs
The Output meters show peak signal levels after
processing.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 109

 To adjust the Threshold setting using the
Dynamics graph:
Input signal
level (x-axis)  Position the cursor over the vertical Threshold
line in the graph and drag left or right to make
the adjustment.

Amount of
processing
(y-axis)

Threshold
Cursor indicates Threshold adjustment
Dynamics graph display
To adjust the Ratio setting using the Dynamics
The Dynamics Graph display also features an ani- graph:
mated red ball in the gain transfer curve display.  Position the cursor over the ratio curve in the
This ball shows the amount of input gain (x-axis) graph and drag up or down (or left or right) to
and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the in- make the adjustment.
coming signal at any given moment. To indicate
overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too
fast for the current compression setting), the ball
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.

U sing t he Dyna m ic s Gra ph t o Cursor indicates Ratio adjustment

Adjust Cont rols To adjust the Knee setting using the Dynamics
graph:
You can drag in the Dynamics Graph display to
adjust the corresponding Expander controls. The  Position the cursor over the “knee” of the curve
cursor updates to show which control is being in the graph and drag up or down (or left or
adjusted: right) to make the adjustment.
• Threshold
• Ratio
• Knee
• Depth

Cursor indicates Knee adjustment

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 110

To adjust the Depth setting using the Dynamics Average Select the Average option to apply pro-
graph: cessing according to the detected average ampli-
 Position the cursor over the horizontal Depth tude of the input signal.
line in the graph and drag up or down (or left or
Peak Select the Peak option to apply processing
right) to make the adjustment.
according to the detected peak amplitude of the
input signal.

Fast Select the Fast option for tracks with high and
short transient signals, such as a snare drum track.
The Fast option is similar to the Peak option, but
with faster attack and release times. However, be
careful when using the Fast option as it distorts ear-
lier than the other options. Be sure to configure the
other compressor settings with this in mind.
Cursor indicates Depth adjustment
Duck Select the Duck option to use Pro Expander
De t e c t ion M ode s as a ducker. In order to use Pro Limiter as a ducker,
set up an external key input side-chain bussed from
Pro Expander provides several different detection another track. When the Duck option is enabled, the
options for determining how the expander responds incoming signal is attenuated when the side-chain
to the input signal. input crosses the Threshold setting. For the most
predictable results, set Ratio to GATE. Use the
To change the detection mode for the expander:
Depth control to adjust the amount of ducking ap-
 Click a detection mode from the options avail- plied to the input signal. Dialog or voice-over is
able above the Dynamics graph. most commonly used as an external key input to
duck (attenuate) the program material (typically
music) on the track where Pro Expander is inserted.
Detection mode options, Smart mode selected As a general rule, when ducking program ma-
Detection options include the following: terial with dialog or voice-over, set the Attack
and Release controls in a range of 300 to 500
Smart Select the Smart option for tracks with di- milliseconds.
verse input signals, or if you are simply not sure
what detector works best with the given audio ma-
When Duck is enabled, the Upward option is
terial. The Smart option analyzes the incoming sig-
automatically disabled.
nal and switches between the different detection
modes as needed.

RMS Select the RMS option to apply processing ac-

cording to the detected RMS (Root Mean Square)
amplitude of the input signal. The RMS option is
similar to the Average option, but with a faster re-
lease time.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 111

At t e nuat ion List e n M ode
Pro Ex pa nde r Cont rols
Attenuation Listen mode lets you isolate the pro-
cessed part of the audio signal. This can help you T hre shold
hear what parts of the input signal are triggering ex-
pansion or gating, which, in turn, can help you bet- The Threshold control sets the level below which
ter understand the characteristics of the current set- an input signal must fall to trigger expansion or gat-
tings of the expander/gate. ing. Signals that fall below the threshold will be re-
duced in gain. Signals that are above it will be un-
To enable (or disable) Attenuation Listen mode: affected.
 Click the Attenuation Listen button (the speaker The Dynamics Graph display shows the threshold
icon at the top right of the dynamics graph) so as a vertical line.
that it is highlighted. The button flashes while
Attenuation Listen mode is enabled. To disable
it, click the button again so that it is not high-
Rat io
lighted. The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion. For
example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower signals be-
low the threshold by one half. At higher ratio lev-
els, Pro Expander functions like a gate by cutting
off signals that fall below the threshold. As you ad-
just the ratio control, refer to the Dynamics Graph
display to see how the shape of the expansion curve
changes.

U pw a rd
The Upward button enables Upward Expansion
Attenuation Listen mode enabled
mode. When Upward Expansion mode is enabled,
Pro Expander amplifies signals above the Thresh-
old. When it is disabled, the signal is attenuated
when the signal falls below threshold.

To enable (or disable) Upward Expansion mode:

 Click the Upward button so that it is highlighted.

To disable it, click the button again so that it is
not highlighted.

K ne e
The Knee control sets the rate at which the proces-
sor reaches full expansion or gating effect once the
threshold has been exceeded.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 112

At t a ck Dr y M ix
The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at The Dry Mix control sets the balance between the
which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses processed signal (wet) and the original signal (dry).
the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio setting The Dry Mix setting determines how much of the
to control how soft Pro Expander’s gain original signal is sent to the output rather than the
reduction curve is. processed signal. For example, at 30%, the output
will be 30% dry and 70% wet. Turn the Dry Mix
Re le a se knob counterclockwise to 0% to pass only the pro-
cessed signal (100% wet). Turn the Dry Mix knob
The Release control sets how long it takes for the clockwise to 100% to pass only the input signal
expansion to close or the gate to open after the in- (100% dry).
put signal falls below the Threshold level and the
Hold time has passed.
Look a he a d

De pt h The Lookahead control lets you add a certain

amount of delay in milliseconds for analyzing in-
The Depth control sets the depth of the processing coming audio. All attack transients take a certain
(expansion or gating) when closed. Setting the pro- amount of time from the onset of the signal to the
cessing to higher Depth levels allows more audio actual transient peak (especially those with lower
that falls below the threshold to remain audible. frequencies, like a kick drum). Adjust the Looka-
head time to ensure that processing with an Attack
H old setting of 0 (or at least very short) can be accurate
to the true attack time of transients in the signal.
The Hold control specifies the duration (in seconds
or milliseconds) during which Pro Expander stays Note that as soon as Lookahead is engaged, the full
in effect after the initial attack occurs. This can amount of delay time is added to the Pro Expander
keep processing in effect for longer periods of time plug-in processing latency. When Lookahead is set
with a single crossing of the threshold. It can also to Off, no additional latency is incurred.
be used to prevent gate chatter that may occur if
varying input levels near the threshold cause the You can compensate for plug-in processing
gate to close and open very rapidly. delay using Automatic Delay Compensation
in Pro Tools. For more information, see the
Pro Tools Reference Guide.
H yst e re sis
The Hysteresis control lets you adjust whether or
not the gate rapidly opens and closes when the in-
put signal fluctuates near the Threshold. This can
help prevent undesirably rapid gating of the signal.
This control is only available when Ratio is set to
Gate.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 113

 I nt e rna l Sourc e —St e re o Pa irs
Pro Ex pa nde r Side -Cha in
Proc e ssing When Int-StereoPairs is selected, processing is
triggered for both the Left and Right channel when
Dynamics processors typically use the detected the input signal reaches the threshold on either the
amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain re- Left or the Right channel. With greater-than-stereo
duction. This is known as a side-chain signal. Pro multichannel processing, the input signal for each
Expander provides filters for side-chain processing stereo pair affects only those same channels, and
and supports external key side-chain capabilities. likewise mono channels are affected only by their
With external key side-chain processing, you can own input signal. For example, with an LCR multi-
trigger dynamics processing using an external sig- channel format, the processing for the Center chan-
nal (such as a separate reference track or audio nel is only triggered when the Center channel input
source) instead of the input signal. This external signal reaches the threshold. However, when the
source is known as the key input. input signal reaches the threshold on the Left or the
Right channel, processing is triggered for both the
With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics Left and the Right channel.
processing more or less sensitive to certain fre-
quencies. For example, you might configure the Ex t e rna l All (w it h LFE)
side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a
When Ext-All (w/LFE) is selected, the plug-in uses
drum track trigger dynamics processing.
the amplitude of a separate reference track or exter-
nal audio source to trigger dynamics processing.
Dynamics processing is applied equally to all chan-
nels when the input signal reaches the threshold on
any input channel. With greater-than-stereo multi-
channel processing, the key signal triggers dynam-
ics processing for all processed audio channels
equally.
Side-Chain section

Sourc e
The Source selector lets you set the source for side-
chain processing: Int-Stereo Pairs, Ext-All (w/LFE),
Int All (no LFE), or Int-Front/Rear.

Selecting the Source for side-chain processing

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 114

The reference track used for side-chain processing Side -Cha in List e n M ode
is selected using the Plug-In Key Input selector in
Listen mode lets you hear the input signal for the
the Plug-In window header.
side-chain to the compressor. This can be either the
external key input or the internal side-chain (in-
cluding the applied filter).

To enable (or disable) Listen mode on the side-

chain:

 Click the Listen button in the top-right corner of

the Side-Chain section so that it is highlighted.
To disable it, click the button again so that it is
not highlighted.

Side-Chain Listen mode enabled

Configuring a key input for side-chain processing

I nt e rna l–All (N o LFE) Attenuation Listen and Side-Chain Listen can

be enabled simultaneously, in which case At-
When Int-All (no LFE) is selected, dynamics pro-
tenuation Listen is audible but Side-Chain
cessing is applied equally to all channels when the
Listen is not.
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.

I nt e rna l Front /Re a r

For LCRS or greater channel formats, when

Int-Front/Rear is selected, dynamics processing is
applied based on front channel inputs (LCR) and
surround channel inputs (S) independently. For
“.1” formats, the LFE channel is processed inde-
pendently based on its own input signal.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 115

Side -Cha in Filt e r On/Off Filt e r Type

You can use the Side-Chain input with or without Four Filter Type options are available for side-chain
filtering by enabling or disabling the Side-Chain processing:
Filter On/Off button.
Low Pass Select the Low Pass option to apply a
To enable (or disable) filtering on the side-chain: low pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
selected frequency.
 Click the Side-Chain Filter On/Off button on the
right side of the Side-Chain section so that it is High Pass Select the High Pass option to apply a
highlighted. To disable it, click the button again high pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
so that it is not highlighted. selected frequency.

Notch Select the Notch option to apply a notch fil-

ter to the side-chain processing at the selected fre-
quency.

Band Pass Select the Band Pass option to apply a

band pass filter to the side-chain processing at the
selected frequency.
Side-Chain Filter enabled
Side-Cha in Proc e ssing Gra ph
Side -Cha in Filt e r
The Side-Chain Processing Graph display shows
Filt er Fre que ncy the frequency curve for the selected Filter Type at
the selected Filter Frequency.
The Freq control lets you set the center frequency
for the selected Filter Type (from 20 Hz to
21.0 kHz).

Filt er 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 Q values represent narrower band-
widths. Lower Q values represent wider band-
widths.

Chapter 19: Pro Expander 116

Cha pt e r 2 0 : Pro Lim it e r

Avid Pro Limiter is available in DSP, Native, and

AudioSuite formats. Pro Limiter provides true
peak limiting. Pro Limiter limits incoming audio to
the True Peak of the signal, to prevent inter-sample
peaks that could introduce distortion during encod-
ing or analog conversion.

Pro Limiter complies with the ITU-R BS.1770-3

loudness metering standard, including True Peak,
Integrated Loudness, and Loudness Range mea-
surements, and is suitable for both EBU R128 and
ATSC A/85 (CALM Act) broadcast workflows.
Pro Limiter also provides a unique Character knob
that lets you add soft saturation for more loudness
and greater gain reduction, without the unwanted
digital artifacts of standard brick wall limiters. Pro Limiter

Use Pro Limiter to ensure that your mix output

never exceeds digital 0 dB when hitting the digital-
to-analog converters on your audio interface.

Pro Limiter supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,

96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

Pro Limiter supports mono, stereo, and greater-

than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1.

Greater-than-stereo formats are only

available with Pro Tools HD.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 117

Pro Lim it e r M e t e ring Pro Lim it e r I nput Se c t ion
Pro Limiter uses sample peak meters for Input and The Input section provides input metering and con-
Output signals. trols for adjusting the level of the input signal and
the display of the Input meters.
The Peak Hold value is displayed numerically at
the top of the meter and the Peak Hold indicator ap-
pears as a thin orange line in the meter. This pro- Dim Input Meter Gain Reduction
toggle Peak Hold display
vides highly accurate visual metering correlation
with the audio signal.

Input and Output meters use the following color Input Sample
Peak Hold
coding: display
Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –90 dB to Threshold
control
–20 dB.

Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from

–20 dB to 0 dB.

Yellow Indicates full scale levels from 0 dB to

+6 dB.

Gain Reduction meters are orange for the entire dy-

namic range displayed.

Input
Trim

Input section with Meters

I nput Trim
The Input Trim control sets the input gain of the
plug-in before processing, letting you boost or at-
tenuate gain at the plug-in input stage.

To trim the level of the input signal, do one of the

following:

 Click in the Input Level field to type a value

(–30.0 dB to +30.0 dB).
 Click the Input Trim control and drag up or
down to adjust the Input Trim setting.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 118

Dim I nput M e t e r Toggle Ga in Re duc t ion M e t e rs
Pro Limiter provides a Dim Input Meter option that The Gain Reduction meters are interleaved with the
dims the input meters while highlighting the atten- Input meters. Gain Reduction meters show the
uation meters. This lets you visually focus more on amount of gain reduction applied to the Input sig-
the gain reduction applied rather than on the incom- nal. The gain reduction amount varies depending
ing signal levels. on the level of the Input signal, as well as the
Threshold and Character settings.
To toggle the Dim Input Meter option on or off:
The Gain Reduction meter scaling is shown on the
 Click the Dim Input Meter toggle in the upper-
right side of the Input meters (from 0 dB to
left corner of the Input section.
–36 dB).

I nput a nd Ga in Re duc t ion Pe a k To better see the Gain Reduction meters, you can
H old Displa ys dim the Input meters (see “Dim Input Meter Tog-
gle” on page 119).
Pro Limiter displays the Input Sample Peak Hold
value (in dB) at the upper left corner of the Input
Dim Input
meters and the Gain Reduction Peak Hold value (in Meter toggle
dB) at the upper right corner of the Input meters.
Gain Reduction
Input Sample Peak Hold Display Shows the last meters
greatest sample peak value from the input signal
(on any channel).

Gain Reduction Peak Hold Display Shows the last

greatest attenuation value applied to the input
signal.
Input meters
dimmed
To reset either the Input or Gain Reduction Peak
Hold display value:

 Click the display value you want to reset.

I nput M e t e rs Gain Reduction meters shown with Input meters

dimmed
The Input meters show peak signal levels before
processing. The Input meter scaling is shown on
the left side of the Input meters (from –90 dB to
+6 dB).

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 119

Pro Lim it e r Out put Se c t ion Pro Lim it e r Cont rols
The Output section provides output metering and Pro Limiter provides controls for setting the
controls for adjusting the level of the output signal. Threshold, Ceiling, Character (soft-saturation
limiting), and Release time.
Output Sample
Peak Hold display T hre shold
Output Ceiling The Threshold control sets the level an input signal
control must exceed to trigger limiting. Signals that fall be-
low the Threshold setting are unaffected.

To adjust the input threshold, do one of the

following:

 Click in the Threshold field to type a value

(–30 dB to 0 dB).
 Click the Threshold control and drag up or
down.
 Click the Threshold control on the Input meters
Output Ceiling and drag up or down.

Ce iling
Output section with Meters The Ceiling control sets the maximum output level
of the audio signal from -30 to 0 dBTP (dB relative
Out put M e t e rs to full scale, measured as a true-peak value).
The Output meters show peak signal levels after To adjust the output ceiling, do one of the
processing. The Output meter scale is shown on the following:
right side of the Output meters (from –90 dB to
 Click in the Ceiling field (either below the Ceil-
+6 dB).
ing control or below the Output meters) to type a
value between –30 to 0 dBTP.
Out put Sa m ple Pe a k H old
 Click the Ceiling control and drag up or down.
Displa y
 Click the Output Ceiling control on the Output
Pro Limiter provides a numerical display for the
output sample peak hold value (in dB) above the meters and drag up or down.
output meters. To reset the value, click it.
Shift-click and drag either the Ceiling control
or the Threshold control to link both controls
and adjust them to match the same value.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 120

Cha ra c t e r All (w/LFE) When selected, limiting is applied to all
incoming channels whenever any channel
The Character control adds soft-saturation process- exceeds the Threshold setting.
ing with no additional gain before applying limit-
ing. All (no LFE) When selected, limiting is applied to
all incoming channels whenever any channel,
Re le a se except the LFE channel, exceeds the Threshold set-
ting.
The Release control sets the length of time it takes
to cease limiting after the input signal crosses the Front/Back When selected, limiting is only applied
threshold. to the Left, Center (if present), and Right channels
only when the incoming signal on any front chan-
Release times should be set long enough that if sig- nel input exceeds the Threshold setting. Limiting is
nal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the only applied to the Surround channels only when
gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release the incoming signal on any surround (or back)
time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as channel) exceeds the Threshold setting.
the limiter repeatedly tries to recover from the gain
reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud sec- Insert a multi-mono instance of Pro Limiter to
tion of the audio material could cause gain ensure no linking between channels. Each
reduction that continues through soft sections of channel will trigger its own processing inde-
program material without recovering. pendently of the other channels.

When the Auto Release option is enabled, the Re- Aut o Re le a se

lease control is overridden and the Release value
display is grayed out. When Auto Release is enabled, Pro Limiter over-
rides the Release setting and automatically adjusts
the limiter release time based on changes in the pro-
Cha nne l Link ing gram material. When the Auto Release toggle is
Pro Limiter provides four different options for de- disabled, you can set the limiter release time man-
termining how limiting processing is applied to ually using the Release control.
greater-than-stereo multi-channel formats.

Stereo Pairs When selected, limiting is only ap- List e n

plied to the Left and Right stereo pairs only when Enable Listen to isolate the processed part of the
either the Left or Right incoming signal exceeds the audio signal. This can help you hear what parts of
Threshold setting. Similarly, limiting is only ap- the input signal are triggering limiting, which, in
plied to the Left Surround and Right Surround ste- turn, can help you better understand the character-
reo pairs only when either the Left Surround or istics of the current Threshold, Character, and
Right Surround incoming signal exceeds the Release settings.
Threshold setting. The processing of the Center
channel (if present) is applied separately only when
the incoming signal on for the Center channel ex-
ceeds the Threshold setting.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 121

 ences to 0.775Vrms. LUFS is a measurement on a
Pro Lim it e r Loudne ss decibel scale and is relative to the loudness level of
N um e ric Displa ys a stereo (front left and front right) 1 kHz tone peak-
Pro Limiter provides numeric displays that show ing at 0 dBFS (0 decibels at full scale).
the current loudness or peak level of the processed
signal. Note that Pro Limiter conforms to the
ITU-R BS.1770-3 standard for loudness metering. Pro Lim it e r H ist ogra m a nd
The numeric loudness values generated by Loudne ss M e t e rs
Pro Limiter can be used for both EBU R128 and
ATSC A/85 CALM Act loudness compliance. Time Auto Analysis
elapsed Reset Run Analysis
Integrated Displays the current integrated level of
the processed signal level in LUFS.

Range Displays the range of the processed signal

level over time in LU.

True Peak Displays the true peak hold value of the

Output signal in dB.

Short Term Displays the short term output signal

level in LUFS.

Histogram Momentary
About LU FS, LU, a nd dB Loudness
K-Meter
LUFS (Loudness Unit, Referenced to Full Scale) is M S I meters
a unit of measurement that expresses loudness lev- Pro Limiter Histogram and Loudness meters
els on an absolute scale. LU (Loudness Unit) is a
unit of measurement for differences between loud- H ist ogra m
ness levels (loudness levels on a relative scale). For
example, program material that has a loudness Pro Limiter provides a histogram that shows a
level of –23 LUFS will be 2 LU quieter than pro- graphic representation of loudness over time within
gram material that has a loudness level –21 LUFS. a window of 60 seconds. The graph displays True
LU can also be used as the units for loudness levels Peak levels as a yellow line and the range of loud-
relative to the target level. Note that since K-weight- ness over time as a blue shadow around the peak
ing has been adopted as the standard for loudness level line.
units, LUFS is equivalent with LKFS in Time Elapsed Displays the amount of time elapsed
Pro Limiter. since the current analysis pass started in hours,
Decibels (dB) are an expression of the ratio of two minutes, and seconds (00:00:00).
levels: the level to be described (or measured) and Reset Analysis Click the Reset button to reset the
a reference level. Letters after dB (such as dBm) analysis.
signify the reference level. For example, dBm is
referenced to 1 milliwatt, whereas dBu is refer-

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 122

Auto Analysis When Auto is enabled, Pro Limiter Adjusting the Loudness Meters View
automatically pauses the analysis pass when the
The Loudness meters show a range of 27 LUFS.
Pro Tools transport is stopped. This means that the
The default view shows from –14 to –41 LUFS.
drop in levels will not be reported with the Inte-
Drag up or down in the histogram to adjust the
grated and Range values. Note that it may be useful
viewed range for loudness metering from 0 LUFS
to disable Auto if you want to include a live audio
on the upper end down to –50 LUFS on the lower
signal being monitored through Pro Tools while
end.
the transport is stopped.

Run Analysis Click the Run Analysis (Play) button

to enable (lit) or disable (unlit) analysis reporting in AudioSuit e Proc e ssing w it h
the histogram while the Pro Tools transport is Pro Lim it e r
stopped. Pro Limiter runs the analysis when the
Pro Tools transport is running regardless of When used as an AudioSuite plug-in, Pro Limiter
whether or not the Run Analysis option is enabled. does not provide real-time analysis data in the his-
Note that when the Auto analysis option is enabled, togram or the loudness meter. Once you have ren-
the Run Analysis option is overridden. dered the audio selection with Pro Limiter process-
ing, Pro Limiter loudness reporting updates to
display the results of the processing.
Loudne ss M e t e rs
The Loudness meters to the right of the histogram
show the level of the summed output of Pro Lim-
iter. The meters range from 0 LUFS down to
–50 dB LUFS. –23 LUFS is a common standard
loudness reference level.

Momentary Loudness Provides a display of the

loudness range (as in the histogram). The current
peak level is shown as a yellow line using
K-weighted metering.

Momentary Loudness Meter (M) Graphically dis-

plays the current true peak level.

Short Term Loudness Meter (S) Graphically dis-

plays the current short term output level.
Pro Limiter AudioSuite plug-in
Integrated Loudness (I) Graphically displays the
current integrated level of the processed signal us-
ing K-weighted metering.

K-weighted metering implements a filter

curve that models the human ear's perception
of loudness. It is an integral part of the ITU-R
BS.1770 standard for loudness metering.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 123

AudioSuit e Proc e ssing w it h
Pro Lim it e r Loudne ss
Ana lyze r
Use the Pro Limiter Loudness Analyzer to check
loudness levels before rendering Pro Limiter pro-
cessing if you need to read the current loudness
measurements of your program material.

To analyze audio using the Pro Limiter Loudness

Analyzer:

1 Make an audio selection in the Edit window.

2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Pro Limiter
Loudness Analyzer.

3 Click Analyze.

The Loudness numerical displays update to show

the analyzed values (for information on the Loud-
ness numerical displays, see “Pro Limiter Loud-
ness Numeric Displays” on page 122).

Pro Limiter Loudness Analyzer AudioSuite plug-in

With the Pro Limiter Loudness Analyzer, the

Preview and Render buttons do not do any-
thing useful. They are simply present as part of
the AudioSuite plug-in framework.

Chapter 20: Pro Limiter 124

Cha pt e r 2 1 : Purple Audio M C7 7

Purple MC77 is a dynamics processing plug-in that

is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite for- Purple Audio M C7 7 Cont rols
mats. Purple Audio MC77 has controls identical in name
to those of the BF76, and which function similarly.
Purple MC77 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
For more information, see Chapter 10, “BF76.”
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates.

Purple MC77 operates as a mono, multi-mono, or

stereo plug-in.

Purple Audio MC77

The Purple Audio MC77 is a spot-on digital replica

of Andrew Roberts’ acclaimed MC77 Limiting am-
plifier, which in turn is an update of his classic
MC76 hardware unit. Representing a different take
on the 1176-style FET limiter, the Purple Audio
MC77 preserves every audio nuance and sonic sub-
tlety of the classic originals.

Chapter 21: Purple Audio MC77 125

Cha pt e r 2 2 : Sm a ck !

Smack! is a dynamics processing plug-in that is The Smack! compressor/limiter plug-in has the fol-
available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. lowing features.

Smack! supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, • Three modes of compression:
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. • Norm mode emulates FET compressors,
which can have faster attack and release times
Smack! supports mono, stereo, and greater-than- than electro-optical compressors. This mode
stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1. lets you fine-tune compression precisely by
adjusting the attack, release, and ratio con-
Greater-than-stereo formats are only
trols.
available with Pro Tools HD.
• Warm mode is based on Norm mode, but has
release characteristics more like those of elec-
tro-optical limiters.
• Opto mode emulates classic electro-optical
limiters, which tend to have gentler attack and
release characteristics than FET compressors.
The attack, release and ratio controls are not
adjustable in this mode.
• “Key Input” side-chain processing, which lets
you trigger compression using the dynamics of
another signal.
• Side-Chain EQ filter, which lets you tailor the
compression to be frequency-sensitive.
Smack! • High Pass filter, which lets you remove
“thumps” or “pops” from your audio.
Smack! has no control to directly adjust the • Distortion control, which lets you add different
threshold level (the level that an input signal types of subtle harmonic distortion to the output
must exceed to trigger compression). The signal.
amount of compression will vary with the in-
put signal, which is adjustable by the Input
control.

Chapter 22: Smack! 126

 Wa r m M ode But t on
Sm a ck ! Cont rols a nd M e t e rs
Enable the Warm button for compression that is
Smack! includes controls for multiple compression based on Norm mode, but which has program-de-
modes and a VU meter. pendent release characteristics. These characteris-
tics, often described as “transparent” or “smooth,”
Sm a ck ! Com pre ssion M ode can be less noticeable to the listener and can reduce
But t ons waveform distortion caused by some sustained
low-frequency tones.
Smack! has three modes of compression: Norm
(Normal), Opto, and Warm. Use the corresponding As with Norm mode, Warm mode can be used for a
button to select a mode. wide range of program material including vocals or
low-frequency instruments such as tom-toms or
bass guitar. Extreme settings can be used to pro-
Norm, Warm, and Opto mode buttons
duce “pumping” effects. Like Norm mode, Warm
mode lets you precisely adjust the Ratio, Attack,
N orm M ode But t on and Release controls to fine-tune the compression
characteristics.
Enable the Norm button to emulate FET compres-
sors, which can have significantly faster attack and
Opt o Mode But t on
release times than opto-electrical-based compres-
sors. It can be used for a wide range of program ma- Enable the Opto button to emulate opto-electro
terial and, with extreme settings, can be used for compressors. Opto mode produces “soft knee”
sound effects such as “pumping.” compression with gentle attack and release charac-
teristics, and is ideal for compressing thin vocals,
In Norm mode, you can precisely adjust the Ratio, bass guitars, kick drums, and snare drums. In Opto
Attack, and Release controls to fine-tune the com- mode, only the Input and Output controls are avail-
pression characteristics. able for adjusting the amount of compression. The
,

Some sustained low-frequency tones can Attack, Release, and Ratio controls are greyed out
cause waveform distortion in Norm mode. and cannot be manually adjusted.
The release characteristics of Warm mode
(which is based on Norm mode) can be used Sm a ck ! I nput Cont rol
to remedy this distortion by reducing wave-
In all Smack! compression modes, Input adjusts the
form modulation.
level of input gain to the compressor. For more
compression, increase the amount of input gain.
For less compression, reduce the amount of input
gain.

Setting the Input and Output controls to 5 is

equal to unity gain at a compression ratio of
1:1.

Chapter 22: Smack! 127

Sm a ck ! At t a ck Cont rol Smack! compression ratios range from subtle com-
pression to hard limiting. At ratios of 10:1 and
In Norm and Warm modes, Attack controls the rate
higher, Smack! functions as a limiter. Selecting the
at which gain is reduced after the input signal
Smack! setting lowers the threshold slightly and
crosses the threshold.
applies hard limiting, which keeps the output level
This control is not available in Opto mode. constant regardless of the input level. (This setting
can also be used for extreme compression effects.)
Set this control to 0 for the fastest attack time, or to
10 for the slowest attack time. Depending on the Sm a ck ! Re le a se Cont rol
resents an approximate range of 100 s to 80 milli-
program material and the parameters used, this rep-
In Norm and Warm modes, Release controls the
seconds. length of time it takes for the compressor to be fully
deactivated after the input signal drops below the
threshold level. If the release time is too short, dis-
Sm a ck ! Rat io Cont rol tortion can occur on low-frequency signals.
In the Norm and Warm modes, Ratio controls the
This control is not available in Opto mode.
compression ratio, or the amount of compression
applied as the input signal exceeds the threshold.
Set this control to 0 for the fastest release time, or to
For example, a 2:1 compression ratio means that an
10 for the slowest release time. Depending on the
input level that is 2 dB above the threshold will be
program material and the parameters used, this rep-
attenuated, resulting in an output level that is 1 dB
resents an approximate range of 15 ms to 1 second
over the threshold.
for Norm mode (or the primary release of Warm
This control is not available in Opto mode. mode).

Sm a ck ! Out put Cont rol

Smack! has no control to directly adjust the
threshold level (the level that an input signal In all Smack! compression modes, Output adjusts
must exceed to trigger compression). The the overall output gain, which lets you compensate
amount of compression will vary with the in- for heavily compressed signals by making up the
put signal, which is adjustable by the Input resulting difference in gain.
control.
When you apply Smack! to stereo or multichannel
As you increase the Ratio control, Smack! goes tracks, the Output control determines master output
from applying “soft-knee” compression to “hard- levels for all channels.
knee” compression, as follows:
Set this control to 0 for no output gain (silence), or
• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression to 10 for the loudest output gain. This represents an
begins and increases gradually as the input signal approximate range of +40 dB.
approaches the threshold. This creates smoother
compression. Setting the Input and Output controls to 5
is equal to unity gain at a compression
• In hard-knee compression, compression begins
ratio of 1:1.
when the input signal exceeds the threshold. This
can sound abrupt, and is ideal for limiting or de-
essing.
Chapter 22: Smack! 128
Sm a ck ! Side -Cha in EQ Filt e r Band-Emphasis Makes the compressor's detector
more sensitive to mid-to high frequencies in the in-
The side-chain is the signal path that a compressor put signal or Key Input by boosting those frequen-
uses to determine the amount of gain reduction it cies in the side-chain signal. For example, you
applies to the signal being compressed. This signal might use this setting to reduce sibilance in vocal
path is derived from the input signal or Key Input, tracks.
depending on the user's selection.

When enabled, the Side-Chain EQ filter lets the

user tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal
so that the compression becomes frequency-sensi-
tive.

See “Using the Smack! Side-Chain Input” on

page 131 for more information on using the
Side-Chain EQ on a Key Input.
Band-Emphasis Side-Chain EQ
The Side-Chain EQ filter has the following set- Combined Enables the High Pass and peak settings
tings: simultaneously to make the compressor's detector
High Pass Makes the compressor's detector less more sensitive to high frequencies and less sensi-
sensitive to low frequencies in the input signal or tive to low frequencies.
Key Input by rolling off at a rate of 6 dB per octave.
For example, you might use this setting on a mix to
prevent a bass guitar or bass drum from causing too
much gain reduction.

Combined Side-Chain EQ

Off Disables the Side-Chain EQ control.

High Pass Side-Chain EQ

Chapter 22: Smack! 129

Sm a ck ! Dist ort ion Cont rol Sm a ck ! V U M e t e r
When enabled, Distortion adds subtle second-order The VU meter displays the amount of input level,
and third-order harmonic distortion to the output output level, or gain reduction from compression,
signal. depending on the current Meter Mode button set-
• Odd harmonics produce waveforms that are ting. It is calibrated to a reference level of
more square-shaped and are often described as –14 dBFS = 0 VU.
“harsh” sounding. Input Meter Mode Internal Output
Clipping button Clipping Clipping
• Even harmonics produce waveforms with more indicator indicator indicator
rounded edges and are often described as
“smooth” sounding.

The amount of distortion that Smack! applies to the

input signal depends on both the level of the input
signal and the amount of compression being ap-
plied.

Odd Applies mostly odd (and some even) harmon-

ics to the distortion.
Input meter Gain meter Output
Even Applies mostly even (and some odd) harmon- meter
ics to the distortion.
VU Meter
O+E Applies an equal blend of odd and even har-
monic distortion. Me t e r M ode But t on a nd Clip I ndic at ors

The Output control has no effect on the level The Meter Mode button toggles between display-
of distortion applied to the signal. ing three display modes, as follows:

In Displays the input signal level, referenced to

Sm a ck ! H PF Toggle Sw it ch –14 dBFS = 0 VU.
When enabled, the HPF (high pass filter) toggle
Out Displays the output signal gain, referenced to
switch gently rolls off audio frequencies lower than
–14 dBFS = 0 VU.
60 Hz in the output signal at a rate of 6 dB per oc-
tave. GR Displays the amount of gain reduction applied
by the compressor.
This is especially useful for removing “thumps” or
“pops” from vocals, bass, or kick-drums.

Chapter 22: Smack! 130

I nput and Out put M et e rs To use an external Key Input to trigger
compression:
The Input and Output meters indicate input and
1 Insert Smack! on a track you want to compress
output signal levels in dBFS (dB relative to full
using external side-chain processing.
scale or maximum output).
2 On the audio track or Auxiliary Input that you
The Internal Clipping indicator (labelled “INT want to specify as the Key Input (the signal that
CLIP”) turns red when the signal exceeds the avail- will be used to trigger compression), click the
able headroom. Clicking the Internal Clipping indi- Send button and select the bus path to the track
cator clears it. Alt-clicking (Windows) or Option- that will use side-chain processing.
clicking (Mac) clears the clip indicators on all
channels. The Key Input must be monophonic.

3 In the track that you are compressing, click the

U sing t he Sm a ck ! Side -Cha in instance of Smack! in the Inserts pop-up menu.
I nput 4 In the Smack! plug-in window, click the Key In-
put menu, and select the input or bus path that
Smack provides side-chain processing capabilities.
you have designated as the Key Input.
Compressors typically use the detected amplitude
of their input signal to cause gain reduction. This 5 Begin playback. Smack! uses the input or bus
split-off signal is called the side-chain. However, that you selected as a Key Input to trigger its ef-
an external signal (referred to as the Key Input) can fect.
be used to trigger compression.
6 To fine-tune the amount of compression, adjust
A typical use for external side-chain processing is the send level from the Key Input track.
to control the dynamics of one audio signal using
the dynamics of another signal. For example, you When you are using a Key Input to trigger
could use a lead vocal track to duck the level of a compression, the Input control has no effect
background vocal track so that the background vo- on the amount of compression.
cals do not interfere with the lead vocals.
7 To tailor the side-chain signal so that the detec-
The Side-Chain EQ filter lets you tailor the tor is frequency-sensitive, use the Side-Chain
equalization of the side-chain signal so that EQ filter (see “Smack! Side-Chain EQ Filter” on
the compression becomes frequency-sensi- page 129 for more information).
tive. See “Smack! Side-Chain EQ Filter” on
page 129 for more information.

Chapter 22: Smack! 131

Pa rt I V : Pit c h a nd T im e Shift
Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 2 3 : Pit ch I I

Pitch II is a pitch-shifting plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. Pitch II is
designed for a variety of audio production applications, ranging from pitch correction of musical material
to sound design.

Pitch II supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, and 96 kHz sample rates for all plug-in formats. Pitch II also
supports 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates for Native and AudioSuite plug-in formats.

Pitch II is available in mono, mono-to-stereo, and stereo channel formats.

Pitch II (stereo)

Chapter 23: Pitch II 133

 Pit ch I I Cont rols

I nput a nd Tra nsie nt Cont rols

Input and Transient controls

Input The Input control lets you attenuate the gain

of the input signal from –6.0 dB to 0 dB to prevent
clipping in the pitch shift algorithm.

Input Polarity 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
Pitch II plug-in (mono) connections. The stereo version of Pitch II provides
adjacent left and right channel Input Polarity but-
Pitch processing typically uses the technique of
tons.
varying sample playback rate to achieve pitch
transposition. Changing audio sample playback Range The Range selector lets you adjust the range
rate results in the digital equivalent of vari-speed- of frequencies (Low, Mid, High, Wide) used for
ing with tape. This is usually unsatisfactory since it pitch detection. For most program material, the
changes the overall duration of the material. Wide setting should work well for pitch detection
and transposition. If you encounter undesirable fre-
Pitch transposition with Pitch II involves a much
quency artifacts with pitch transposition, experi-
more complex technique. Pitch II digitally re-
ment with other settings. Set this parameter to
aligns portions of the re-sampled audio waveform
match the expected frequency content of source
itself, while using de-glitching crossfades to mini-
material. For example, when working with a bass
mize undesirable artifacts. The result is a processed
part, set Range to Low. When pitch-shifting audio
signal that is transposed in pitch, but still retains the
from material similar to a soprano vocalist or a vi-
same overall duration of the original, unprocessed
olin, set Range to High.
signal.
Clip Indicator The Clip indicator shows whether
clipping has occurred on output. It is a clip-hold in-
dicator. If clipping occurs at any time, the clip light
will remain on. To clear the Clip indicator, click it.
Long delay times and high feedback times increase
the likelihood of clipping.

Chapter 23: Pitch II 134

Level Indicator The Level indicator shows the pres- Pit ch Shift Cont rols
ence of an input signal.

Threshold Pitch II detects and responds to tran-

sients in the incoming audio signal to prevent
“smearing” of sharp attacks (such as drum hits or
vocal plosives). The Threshold control (–40 dB to
0 dB, and Off) determines how strong a transient
needs to be in order to be recognized by the pitch Pitch Shift controls
detection algorithm. It you encounter undesirable
frequency artifacts in the middle of long held notes, Keyboard (Relative Pitch Transposition) Click
try raising the Threshold setting. If audio transients any note on the keyboard to set a relative pitch
are obscured in the transposed signal, try lowering transposition value that will be applied to the audio
the Threshold setting. signal. The “C” key in the middle of the keyboard
represents the original pitch of the incoming signal:
Window Pitch II changes the pitch by splitting the if the C in the middle of the keyboard is selected,
incoming audio up into small grains (6.0 ms to there is no pitch transposition. Click any other key
42 ms), re-sampling those grains, and adding those to transpose the pitch of the incoming signal by the
grains back together. The Window control deter- interval difference between middle C and the se-
mines the size of the grains. If you are working with lected key. For example, if the E-flat key above
long pad-like material such as legato strings, then middle C is selected, Pitch II transposes the incom-
increasing the Window size may improve audio ing signal up a minor third (or 3 semitones). The
quality; having too short of a Window in this situa- Coarse control and the Keyboard control are
tion may result in robotic or buzzy sounding audio. linked.
If you are pitch-shifting material with sharp tran-
sients, such as a drum part, reducing the Window Coarse This control adjusts the pitch of a signal in
size improves transient response; having too long semitones over a two octave range. Pitch changes
of a Window in this situation may make the audio are indicated in number of semitones.
sound smeared and choppy.
Fine This control controls the pitch of a signal in
Follow Enable Follow to match the overall dynamic cents (hundredths of a semitone) over a 100 cent
envelope of the source audio. If pitch-shifted audio range. The range of this control is –50 to +50 cents.
does not match the same decay sound as the origi- Ratio The Ratio control lets you set the transposi-
nal, turning Follow on may improve the sound. In tion between the pitch of the incoming signal and
most cases, however, leaving Follow off should the selected transposition value as a percentage.
sound just fine. The Ratio setting is linked with the Coarse and
Fine settings.

Link (Stereo Only) Enable the Link option to link

the controls for the left and right channels.

Chapter 23: Pitch II 135

Show/Hide Panel Feedback The Feedback control lets you set the
amount and type of feedback (positive or negative)
applied from the output of the Delay effect back
into its input. It also controls the number of repeti-
tions of the delayed signal. You can use it to pro-
duce effects that spiral up or down in pitch, with
Show each successive echo shifted in pitch.
Hide
LPF The LPF (Low Pass Filter) control lets you set
the frequency under which audio signal is passed.
The control can be set between 10 Hz and
22.05 kHz.
Show/Hide panel controls

Click the Show/Hide triangle in the upper left cor-

ner of the Pitch Shift panel to show or hide the
panel. Hiding the Pitch Shift panel can be useful for
conserving screen space.

Effe c t s Cont rols

Effects controls

Delay The Delay control lets you set the delay time
between the original signal and the pitch-shifted
signal. It has a maximum setting of 1000 millisec-
onds. You can use the Delay control in conjunction
with the Feedback control to generate a single
pitch-shifted echo, or a series of echoes that rise in
pitch.

Mix The Mix control lets you adjust the ratio of dry
signal to effected signal in the output. In general,
this control should be set to 100% wet, unless you
are using the plug-in in-line on an Insert for an in-
dividual track or element in a mix. This control can
be adjusted over its entire range with little or no
change in output level.

Chapter 23: Pitch II 136

Cha pt e r 2 4 : T im e Shift

Time Shift is an AudioSuite plug-in that provides

high quality time compression and expansion T im e Shift Cont rols
(TCE) algorithms and formant correct pitch-shift- Time Shift controls are organized in the following
ing. four sections:
Time Shift is ideal for music production, sound de- Audio Use the controls in the Audio section to se-
sign, and post production applications. Use it to lect the most appropriate time compression and ex-
manipulate audio loops for tempo matching or to pansion algorithm (mode) for the type of material
transpose vocal tracks using formant correct pitch you want to process, and to attenuate the gain of the
shifting. You can also use it in audio post produc- processed audio to aid clipping.
tion for pull up and pull down conversions as well
as for adjusting audio to specific time or SMPTE Time Use the controls in the Time section to spec-
durations for synchronization purposes. ify the amount of time compression or expansion
you want to apply.

Formant or Transient Use the controls in the For-

mant or Transient section to adjust either the
amount of formant shift or the transient detection,
depending upon which mode you have selected in
the Audio section. The Formant section is only
available when Monophonic is selected as the Au-
dio Mode. The Transient section is available with
slightly different controls depending on whether
Polyphonic or Rhythmic is selected as the Audio
Mode.

Pitch Use the controls in the Pitch section to apply

pitch shifting. Pitch shifting can also be formant
correct if you select the Monophonic audio setting.

Time Shift

Chapter 24: Time Shift 137

T im e Shift Audio Cont rols Ra nge

The Audio section of Time Shift provides controls The Audio Range pop-up menu determines the fol-
for specifying the type of audio you want to process lowing frequency ranges for analysis:
and gain attenuation of the processed signal to
Low For low-range material, such as a bass
avoid clipping.
guitar, select Low.

Mid For mid-range material, such as male vocals,

select Mid. In Monophonic mode, Mid is the de-
fault setting and is usually matches the range of
Time Shift, Audio section
most monophonic material.
Mode
High For material with a high fundamental fre-
The Audio Mode pop-up menu determines the fol- quency such as female vocals, select high.
lowing types of TCE and pitch shift algorithm for
Wide For more complex material that covers a
processing audio:
broad frequency spectrum, select Wide. In Poly-
Monophonic Select Monophonic for processing phonic mode, Wide is the default setting and is usu-
monophonic sounds (such as a vocal melody). ally best for all material when using the Polyphonic
audio type.
Polyphonic Select Polyphonic for processing com-
plex sounds (such as a multipart musical selection). The range pop-up menu is unavailable in
Rhythmic mode and Varispeed mode.
Rhythmic Select Rhythmic for processing percus-
sive sounds (such as a mix or drum loop). Ga in
Rhythmic mode uses transient analysis for time The Audio Gain control attenuates the input level
shifting. If you select audio with no apparent tran- to avoid clipping. Adjust the Gain control from
sients, or set the Transient Threshold control to a 0.0 dB to –6.0 dB to avoid clipping in the pro-
setting above any detected transients, Time Shift cessed signal.
assumes a “virtual-transient” every three seconds
to be able to process the file. Consequently, the file Clip I ndic at or
should be 20 bpm or higher (one beat every three
The Clip indicator indicates clipping in the pro-
seconds) to achieve desirable results. For material
cessed signal. When using time compression or
that has no apparent transients, use Monophonic or
pitch shifting above the original pitch, it is possible
Polyphonic mode.
for clipping to occur. The Clip indicator lights
Varispeed Select Varispeed to link time and pitch when the processed signal is clipping. If the pro-
change for tape-like pitch and speed change effects, cessed signal clips, undo the AudioSuite process
and post production workflows. and attenuate the input gain using the Gain control.
Then, re-process the selection.

Chapter 24: Time Shift 138

Level I ndic at or Unit Select a timebase for the Original and
Processed time fields: Bars|Beats, Min:Sec,
The Level indicator displays the level of the output Timecode, Feet+Frames, or Samples.
signal using a plasma LED, which uses the full
range of plasma level metering colors. Speed Displays the target time compression or ex-
pansion as a percentage of the original. Adjust the
T im e Shift T im e Cont rols Time control or click the Speed field and type a
value. Time can be changed from 25.00% to
The Time section of Time Shift provides controls 400.00% of the original speed (or 4 to 1/4 times the
for specifying the amount of time compression or original duration). The default setting is 100.00%,
expansion as well as the timebase used for calculat- or no change. 25.00% results in 4 times the original
ing TCE. Adjust the Time control to change the tar- duration and 400.00% results in 1/4 of the original
get duration for the processed audio. duration.

The Speed field only displays up to 2 decimal

places, but lets you type in as many decimal places
as you want (up to the IEEE standard). While the
display rounds to 2 decimal places, the actual time
shift is applied based on the number you typed.
This is especially useful for typing post production
Time Shift, Time section
pull up and pull down factors (see “Post Production
Original Displays the Start and End times, and Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks with Time Shift” on
Length of the edit selection. Times are displayed in page 144).
units of the timebase selected in the Units pop-up
menu.

Processed Displays the target End time and

Length of the processed signal. Times are dis-
played in units of the timebase selected in the Units
pop-up menu. You can click the Processed End and
Length fields and type values. These values update
automatically when adjusting the Time control.

Tempo Displays the Original Tempo and Processed

Tempo in beats per minute (bpm). You can click
the Original Tempo and Processed Tempo fields
and type values. The Processed Tempo value up-
dates automatically when adjusting the Time con-
trol.

Chapter 24: Time Shift 139

T im e Shift For m a nt Cont rols T im e Shift Tra nsie nt Cont rols
The Formant section of Time Shift lets you shift the The Transient section is only available when Poly-
formant shape of the selected audio independently phonic or Rhythmic is selected as the Audio Type,
of the fundamental frequency. This is useful for and provides slightly different controls for each.
achieving formant correct pitch shifting. It can also
be used as an effect. For example, you can formant When Polyphonic is selected as the Audio Type,
shift a male vocal up by five semitones and it will the Transient section provides controls for setting
take on the characteristics of a female voice. the transient detection threshold and for adjusting
the analysis window length for processing audio.
The Formant section is only available when Mono-
phonic is selected as the Audio Type. The Formant
section provides a single control for transposing the
formants of the selected audio by –24.00 semitones
(–2 octaves) to +24.00 semitones (+2 octaves),
with fine resolution in cents. Adjust the Formant
Shift control or click the Shift field and type a Time Shift Transient section with Polyphonic selected
value. as the Audio Type

When Rhythmic is selected as the Audio Type, the

Transient section provides controls for setting the
transient detection threshold, and for adjusting the
decay rate of the transients in the processed audio
when time stretching.

Time Shift Formant section

About Formants

Audio with a fundamental pitch has an overtone se-

ries, or set of higher harmonics. The strength of
these higher harmonics creates a formant shape,
Time Shift Transient section with Rhythmic selected as
which is apparent if viewed using a spectrum ana- the Audio Type
lyzer. The overtone series, or harmonics, have the
same spacing related to the pitch and have the same Follow The follow button enables an envelope fol-
general shape regardless of what the fundamental lower that simulates the original acoustics of the
pitch is. It is this formant shape that gives the audio audio being stretched. Click the Follow button to
its overall characteristic sound or timbre. When enable or disable envelope following. Follow is
pitch shifting audio, the formant shape is shifted only available when Polyphonic is selected as the
with the rest of the material, which can result in an Audio Type.
unnatural sound. Keeping this shape constant is
critical to formant-correct pitch shifting and
achieving a natural sounding result.

Chapter 24: Time Shift 140

Threshold The Threshold controls sets the tran- Decay Rate The Decay Rate control determines
sient detection threshold from 0.0 dB to –40.0 dB. how much of the decay from a transient is heard in
Disable transient detection by setting the Threshold the processed audio when time stretching. When
control to Off (turn the knob all the way to the time stretching using the Rhythmic setting, the re-
right). Part of Time Shift’s processing relies upon sulting gaps between the transients are filled in
separating “transient” parts of the selection from with audio, and Decay Rate determines how much
“non-transient” parts. Transient material tends to of this audio is heard by applying a fade out rate.
change its content quickly in time, as opposed to Decay Rate is only available when Rhythmic is se-
parts of the sound which are more sustained. Adjust lected as the Audio Type. Adjust the Decay Rate up
the Threshold control or click the Threshold field to 100% to hear the audio that is filling the gaps
and type a value. created by the time stretching with only a slight
fade, or adjust down to 1.0% to completely fade out
The default value for Threshold is –6.0 dB. For between the original transients.
highly percussive material, lower the threshold for
better transient detection, especially with the
Rhythmic audio setting. For less percussive mate- T im e Shift Pit ch Cont rols
rial, and for shifting with the Polyphonic audio set- The Pitch section of Time Shift provides controls
ting, a higher setting can yield better results. Exper- for pitch shifting the selected audio. Use the Pitch
iment with this control, especially when shifting control to transpose the pitch from –24.00 semi-
drums and percussive tracks, to achieve the best re- tones (–2 octaves) to +24.00 semitones (+2 oc-
sults. taves), with fine resolution in cents.
Window The Window control sets the analysis win-
dow length for processing audio. You can set the
Window from 6.0 milliseconds to 185.0 millisec-
onds. Adjust the Window control or click the Win-
dow field and type a value. The Window control is
only available when Polyphonic is selected as the Time Shift, Pitch section
Audio Type.
Transpose Displays the transposition amount in
The default for Window size is 18.0 milliseconds semitones. You can transpose pitch from –24.00
and works well for many applications, but you may semitones (–2 octaves) to +24.00 semitones (+2 oc-
want to try different Window settings to get the best taves), with fine resolution in cents. Adjust the
results. Try larger window sizes for low frequency Pitch control or click the Transpose field and type a
sounds or sounds that do not have many transients. value.
Try smaller window sizes for drums and percus-
Shift Displays the pitch shift amount as a percent-
sion. 37.0 milliseconds tends to work well for poly-
phonic instruments such as piano or guitar. A set- age. You can pitch shift from 25.00% (–2 octaves)
ting as large as 71.0 milliseconds works well for to +400.00% (+2 octaves). Adjust the Pitch control
bass guitar. Settings in the 12 millisecond range or click the Shift field and type a value. The default
work well on drums or percussion. value is 100% (no pitch shift).

Chapter 24: Time Shift 141

AudioSuit e I nput M ode s a nd T im e Shift a s AudioSuit e TCE
T im e Shift Plug-I n Pre fe re nc e
Time Shift supports the Pro Tools AudioSuite In- The Time Shift plug-in’s high quality time com-
put Mode selector for use on mono or multi-input pression and expansion algorithms that can be used
processing. with the Pro Tools TCE Trim tool.

Mono Mode Processes each audio clip as a mono

file with no phase coherency maintained with any
other simultaneously selected clips.

Multi-Input Mode Processes up to 48 input chan-

nels and maintains phase coherency within those
selected channels. TCE Plug-In option in Processing Preferences page

See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more

AudioSuit e Previe w a nd T im e information about the TCE Trim tool.
Shift
To select Time Shift for use with the TCE Trim tool:
Time Shift supports Pro Tools AudioSuite Preview 1 Choose Setup > Preferences.
and Bypass. For more information on using Audio-
Suite Preview and Bypass, see the Pro Tools Refer- 2 Click the Processing tab.
ence Guide. 3 From the TC/E Plug-In pop-up menu, select
Time Shift.

4 Select a preset from the Default Settings pop-up

menu.
5 Click OK.

Proc e ssing Audio U sing T im e

Shift
Time Shift lets you change the time and pitch of se-
lected audio independently or concurrently.

Normalizing a selection before using Time

Shift may produce better results.

Chapter 24: Time Shift 142

Cha nging t he T im e U sing T im e 4 If transposing the pitch of the selection up, atten-
Shift uate the Gain control as necessary.

To change the time of a selected audio clip: 5 If using Monophonic mode, adjust the Formant
Shift control.
1 Select AudioSuite > Pitch Shift > Time Shift.
6 If using Polyphonic or Rhythmic mode, adjust
2 Select the Audio Mode appropriate to the type of
the Transient controls.
material you are processing (Monophonic, Poly-
phonic, or Rhythmic). 7 Make sure Time Shift is set to 0% (unless you
also want to change the duration of the section).
3 In Monophonic or Polyphonic mode, select the
appropriate Range for the selected material 8 Adjust the Pitch Shift control to set the amount
(Low, Mid, High, or Wide). of pitch change. Pitch change is measured in
semitones (and cents) or as a percentage of the
4 If compressing the duration of the selection, at-
original.
tenuate the Gain control as necessary.
9 Click Render.
5 If using Monophonic mode, adjust the Formant
Shift control.
Cha nging t he T im e a nd Pit ch
6 If using Polyphonic or Rhythmic mode, adjust U sing T im e Shift
the Transient controls.
To change the time and pitch of a selected audio
7 Make sure Pitch Shift is set to 100% (unless you clip:
also want to change the pitch of the selection).
1 Select AudioSuite > Pitch Shift > Time Shift.
8 Adjust the Time Shift control to set the amount
2 Select Varispeed from the Audio Mode pop-up
of time change. Time change is measured in
menu.
terms of the target duration using the selected
timebase or as a percentage of the original. 3 Adjust either the Time Shift or Pitch Shift con-
trol to set the amount of time and pitch change in
9 Click Render.
terms of a percentage of the original.

Cha nging t he Pit ch U sing T im e 4 Click Render.

Shift
Using the Monophonic, Polyphonic, or
To change the pitch of a selected audio clip: Rhythmic modes, you can adjust both the
Time Shift and Pitch Shift controls inde-
1 Select AudioSuite > Pitch Shift > Time Shift.
pendently before processing.
2 Select the Audio Mode appropriate to the type of
material you are processing (Monophonic, Poly-
phonic, or Rhythmic).
3 In Monophonic or Polyphonic mode, select the
appropriate Range for the selected material
(Low, Mid, High, or Wide).

Chapter 24: Time Shift 143

Post Produc t ion Pull U p a nd Pull Dow n Ta sk s w it h T im e Shift
The table below provides information on TCE settings for common post production tasks. Type the corre-
sponding TCE% (represented to 10 decimal places in the table) in the Time Shift field for the corresponding
post production task and the process the selected audio.

Pull Up or Pull Down TCE% (to 10 Decimal Places) Frames

Pal to Film –4%.tfx 96.0% 25 to 24/30

PAL to NTSC –4.1%.tfx 95.9040959041% 25 to 23.976/29.97

Film to PAL +4.1667%.tfx +104.1666666667% 24/30 to 25

Film to NTSC –0.1%.tfx 99.9000999001% 24/30 to 23.976/29.97

NTSC to Pal +4.2667%.tfx +104.2708333333% 23.976/29.97 to 25

NTSC to Film +0.1%.tfx +100.10% 23.976/29.97 to 24/30

Chapter 24: Time Shift 144

Cha pt e r 2 5 : Va ri-Fi

Vari-Fi is an AudioSuite plug-in that provides a

pitch-change effect similar to a tape deck or record Va ri-Fi Cont rols
turntable speeding up from or slowing down to a
complete stop. Vari-Fi preserves the original dura- Cha nge Cont rols
tion of the audio selection.
Slow Dow n
Vari-Fi provides a pitch-change effect similar to a
When selected, Slow Down applies a pitch-change
tape deck or record turntable speeding up from or
effect to the selected audio, similar to a tape re-
slowing down to a complete stop. Features include:
corder or record turntable slowing down to a com-
• Speed up from a complete stop to normal speed plete stop.
• Slow down to a complete stop from normal
speed Spe e d U p

When selected, Speed Up applies a pitch-change

effect to the selected audio, similar to a tape re-
corder or record turntable speeding up from a com-
plete stop. This effect does not change the duration
of the audio selection.

Se le c t ion Cont rols

Vari-Fi
The Selection setting determines the duration of the
rendered clip in relation to the processing.

Fit To

When the Fit To option is selected, the length of the

audio selection is retained when rendering the Au-
dioSuite effect. This is useful for rendering the ef-
fect in place (especially if the selection is con-
strained by the grid or by adjacent clips).

When this option is enabled, processing is applied

to only two-thirds of the selection so that the resul-
tant rendering maintains the original duration of the
selection.

Chapter 25: Vari-Fi 145

Ex t e nd

When the Extend option is selected, all audio in the

current Edit selection is processed and rendered.
The resulting rendering is 150% the duration of the
Edit selection. The selection start point does not
change, but the rendered clip extends beyond the
end of the Edit selection.

This can be useful if the last third (for speeding up)

or the first third (for slowing down) of the Edit se-
lection needs to be heard in the rendered effect.

Fa de s Cont rols
On

When the On option is selected, a fade-out is ap-

plied if the Slow Down option is selected or a fade
in is applied if the Speed Up option is selected.

Off

When the Off option is selected, no fade-in or fade-

out is applied in the rendered Edit selection.

This can result in a more pronounced “tape-stop” or

“tape-start” effect and can also be useful for pre-
serving the dynamic level at the end of the Edit se-
lection when the Slow Down option is selected, or
the beginning of the selection when the Speed Up
option is selected.

Chapter 25: Vari-Fi 146

Cha pt e r 2 6 : X -For m

X-Form is an AudioSuite plug-in that is based on

the Radius algorithm from iZotope. X-Form pro- X -For m Displa ys a nd Cont rols
vides the high quality time compression and expan- Ove r vie w
sion for music production, sound design, and audio The interface for X-Form is organized in four sec-
loop applications. Use X-Form to manipulate audio tions: Audio, Time, Transient, and Pitch.
loops for tempo matching or to change vocal tracks
for formant correct pitch shifting. The X-Form Audio Use the controls in the Audio section to se-
plug-in is useful in audio post-production for ad- lect the most appropriate time compression and ex-
justing audio to specific time or SMPTE durations pansion algorithm for the type of material you want
for synchronization purposes. X-Form is also ideal to process and to attenuate the gain of the processed
for post-production pull up and pull down conver- audio to avoid clipping.
sions.
Time Use the controls in the Time section to spec-
Normalizing a selection before using X-Form ify the amount of time compression or expansion
may produce better results. you want to apply.

Transient Use the controls in the Transient section

to adjust the transient detection for high quality
time compression or expansion.

Pitch Use the controls in the Pitch section to apply

pitch shifting. Pitch shifting can be formant correct
with either the Polyphonic or Monophonic algo-
rithm.

X -For m Audio Se c t ion Cont rols

The Audio section of X-Form provides controls for
specifying the type of audio you want to process
and gain attenuation of the processed signal to
avoid clipping.

X-Form X-Form, Audio section

Chapter 26: X-Form 147

Type X -For m T im e Se c t ion Cont rols
The Audio Type determines the type of TCE and The Time section of X-Form provides controls for
pitch shift algorithm for processing audio: Poly- specifying the amount of time compression or ex-
phonic, Monophonic, or Poly (Faster). pansion as well as the timebase used for calculating
TCE. Adjust the Time control to change the target
Polyphonic Use for processing complex sounds
duration for the processed audio.
(such as a multipart musical selection).

When previewing Polyphonic, Poly (Faster)

is used for faster previewing. However, when
you process the audio selection, the high-
quality Polyphonic setting is used.

Monophonic Use for processing monophonic

sounds (such as a vocal melody). X-Form, Time section

Origina l
Poly (Faster) Use for faster previewing and pro-
cessing, but with slightly reduced audio quality. The Original column displays the Start and End
times, and Length of the edit selection. Times are
Ga in displayed in units of the timebase selected in the
The Gain control attenuates the input level to avoid Units pop-up menu.
clipping. Adjust the Gain control from 0.0 dB to
Proc e sse d
–6.0 dB to avoid clipping in the processed signal.
The Processed column displays the target End time
Clip Indicator The Clip indicator indicates clipping
and Length of the processed signal. Times are dis-
in the processed signal. When using time compres-
played in units of the timebase selected in the Units
sion or pitch shifts above the original pitch, it is
pop-up menu. You can click the Processed End and
possible for clipping to occur. The Clip indicator
Length fields and type values. These values update
lights when the processed signal is clipping. If the
automatically when adjusting the Time control.
processed signal clips, undo the AudioSuite pro-
cess and attenuate the input gain using the Gain
Te mpo
control. Then, re-process the selection.
The Tempo row displays the Original Tempo and
Level Indicator The Level indicator displays the
Processed Tempo in beats per minute (bpm). You
level of the output signal using a plasma LED,
can click the Original Tempo and Processed
which uses the full range of plasma level metering
Tempo fields and type values. The Processed
colors.
Tempo value updates automatically when adjusting
the Time control.

U nit

Select a timebase for the Original and Processed

time fields: Bars|Beats, Min:Sec, Timecode,
Feet+Frames, or Samples.

Chapter 26: X-Form 148

Shift
When changing to a smaller Range setting
The Shift setting displays the target time compres- (such as switching from 8x to 2x), the Time
sion or expansion as a percentage of the original. Shift and Pitch Shift settings are constrained
Adjust the Time control or click the Shift field and to the limits of the new, smaller range. For
type a value. Time can be shifted by as much as example, with 8x enabled and Time Shift set
12.50% to 800.00% of the original speed (or 8 to 500%, switching to 2x changes the Time
times to 1/8 of the original duration) depending on Shift value to 200%.
which Range button is enabled (2x, 4x, or 8x).

The Shift field only displays up to 2 decimal places,

X -For m Tra nsie nt Se c t ion
Cont rols
but lets you type in as many decimal places as you
want (up to the IEEE standard). While the display The Transient section provides controls for setting
rounds to 2 decimal places, the actual time shift is the sensitivity for transient detection and for adjust-
applied based on the number you typed. This is es- ing the analysis window size.
pecially useful for post-production pull up and pull
down factors (see “Using X-Form for Post Produc-
tion Pull Up and Pull Down Tasks” on page 153).

2 x , 4 x , a nd 8 x Ra nge But t ons

The 2x, 4x, and 8x Range buttons set the possible X-Form, Transient section
range for the Time Shift, Pitch Shift, and Formant
Shift controls. Se nsit ivit y

2x Lets you apply Time Shift, Pitch Shift, and For- The Sensitivity setting controls how X-Form deter-
mant Shift from 50.00% to 200.00% (where mines and interprets transients from the original
50.00% is 2 times the original duration and audio. Part of X-Form’s processing relies upon sep-
200.00% is 1/2 of the original duration). arating “transient” parts of the sample from “non-
transient” parts. Transient material tends to change
4x Lets you apply Time Shift, Pitch Shift, and For- its content quickly in time, as opposed to parts of
mant Shift from 25.00% to 400.00% (where the sound which are more sustained. Sensitivity is
25.00% is 4 times the original duration and only available when Polyphonic is selected as the
400.00% is 1/4 of the original duration). Audio Type.
8x Lets you apply Time Shift, Pitch Shift, and For- For highly percussive material, lower the Sensitiv-
mant Shift from 12.50% to 800.00% (where ity for better transient detection, especially with the
12.50% is 8 times the original duration and Rhythmic audio setting. For less percussive mate-
800.00% is 1/8 of the original duration). rial, a higher setting can yield better results. Exper-
iment with this control, especially when shifting
drums and percussive tracks, to achieve the best re-
sults.

Chapter 26: X-Form 149

Window Shift

The Window setting determines the analysis win- The Shift setting displays the pitch shift amount as
dow size. You can adjust the Window from 10.0 a percentage. Pitch can be shifted by as much as
milliseconds to 100.0 milliseconds. Adjust the 12.50% (–3 octaves) to 800.00% (+3 octaves) de-
Window control or click the Window field and type pending on which Range button is enabled (2x, 4x,
a value. Window is only available when Mono- or 8x). Adjust the Pitch control or click the Shift
phonic is selected as the Audio Type. field and type a value.

Try larger window sizes for low frequency sounds Forma nt

or sounds that do not have many transients. Try
smaller window sizes for tuned drums and percus- Audio with a fundamental pitch has an overtone se-
sion. However, the default of 25 milliseconds ries, or set of higher harmonics. The strength of
should work well for most material. these higher harmonics creates a formant shape,
which is apparent if viewed using a spectrum ana-
lyzer. The overtone series, or harmonics, have the
X -For m Pit ch Se c t ion Cont rols
same spacing related to the pitch and have the same
The Pitch section provides controls for pitch shift- general shape regardless of what the fundamental
ing the selected audio. Use the Pitch control to pitch is. It is this formant shape that gives the audio
transpose the pitch from as much as –36.00 semi- its overall characteristic sound or timbre. When
tones (–3 octaves) to +36.00 semitones (+3 oc- pitch shifting audio, the formant shape is shifted
taves), with fine resolution in cents, depending on with the rest of the material, which can result in an
which Range button is enabled (2x, 4x, or 8x). X- unnatural sound. Keeping this shape constant is
Form also lets you transpose the formant shape in- critical to formant correct pitch shifting and achiev-
dependently of the fundamental frequency. ing a natural sounding result.

The Pitch section of X-Form lets you pitch shift the

formants of the selected audio independently of the
fundamental frequency. This is useful for achiev-
ing formant correct pitch shifting. It can also be
used as an effect. For example, you can formant
X-Form, Pitch section shift a male vocal up by five semitones and it will
take on the characteristics of a female voice.
Tra nspose
To enable or disable formant shifting:
The Transpose setting displays the transposition
amount in semitones. You can transpose pitch by as  Click the In button. The In button lights when
much as –36.00 semitones (–3 octaves) to +36.00 formant shifting is enabled.
semitones (+3 octaves), with fine resolution in
cents, depending on which Range button is en- The Formant field displays the amount of formant
abled. Adjust the Pitch control or click the Trans- pitch shifting from –36.00 semitones (–3 octaves)
pose field and type a value. to +36.00 semitones (+3 octaves), with fine resolu-
tion in cents. Adjust the Formant control or click
the Formant field and type a value.

Chapter 26: X-Form 150

X -For m AudioSuit e I nput AudioSuit e TCE Plug-I n
\

M ode s Pre fe re nc e
X-Form supports the Pro Tools AudioSuite Input The high quality time compression and expansion
Mode selector for use on mono or multi-input pro- algorithms of X-Form can be used with the
cessing. Pro Tools TCE Trim tool.

Mono Mode Processes each audio clip as a mono

file with no phase coherency maintained with any
other simultaneously selected clips.

Multi-Input Mode Processes up to 48 input chan-

nels and maintains phase coherency within those
selected channels.
TCE Plug-In option in Processing Preferences page

AudioSuite Preview
When using X-Form for the TCE Trim tool,
X-Form supports Pro Tools AudioSuite Preview the default 2x Range is used for an edit range
and Bypass. For more information on using Audio- of twice to half the duration of the original
Suite Preview and Bypass, see the Pro Tools Refer- audio. If you select a Default Setting that uses
ence Guide. either the 4x or 8x Range, the Time Shift and
Pitch Shift setting are constrained to the 2x
Range limit of 50% to 200%.

Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide for

more information about the TCE Trim tool.

To select X-Form for use with the TCE Trim tool:

1 Choose Setup > Preferences.
2 Click the Processing tab.
3 From the TC/E Plug-In pop-up menu, select
Avid X-Form.
4 Select a preset from the Default Settings pop-up
menu.
5 Click OK.

Chapter 26: X-Form 151

 To change the pitch of a selected audio clip:
Proc e ssing Audio U sing
1 Select AudioSuite > Pitch Shift > X-Form.
X -For m
2 Select the Audio Type appropriate to the type of
X-Form lets you change the time and pitch of se-
material you are processing (Monophonic or
lected audio independently or concurrently.
Polyphonic).
You can adjust both the Time Shift and 3 If transposing the pitch of the selection up, atten-
Pitch Shift controls independently before uate the Gain control as necessary.
processing.
4 Adjust the Transient controls.
To change the time of a selected audio clip:
5 Enable a Range button (2x, 4x, or 8x) to set the
1 Select AudioSuite > Pitch Shift > X-Form. possible range for pitch change.
2 Select the Audio Type appropriate to the type of 6 Adjust the Pitch Shift control to set the amount
material you are processing (Monophonic or of pitch change. Pitch change is measured in
Polyphonic). semitones (and cents) or as a percentage of the
3 If compressing the duration of the selection, at- original pitch.
tenuate the Gain control as necessary. 7 If you want to enable formant processing, click
4 Adjust the Transient controls. the IN button to enable Formant and adjust the
Formant control.
5 Enable a Range button (2x, 4x, or 8x) to set the
possible range for time change. 8 Click Render.

6 Adjust the Time Shift control to set the amount

of time change. Time change is measured in
terms of the target duration using the selected
timebase or as a percentage of the original
speed.
7 Click Render.

Chapter 26: X-Form 152

U sing X -For m for Post Produc t ion Pull U p a nd Pull Dow n Ta sk s
The table below provides information on TCE settings for common post-production tasks. Type the corre-
sponding TCE% (represented to 10 decimal places in the following table) in the X-Form Time Shift field for
the corresponding post-production task and the process the selected audio.

Use the X-Form Plug-In Settings for the corresponding post-production task.

Pull up or Pull Down TCE% (to 10 Decimal Places) Frames

Pal to Film –4%.tfx 96.0% 25 to 24/30

PAL to NTSC –4.1%.tfx 95.9040959041% 25 to 23.976/29.97

Film to PAL +4.1667%.tfx +104.1666666667% 24/30 to 25

Film to NTSC –0.1%.tfx 99.9000999001% 24/30 to 23.976/29.97

NTSC to Pal +4.2667%.tfx +104.2708333333% 23.976/29.97 to 25

NTSC to Film +0.1%.tfx +100.10% 23.976/29.97 to 24/30

Chapter 26: X-Form 153

Pa rt V : Re ve rb Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 2 7 : D-Ve rb

D-Verb is a studio-quality reverb plug-in that is

available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. D-Ve rb Cont rols
D-Verb provides a variety of controls for adjusting
D-Verb supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
plug-in parameters.
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

D-Verb operates as a mono, multi-mono, mono-to- I nput Leve l M e t e rs

stereo, or stereo plug-in.
Input meters indicate the input levels of the dry au-
dio source signal.

An internal clipping LED will light if the reverb is

overloaded. This can occur even when the input
levels are relatively low if there is excessive feed-
back in the delay portion of the reverb. To clear the
Clip LED, click it.

Out put Leve l M e t e r

Output meters indicate the output levels of the pro-
cessed signal.

D-Verb Ga in a nd I nput Leve l Cont rols

D-Verb provides a Gain control above the Input
Level meter to let you adjust the input gain.

M ix Cont rol
The Mix slider adjusts the balance between the dry
signal and the effected signal, giving you control
over the depth of the effect. This control is adjust-
able from 100% to 0%.

Chapter 27: D-Verb 155

Algorit hm Cont rol Room 1 A medium-sized, natural, rich-sounding
room that can be effectively varied in size between
This control selects one of seven reverb algorithms: very small and large, with good results.
Hall, Church, Plate, Room 1, Room 2, Ambience,
or Non-linear. Selecting an algorithm changes the Room 2 A smaller, brighter reverberant character-
preset provided for it. Switching the Size setting istic than Room 1, with a useful adjustment range
changes characteristics of the algorithm that are not that extends to “very small.”
altered by adjusting the decay time and other user-
Ambient A transparent response that is useful for
adjustable controls. Each of the seven algorithms
adding a sense of space without adding a lot of
has a distinctly different character:
depth or density. Extreme settings can create inter-
Hall A good general purpose concert hall with a esting results.
natural character. It is useful over a large range of
Nonlinear Produces a reverberation with a natural
size and decay times and with a wide range of pro-
buildup and an abrupt cutoff similar to a gate. This
gram material. Setting Decay to its maximum value
unnatural decay characteristic is particularly useful
will produce infinite reverberation.
on percussion, since it can add an aggressive char-
Church A dense, diffuse space simulating a church acteristic to sounds with strong attacks.
or cathedral with a long decay time, high diffusion,
and some pre-delay. Size Cont rol
Plate Simulates the acoustic character of a metal The Size control, in conjunction with the Algo-
plate-based reverb. This type of reverb typically rithm control, adjusts the overall size of the rever-
has high initial diffusion and a relatively bright berant space. There are three sizes: Small, Medium,
sound, making it particularly good for certain per- and Large. The character of the reverberation
cussive signals and vocal processing. Plate reverb changes with each of these settings (as does the rel-
has the general effect of thickening the initial sound ative value of the Decay setting). The Size buttons
itself. can be used to vary the range of a reverb from large
to small. Generally, you should select an algorithm
first, and then choose the size that approximates the
size of the acoustic space that you are trying to cre-
ate.

Chapter 27: D-Verb 156

Diffusion Cont rol H i Fre que ncy Cut
Diffusion sets the degree to which initial echo den- Hi Frequency Cut controls the decay characteristic
sity increases over time. High settings result in high of the high frequency components of the reverb. It
initial build-up of echo density. Low settings cause acts in conjunction with the Low Pass Filter control
low initial buildup. This control interacts with the to create the overall high frequency contour of the
Size and Decay controls to affect the overall reverb reverb. When set relatively low, high frequencies
density. High settings of diffusion can be used to decay more quickly than low frequencies, simulat-
enhance percussion. Use low or moderate settings ing the effect of air absorption in a hall. The maxi-
for clearer and more natural-sounding vocals and mum value of this control is Off (which effectively
mixes. means bypass).

De c a y Cont rol Low Pa ss Filt e r

Decay controls the rate at which the reverb decays Low Pass Filter controls the overall high frequency
after the original direct signal stops. The value of content of the reverb by setting the frequency
the Decay setting is affected by the Size and Algo- above which a 6 dB per octave filter attenuates the
rithm controls. This control can be set to infinity on processed signal. The maximum value of this con-
most algorithms for infinite reverb times. trol is Off (which effectively means bypass).

Pre -De la y Cont rol

Se le c t ions for D-Ve rb
Pre-Delay determines the amount of time that
AudioSuit e Proc e ssing
elapses between the original audio event and the
onset of reverberation. Under natural conditions, Because AudioSuite D-Verb adds additional mate-
the amount of pre-delay depends on the size and rial (the delayed audio) to the end of selected audio,
construction of the acoustic space, and the relative make a selection that is longer than the original
position of the sound source and the listener. Pre- source material to allow the additional delayed au-
Delay attempts to duplicate this phenomenon and is dio to be written to the end of the audio file.
used to create a sense of distance and volume
If you select only the original material without
within an acoustic space. Long Pre-Delay settings
leaving additional space at the end, delayed audio
place the reverberant field behind rather than on top
that occurs after the end of the selection to be cut
of the original audio signal.
off.

Chapter 27: D-Verb 157

Cha pt e r 2 8 : Reve rb One

Reverb One is a world-class reverb processing plug-in that provides the highest level of professional sonic
quality and reverb-shaping control. A set of unique, easy-to-use audio shaping tools lets you customize re-
verb character and ambience to create natural-sounding halls, vintage plates, or virtually any type of rever-
berant space you can imagine.

Reverb One is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats.

Reverb One

Chapter 28: Reverb One 158

Reverb One supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, Ac oust ic Environm e nt s
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
When you hear live sound in an acoustic environ-
Reverb One operates as a mono, multi-mono, ment, you generally hear much more than just the
mono-to-stereo, or stereo plug-in. direct sound from the source. In fact, sound in an
anechoic chamber, devoid of an acoustic space’s
Reverb One features include: character, can sound harsh and unnatural.
• Editable Reverb EQ graph
Each real-world acoustical environment, from a
• Editable Reverb Color graph closet to a cathedral, has its own unique acoustical
• Reverb Contour graph character or sonic signature. When the reflections
and reverberation produced by a space combine
• Dynamic control of reverb decay
with the source sound, we say that the space is ex-
• Chorusing cited by the source. Depending on the acoustic en-
• Early reflection presets vironment, this could produce the warm sonic char-
acteristics we associate with reverberation, or it
• Extensive library of reverb presets
could produce echoes or other unusual sonic char-
acteristics.

About Reve rb
Reve rb Cha ra c t e r
Digital reverberation processing can simulate the
The character of a reverberation depends on a num-
complex natural reflections and echoes that occur
ber of things. These include proximity to the sound
after a sound has been produced, imparting a sense
source, the shape of the space, the absorptivity of
of space and depth—the signature of an acoustic
the construction material, and the position of the
environment. When you use a reverberation plug-
listener.
in such as Reverb One, you are artificially creating
a sound space with a specific acoustic character.
Re fle c t e d Sound
This character can be melded with audio material,
with the end result being an adjustable mix of the In a typical concert hall, sound reaches the listener
original dry source and the reverberant wet signal. shortly after it is produced. The original direct
Reverberation can take relatively lifeless mono sound is followed by reflections from the ceiling or
source material and create a stereo acoustic envi- walls. Reflections that arrive within 50 to 80 milli-
ronment that gives the source a perceived weight seconds of the direct sound are called early reflec-
and depth in a mix. tions. Subsequent reflections are called late rever-
beration. Early reflections provide a sense of depth
and strengthen the perception of loudness and clar-
Cre at ing U nique Sounds ity. The delay time between the arrival of the direct
In addition, digital signal processing can be used sound and the beginning of early reflections is
creatively to produce reverberation characteristics called the pre-delay.
that do not exist in nature. There are no rules that
need to be followed to produce interesting treat-
ments. Experimentation can often produce striking
new sounds.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 159

The loudness of later reflections combined with a 1 0 0 % We t
large pre-delay can contribute to the perception of
Toggles the Wet/Dry control between 100% wet
largeness of an acoustical space. Early reflections
and the current setting.
are followed by reverberation and repetitive reflec-
tions and attenuation of the original sound reflected
from walls, ceilings, floors, and other objects. This Reve rb One Dyna m ic s Cont rols
sound provides a sense of depth or size.
The Dynamics section has controls for adjusting
Reverb One provides control over these reverbera- Reverb One’s response to changes in input signal
tion elements so that you can create extremely nat- level.
ural-sounding reverb effects.
Dynamics can be used to modify a reverb’s decay
character, making it sound more natural, or con-
versely, more unnatural, depending on the desired
Reve rb One Cont rols effect.
Reverb One has a variety of controls for producing Typically, dynamics are used to give a reverb a
a wide range of reverb effects. Controls can be ad- shorter decay time when the input signal is above
justed by dragging their sliders or typing values di- the threshold, and a longer decay time when the in-
rectly in their text boxes. put level drops below the threshold.
The harmonic spectrum of the reverb can also be This produces a longer, more lush reverb tail and
adjusted on the graph displays. See “Reverb One greater ambience between pauses in the source au-
Graphs” on page 164. dio, and a shorter, clearer reverb tail in sections
without pauses.
Reve rb One M a st e r M ix Cont rols
For example, on a vocal track, use Dynamics to
The Master Mix section has controls for adjusting make the reverb effect tight, clear, and intelligible
the relative levels of the source signal and the re- during busy sections of the vocal (where the signal
verb effect, and also the width of the reverb effect is above the Threshold setting), and then “bloom”
in the stereo field. or lengthen at the end of a phrase (where the signal
falls below the threshold).
We t /Dr y
Similarly, Dynamics can be used on drum tracks to
Adjusts the mix between the dry, unprocessed sig- mimic classic gated reverb effects by causing the
nal and the reverb effect. decay time to cut off quickly when the input level is
below the threshold.
St e re o Widt h
To hear examples of decay dynamics, load one
Controls the width of the reverb in the stereo field.
of the Dynamics presets using the Plug-In Li-
A setting of 0% produces a mono reverb. A setting
brarian menu.
of 100% produces maximum spread in the stereo
field.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 160

De c a y Rat io Rat e

Controls the ratio by which reverb time is increased Controls pitch modulation frequency. The higher
when a signal is above or below the Threshold the setting, the more rapid the chorusing. Setting
level. Dynamics behavior differs when the Decay the Rate above 20 Hz can cause frequency modula-
Ratio is set above or below 1. A ratio setting of tion to occur. This will add side-band harmonics
greater than 1 increases reverb time when the signal and change the reverb’s tone color, producing some
is above the threshold. A ratio setting of less than 1 very interesting special effects.
increases a reverb’s time when the signal is below
the threshold. Reve rb One Reve rb Se c t ion
For example, if Decay Ratio is set to 4, the reverb
Cont rols
time is increased by a factor of 4 when the signal is The Reverb section has controls for the various re-
above the threshold level. If the ratio is 0.25, reverb verb tail elements, including level, time, attack,
time is increased by a factor of 4 when the signal is spread, size, diffusion, and pre-delay. These deter-
below the Threshold level. mine the overall character of the reverb.

T hre shold Leve l

Sets the input level above or below which reverb Controls the output level of the reverb tail. When
decay time will be modified. set to 0%, the reverb effect consists entirely of the
early reflections (if enabled).
Chorus Cont rols
T ime
The Chorus section has controls for setting the
depth and rate of chorusing applied to a reverb tail. Controls the rate at which the reverberation decays
Chorusing thickens and animates sounds by adding after the original direct signal stops. The value of
a delayed, pitch-modulated copy of an audio signal the Time setting is affected by the Size setting. You
to itself. should adjust the reverb Size setting before adjust-
ing the Time setting. If you set Time to its maxi-
Chorusing produces a more ethereal or spacey re-
mum value, infinite reverberation is produced. The
verb character. It is often used for creative effect
HF Damping and Reverb Color controls also affect
rather than to simulate a realistic acoustic environ-
reverb Time.
ment.
At t a ck
To hear examples of reverb tail chorusing,
load one of the Chorus presets using the Attack determines the contour of the reverberation
Plug-In Librarian menu. envelope. At low Attack settings, reverberation
builds explosively, and decays quickly. As Attack
De pt h
value is increased, reverberation builds up more
Controls the amplitude of the sine wave generated slowly and sustains for the length of time deter-
by the LFO (low frequency oscillator) and the in- mined by the Spread setting.
tensity of the chorusing. The higher the setting, the
When Attack is set to 50%, the reverberation enve-
more intense the modulation.
lope emulates a large concert hall (provided the
Spread and Size controls are set high enough).

Chapter 28: Reverb One 161

Spre a d
For an interesting musical effect, set the Pre-
Controls the rate at which reverberation builds up. Delay time to a beat interval such as 1/8,
Spread works in conjunctions with the Attack con- 1/16, or 1/32 notes.
trol to determine the initial contour and overall am-
bience of the reverberation envelope. Reve rb One Ea rly Re fle c t ion
Cont rols
Low Spread settings result in a rapid onset of rever-
beration at the beginning of the envelope. Higher The Early Reflections section has controls for the
settings lengthen both the attack and buildup stages various early reflection elements, including ER set-
of the initial reverb contour. ting, level, spread, and delay.

Size Determines the rate of diffusion buildup and Ca lc ulat ing Ea rly Re flec t ions
acts as a master control for Time and Spread within
the reverberant space. A particular reflection within a reverberant field is
usually categorized as an early reflection. Early re-
Size values are given in meters and can be used to flections are usually calculated by measuring the
approximate the size of the acoustic space you want reflection paths from source to listener. Early re-
to simulate. When considering size, keep in mind flections typically reach the listener within 80 mil-
that the size of a reverberant space in meters is liseconds of the initial audio event, depending on
roughly equal to its longest dimension. the proximity of reflecting surfaces.
Diffusion Controls the degree to which initial echo
Simulat ing Ea rly Re fle c t ions
density increases over time. High Diffusion set-
tings result in high initial buildup of echo density. Different physical environments have different
Low Diffusion settings cause low initial buildup. early reflection signatures that our ears and brain
use to pinpoint location information. These reflec-
After the initial echo buildup, Diffusion continues
tions influence our perception of the size of a space
to change by interacting with the Size control and
and where an audio source sits within it. Changing
affecting the overall reverb density. Use high Dif-
early reflection characteristics changes the per-
fusion settings to enhance percussion. Use low or
ceived location of the reflecting surfaces surround-
moderate settings for clearer, more natural-sound-
ing the audio source.
ing vocals and mixes.
This is commonly accomplished in digital rever-
Pre-Delay Determines the amount of time that
beration simulations by using multiple delay taps at
elapses between the original audio event and the
different levels that occur in different positions in
onset of reverberation. Under natural conditions,
the stereo spectrum (through panning). Long rever-
the amount of Pre-delay depends on the size and
beration generally occurs after early reflections dis-
construction of the acoustic space, and the relative
sipate.
position of the sound source and the listener. Pre-
delay attempts to duplicate this phenomenon and is Reverb One provides a variety of early reflections
used to create a sense of distance and volume models. These let you quickly choose a basic
within an acoustic space. Long Pre-Delay settings acoustic environment, then tailor other reverb char-
place the reverberant field behind rather than on top acteristics to meet your precise needs.
of the original audio signal.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 162

ER Se t t ings Leve l

Selects an early reflection preset. These range from Controls the output level of the early reflections.
realistic rooms to unusual reflective effects. The Turning the Early Reflections Level slider com-
last five presets (Plate, Build, Spread, Slapback and pletely off produces a reverb made entirely of re-
Echo) feature a nonlinear response. verb tail.

Early reflection presets include: Spre a d

• Room: Simulates the center of a small room
Globally adjusts the delay characteristics of the
without many reflections.
early reflections, moving them closer together or
• Club: Simulates a small, clear, natural-sounding farther apart. Use Spread to vary the size and char-
club ambience. acter of an early reflection preset. Setting the Plate
• Stage: Simulates a stage in a medium-sized hall. preset to a Spread value of 50%, for example, will
change the reverb from a large, smooth plate to a
• Theater: Simulates a bright, medium-sized hall.
small, tight plate.
• Garage: Simulates an underground parking
garage. De la y M a st e r
• Studio: Simulates a large, live, empty room. Determines the amount of time that elapses be-
• Hall: Places the sound in the middle of a hall with tween the original audio event and the onset of
reflective, hard, bright walls. early reflections.
• Soft: Simulates the space and ambience of a large
Ea rly Re fle c t On
concert hall.
• Church: Simulates a medium-sized space with Toggles early reflections on or off. When early re-
natural, clear-sounding reflections. flections are off, the reverb consists entirely of re-
verb tail.
• Cathedral: Simulates a large space with long,
smooth reflections.
• Arena: Simulates a big, natural-sounding empty
space.
• Plate: Simulates a hard, bright reflection. Use the
Spread control to adjust plate size.
• Build: A nonlinear series of reflections
• Spread: Simulates a wide indoor space with
highly reflective walls.
• Slapback: Simulates a large space with a long-
delayed reflection.
• Echo: Simulates a large space with hard, unnatu-
ral echoes. Good for dense reverb.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 163

Reve rb One Gra phs Band Cut/Boost HF Cut/HF Damp

The reverb graphs display information about the

tonal spectrum and envelope contour of the reverb.
The Reverb EQ and Reverb Color graphs provide
graphic editing tools for shaping the harmonic
spectrum of the reverb.

Frequency/Crossover Frequency/Crossover

Adjusting graph controls

Reve rb EQ Gra ph
Reverb One EQ graph controls
You can use this 3-band equalizer to shape the tonal
Edit ing Gra ph Va lue s spectrum of the reverb. The EQ is post-reverb and
In addition to the standard slider controls, the Re- affects both the reverb tail and the early reflections.
verb EQ and Reverb Color graph settings can be Frequency Sliders Sets the frequency boundaries
adjusted by dragging elements of the graph display. between the low, mid, and high band ranges of the
EQ.
To select the EQ or Color graph for editing:

 Select the EQ icon or the Color icon. The low frequency slider (60.0 Hz–22.5 kHz) sets
the frequency boundary between low and mid
cut/boost points in the EQ.

The high-frequency slider (64.0 Hz–24.0 kHz) sets

the frequency boundary between the mid and high
cut/boost points in the EQ.

Band Breakpoints Control cut and boost values for

the low, mid, and high frequencies of the EQ. To
Reverb One (AAX version), EQ icon selected cut a frequency band, drag a breakpoint downward.
To boost, drag upward. The adjustable range is
To cut or boost a particular band: from –24.0 dB to 12.0 dB.
 Drag a Band Cut/Boost breakpoint up or down.
HF Cut Breakpoint Sets the frequency above
To adjust frequency or crossover: which a 6 dB/octave low pass filter attenuates the
processed signal. It removes both early reflections
 Drag a Frequency/Crossover slider right or left. and reverb tails, affecting the overall high-fre-
quency content of the reverb. Use the HF Cut con-
To adjust high-frequency cut or damp:
trol to roll off high frequencies and create more nat-
 Drag the HF Cut/HF Damp control point right or ural-sounding reverberation. The adjustable range
left. is from 120.0 Hz to 24.0 kHz.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 164

Reve rb Color Gra ph HF Damp Breakpoint Sets the frequency above
which sounds decay at a progressively faster rate.
You can use the Reverb Color graph to shape the This determines the decay characteristic of the
tonal spectrum of the reverb by controlling the de- high-frequency components of the reverb.
cay times of the different frequency bands. Low
and high crossover points define the cut and boost HF Damp works in conjunction with HF Cut to
points of three frequency ranges. shape the overall high -frequency contour of the re-
verb. HF Damp filters the entire reverb with the ex-
For best results, set crossover points at least two oc- ception of the early reflections. At low settings,
taves higher than the frequency you want to boost high frequencies decay more quickly than low fre-
or cut. For example, to boost a signal at 100 Hz, set quencies, simulating the effect of air absorption in
the crossover to 400 Hz. a hall. The adjustable range is from 120.0 Hz to
Set the crossover to 500 Hz to boost low frequen- 24.0 kHz.
cies most effectively. Set it to 1.5 kHz to cut low
Reve rb Cont our Gra ph
frequencies most effectively.
The Reverb Contour graph displays the envelope of
Crossover Sliders Sets the frequency boundaries
the reverb, as determined by the early reflections
between the low, mid, and high frequency ranges of
and reverb tail.
the reverberation filter.

The low-frequency slider sets the crossover fre-

quency between low and mid frequencies in the re-
verberation filter. The adjustable range is from
60.0 Hz to 22.5 kHz.

The high-frequency slider sets the crossover fre-

quency between mid and high frequencies in the re- Reverb Contour graph (AAX version)
verberation filter. The adjustable range is from
ER and RC Buttons Toggles the display mode. Se-
64.0 Hz to 24.0 kHz.
lecting ER (early reflections) displays early reflec-
Band Breakpoints Controls cut and boost ratios for tions data in the graph. Selecting RC (reverb con-
the decay times of the low, mid, and high-fre- tour) displays the initial reverberation envelope in
quency bands of the reverberation filter. To cut a the graph. Early Reflections and Reverb Contour
frequency band, drag a breakpoint downward. To can be displayed simultaneously.
boost, drag it upward. The adjustable range is from
1:8 to 8:1.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 165

Ot he r Reve rb One Cont rols
In addition to its reverb-shaping controls, Reverb
One also features online help and level metering.

Tool T ips
To use tool tips, move the cursor over the name of
any control, and an explanation appears as a tool
tip.

I nput Leve l M e t e rs
Input meters indicate the input levels of the dry au-
dio source signal. Output meters indicate the output
levels of the processed signal.

An internal clipping LED will light if the reverb is

overloaded. This can occur even when the input
levels are relatively low if there is excessive feed-
back in the delay portion of the reverb. To clear the
Clip LED, click it.

Chapter 28: Reverb One 166

Cha pt e r 2 9 : Re V ibe I I

ReVibe II is a studio-quality reverb and acoustic

environment modeling plug-in available in DSP, U sing Re V ibe I I
Native, and AudioSuite formats. ReVibe II makes it possible to model extremely re-
alistic acoustic spaces and place audio elements
within a mix.

ReVibe II supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,

96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

ReVibe II works with mono and stereo formats,

and LCR, LCRS, quad, 5.0, and 5.1 greater-than-
stereo multichannel formats.

Greater-than-stereo formats are only

available with Pro Tools HD.

In general, when working with stereo and greater-

than-stereo tracks, use the multichannel version of
ReVibe II.

ReVibe II

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 167

ReVibe II supports the following combinations of track types and plug-in insert formats:

Track
Plug–in Insert Format
Type

Mono Stereo LCR LCRS Quad 5.0 5.1

Mono • • • • • • •

Stereo • • • • • •

LCR • • • • •

LCRS •

Quad •

5.0 •

5.1 •

To adjust EQ frequency crossover:

Dra gging in t he Gra phic
 Drag the control point right or left.
Displa y t o Adjust Cont rols
In addition to dragging controls and typing control
values, you can adjust settings on the Decay Color
& EQ graphic displays by dragging control points
on the graph.

To cut or boost a particular EQ band:

 Drag a control point up or down.

Setting the EQ crossover frequency

To adjust high frequency rear cut:

 Drag the control point right or left.

Cutting or boosting an EQ frequency band

Setting the rear cut frequency

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 168

Re V ibe I I I nput a nd Out put Re V ibe I I Cont rols
M e t e rs
ReVibe II has a variety of controls for producing a
The Input and Output meters indicates the input wide range of reverb effects. Controls can be ad-
and output signal levels. These meters range from justed by dragging their sliders, typing values di-
0 dB to –96 dB. The number of input and output rectly in their text boxes, and adjusted on the Decay
meters that operate simultaneously ranges from a Color and EQ graph displays.
single meter for mono input and output, up to five
input and output meters for 5.0 and 5.1 multichan- Room a nd Reve rb Type
nel processing. The number of meters displayed de-
pends on the channel format of the track on which ReVibe II lets you select the type of Room and Re-
the plug-in is inserted. verb modeled. Each Room and Reverb type models
early reflection characteristics for specific types of
rooms or effects devices. Each Room and Reverb
type also incorporates a complex room coloration
EQ, which models the general frequency response
of various rooms and effects devices.

Choosing a new Reverb Type changes the early re-

flections and room coloration EQ only. All of the
other ReVibe II settings remain unchanged. To cre-
ate a preset that includes all parameters, use the
Plug-In Settings menu.

For more information on saving and import-

ing plug-in presets, see the Pro Tools Refer-
ence Guide.

Input and Output meters (5.1)

Room Type Category menu

Clip I ndic at ors

A red channel clip indicator appears at the top of
each meter. The clip indicator lights when the sig-
nal level exceeds 0 dB, and stays lit until cleared.
Clicking a meter’s clip indicator clears that meter.
Room Type Name menu
Preset Next and Reverb Type menu
Previous buttons
Reverb Type display and controls

The Reverb Type display shows the Room Type

Category, Room Type Name, the Next and Previ-
ous buttons, and the Reverb Type.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 169

Room Type Cat e gor y M e nu Re V ibe I I Reve rb Se c t ion
Cont rols
Clicking on the Room Type Category menu lets
you select one of the 14 Room Type categories, and The Reverb section has controls for the various re-
selects the first Room Type preset in that category. verb tail elements, including level, time, size,
spread, attack time, attack shape, rear shape, diffu-
Room Type N a m e Me nu sion, and pre-delay. These determine the overall
character of the reverb tail.
Click the Room Type Name menu to select from a
list of all available Room Type presets. Size Cont rol
See “ReVibe II Room Types” on page 177 for The Size control adjusts the apparent size of the re-
a list of room presets. verberant space from small to large. Set the Size
control to approximate the size of the acoustic
N ex t a nd Previous But t ons
space you want to simulate. Size values are given in
Click the Next or Previous buttons to choose the meters. The range of this control is from 2.0 m to
next or previous Room Type. 60.0 m (though relative size will change based on
the current Room Type).
Reve rb Type Me nu
Higher Size settings increase both the Time and
Click the Reverb Type menu to select the type of Spread values.
reverb tail. There are nine basic reverb types, plus
Automatic. Select Automatic to use the reverb tail When specifying reverb size, keep in mind
type that is stored with the currently selected room that the size of a reverberant space in meters
type. The reverb types are: is approximately equal to its longest dimen-
sion. In general, halls range from 25 m to
• Automatic selects the reverb tail type stored with
50 m; large to medium rooms range from
the room type.
15 m to 30 m; and small rooms range from
• Natural is an average reverb tail type with no ex- 5 m to 20 m. Similarly, a Room Size setting of
treme characteristics. 20m corresponds roughly to a 4x8 plate.
• Smooth is optimized for large rooms.
T ime Cont rol
• Fast Attack can be useful for plate reverbs.
Time controls how long the reverberation continues
• Dense is similar to smooth, and can also be good
after the original source signal stops. The range of
for a plate reverb.
this control is from 100.0 ms to Inf (infinity). Set-
• Tight is good for small to medium rooms. ting Time to its maximum value will produce in-
• Sparse 1 produces sparse early reflections with a finite reverberation.
high diffusion buildup.
Leve l Cont rol
• Sparse 2 can be useful for a spring reverb.
Level controls the output level of the reverb tail.
• Wide is a generic large reverb.
When set to –INF (minus infinity) no reverb tail is
• Small is optimized for small rooms. heard, and the reverb effect consists entirely of the
early reflections (if enabled). The range of this con-
trol is from –INF to 6.0 dB.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 170

Diffusion Cont rol At t a ck T im e Cont rol

Diffusion controls the rate that the sound density of Attack Time adjusts the length of time between the
the reverb tail increases over time. The control start of the reverb tail and its peak level. Settings
ranges between –50% and 50%. At 0%, diffusion is are Short, Medium, or Long.
set to an optimal preset value. Positive Diffusion
settings create a longer initial buildup of echo den- At t a ck Sha pe Cont rol
sity. At negative settings, the buildup of echo den-
Attack Shape determines the contour of the attack
sity is slower than at the optimal preset value.
portion of the reverberation envelope. At 0%, there
is no buildup contour, and the reverb tail begins at
Spre a d Cont rol
its peak level. At a high Attack Shape setting the re-
Spread controls the rate at which reverberation verb tail begins at a relatively low initial level and
builds up. Spread works in conjunction with the At- ramps up to the peak reverb level. The range of this
tack Shape control to determine the initial contour control is from 0% to 100%.
and overall ambience of the reverberation enve-
lope. Re a r Sha pe Cont rol

At low Spread settings there is a rapid onset of re- Rear Shape adjusts the envelope of the reverb in
verb at the beginning of the reverberation envelope. the rear channels to control the length of the attack
Higher settings lengthen both the attack and time. This gives more reverb presence and a longer
buildup of the initial reverb contour. The range of reverb bloom in the rear channels. The range of this
this control is from 0% to 100%. control is from 0% to 100%.

Pre -De la y Cont rol Re V ibe I I Ea rly Re fle c t ion

The Pre-Delay control in the Reverb section sets
Se c t ion
the amount of time that elapses between signal in- Different physical environments have different
put and the onset of the reverb tail. early reflection signatures that our ears and brain
use to pinpoint location information in physical
Under natural conditions, the amount of pre-delay
space. These reflections influence our perception
depends on the size and construction of the acoustic
of the size of a space and where an audio source sits
space and the relative position of the sound source
within it.
and the listener. Pre-delay attempts to duplicate this
phenomenon and is used to create a sense of dis- Changing early reflection characteristics changes
tance and volume within an acoustic space. Ex- the perceived location of the reflecting surfaces
tremely long pre-delay settings produce effects that surrounding the audio source. In general, the reverb
are unnatural but sonically interesting. tail continues after early reflections dissipate.

The range of this control is from 0.0 ms to ReVibe II room presets use multiple delay taps at
300.0 ms. different levels, different times, and in different po-
sitions in the multichannel environment (through
360° panning) to create extremely realistic sound-
ing environments.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 171

The Early Reflect section has controls for adjusting When Pre-Delay Link is enabled, negative early re-
the various early reflection elements, including flection Pre-Delay times can be used to make the
level, spread, and pre-delay. early reflections start before the reverb tail.

Level Cont rol Pre -De la y Link But t on

Level controls the output level of the early reflec- The Early Reflections Pre-Delay Link button tog-
tions. Setting the Level slider to –INF (minus infin- gles linking of the Early Reflection Pre-Delay con-
ity) eliminates the early reflections from the reverb trol and the Reverb Pre-Delay control. When
effect. The range of this control is from –INF to linked, the Early Reflection Pre-Delay is offset by
6.0 dB. the Reverb Pre-Delay amount, so that the total de-
lay for the early reflections is the sum of the Early
Spre a d Cont rol Reflection Pre-Delay and the Reverb Pre-Delay.
Spread globally adjusts the delay characteristics of
Ea rly Re fle c t ions On But t on
the early reflections, moving the individual delay
taps closer together or farther apart. Use Spread to This button toggles early reflections on or off.
vary the size and character of an early reflection When early reflections are off, the reverb effect
preset. The range of this control is from –100% to consists entirely of reverb tail.
100%.

At 0%, the early reflections are set to their optimum Re V ibe I I Room Colorat ion
value for the room preset. Typical spread values
Se c t ion Cont rols
range between –25% and 25%. The Room Coloration controls work in conjunction
with the selected Room Type. Coloration takes the
Setting Spread to 100% produces widely spaced characteristic resonant frequencies or EQ traits of
early reflections that may sound unnatural. At the room and allows you to apply this spectral
–100% the early reflections have no spread at shape to the reverb.
all, and are heard as a single reflection.
In addition to letting you adjust the overall sound of
Pre -De la y Cont rol the room, the high-frequency and low-frequency
The Pre-Delay control in the Early Reflect section components are split to allow you to emphasize or
determines the amount of time that elapses between de-emphasize the low and high frequency response
the onset of the dry signal and the first early reflec- of the room.
tion delay tap. Some Room Types, such as those
Colorat ion Cont rol
that produce slapback effects, have additional
built-in pre-delay. The range of this control is from Coloration adjusts how much of the EQ character-
–300.0 ms to 300.0 ms. istics of the selected Room Type are applied to the
original signal. The range of this control is from 0%
Negative Pre-Delay times imply that some early re-
to 200%. A setting of 100% provides the optimum
flection delay taps should sound before the original
coloration for the room type. Settings above 100%
dry signal. Since this is not possible, any of the de-
will tend to produce extreme and unnatural color-
lay taps that would sound before the dry signal are
ation.
not used and do not sound.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 172

H igh Fre quency Color Cont rol Ce nt e r Cont rol

High Frequency Color (HF Color) adds or subtracts Center controls the output level of the center chan-
additional high frequency coloration, or relative nel outputs of multichannel formats that have a
brightness, to the acoustic model of the room. The center channel (such as LCR or 5.1).
range of this control is from –50.0% to 50.0%.
When ReVibe II is used in a multichannel format
Low Fre que ncy Color Cont rol that has no center channel (such as stereo or quad),
the Center level control adjusts a phantom center
Low Frequency Color adds or subtracts additional channel signal that is center-panned to the front left
low frequency coloration, or relative darkness, to and right outputs.
the acoustic model of the room. The range of this
control is from –50.0% to 50.0%. The range of this control is from –INF (minus in-
finity) to 0.0 dB.
Re V ibe I I Leve ls Se c t ion Re a r Reverb Cont rol
Cont rols
Rear controls the output level of the rear outputs of
The Levels section has controls for adjusting
multichannel formats that have rear channels (such
source input and ReVibe II output levels. ReVibe II
as quad or 5.1).
provides individual output level controls for Front,
Center, Rear reverb, and Rear early reflections. When ReVibe II is used in a multichannel format
that has no rear channels (such as a stereo or LCR)
In stereo and greater-than-stereo formats where
the Rear level control instead adjusts rear channel
there is no center channel or where there are no rear
signals hard-panned to the front left and right out-
channels, the center and rear level controls can be
puts.
used to augment the reverb sound. Reverb and
early reflections that would be heard either from The range of this control is from –INF (minus in-
the center channel or from the rear channels can be finity) to 0.0 dB.
mixed into the front left and right channels.
Re a r Ea rly Re fle c t ions Cont rol
I nput Cont rol
Rear ER controls the output level of early reflec-
Input adjusts the level of the source input to prevent tions in the rear outputs. The range of this control is
internal clipping. The range of this control is from from –INF (minus infinity) to 0.0 dB.
–24.0 dB to 0.0 dB. Lowering the Input control
does not change the levels shown on the input side The Rear ER control has no effect when the
of the Input/Output meter, which shows the level of early reflections are turned off with the ER
the signal before the Input control. On/Off button.

Front Cont rol Re a r Leve l Link But t on

Front controls the output level of the front left and The Rear Level Link button toggles linking of the
right outputs. Front is also the main level control Rear Reverb and Rear Early Reflections controls
for stereo. The range of this control is from –INF on or off. The Rear Reverb and the Rear Early Re-
(minus infinity) to 0.0 dB. flections controls are linked by default. When
linked, the Rear Early Reflections and Rear Reverb

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 173

controls move in tandem when either is adjusted. We t Cont rol
When unlinked, the Rear Early Reflections and the
The Wet control adjusts the mix between the dry,
Rear Reverb controls can be adjusted inde-
unprocessed signal and the reverb effect. If you in-
pendently.
sert the ReVibe II plug-in directly onto an audio
track, settings from 30% to 60% are a good starting
Re V ibe I I Chorus Se c t ion point for experimenting with this control. The
Cont rols range of this control is from 0% to 100%.
The Chorus section has controls for adjusting the
You can also achieve a 100% wet mix by
depth and rate of chorusing applied to the reverb
clicking the 100% Wet Mix button.
tail. Chorusing thickens and animates sounds and
produces a more ethereal reverb character. It is of- St e re o Widt h Cont rol
ten used for creative effects rather than to simulate
a realistic acoustic environment. Stereo Width controls the stereo field spread of the
front reverb channels. A setting of 0% produces a
De pt h Cont rol mono reverb, but leaves the panning of the original
source signal unaffected. A setting of 100% pro-
Depth controls the amplitude of the sine wave gen-
duces a hard panned stereo image.
erated by the LFO (low frequency oscillator) and
the intensity of the chorusing. The higher the set- Settings above 100% use phase inversion to create
ting, the more intense the modulation. The range of an even wider stereo effect. The Stereo Width
this control is from 0% to 100%. slider displays red above the 100% mark to remind
you that a phase effect is being used to widen the
Rat e Cont rol stereo field.
Rate controls the frequency of the LFO. The higher The range of this control is from 0% to 150%. The
the setting, the more rapid the chorusing. The range default setting is 100%.
of this control is from 0.1 Hz to 30.0 Hz.
The Stereo Width control does not affect the
Setting the Rate above 20 Hz can cause frequency reverberation effect coming through the rear
modulation to occur. This will add side-band har- channels. If you want to produce a strictly
monics and change the reverb’s tone color, produc- mono reverb, be sure to set the Rear Reverb
ing interesting effects. Typical settings are between setting (Levels section) to –INF dB.
0.2 Hz and 1.0 Hz.
1 0 0 % We t a nd Dr y Mix But t ons
Chorus On But t on
These buttons set the Wet control to 100% Wet or
This button toggles the chorus effect on or off. 100% Dry and the current setting. A 100% wet mix
contains only the reverb effect with none of the di-
Re V ibe I I M ix Se c t ion Cont rols rect signal. This setting can be useful when using
pre-fader sends to achieve send/return bussing. The
The Mix section has controls for adjusting the rela- wet/dry balance in the mix can be controlled using
tive levels of the source signal and the reverb ef- the track faders for the dry signal, and the Auxiliary
fect. Input fader for the effect return.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 174

 H igh Ga in Cont rol
Re V ibe I I De c a y EQ Gra ph
The Hi Gain control sets cut and boost values for
The EQ display lets you adjust the Decay EQ set- the mid and high frequencies of the reverb decay
tings for ReVibe II. Click the EQ button to toggle EQ. The range of this control is from –24.0 dB to
the display to show the Decay EQ settings. To ad- 12.0 dB.
just a setting on the graph, drag the corresponding
control point.
H igh Fre que ncy Re a r Cut Cont rol
The Rear control rolls off additional high frequen-
cies in the rear channels of the early reflections and
reverb tail. The application of this filter is distinct
from the application of Decay Color and Decay
EQ. The range of this control is from 250.0 Hz to
20.0 kHz.
EQ display

Each control point on the graph has corresponding

text fields above and below the display that show Re V ibe I I De c a y Color Gra ph
the current values.
The Color display lets you adjust the Decay Color
settings for ReVibe II. Click the Color button to
Low Fre que ncy Cont rol toggle the display to show Decay Color settings. To
The Lo Freq control sets the frequency boundary adjust a setting on the graph, drag the correspond-
between low and mid cut or boost points in the re- ing control point.
verb EQ. The range of this control is from 50.0 Hz
to 1.5 kHz.

Low Ga in Cont rol

The Lo Gain control sets cut and boost values for
the low and mid frequencies of the reverb decay
EQ. The range of this control is from –24.0 dB to Color display
12.0 dB. You can use the controls in the Decay Color graph
to shape the tonal spectrum of the reverb by adjust-
H igh Fre que ncy Cont rol ing the decay times of the low and high frequency
ranges. Low and high crossover points define the
The Hi Freq control sets the frequency boundary
cut and boost points of three frequency ranges.
between mid and high cut or boost points in the re-
verb EQ. The range of this control is from 1.5 kHz For best results, set crossover points at least one oc-
to 20.0 kHz. tave higher than the frequency you want to boost or
cut. To boost a signal at 200 Hz, for example, set
the crossover to 400 Hz.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 175

Low Fre que ncy Crossove r
Cont rol Re V ibe I I Cont our Displa y
The Lo Crossover control sets the crossover fre- The Contour display shows the current reverb
quency at which transitions from low frequencies shape and early reflections graphically. Both front
to mid frequencies take place in the reverberation and rear reverb tail shapes and early reflections can
filter. The range of this control is from 50.0 Hz to be viewed at the same time. Buttons below the dis-
1.5 kHz. play allow you to select the type of data being dis-
played.

Low Fre que ncy Rat io Cont rol

The Lo Ratio control sets cut or boost ratios for the
decay times of the low and mid frequency bands of
the reverberation filter. The range of this control is
between 1:16.0 and 4.0:1.

Contour display
H igh Fre que ncy Crossove r
Cont rol Ea rly Re fle c t ions But t on
The Hi Crossover control sets the crossover fre- The Early Reflections button toggles display of
quency at which transitions from mid frequencies early reflections on or off within the Contour dis-
to high frequencies take place in the reverberation play. When the Early Reflections button is illumi-
filter. The range of this control is from 1.5 kHz to nated, early reflections data is displayed. When the
20.0 kHz. Early Reflections button is not illuminated, early re-
flections data is not displayed. Both early reflec-
H igh Fre que ncy Rat io Cont rol tions and reverb contour data can be displayed si-
multaneously.
The Hi Ratio control sets cut or boost ratios for the
decay times of the mid and high frequency bands of
the reverberation filter. The range of this control is Reve rb Cont our But t on
between 1:16.0 and 4.0:1. The Reverb Contour button toggles display of the
reverb contours for both the front and rear channels
on or off within the Contour display. When the Re-
verb Contour button is illuminated, the reverbera-
tion envelopes are displayed. When the Reverb
Contour button is not illuminated, the reverberation
envelopes are not displayed. Both early reflections
and reverb contour data can be displayed simulta-
neously.

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 176

Front But t on • Medium Live Room 1

The Front button toggles display of the front chan- • Medium Live Room 2
nel reverb contour and the front channel early re- • Medium Dense Studio 1
flections on or off within the Contour display.
• Medium Dense Studio 2
When the Front button is illuminated, the initial re-
verberation envelope and early reflections for the • Small Natural Studio 1
front channels are displayed. When the Front but- • Small Natural Studio 2
ton is not illuminated, they are not displayed.
• Small Natural Studio 3
• Small Natural Studio 4
Re a r But t on
• Small Natural Studio 5
The Rear button toggles display of the rear channel
• Small Dense Studio 1
reverb contour and the rear channel early reflec-
tions on or off within the Contour display. When • Small Dense Studio 2
the Rear button is illuminated, the initial reverber- • Vocal Booth 1
ation envelope and early reflections for the rear
• Vocal Booth 2
channels are displayed. When the Rear button is
not illuminated, they are not displayed. • Vocal Booth 3
• Vocal Booth 4

Re V ibe I I Room Type s Room s

ReVibe II comes with over 200 built-in Room Type • Large Bright Room 1
presets in 14 Room Type categories. These Room • Large Bright Room 2
Type presets contain complex early reflections and
room coloration characteristics that define the • Large Neutral Room 1
sound of the space. The Room Type categories and • Large Neutral Room 2
their presets are as follows: • Large Dark Room 1
• Large Dark Room 2
St udios
• Large Boomy Room
• Large Natural Studio 1
• Medium Bright Room 1
• Large Natural Studio 2
• Medium Bright Room 2
• Large Live Room 1
• Medium Bright Room 3
• Large Live Room 2
• Medium Neutral Room 1
• Large Dense Studio 1
• Medium Neutral Room 2
• Large Dense Studio 2
• Medium Neutral Room 3
• Medium Natural Studio 1
• Medium Dark Room 1
• Medium Natural Studio 2
• Medium Dark Room 2
• Medium Natural Studio 3
• Medium Dark Room 3
• Medium Natural Studio 4
Chapter 29: ReVibe II 177
• Small Bright Room 1 • Small Theater 2
• Small Bright Room 2
• Small Bright Room 3 Churche s
• Large Natural Church 1
• Small Neutral Room 1
• Large Natural Church 2
• Small Neutral Room 2
• Large Dense Church
• Small Neutral Room 3
• Large Slap Church
• Small Dark Room 1
• Medium Natural Church 1
• Small Dark Room 2
• Medium Natural Church 2
• Small Boomy Room
• Medium Dense Church
H a lls • Small Natural Church 1
• Large Natural Hall 1 • Small Natural Church 2
• Large Natural Hall 2
• Large Natural Hall 3 Cat he dra ls
• Natural Cathedral 1
• Large Natural Hall 4
• Natural Cathedral 2
• Large Natural Hall 5
• Natural Cathedral 3
• Large Natural Hall 6
• Dense Cathedral 1
• Large Dense Hall
• Dense Cathedral 2
• Large Sparse Hall
• Slap Cathedral
• Medium Natural Hall 1
• Medium Natural Hall 2
Plat e s
• Medium Natural Hall 3 • Large Natural Plate
• Medium Natural Hall 4 • Large Bright Plate
• Medium Dense Hall • Large Synthetic Plate
• Small Natural Hall 1 • Medium Natural Plate
• Small Natural Hall 2 • Medium Bright Plate
• Small Natural Plate
T he at e rs
• Small Bright Plate
• Large Theater 1
• Large Theater 2
Springs
• Medium Theater 1 • Guitar Amp Spring 1
• Medium Theater 2 • Guitar Amp Spring 2
• Small Theater 1 • Guitar Amp Spring 3

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 178

• Guitar Amp Spring 4 Am bie nc e
• Guitar Amp Spring 5 • Large Ambience 1
• Guitar Amp Spring 6 • Large Ambience 2
• Studio Spring 1 • Large Ambience 3
• Studio Spring 2 • Large Ambience 4
• Studio Spring 3 • Medium Ambience 1
• Studio Spring 4 • Medium Ambience 2
• Dense Spring 1 • Medium Ambience 3
• Dense Spring 2 • Medium Ambience 4
• Resonant Spring • Medium Ambience 5
• Funky Spring 1 • Small Ambience 1
• Funky Spring 2 • Small Ambience 2
• Funky Spring 3 • Small Ambience 3
• Funky Spring 4 • Very Small Ambience

Cha m be rs Film a nd Post

• Large Chamber 1 • Medium Kitchen
• Large Chamber 2 • Small Kitchen
• Large Chamber 3 • Bathroom 1
• Large Chamber 4 • Bathroom 2
• Large Chamber 5 • Bathroom 3
• Large Chamber 6 • Bathroom 4
• Medium Chamber 1 • Bathroom 5
• Medium Chamber 2 • Shower Stall
• Medium Chamber 3 • Hallway
• Medium Chamber 4 • Closet
• Medium Chamber 5 • Classroom 1
• Small Chamber 1 • Classroom 2
• Small Chamber 2 • Large Concrete Room
• Small Chamber 3 • Medium Concrete Room
• Small Chamber 4 • Locker Room
• Muffled Room
• Very Small Room 1

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 179

• Very Small Room 2 • Large Room Digital
• Very Small Room 3 • Medium Room Digital
• Car 1 • Small Room Digital
• Car 2
• Car 3 Effe c t s
• Mono Slapback 1
• Car 4
• Mono Slapback 2
• Car 5
• Mono Slapback 3
• Phone Booth
• Wide Slapback 1
• Metal Garbage Can
• Wide Slapback 2
• Drain Pipe
• Wide Slapback 3
• Tin Can
• Multi Slapback 1
La rge Spa c e s • Multi Slapback 2
• Parking Garage 1 • Multi Slapback 3
• Parking Garage 2 • Multi Slapback 4
• Parking Garage 3 • Spread Slapback 1
• Warehouse 1 • Spread Slapback 2
• Warehouse 2 • Mono Echo 1
• Stairwell 1 • Mono Echo 2
• Stairwell 2 • Mono Echo 3
• Stairwell 3 • Wide Echo 1
• Stairwell 4 • Wide Echo 2
• Stairwell 5 • Multi Echo 1
• Gymnasium • Multi Echo 2
• Auditorium • Prism
• Indoor Arena • Prism Reverse
• Stadium 1 • Inverse Long
• Stadium 2 • Inverse Medium
• Tunnel • Inverse Short
• Stereo Enhance 1
V int a ge Digit a l • Stereo Enhance 2
• Large Hall Digital
• Stereo Enhance 3
• Medium Hall Digital

Chapter 29: ReVibe II 180

Pa rt V I : De la y Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 3 0 : M od De la y I I I

Mod Delay III provides mono, multi-mono, mono- I nput

to-stereo, and stereo modulating delay effects.
I nput Me t e rs
Mod Delay III is available in DSP, Native, and Au-
dioSuite plug-in formats. The Input meters show peak signal levels before
processing:
Mod Delay III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
rates. –12 dB.

Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from

–12 dB to 0 dB.
M od De la y I I I Cont rols
Red Indicates clipping.
Mod Delay III provides separate sections in the
plug-in window for Input and Output metering, De- Pha se I nve rt
lay and Modulation controls, and for the Wet/Dry
Mix control. Stereo and mono-to-stereo versions The Phase Invert button at the top of the Input sec-
provide meters and controls for each channel. De- tion inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal,
lay, Modulation, and Mix controls for stereo and to help compensate for phase anomalies that can
mono-to-stereo instances of Mod Delay III can be occur either in multi-microphone environments or
linked, or can be operated independently. 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.

Mod Delay III

Chapter 30: Mod Delay III 182

De la y When Tempo Sync is enabled, the Tempo and Me-
ter controls are uneditable and follow the session
Link tempo and meter changes in the Pro Tools timeline.
The Duration and Groove controls apply regardless
For stereo and mono-to-stereo tracks, enable the
of whether Sync is enabled.
Link button to link the Delay, Modulation, and Mix
controls between the Left and Right channels. This
Me t e r
option is highlighted when it is enabled.
The Meter setting lets you enter either simple or
For mono tracks, this option reads Mono and is dis-
compound time signatures. The Meter control de-
play only.
faults to a 4/4 time signature.
De la y T im e When Sync is enabled, the Meter control is un-
available.
The Delay Time control sets the delay time be-
tween the original signal and the delayed signal
Te mpo
(from 0.0 ms to 5,000.0 ms).
The Tempo control sets the tempo in beats per min-
Fe edba ck (FBK ) ute (from 5.00 to 500.00 bpm). This setting is inde-
pendent of the Pro Tools session tempo. When a
The Feedback setting controls the amount of feed-
specific Duration is selected, moving this control
back applied from the output of the delay back into
affects the Delay Time setting.
its input (from –100% to 100%). It also controls the
number of repetitions of the delayed signal. Nega- When Sync is enabled, the Tempo control is un-
tive feedback settings give a more intense “tunnel- available.
like” sound to flanging effects.
Durat ion
Low Pa ss Filt er (LPF)
The Duration setting lets you set the Delay Time
The Low Pass Filter setting controls the cutoff fre- based on a rhythmic value. Select a note value
quency of the Low Pass Filter (from 10 Hz to (whole note, half note, quarter note, eight note, or
22 kHz). Use the LPF setting to attenuate the high sixteenth note). Additionally, you can select the
frequency content of the feedback signal. The Dot or Triplet modifier buttons to dot the selected
lower the setting, the more high frequencies are at- note value or make it a triplet. For example, select-
tenuated. The maximum value for LPF is Off. This ing a quarter note and then selecting the dot indi-
lets the signal pass through without limiting the cates a dotted quarter note, and selecting an eighth
bandwidth of the plug-in. note and then selecting the triplet indicates a triplet
eighth note.
Sync

When Sync is enabled, and a Duration (a rhythmic

note value) is selected, the Delay Time setting is af-
fected by the session tempo. When Sync is dis-
abled, and a Duration is selected, the Delay Time Duration buttons
setting is affected by changes to the Tempo setting.

Chapter 30: Mod Delay III 183

Groove Out put
The Groove control provides fine adjustment of the The Output section provides output metering and
delay in percentages of a 1:4 subdivision of the beat controls for adjusting the level of the output signal.
(from –100% to 100%). It can be used to add
“swing” by slightly offsetting the delay from the Out put M et ers
precise beat of the track.
The Output meters show peak signal levels after
processing:
M odulat ion Se c t ion
Dark Blue Indicates nominal levels from –INF to
Rat e –12 dB.
The Rate control sets the rate of modulation of the Light Blue Indicates pre-clipping levels, from
delayed signal (from 0.00 Hz to 20.0 Hz). –12 dB to 0 dB.

De pt h Red Indicates full scale levels (clipping)

The Depth control sets the depth of the modulation Out put Ga in
applied to the delayed signal (from 0% to 100%).
The Output Gain control sets the output level after
processing. For mono instances of Mod Delay III,
M ix there is a single Gain control. For stereo and mono-
The Mix control sets the balance between the de- to-stereo instances of Mod Delay III, there are in-
layed signal (wet) and the original signal (dry). If dependent Gain controls for each channel (left and
you are using a delay for flanging or chorusing, you right).
can control the depth of the effect somewhat with
the Mix setting. Click the Dry button to set the Mix
to 100% dry. Click the Wet button to set the Mix to Se le c t ions for M od De la y I I I
100% wet. AudioSuit e Proc e ssing
Because AudioSuite Delay adds additional mate-
rial (the delayed audio) to the end of selected audio,
make a selection that is longer than the original
source material to allow the additional delayed au-
dio to be written to the end of the audio file.

If you select only the original material without

leaving additional space at the end, delayed audio
that occurs after the end of the selection will be cut
off.

Chapter 30: Mod Delay III 184

Cha pt e r 3 1 : M ooge rfooge r Ana log De la y

Moogerfooger Analog Delay is a delay plug-in that The Moogerfooger Analog Delay uses Bucket Bri-
is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite gade Analog Delay Chips to achieve its delay.
formats. These analog integrated circuits function by pass-
ing the audio waveform down a chain of thousands
Moogerfooger Analog Delay supports 44.1 kHz, of circuit cells, just like water being passed by a
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz bucket brigade to put out a fire. Each cell in the
sample rates. chip introduces a tiny time delay. The total time de-
Moogerfooger Analog Delay operates as a mono, lay depends on the number of cells and on how fast
multi-mono, or stereo plug-in. the waveform is “clocked,” or moved from one cell
to the next.

With the advent of digital technology, these and

similar analog delay chips have gradually been
phased out of production. In fact, Bob Moog se-
cured a supply of the last analog delay chips ever
made, and used them to build a Limited Edition of
1,000 “real-world” Moogerfooger Analog Delay
units.

Compared to digital delays, the frequency and

overload contours of well-designed analog delay
devices generally provide smoother, more natural
series of echoes than digital delay units. Another
difference is that the echoes of a digital delay are
static because they are the same digital sound re-
Moogerfooger Analog Delay peated over and over, whereas a bucket brigade de-
vice itself imparts a warm, organically evolving
Moogerfooger Analog Delay provides a warm timbre to the echoes.
sounding delay in the digital domain. A delay cir-
cuit produces a replica of an audio signal a short Avid’s digital replica re-creates all the warm, natu-
time after the original signal. Mixed together, the ral sounds of its analog counterpart. The Mooger-
delayed signal sounds like an echo of the original. fooger Analog Delay plug-in was enhanced to be
If this mixture is fed back to the input of the delay even more useful for digital recording. An inte-
circuit, the delayed output provides a string of grated Highpass Filter allows you to remove un-
echoes that repeat and die out gradually—a classic
musical effect.

Chapter 31: Moogerfooger Analog Delay 185

wanted bass buildup from the feedback loop, al- HPF On/Off The HPF Off/HPF On enables or dis-
lowing you to have warmer, more controllable echo ables the highpass filter (HPF).
swarms while minimizing the potential for digital
Drive The Drive control sets the input gain.
clipping.
Mix The Mix control blends the original input sig-
nal with the delayed signal.
M ooge rfooge r Ana log De la y
Cont rols LED I ndic at ors
The Moogerfooger Analog Delay provides the fol- Three LEDs down the center of the unit provide vi-
lowing controls: sual feedback.
Delay Time Delay Time allows you to select the Input Level The Input Level LED glows green
length of delay between the original and the de- when signal is present.
layed signal. Used with Feedback, it also affects
how long apart the echoes are. HPF The HPF LED turns green when the highpass
filter is enabled.
Short/Long The Short/Long switch sets the range
of the Delay Time control. Set to Short, the Delay Bypass The Bypass LED glows either red (by-
Time ranges from 0.04 to 0.4 seconds. Set to Long, passed) or green (not bypassed) to show whether or
it ranges from 0.08 to 0.8 seconds. not the effect is in the signal path.

Feedback Feedback determines how much signal

is fed back to the delay input, affecting how fast the
M ooge rfooge r Ana log De la y
echoes die out.
T ips a nd Trick s
Highpass The Highpass knob removes low fre-
quencies from the feedback loop. It removes unde- I nfide lit y
sirable low frequency “mud” common when mix-
Because analog delay chips offer only a fixed num-
ing with delays and also allows the creation of
ber of cells, the extended delay times store a lower-
amazing echo swarms that won’t clip the output.
fidelity version of the input signal. Try the Long
Dial in a highpass frequency from 50 Hz to 500 Hz.
delay setting when going for cool “lo-fi” sounds
Frequencies below the setting are filtered from the
and textures.
feedback loop.

Echo Sw a r m s
By carefully adjusting the Feedback, Drive, and
Highpass controls, you can use the Moogerfooger
Analog Delay as a sound generator. Simply pulse
the delay unit with a short piece of audio (even a
second will do), and adjust the Delay Time knob.
Set correctly, the unit will generate cool timbres for
hours all by itself.

Chapter 31: Moogerfooger Analog Delay 186

Cha pt e r 3 2 : Re e l Ta pe De la y

Reel Tape Delay is part of the Reel Tape suite of For years, engineers have relied on analog tape to
tape-simulation effects plug-ins. Reel Tape Delay add a smooth, warm sound to their recordings.
simulates an analog tape echo effect, modeling the When driven hard, tape responds with gentle dis-
frequency response, noise, wow and flutter, and tortion rather than abrupt clipping as in the digital
distortion characteristics of analog tape. It also re- domain. Magnetic tape also has a frequency-depen-
produces the varispeed effect you get when the tape dent saturation characteristic that can lend punch to
speed control is adjusted. the low end, and sweetness to the highs.

Reel Tape Delay is available in DSP, Native, and Reel Tape Delay models a studio tape machine in
AudioSuite formats. record/playback mode, with a fixed distance be-
tween the record head and the play head, and a con-
Reel Tape Delay supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, tinuously variable tape speed.
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates. Reel Tape Delay automatically applies tape satura-
tion effects that correspond to the following control
Reel Tape Delay operates as a mono, multi-mono, settings in Reel Tape Saturation:
or stereo plug-in.
• Speed: 15 ips
• Bias: 0.0 dB
• Cal Adjust: +9 dB

You can use the BPM Sync feature to synchronize

the Reel Tape Delay effect to the current tempo of
the Pro Tools session.

Reel Tape Delay can be placed on mono, stereo, or

multichannel tracks.

Reel Tape Delay

Chapter 32: Reel Tape Delay 187

 Hi Output Emulates the characteristics of
Re e l Ta pe Com m on Cont rols Quantegy GP9, exhibiting a more subtle saturation
All Reel Tape plug-ins share the following effect.
controls:

Drive Re e l Ta pe De la y Cont rols

Drive controls the amount of saturation effect by In addition to the Drive, Output, Tape Machine,
increasing the input signal to the modeled tape ma- and Tape Formula controls, Reel Tape Delay has
chine while automatically compensating by reduc- the following controls:
ing the overall output. Drive is adjustable from
–12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB. Spe e d
The Speed control adjusts the delay time, calibrated
Out put to tape speed. A slower tape speed results in a lon-
Output controls the output signal level of the plug- ger delay. A faster tape speed results in a shorter
in after processing. Output is adjustable from delay.
–12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB. The displayed tape Speed value corresponds to the
delay time resulting from the distance between the
Ta pe M a chine record and play heads on an Ampex 440-series tape
transport.
The Tape Machine control lets you select one of
three tape machine types emulated by the plug-in, Tape speed is adjustable from approximately
each with its own sonic characteristics: 1 7/8 ips (1486 ms delay) to approximately 30 ips
(93 ms delay), with a default value of approxi-
US Emulates the audio characteristics of a 3M M79
mately 15 ips (172 ms delay).
multitrack tape recorder.
You can synchronize the delay time to the current
Swiss Emulates the audio characteristics of a
tempo of the Pro Tools session. See “Synchroniz-
Studer A800 multitrack tape recorder.
ing Reel Tape Delay to Session Tempo” on
Lo-Fi Simulates the effect of a limited-bandwidth page 190.
analog tape device, such as an outboard tape-based
echo effect. Fe e dba ck
The Feedback control adjusts the amount of de-
Ta pe For m ula layed output fed back into the input, allowing gen-
The Tape Formula control lets you select either of eration of multiple echoes. A higher feedback
two magnetic tape formulations emulated by the amount results in more echo regeneration. A lower
plug-in, each with its own saturation characteris- feedback amount results in less echo regeneration.
tics: Feedback amount is adjustable from 0 to 100 per-
cent, with a default value of 30 percent.
Classic Emulates the characteristics of
Ampex 456, exhibiting a more pronounced satura-
tion effect.

Chapter 32: Reel Tape Delay 188

Wow /Flut t e r Tre ble
The Wow/Flutter control adjusts the amplitude of The Treble control boosts or cuts the amount of
the tape machine’s wow and flutter, or the amount high-mid frequencies fed to the echo feedback
of fluctuation in tape speed. A higher setting results loop. Treble amount is adjustable from –10 dB to
in wider fluctuations in speed. A lower setting re- +10 dB, with a default value of 0 dB.
sults in narrower fluctuations in speed. Wow/Flut-
ter is adjustable from 0 to 1 percent, with a default Note that this control does not affect the
value of 0.20 percent. first delayed signal, only the repeated de-
lays caused by the Feedback control.

Wow Spe e d
M ix
(Plug-In Automation Playlist or
Control Surface Access Only) The Mix control adjusts the amount of processed
signal mixed with the input signal in the final out-
The Wow Speed parameter adjusts the frequency
put of the plug-in. The default Mix value is 25 per-
of the tape machine’s wow effect, or the rate of
cent.
fluctuation in tape speed. A higher value results in
faster fluctuations in speed. A lower value results
in slower fluctuations in speed. Wow Speed is ad- N oise
justable from 0 to 100 percent, with a default value (Plug-In Automation Playlist or Control Surface
of 50 percent. Access Only)

This parameter is accessible only from the plug-in The Noise parameter controls the level of simu-
automation playlist or from a supported control lated tape hiss that is added to the processed signal.
surface. Noise is adjustable from Off (–INF) to –24 dB,
with a default value of –80 dB.
Settings for this parameter are saved with
This parameter is accessible only from the plug-in
plug-in presets. If you use a preset for the
automation playlist or from a supported control
Native, DSP, or AudioSuite version of this
surface.
plug-in, any settings for this parameter will
be active. Settings for this parameter are saved with
plug-in presets. If you use a preset for the
Ba ss Native, DSP, or AudioSuite version of this
The Bass control boosts or cuts the amount of low plug-in, any settings for this parameter will
frequencies fed to the echo feedback loop. Bass be active.
amount is adjustable from –10 dB to +10 dB, with
a default value of 0 dB.

Note that this control does not affect the

first delayed signal, only the repeated de-
lays caused by the Feedback control.

Chapter 32: Reel Tape Delay 189

Synchronizing Re e l Ta pe Re e l Ta pe De la y Pre se t s
De la y t o Se ssion Te m po
The Reel Tape Delay presets coordinate Speed,
You can set the delay time (Speed control) in the Wow/Flutter, Feedback and the Bass and Treble
Reel Tape Delay to synchronize to the session controls for different tape speeds.
tempo (in beats per minute).
3.75 ips Sets the delay time to correspond to a
To synchronize the delay time to the session Speed Control setting of 3.75 inches per second.
tempo:
3.75 ips Flutter Includes the 3.75 ips setting plus
1 In the BPM Sync section, click the On button. Wow/Flutter.
The Tempo/Rate display changes to match the
current session tempo. 7.5 ips Sets the delay time to correspond to a Speed
Control setting of 7.5 inches per second.

7.5 ips Flutter Includes the 7.5 ips setting plus

Wow/Flutter.
On Tempo/Rate 30 ips Flutter Adds Wow/Flutter to the highest
button display
Speed Control setting.
Note Value Triplet
display button Rockabilly A common tape slap effect, useful on
Dot vocals or electric guitar. Sets the delay time to
button
130 ms, which corresponds to the delay time result-
BPM Sync controls
ing from the distance between the record and play
2 To set a rhythmic delay, click the Note Value to heads on an Ampex 300-series or Ampex 350-se-
choose from the available note values (whole, ries tape transport.
half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, or thirty-second
Rockabilly Plus Includes the Rockabilly setting
note)
plus Feedback, Wow/Flutter, Bass and Treble ad-
3 To adjust the rhythm further, do any of the justments on feedback.
following:
• To enable triplet rhythm delay timing, click the
Triplet (“3”) button so that it is lit.
• To set a dotted rhythm delay value, click the Dot
(“.”) button so that it is lit.

You can override the settings derived from

BPM Sync at any time by manually adjusting
the plug-in Speed control.

To set the delay time to a specific time value,

turn off BPM Sync and enter the delay time
(in msec) in the Tempo/Rate display.

Chapter 32: Reel Tape Delay 190

Cha pt e r 3 3 : Te l-Ra y Va ria ble De la y

Tel-Ray Variable Delay is a delay/echo plug-in that One invention involved a tuna can, a motor, and a
is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite for- few tablespoons of oil. The creation: an Electronic
mats. Memory Unit. A technology, they were sure, that
would be of great interest to companies like IBM
Tel-Ray Variable Delay supports 44.1 kHz, and NASA.
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz
sample rates. Though it never made it to the moon, most every
major guitar amp manufacturer licensed the tech-
Tel-Ray Variable Delay operates as a mono, multi- nology that gives Tel-Ray its unique sound.
mono, or stereo plug-in.

Tel-Ray Variable Delay

Add delay or echo to any voice or instrument using

the Tel-Ray Variable Delay. It provides lush delay,
amazing echo, and warms up your tracks and
mixes.

In the early 1960s, a small company experimented Space-age technology in a can

with electronics and technology. When they came
up with something great, they would Tell Ray (the
boss).

Chapter 33: Tel-Ray Variable Delay 191

Te l-Ra y Cont rols Te l-Ra y T ips a nd Trick s
Each and every Tel-Ray varies drastically in motor
I nput /Out put Se c t ion and flywheel stability, resulting in different pitch
Input Input sets the signal level to the tuna can echo and variation effects. Even the same unit may
unit. sound different day to day, depending on tempera-
ture, warm-up time, and other factors. Since the
Tone Tone is a standard tone control like those original units are basically thirty year-old tuna cans
commonly found on guitar effects. bolted to plywood with springs and motors flop-
Mix Mix adjusts the amount of dry (unprocessed) ping around inside, the virtual Tel Ray Delay pro-
signal relative to the amount of wet (processed) sig- vides a Variation knob so that you can dial in a Tel-
nal. Full clockwise is 100% wet. (On original units, Ray in whatever state of disrepair you desire.
this control is located deep inside the box, typically
soaked in carcinogenic PCB oil.)

Output Output is a simple digital output trim con-

trol.

Echo/De la y Se c t ion
Variable Delay Variable Delay selects the delay
time. Delay times vary from 0.06 to 0.3 seconds.
Full clockwise is slowest.

Variation Variation adjusts how much variation oc-

curs in the delay. The more variation you use, the
more warbled and wobbly the sound becomes.

Sustain Sustain determines how long the delay

takes to die out. It is actually a feedback control
similar to the one found on the Moogerfooger An-
alog Delay.

Echo/Doubler Echo/Doubler determines whether

or not a second record head is engaged, resulting in
a double echo.

Chapter 33: Tel-Ray Variable Delay 192

Cha pt e r 3 4 : T im e Adjust e r

TimeAdjuster is a time-processing plug-in that is

available in DSP and Native formats. T im e Adjust e r Cont rols
The TimeAdjuster plug-in provides the following
TimeAdjuster supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
controls:
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
rates. Phase Invert This controls inverts the phase (polar-
ity) of the input signal. While most Avid plug-ins
TimeAdjuster operates as a mono, multi-mono, or
supply a phase invert button of their own, some
stereo plug-in.
third-party plug-ins may not. Phase inversion is
also useful for performing delay compensation by
tuning unknown delay factors by ear (see “Using
TimeAdjuster for Manual Delay Compensation”
on page 194).

Gain •Provides up to 24 dB of positive or negative

gain adjustment. This control is useful for alter-
ing the gain of a signal by a large amount in real
time. For example, when you are working with
audio signals that are extremely low level, you
TimeAdjuster (Stereo)
may want to adjust the channel gain to a reason-
Use the TimeAdjuster plug-in for any of the fol- able working range so that a fader is positioned at
lowing: its optimum travel position. Use the Gain control
• Delay compensation as an insert effect to make a wide range of gain
adjustment in real time without having to perma-
• Gain compensation (+/– 24 dB)
nently process the audio files, as you would with
• Phase inversion for correcting out-of-phase an AudioSuite plug-in.
signals
Delay Provides up to 8192 samples of delay com-
For more information on Delay Compensa- pensation adjustment, or general adjustment of
tion and Time Adjuster, see the Pro Tools phase relationships of audio recorded with multiple
Reference Guide. microphones (the amount of delay available de-
pends on the version of TimeAdjuster: Short, Me-
dium, or Long). It defaults to a minimum delay of
four samples, which is the delay created by use of
the TimeAdjuster plug-in itself.

Chapter 34: TimeAdjuster 193

While phase inversion controls have been used for Pha se I nve rsion
many years by engineers as creative tools for ad-
If you are working with phase-coherent track pairs,
justment of frequency response between multiple
or tracks recorded with multiple microphones, you
microphones, sample-level delay adjustments pro-
can invert the phase to negate the delay. If you
vide far more control. Creative use of this control
don’t hear any audio when you invert a signal’s
can provide a powerful tool for adjusting frequency
phase, you have precisely adjusted and compen-
response and timing relationships between audio
sated for the delay. This is because when you mon-
signals recorded with multiple microphones.
itor duplicate signals and invert the polarity (phase)
of one of them, the signals will be of opposite po-
larity and cancel each other out. This technique is
U sing T im e Adjust e r for convenient for finding the exact delay setting for
M a nua l De la y Com pe nsat ion any plug-in.
DSP and host-based processing in all digital sys-
To determine the delay of a plug-in by inverting its
tems incurs delay of varying amounts. You can use
signal phase:
the TimeAdjuster plug-in to apply an exact number
of samples of delay to the signal path of a Pro Tools 1 Place duplicate audio clips on two different au-
track to compensate for delay incurred by specific dio tracks and pan them to the center (mono).
plug-ins. TimeAdjuster provides presets for com- 2 Apply the plug-in whose delay you want to cal-
mon delay-compensation scenarios. culate to the first track, and a Time Adjuster
To compensate for several plug-ins in-line, use the plug-in to the second track.
delay times from each settings file as references, 3 With TimeAdjuster, invert the phase.
and add them together to derive the total delay
time. 4 Control-drag (Windows) or Command-drag
(Mac) to fine-tune delay in one sample incre-
Some plug-ins (such as Avid’s Maxim) have ments, or use the up/down arrow keys to change
different delays at different sample rates. the delay one sample at a time until the audio
signal disappears.
Alternatively, look up the delay in samples for the
plug-ins you want to compensate for, then apply 5 Change the polarity back to normal.
the appropriate amount of delay. 6 Save the TimeAdjuster setting for later use.
To manually compensate for DSP-induced delays,
try one of the following methods: Com b-Filt e r Effe c t Ca nc e llat ion
• Phase inversion Adjust the delay with the signal in phase until any
• Comb-filter effect cancellation comb-filter effects cancel out.

Chapter 34: TimeAdjuster 194

V ie w ing Cha nne l De la y a nd
T im e Adjust e r Whe n t o Com pe nsat e for
De la ys
Because plug-ins display their delay values in the
channel delay indicators, this can be used as an- If you want to compensate for delays across your
other method for determining delay compensation. entire system with Time Adjuster, you will want to
calculate the maximum delay incurred on any
To view time delay values and use TimeAdjuster to channel, and apply the delays necessary to each
compensate for the delay: channel to match this channel.
1 Do one of the following:
However, this may not always be necessary. You
• Control-click (Windows) or Command-click may only really need to compensate for delays be-
(Mac) the Track Level Indicator to toggle be- tween tracks where phase coherency must be main-
tween level (that appears on the display as tained (as with instruments recorded with multiple
“vol”), headroom (“pk”), and channel delay microphones or stereo pairs). If you are working
(“dly”) indications. Delay values are shown in with mono signals, and the accumulated delays are
samples. small (just a few samples, for example), you prob-
• Select the Delay Compensation view from the ably needn’t worry about delay compensation.
Mix Window View selector. This view will ap-
For more information about delays and
pear below the track name. Delay, User Offset,
mixing with Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools
Compensation Amount values are shown in
Reference Guide.
samples.

Determining the DSP delay of track inserts

(Mix window shown)

2 Apply the TimeAdjuster plug-in to the track

whose delay you want to increase, and Control-
click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac) its
Track Level indicator until the channel delay
value is displayed for that track.
3 Change the delay time in TimeAdjuster by mov-
ing the Delay slider or entering a value in the
Delay field, until the channel delay value
matches that of the first track.
4 Test the delay values by duplicating an audio
track and reversing its phase while compensat-
ing for delay.

Chapter 34: TimeAdjuster 195

Pa rt V I I : M odula t ion Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 3 5 : M ooge rfooge r Low pa ss Filt e r

Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter features a 2-pole/4- With the invention of the MOOG® synthesizer in
pole variable resonance filter with envelope fol- the 1960s, Bob Moog started the electronic music
lower. Use it to achieve classic 60s and 70s sounds revolution. A direct descendant of the original
on bass and electric guitar, or just dial in some MOOG Modular synthesizers, the Moogerfooger
warm, fat virtual analog resonance when you need Lowpass Filter provides two classic MOOG mod-
it. ules: a Lowpass Filter and an Envelope Follower.

Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter is available in DSP, A low pass Filter allows all frequencies up to a cer-
Native, and AudioSuite formats. tain frequency to pass, and cuts frequencies above
the cutoff frequency. It removes the high frequen-
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter supports 44.1 kHz, cies from a tone, making it sound more mellow or
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz muted. The Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter contains
sample rates. a genuine four-pole lowpass filter. We say “genu-
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter operates as a mono, ine” because the four-pole filter—a major part of
multi-mono, or stereo plug-in. the “MOOG Sound” of the 60s and 70s—was first
patented by Bob Moog in 1968! The digital version
preserves all the character, nuances, and personal-
ity of his original classic analog design.

Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter

Chapter 35: Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter 197

An Envelope Follower tracks the loudness contour, Smooth/Fast The Smooth/Fast switch determines
or envelope, of a sound. Think of it like this: each how closely the envelope tracks the loudness of the
time you play a note, the envelope goes up and then input signal. Some sounds (like guitar chords) have
down. The louder and harder you play, the higher long, rough envelopes, and often sound better with
the envelope goes. In the Moogerfooger Lowpass less dramatic changes in the filter. Other sounds
Filter, the Envelope Follower drives the cutoff fre- (like bass or snare drum) are quick and sharp, and
quency of the Lowpass Filter. Since the envelope sound great when the filter closely tracks their at-
follows the dynamics of the input, it “plays” the fil- tack.
ter by sweeping it up and down in response to the
Mix The Mix control blends the original input sig-
loudness of the input signal.
nal with the filtered signal. Use it to get any mixture
“Envelope” of filtered and unfiltered sound.
of the sound

Filt e r Sec t ion

Time

Audio waveform Control the filter using the Cutoff and Resonance
of the sound
Audio waveform of a musical sound
knobs and the 2-Pole/4-Pole switch.

Cutoff Cutoff opens and closes the filter. Turned

counterclockwise, fewer high frequencies pass
through the filter. Turned clockwise, more high fre-
quencies pass.
Time
Envelope signal of the same sound
Gain

Envelope

2-Pole

4-Pole
M ooge rfooge r Low pa ss Filt e r
Cont rols Frequency
The 2/4 pole switch selects the filter slope
Enve lope Se ct ion

Amount The Amount knob determines how much Resonance Resonance changes the way the filter
the envelope varies the filter. When the knob is sounds. At low resonance, low frequencies come
counterclockwise, the envelope signal has no effect through evenly. At high resonance, frequencies
on the filter. When the knob is fully clockwise, the near the cutoff frequency are boosted, creating a
envelope signal opens and closes the filter over a whistling or vowel-type quality. When resonance is
range of five octaves. maxed out, the filter oscillates and produces its
own tone at the cutoff frequency. This oscillation
interacts with other tones as they go through the fil-
ter, producing the signature Moog sound.

Chapter 35: Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter 198

2-Pole/4-Pole The 2-Pole/4-Pole switch selects
whether the signal goes through half the filter (2-
pole) or the entire filter (4-pole). 2-pole is brighter,
while 4-pole has a deeper, mellow quality.

Drive The Drive control sets the input gain. Use it

to adjust the input to the filter and envelope fol-
lower.

LED I ndic at ors

Three LEDs down the center of the unit provide vi-

sual feedback.

Level Level glows green when signal is present to

the envelope circuit.

Env Env (envelope) glows redder in response to the

envelope tracking of the input.

Bypass Bypass glows either red (bypassed) or

green (not bypassed) to show whether or not the ef-
fect is in the signal path.

M ooge rfooge r Low pa ss Filt e r

T ips a nd Trick s
Try inserting an LFO ahead of the Moogerfooger
Lowpass Filter to produce a cool “auto wah” effect.
Use this in conjunction with Voce Spin’s rotating
speaker for a swirling auto-wah effect.

Chapter 35: Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter 199

Cha pt e r 3 6 : M ooge rfooge r 1 2 -St a ge Pha se r

Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser combines a 6- or Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser offers 6 or 12

12-stage phaser with a wide-ranging variable LFO. stages of MOOG resonant analog filters. Unlike the
Start with subtle tremolo or radical modulation ef- Lowpass Filter, however, the filters are arranged in
fects, then crank the distortion and resonant filters an allpass configuration.
for unbelievable new tones—all featuring classic
MOOG sound. Time
1 Low Pass
Filter
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser is available in DSP,
Native, and AudioSuite formats.

Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser supports 44.1 kHz,

Frequency
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz Time
Cutoff

sample rates. Resonant

1
Filter
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser operates as a mono,
multi-mono, or stereo plug-in.

Frequency
Center
Time
1
5-Stage
Phaser

Frequency
Mid-Shift
Different types of filters

A phaser works by sweeping the mid-shift fre-

quency of the filters back and forth. As this hap-
pens, the entire frequency response of the output
moves back and forth as well. The result is the clas-
sic phaser “whooshing” sound as different fre-
quency bands of the signal are alternately empha-
Moogerfooger 12-stage Phaser sized and then attenuated.

Chapter 36: Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser 200

A sweep control allows you to adjust the range of
the frequency shift. And, keeping in the spirit of the Gain
MOOG modular synthesizers, an integrated LFO
1
allows you to modulate the sweep control, allowing
for extreme effects.

M ooge rfooge r 1 2 -St a ge

Frequency
Pha se r Cont rols Mid-Shift Frequency

Responses of a phaser with high resonance

LFO Se c t ion
Sweep Sweep adjusts the center frequency point of
Control the LFO using the Amount and Rate knobs the filters. Use it in conjunction with Amount to
and the Lo/Hi selector switch. control the frequencies affected by the phaser.
Amount Amount varies the depth of phaser modu- Mid-shift frequency
lation, from barely perceptible at the full counter- Gain moves
clockwise position, to the full sweep range of the 1
phaser (full clockwise or “Kill”
setting).

Rate Rate determines how fast the LFO oscillates.

The LFO light blinks to give a visual indication of
the LFO rate. Frequency

Lo/Hi The Lo/Hi switch selects the range of the Sweep adjusts the center frequency point
Rate control. When the switch is Lo, the Rate con-
trol varies from 0.01 Hz (one cycle every hundred Drive
seconds) to 2.5 Hz (2.5 cycles every second).
The Drive control sets the input gain.
When the switch is Hi, the Rate control varies from
2.5 Hz (2.5 cycles every second) to 250 Hz (two
hundred fifty cycles per second). With such a wide LED I ndic at ors
range of rates available, obviously you’ll need to Three LEDs provide visual feedback.
adjust Rate after you flick the Lo/Hi switch to get
the sound you desire. Level Level glows green when signal is present.

LFO LFO blinks to show the LFO rate.

Pha se r Se c t ion
Bypass Bypass glows either red (bypassed) or
Control the Phaser with the Sweep and Resonance green (not bypassed) to show whether or not the ef-
knobs and the 6-Stage/12-Stage switch. fect is in the signal path.
Resonance Resonance adjusts the feedback of the
analog filters. As you add more resonance, the
peaks caused by the filters get sharper and more no-
ticeable.

Chapter 36: Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser 201

M ooge rfooge r 1 2 -St a ge
Pha se r T ips a nd Trick s

M ore H a r m onic s = M ore Fun

The richer the harmonic content of the sound, the
more there is to filter and sweep. Try adding distor-
tion using the SansAmp PSA-1 before the phaser—
it’s a cool variation on the common signal path
used when putting a phaser in front of a guitar amp.

Aggre ssive a nd Ex t re m e
Dr. Moog apparently took these mantras of early
21st Century recording science to heart when he
designed the Rate knob on his phaser. Flick the
Rate switch to Hi and let the party begin. Try mut-
ing a track and mixing in bits of extremely phase-
swept material.

I t ’s a n Effe c t —Pla y w it h I t !
All the controls on the Moogerfooger 12-Stage
Phaser are fully independent of one another. This
means you can set them in any combination that
you wish. There is no such thing as a “wrong” com-
bination of settings, so you can experiment all you
like to find new, exciting effects for your music.

Chapter 36: Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser 202

Cha pt e r 3 7 : M ooge rfooge r Ring M odulat or

Moogerfooger Ring Modulator provides a wide- Like the Lowpass Filter, the Moogerfooger Ring
range carrier oscillator and dual sine/square wave- Modulator has its roots in the original MOOG
form LFO. Add motion to rhythm tracks and Modular synthesizers. It provides three classic
achieve radical lo-fidelity textures—you set the MOOG modules: a Low Frequency Oscillator, a
limits! Carrier Oscillator, and a Ring Modulator.

Moogerfooger Ring Modulator is available in DSP, Low Frequency Oscillators (or LFOs) create slow
Native, and AudioSuite formats. modulations like vibrato and tremolo. The LFO in
the Moogerfooger Ring Modulator is a wide-range,
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator supports 44.1 kHz, dual-waveform (sine/square) oscillator.
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz
sample rates. The Carrier Oscillator is a wide-range sinusoidal
oscillator. It’s called the Carrier Oscillator because,
The Moogerfooger Ring Modulator operates as a like the carrier of an AM radio signal, it’s always
mono, multi-mono, or stereo plug-in. there, ready to be modulated by the input.

A Ring Modulator takes two inputs, and outputs the

sum and difference frequencies of the two inputs.
For example, if the first input contains a 500 Hz
sine wave, and the second input contains a 100 Hz
sine wave, then the output contains a 600 Hz sine
wave (500 plus 100) and a 400 Hz (500 minus 100)
sine wave.

Moogerfooger Ring Modulator

Chapter 37: Moogerfooger Ring Modulator 203

 Drive
M ooge rfooge r Ring M odulat or
Cont rols The Drive control sets the input gain.

LFO Se c t ion LED I ndic at ors

Control the LFO using the Amount and Rate knobs Three LEDs provide visual feedback.
and the Square/Sine waveform selector switch.
Level Level glows green when signal is present.
Amount Amount determines the amount of LFO
LFO LFO blinks to show the LFO rate.
waveform that modulates the frequency of the car-
rier oscillator. When the knob is full counterclock- Bypass Bypass glows either red (bypassed) or
wise, the carrier is unmodulated. Fully clockwise, green (not bypassed) to show whether or not the ef-
the carrier oscillator is modulated over a range of fect is in the signal path.
three octaves.

Rate Rate determines how fast the LFO oscillates,

from 0.1 Hz (one cycle every ten seconds) to 25 Hz M ooge rfooge r Ring M odulat or
(twenty-five cycles per second). The LFO light T ips a nd Trick s
blinks to give a visual indication of the LFO rate. You’ll discover tons of great uses for the Mooger-
Sine/Square The Square/Sine switch selects either fooger Ring Modulator through experimentation.
a square or sine waveform. The square wave pro- But don’t forget to try using it in subtle ways, add-
duces trill effects, whereas the sine waveform pro- ing “just a hint” to harshen up or add a metallic
duces vibrato and siren effects. quality to individual tracks buried in the mix. Al-
most all the great MOOG sounds feature subtle,
clever uses of Ring Modulation.
M odulat or Se c t ion
The Carrier Oscillator is controlled by the Fre-
quency knob and the Low/High switch.

Frequency Knob Operating at the selected fre-

quency, the carrier oscillator provides one input to
the ring modulator, with the other coming from the
input signal.

Lo In the Lo position, the Frequency knob ranges

from 0.5 Hz to 80 Hz.

Hi In the High position, the Frequency knob ranges

from 30 Hz to 4 kHz.

Mix The Mix control blends the input signal and the
Ring Modulator output. You hear only the input
signal when the knob is counterclockwise, and only
the ring modulated signal with the knob fully
clockwise.
Chapter 37: Moogerfooger Ring Modulator 204
Cha pt e r 3 8 : Re e l Ta pe Fla nge r

Reel Tape Flanger is part of the Reel Tape suite of For years, engineers have relied on analog tape to
tape-simulation effects plug-ins. Reel Tape Flanger add a smooth, warm sound to their recordings.
simulates a tape machine flanging effect, modeling When driven hard, tape responds with gentle dis-
the frequency sweep and “crossover” comb-filter- tortion rather than abrupt clipping as in the digital
ing effects that can result when the flanger variable domain. Magnetic tape also has a frequency-depen-
delay is adjusted. It also reproduces the frequency dent saturation characteristic that can lend punch to
response, noise, wow and flutter, and distortion the low end, and sweetness to the highs.
characteristics of analog tape recording.
Reel Tape Flanger models a classic tape flanging
Reel Tape Flanger is available in DSP, Native, and setup with two analog tape machines and a mixer,
AudioSuite formats. where one tape machine has a fixed delay and the
other has a continuously variable delay.
Reel Tape Flanger supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample The two machines are fed an input signal in paral-
rates. lel, and the output of the machines is then mixed.
When the variable delay on the second machine is
Reel Tape Flanger operates as a mono, multi- changed at a constant rate (using an LFO), the re-
mono, or stereo plug-in. sulting frequency cancellations cause a periodic
phasing of the original signal.

The use of a fixed delay on the first machine makes

it possible to adjust the variable delay on the second
machine to pass the “zero” point (to a delay value
less than the fixed delay), resulting in phase cancel-
lation (or the “crossover” flanging effect).

Reel Tape Flanger automatically applies tape satu-

ration effects that correspond to the following con-
trol settings in Reel Tape Saturation:
Reel Tape Flanger
• Speed: 15 ips
• Bias: 0.0 dB
• Cal Adjust: +9 dB

Use the BPM Sync feature to synchronize the Reel

Tape Flanger effect to the current tempo of the
Pro Tools session.
Chapter 38: Reel Tape Flanger 205
 Hi Output Emulates the characteristics of
Re e l Ta pe Com m on Cont rols Quantegy GP9, exhibiting a more subtle saturation
All Reel Tape plug-ins share the following effect.
controls:

Drive Re e l Ta pe Fla nge r Cont rols

Drive controls the amount of saturation effect by In addition to the Drive, Output, Tape Machine,
increasing the input signal to the modeled tape ma- and Tape Formula controls, Reel Tape Flanger has
chine while automatically compensating by reduc- the following controls:
ing the overall output. Drive is adjustable from
–12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB. Ra nge
The Range control adjusts the overall magnitude of
Out put the variable delay, which determines the offset be-
Output controls the output signal level of the plug- tween the two modeled tape machines. A center or
in after processing. Output is adjustable from “zero” setting results in no offset. Range is contin-
–12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB. uously adjustable from –20 ms to +20 ms, and is
divided into two types of effects: flanging and au-
tomatic double tracking.
Ta pe M a chine
Flange Range settings within the narrow center
The Tape Machine control lets you select one of
band around “zero” simulate tape flanging, with a
three tape machine types emulated by the plug-in,
phase cancellation effect as the variable delay
each with its own sonic characteristics:
crosses the “zero” point.
US Emulates the audio characteristics of a 3M M79
multitrack tape recorder. LFO Rate

Swiss Emulates the audio characteristics of a LFO Depth

Studer A800 multitrack tape recorder.

Lo-Fi Simulates the effect of a limited-bandwidth

analog tape device, such as an outboard tape-based
echo effect. zero point

Ta pe For m ula
Operation with “Flange” Range setting (no offset)
The Tape Formula control lets you select either of
two magnetic tape formulations emulated by the ADT (Artificial Double Tracking) Range settings
plug-in, each with its own saturation characteris- outside the narrow center band simulate artificial
tics: double tracking, in which the variable delay does
not cross the “zero” point. This varying delay cre-
Classic Emulates the characteristics of
Ampex 456, exhibiting a more pronounced satura-
tion effect.

Chapter 38: Reel Tape Flanger 206

ates a unique doubling effect, essentially an analog Rat e
precursor to chorusing. (You can hear ADT-type
The LFO Rate control adjusts the rate of change in
effects on many classic analog recordings, such as
the variable delay. A higher setting results in faster
those of the Beatles or Led Zeppelin.)
fluctuations in speed. A lower setting results in
LFO Rate slower fluctuations in speed. LFO Rate is adjust-
able from 0.05 Hz to 5 Hz, with a default setting of
LFO Depth 0.14 Hz.

You can set the LFO Rate control to synchronize to

the current tempo of the Pro Tools session. See
“Synchronizing Reel Tape Flanger to Session
Tempo” on page 208.

zero point De pt h
The LFO Depth control adjusts the amplitude of the
change in variable delay. A higher setting results in
Operation with “ADT” Range setting (positive offset) wider fluctuations in speed. A lower setting results
in narrower fluctuations in speed. LFO Depth is ad-
When the LFO Depth control is set to zero, justable from 0 to 100 percent, with a default value
you can still achieve a “manual” flanging or of 65 percent.
ADT effect by varying the Range control.
M ix
Fe e dba ck
The Mix control adjusts the amount of fixed delay
The Feedback control adds a short delay to the signal mixed with the variable delay signal in the fi-
flanged signal. Feedback amount is adjustable from nal output of the plug-in. The default Mix value is
0 to 100 percent, with a default value of 0 percent. adjustable from –100 (all fixed delay signal) to
(This is not the same feedback effect as on an elec- +100 (all variable delay signal) percent, with a de-
tronic flanger or delay. fault value of 0 (50% fixed delay, 50% variable de-
lay signals).
Wow /Flut t e r
The Wow/Flutter control adjusts the amplitude of I nve rt
the variable delay tape machine’s wow and flutter, (Plug-In Automation Playlist or Control Surface
or the amount of fluctuation in tape speed. A higher Access Only)
setting results in wider fluctuations in speed. A The Invert parameter inverts the polarity of the sig-
lower setting results in narrower fluctuations in nal coming from the variable delay tape machine,
speed. Wow/Flutter is adjustable from 0 to 1 per- so that complete audio cancellation occurs when
cent, with a default value of 0.03 percent. the flanger effect crosses the zero point. The default
setting for the Invert parameter is Off.

Chapter 38: Reel Tape Flanger 207

This parameter is accessible only from the plug-in
automation playlist or from a supported control Synchronizing Re e l Ta pe
surface. Fla nge r t o Se ssion Te m po
You can set the LFO Rate in Reel Tape Flanger to
Settings for this parameter are saved with
synchronize to the session tempo (in beats per min-
plug-in presets. If you use a preset for the
ute).
DSP, Native, or AudioSuite version of this
plug-in, any settings for this parameter will
To synchronize the LFO Rate control setting to the
be active. session tempo:

1 In the BPM Sync section, click the On button.

N oise The Tempo/Rate display changes to synchronize
(Plug-In Automation Playlist or Control Surface
with the current session tempo.
Access Only)

The Noise parameter controls the level of simu-

lated tape hiss that is added to the processed signal.
Noise is adjustable from Off (–INF) to –24 dB,
with a default value of Off. On Tempo/Rate
button display
This parameter is accessible only from the plug-in
Note Value Triplet
automation playlist or from a supported control display button
Dot
surface. button

Settings for this parameter are saved with BPM Sync controls
plug-in presets. If you use a preset for the
2 To set a rhythmic LFO rate, click the Note Value
DSP, Native, or AudioSuite version of this
to choose from the available note values (whole,
plug-in, any settings for this parameter will
half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, or thirty-second
be active.
note)
3 To adjust the rhythm further, do any of the fol-
lowing:
• To enable triplet rhythm delay timing, click the
Triplet (“3”) button so that it is lit.
• To set a dotted rhythm delay value, click the Dot
(“.”) button so that it is lit.

Chapter 38: Reel Tape Flanger 208

Re e l Ta pe Fla nge r T ips Re e l Ta pe Fla nge r Pre se t s
 To achieve a flanging effect, set the Range con- 12-String Moderate-depth ADT setting that works
trol within the “Flange” range and adjust the LFO well with acoustic guitar sounds
Depth control to a value that is greater than the off-
set (so that the variable delay crosses the “zero” Flutter Flange Moderate-depth flange setting with
point.) Wow/Flutter

 To achieve an ADT (doubling) effect, set the Flutter Extreme Wow/Flutter setting with flanging
Range control within either of the “ADT” ranges turned off and a Mix setting that passes only the
and adjust the LFO Depth control to a value that is variable delay
smaller than the offset (so that the variable delay
Manual Flange Settings with LFO Depth set to
does not cross the “zero” point).
zero, ready for manual flanging by adjusting or au-
 To achieve a manual flanging effect, set the LFO tomating the Range control
Depth control to 0 and vary (or automate) the
Slow Flange High Depth setting combined with
Range control within the “Flange” range. For fine
slow LFO Rate, suitable for flanging vocals
control, hold Control (Windows) or Command
(Mac) while varying the Range control. Vocal ADT Settings for creating doubling effect
 To add complexity to flanging or ADT effects, without flanging “crossover” effect, suitable for
turn up the Wow/Flutter control to introduce more vocals
fluctuation in the variable delay. Vocal Walrus Drive-boosted settings for extreme
 Use Reel Tape Flanger in a send/return configu- vocal doubling effect
ration to mix the dry signal with an aggressively
Wobble A high LFO Rate setting combined with a
driven, flanged signal to control the amount of
Mix setting that passes only the variable delay.
“grunge” in the final mix.
Works well on sustained parts.
 When you start playback, the LFO sweep al-
ways starts at the bottom of the cycle, so each time
you start playback from the same location (for ex-
ample, at a bar line), the effect will be applied in the
same way.

Chapter 38: Reel Tape Flanger 209

Cha pt e r 3 9 : Sc i-Fi

Sci-Fi features analog synthesizer-type effects that Sci-Fi is designed to mock-synthesize audio by
include: adding effects such as ring modulation, resonation,
• Ring modulation and sample & hold, which are typically found on
older, modular analog synthesizers. Sci-Fi is ideal
• Frequency modulation for adding a synth edge to a track.
• Variable-frequency, positive and negative reso-
nator
• Modulation control by LFO, envelope follower, Sc i-Fi Cont rols
sample-and-hold, or trigger-and-hold
Sc i-Fi I nput Leve l
Sci-Fi is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite
formats. Input Level attenuates signal input level to the
Sci-Fi processor. Since some Sci-Fi controls (such
Sci-Fi supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, as Resonator) can cause extreme changes in signal
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. level, adjusting the Input Level is particularly use-
ful for achieving unity gain with the original signal
Sci-Fi operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
level. The range of this control is from –12 dB to
plug-in.
0 dB.

Sc i-Fi Effe c t Type s

Sci-Fi provides four different types of effects:

Ring Mod Is a ring modulator—which modulates

the signal amplitude with a carrier frequency, pro-
ducing harmonic sidebands that are the sum and
difference of the frequencies of the two signals.
The carrier frequency is supplied by Sci-Fi itself.
The modulation frequency is determined by the Ef-
fect Frequency control. Ring modulation adds a
characteristic hard-edged, metallic sound to audio.

Sci-Fi

Chapter 39: Sci-Fi 210

Freak Mod Is a frequency modulation processor Sc i-Fi M od Type Cont rols
that modulates the signal frequency with a carrier
frequency, producing harmonic sidebands that are The four Mod Type buttons determine the type of
the sum and difference of the input signal fre- modulation applied to the frequency of the selected
quency and whole number multiples of the carrier effect. Depending on the type of modulation you
frequency. Frequency modulation produces many select here, the sliders below it will change to pro-
more sideband frequencies than ring modulation vide the appropriate type of modulation controls. If
and an even wilder metallic characteristic. The Ef- the Mod Amount is set to 0%, no dynamic modula-
fect Frequency control determines the modulation tion is applied to the audio signal. The Effect Fre-
frequency of the Freak Mod effect. quency slider then becomes the primary control for
modifying the sound.
Resonator+ and Resonator– Add a resonant fre-
LFO Produces a low-frequency triangle wave as a
quency tone to the audio signal. This frequency is
determined by the Effect Frequency control. The modulation source. The rate and amplitude of the
difference between these two modules is that Res- triangle wave are determined by the Mod Rate and
onator– reverses the phase (polarity) of the effect, Mod Amount controls, respectively.
producing a hollower sound than Resonator+. The Envelope Follower Causes the selected effect to
Resonator can be used to produce metallic and dynamically track the input signal by varying with
flanging effects that emulate the sound of classic the amplitude envelope of the audio signal. As the
analog flangers. signal gets louder, more modulation occurs. This
can be used to produce a very good automatic wah-
Sc i-Fi Effe c t Am ount wah-type effect. When you select the Envelope
Follower, the Mod Amount slider changes to a
Effect Amount controls the mix of the processed
Mod Slewing control. Slewing provides you with
sound with the original signal. The range of this
the ability to smooth out extreme dynamic changes
control is from 0–100%.
in your modulation source. This provides a
smoother, more continuous modulation effect. The
Sc i-Fi Effe c t Fre que ncy more slewing you add, the more gradual the
changes in modulation will be.
Effect Frequency controls the modulation fre-
quency of the ring modulator and resonators. The Sample+Hold Periodically samples a random
frequency range is dependent on the effect type. pseudo-noise signal and applies it to the effect fre-
For Ring Mod, the frequency range of this control quency. Sample and hold modulation produces a
is from 0 Hz to 22.05 kHz. For Freak Mod, the fre- characteristic random stair-step modulation. The
quency range is from 0 Hz to 22.05 kHz. For Res- sampling rate and the amplitude are determined by
onator+, the frequency range is from 344 to the Mod Rate and Mod Amount controls, respec-
11.025 kHz. For Resonator–, the frequency range tively.
is from 172 Hz to 5.5 kHz.

You can also enter a frequency value using key-

board note entry.

Chapter 39: Sci-Fi 211

Trigger+Hold Trigger and hold modulation is simi- Sc i-Fi Out put M e t e r
lar to sample and hold modulation, with one signif-
icant difference: If the input signal falls below the The Output Meter indicates the output level of the
threshold set with the Mod Threshold control, mod- processed signal. Note that this meter indicates the
ulation will not occur. This provides interesting output level of the signal—not the input level. If
rhythmic effects, where modulation occurs primar- this meter clips, the signal may have clipped on in-
ily on signal peaks. Modulation will occur in a pe- put before it reached Sci-Fi. Monitor your send or
riodic, yet random way that varies directly with insert signal levels closely to prevent this from hap-
peaks in the audio material. Think of this type of pening.
modulation as having the best elements of both
sample and hold modulation and with an envelope
follower.

Sc i-Fi M od Am ount a nd M od Rat e

Cont rols
These two sliders control the amplitude and fre-
quency of the modulating signal. The modulation
amount ranges from 0% to 100%. The modulation
rate, when LFO or Sample+Hold are selected,
ranges from 0.1 Hz to 20 Hz.

If you select Trigger+Hold as a modulation type,

the Mod Rate slider changes to a Mod Threshold
slider, which is adjustable from –95 dB to 0 dB. It
determines the level above which modulation oc-
curs with the trigger and hold function.

If you select Envelope Follower as a modulation

type, the Mod Rate slider changes to a Mod Slew-
ing slider, which is adjustable from 0% to 100%.

Chapter 39: Sci-Fi 212

Cha pt e r 4 0 : Voc e Plug-I ns

The Voce plug-ins provide a pair of vintage modu- In a large pipe organ, “ranks” of pipes (multiple
lation effect plug-ins: Voce Chorus Vibrato and pipes designed to emit the same frequency) aren’t
Voce Spin. perfectly in tune. The effect goes by the name
“multirank” or, more commonly, “chorus.”
The Voce plug-ins are available in DSP, Native,
and AudioSuite formats. Inside every B3 organ, on the end of the driveshaft
that spins the tonewheels, you’ll find a mechanical
The Voce plug-ins support 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, contraption that delays the sound of the organ.
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz, and 192 kHz sample Originally added to make the B3 sound more like a
rates. pipe organ, it imparts frequency variation to the
The Voce plug-ins support mono, mono-to-stereo sound.
(Voce Spin only), multi-mono, and stereo opera- Although well received by churches, the signature
tion. B-3 Chorus/Vibrato graced jazz and rock record-
ings ever since. Now you can use this beautiful ef-
fect on any instrument.
V oc e Chorus/V ibrat o
Voce Chorus/Vibrato recreates the mechanical Voc e Chorus/V ibrat o Cont rols
scanner vibrato found in the B-3 Organ. Three set-
Simply click the Big Knob to rotate between set-
tings of chorus and three settings of vibrato pre-
tings of Vibrato and Chorus. V1 provides the least
sented on one cool knob! Fun and easy to use, it’s a
amount of vibrato, V2 slightly more, and V3 the
classic effect used for over sixty years.
most. Likewise the amount of Chorus increases
from C1 to C3.

Option-click (Mac) or Alt-click (Windows) the

knob to rotate it in the opposite direction, or click
the lettering to select a specific setting.

Voce Chorus/Vibrato

Chapter 40: Voce Plug-Ins 213

V oc e Chorus/V ibrat o T ips a nd
Trick s
The classic setting for organ is “C3” but you’ll find
other settings useful on a variety of instruments.
Some of our favorites include:

Elec t ric Pia nos

Many electric pianos feature built-in vibrato. But if

the sound you’re using doesn’t provide a realistic
vibrato (perhaps you’re wrestling with a sampler), Voce Spin
track dry and apply the effect later. Don Leslie invented the rotating speaker in 1937.
His design is simple and elegant: an internal 40-
Guit a r
watt tube amplifier feeds a speaker crossover,
A certain popular guitar amp has a knob that says which splits the signal.
“Vibrato” but it’s really just Tremolo. Tremolo is
All frequencies below 800 Hz go to a 15” bass
amplitude modulation; the sound gets louder and
speaker and all frequencies above 800 Hz go to a
quieter. Vibrato, in contrast, imparts pitch change.
compression horn driver.
A select few highly sought after ‘50s Magnatone
guitar amps feature a true tube vibrato (one even
15” Low Frequency
does stereo!) You can approximate this sound by Loudspeaker
recording guitar direct (or starting with a clean
miked sound), applying Voce Chorus/Vibrato, then
using SansAmp™ PSA-1 or Eleven.
Scoop Rotation

V oc e Spin
Voce Spin provides the most accurate simulation of Direct
the well-loved rotating speaker. 15 classic record- Sound
ing setups feature horn resonance, speaker cross- Lower speaker assembly
over, varying microphone placement—even the
“Memphis” sound with the lower drum’s slow mo- The large bass speaker is bolted to the cabinet and
tor unplugged! a foam drum directly below the speaker reflects the
bass outward.

For the high frequencies, a treble horn with two

bells reflects the sound from the compression horn
driver located below.

Only one bell actually produces sound; the other is

merely a counterbalance.

Chapter 40: Voce Plug-Ins 214

Then, of course, it spins. Separate belts, pulleys and Memphis Lower drum slow motor unplugged, mi-
motors drive the upper treble horn and the lower crophones close.
foam drum. Adding to the effect, the upper horn
Steppenwolf Lower drum only, loose belts, micro-
and lower drum spin in opposite directions. Most
phones close.
rotating speakers feature two sets of motors, allow-
ing both slow (“Chorale”) and fast (“Tremolo”) ro- Rover (Slow to Fast) Guitar rotating speaker, max-
tation speeds. imum speed differential.

Rover (Slow to Medium) Guitar rotating speaker,

Voc e Spin Cont rols
slower variation.
Of course, all that motion creates a rich sound—but
Rover (Medium to Fast) Guitar rotating speaker,
then you have to capture it using microphones.
faster variation.
Spin provides fifteen classic recording setups to
choose from, giving you the sounds you’ve heard Phaser Medium rotation rate, microphones very
on countless records instantly. close.
Just choose a preset and click Chorale, Tremolo, or Watery Guitar Fast rotation rate, microphones
Off. Alternately, click and drag the flip switch. close.
Short flicks of the wrist land on Off; longer flicks
toggle between Chorale and Tremolo. Speed Options

See also “Voce Spin Additional Controls” on Chorale Slow rotation.

page 215.
Tremolo Fast rotation.
You may also Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click Off No rotation, but still through the crossover and
(Mac) anywhere to toggle between Chorale and speakers (wherever the speakers comes to rest rela-
Tremolo speeds. tive to the microphones!).

Spin Pre se t s Voc e Spin Addit ional Cont rols

122 Model 122 speaker, medium pulleys. Though the Voce Spin plug-in window contains
122 (Small Pulley) Small pulleys (fastest only the Chorale/Off/Tremolo control, the follow-
rotation). ing controls are also available:
• Input Trim
122 (Large Pulley) Large pulleys (slowest
rotation). • Speed Switch
• Rotor Balance
122 (Wide Stereo) Middle pulleys, wide stereo mi-
crophone placement. • Upper Slow Speed
• Upper Accel Rate
122 (Mono) Middle pulleys, one mic each top and
bottom. • Upper Decel Rate
• Upper Mic Angle
21H Model 21H speaker.
• Lower Fast Speed
Foam Drum Middle pulleys, microphones close.

Chapter 40: Voce Plug-Ins 215

• Lower Slow Speed 4 In the Edit window, do one of the following:
• Lower Accel Rate • Click the Track View selector and select the au-
• Lower Decel Rate tomation control you just enabled from the Voce
Spin sub-menu.
• Lower Mic Angle
• Reveal an Automation lane for the track, click
You can adjust and automate controls such as input the Automation Type selector and select the au-
trim (from –24 dB to +24 dB), set the rotor balance tomation control you just enabled from the Voce
(the mix between the upper and lower speakers), Spin sub-menu.
specify acceleration and deceleration times (in sec-
5 Edit the breakpoint automation for the enabled
onds) for both the upper and lower speakers, tweak
control.
the fast and slow speeds of each speaker, and spec-
ify the microphone angle for each stereo pair of mi- Accessing Voce Spin Controls on a Control
crophones. Surface

You can access these additional controls through When using a control surface, all Voce Spin con-
Pro Tools plug-in automation, and/or from a com- trols are available whenever the plug-in is focused.
patible control surface. You only need to enable plug-in automation if you
want to record your adjustments as breakpoint au-
Ac c e ssing Voc e Spin Cont rols tomation.
Accessing Voce Spin Controls On-Screen To access additional Voce controls from a control
surface:
All Voce Spin controls can be adjusted on-screen
by editing Pro Tools breakpoint automation data. 1 Focus the Voce Spin plug-in on your control sur-
face. All available controls are mapped to en-
To access additional Voce Spin controls coders, faders, and switches.
on-screen:
2 Adjust the corresponding control.
1 Click the Plug-In Automation button in the
Plug-In window to open the Plug-In Automation 3 Use the previous/next Page controls to access
window. additional controls.

2 In the list of controls at the left, click to select a To automate your adjustments, enable
control and click Add (or just double-click a automation for that control. For more in-
control in the list). Repeat to access and enable formation on plug-in automation, see the
additional controls. Pro Tools Reference Guide.
3 Click OK to close the Plug-In Automation win-
dow.

Chapter 40: Voce Plug-Ins 216

Voc e Spin T ips a nd Trick s T he John Le nnon Voc al T hing

T he “One Mic Wa y Back I n T he Corne r In what seems like a particularly dangerous Beatles
Of T he Room” Trick studio experiment, a Leslie speaker cabinet was
dismembered, a microphone was affixed to the rap-
Spin isn’t designed to sound like a rotating speaker idly spinning upper rotor, and John Lennon at-
spinning all by itself in a large room. Spin provides tempted to sing into it. Fortunately the deafening
the sound of a miked rotating speaker, the sound wind noise captured by the microphone put a stop
the producer and engineer hear in the control room. to the proceedings before anyone was hurt. Feel
But don’t let that stop you from getting the sound free just to run the vocal through the rotating
you want! speaker—that’s what they wound up doing.
To achieve the sound of a distant microphone cap-
Reve rse Spin
turing the rotating speaker, run Spin using the wide
stereo preset. Now apply a room reverb, remove Those reverse-vocal and reverse-guitar tricks are
any pre-delay, and adjust the wet/dry reverb bal- even more fun when you run ‘em through Spin. Try
ance until you get the distant sound you’re looking reversing the vocal and putting it through Spin, as
for. well as putting the vocal through Spin then revers-
ing the processed vocal.
Spin int o Mooge rfooge r Low pa ss Filt er
Ge ne rat or Le a ka ge
Try using the amplitude modulation effects of Spin
as an LFO driving the Moogerfooger Lowpass Fil- Of all the sounds to pass through a Leslie, no sound
ter! has been amplified more often than the sound of B3
Organ generator leakage. Even with no notes
Dist ort ion a nd Spin keyed, a small amount of B3 sound leaks out.
To simulate overdriving the tube amp powering the
rotating speaker, apply distortion before Spin,
since, in the real-world signal path, the amp distorts
the signal before the speakers throw the sound
around. Among tons of other great distortion
sounds, the SansAmp PSA-1 plug-in provides dis-
tortion presets for both the model 122 and model
147 rotating speakers.

Orga n Signa l Pat h

Likewise, when going for classic organ sounds,

route through the Voce Chorus/Vibrato before
Spin, as that’s the signal path in the B-3 organ.

Chapter 40: Voce Plug-Ins 217

Pa rt V I I I : H a rm onic Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 4 1 : Aphex Aura l Exc it e r Type I I I

Aural Exciter Type III is an AAX plug-in that retains the look and sound of Aphex Systems’ renowned hard-
ware units. Aural Exciter makes it possible to recreate and restore missing harmonics.

Aphex Aural Exciter, Type III

Aphex Systems, Inc. first introduced Aural Exciter Aural Exciter is an audio process that recreates and
in 1975. Since then, several refinements and im- restores missing harmonics. It actually adds har-
provements have been incorporated into its original monics, restoring the sound’s natural brightness,
design. The Aural Exciter plug-in is modeled after clarity and presence, effectively improving detail
the TYPE III Aural Exciter. Aural Exciter has be- and intelligibility. Use Aural Exciter on specific in-
come a standard in the professional audio industry, struments or in the final mix to bring life back to re-
and has been used on many albums, CDs, movies, cordings.
broadcast productions, commercials, and concerts.
The Aural Exciter plug-in for Pro Tools continues Unlike EQs and other brightness enhancers which
this tradition of success, and is ready for use with only boost the high frequencies that often alter the
the latest cutting edge music productions. overall tonal balance, Aural Exciter extends the
high frequencies. The stereo image is enhanced
Harmonics are musically and dynamically related with Aural Exciter. This results in a greater per-
to the original sound, and reveal the fine differ- ceived loudness without an introduction of noise
ences between voices and various instruments. Re- into the audio path, commonly caused by increased
produced sound is audibly different from the origi- gain.
nal live sound because of the loss in harmonic
detail, often sounding dull and lifeless.

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 219

Aural Exciter is a single-ended process which can The Aural Exciter is patented in the United States,
be inserted at any point within the audio chain. The Japan and most of Europe. Others may claim they
input signal is split into two paths. One path goes to are doing the same thing, but they can only resort to
the output unmodified, while the other path, known some form of EQ (amplitude correction or expan-
as a side-chain, goes through the Aural Exciter, sion), phase scrambling and/or filtering. They can
which includes a tunable high-pass filter and a har- only increase peak levels causing clipping, feed-
monics generator. Aural Exciter applies frequency- back, tape distortion and listener fatigue.
dependent phase shift and amplitude-dependent
harmonics. The output of the Aural Exciter's har- Aural Exciter is available in DSP, Native, and Au-
monic generator is mixed back with the unmodified dioSuite formats.
signal, lower in level. Aural Exciter supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
When used at nominal settings, Aural Exciter does 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
not add significant average level to the original sig- rates.
nal. Even though the added information is low Aural Exciter operates as a mono, multi-mono, or
level, the perception is a dramatic increase in mid stereo plug-in.
and high frequencies.

BLOCK DIAGRAM OF AURAL EXCITER TYPE III

Bypass (closed)
Solo

INPUT
Attenuation Spectral Phrase Summing
Refracter OUTPUT

Bypass (open)
Level (–∞, 0 dB) SPR (On/Off)
Aural Exciter
MAIN AUDIO PATH

Drive (+6 dB / +18 dB)

Dynamic Attenuation
Compressor
Programmed State Variable
Gain Buffer Filter

Harmonics Waveform Mix

Generator Generator (+6 dB, –∞ / +18 dB, –∞)
Tune Peaking Null FIll

AURAL EXCITER SIDE-CHAIN Harmonics Density Timbre

Block Diagram of Aphex Aural Exciter, Type III

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 220

 Tune Cont rol
M e t e rs
The Tune control sets the bandwidth (corner fre-
Drive M e t e r quency) of the second order high-pass filter in the
side-chain prior to the harmonics generator. The
The Drive meter monitors the peak level to the har- range of the control extends from 700 Hz to 7 kHz.
monic generator. It works in conjunction with the The following figure shows the range of the Tune
Drive switch. control from 700 Hz to 7 kHz with Null Fill set
near Min and Peaking set at the mid-point position.
For optimal performance keep the peak hold meter
of the Drive meter inside the yellow area. The Notice the interaction that the Peaking and Null Fill
harder you drive the Exciter, the more Exciter en- controls have on Tune, as well as on each other.
hancement you generate. If you cannot get the
TYPE III TUNING RANGE
Drive meter to register in the yellow area, try set- 7.0

ting the Drive switch to High (Drive switch en- 5.0

abled). TUNE at 700 Hz

3.0

RESPONSE (dB)
TUNE at 3 kHz
Out M e t e r 1.0 (midpoint)

TUNE at 7 kHz

The Out meter lets you monitor the output level af- -1.0
NULL FILL at Minimum
PEAKING at midpoint
ter Aural Exciter processing. 20.0 100.0 1000.0 10000.0
for all curves

FREQUENCY (Hz)

Tune control
Rot a r y Cont rols
Pe a k ing Cont rol
Leve l Cont rol The Peaking control provides a damping effect on
the leading frequency edge of the high-pass filter
The Level control sets the attenuation of the input
controlled by Tune. As you vary this control from
signal. For normal operation set the Level control
Min to Max, the Tune frequency becomes more ac-
on Max (no attenuation).
centuated, as shown in the following figure. How-
Aural Exciter has an internal gain structure that ever, at the same time, a dip is created just before
boosts +6 dB of the output from the high-pass filter the accentuated Tune frequency. This dip or null
into the side-chain. The Drive switch further boosts becomes larger as Peaking is increased.
the signal level fed into the harmonics generator. TYPE III PEAKING RESPONSE
10.0
When Drive is set to Normal, you obtain a boost of
+6 dB; in the High position you can get an addi- 6.0
PEAKING at MAX

tional 6 dB of gain, for a total maximum boost of PEAKING

2.0
+18 dB. You can also generate a boost in the high- RESPONSE (dB)
at MIDPOINT

pass filter section by setting Peaking to Max. -2.0 PEAKING at MIN

If you run into headroom problems when adjusting -6.0

NULL FILL at MIN
TUNE at midpoint
the Mix control, adjust the Level control to gener- for all curves
20.0 100.0 1000.0 10000.0
ate the necessary headroom. FREQUENCY (Hz)
Peaking control

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 221

The amount of Peaking is displayed as a percent-
TYPE III NULL FILLRANGE
age. 7.0

NULL FILL at MAX

5.0

N ull Fill Cont rol 3.0

NULL FILL at
RESPONSE (dB) Midpoint

The Null Fill control adjusts the curve of the high- 1.0

pass filter to “fill in” the null caused by the sum- NULL FILL at MIN

-1.0
ming of the side-chain return signal and the input PEAKING at midpoint
for all curves
signal. 20.0 100.0 1000.0 10000.0

FREQUENCY (Hz)

The amount of Null Fill is displayed as a percent- Null Fill control

age.
H a rm onic s Cont rol
This control compensates for “phase pulling,”
which occurs as a side effect of the time delay pres- The Harmonics control adjusts the amount of har-
ent in the side-chain signal, an important part of the monics being generated, which is displayed as a
Aural Exciter operating theory. As the time delay percentage underneath the controls.
“stretches” transient waveforms to create a percep-
The harmonic generator produces harmonic com-
tion of louder sound, a “dip” or “null” also occurs
ponents according to a complex set of laws, includ-
in the output equalization curve at the Tune fre-
ing considerations for transient and steady-state
quency. As a result, the “null” frequencies are de-
qualities, as well as relative amplitude of the origi-
emphasized, thus giving even more emphasis to the
nal audio signal.
higher frequencies. Although this often is a desir-
able effect, the Null Fill control was created to al- As you move the control up, harmonic content in-
low the user to fill-in the null by a selectable creases proportionally as it works in conjunction
amount for any applications requiring less empha- with the Timbre control. Moreover, the amount of
sis. harmonics generated is dependent on the input
level. The gain of the harmonics automatically in-
The following figure shows three different Null Fill
creases as the input level increases.
settings with Tune set at the mid-point position.
With the Null Fill control set at Min, there is a no- The generated harmonics are not products of har-
ticeable drop in the frequency response, just before monic distortion, since they are intelligently pro-
the start of the high-pass shelf boost. At this setting, duced and formed into a power envelope that en-
program material under enhancement would lose hances rather than distorts the final audio signal.
some presence. When the Null Fill control is set at
Max, the frequency dip is filled, but the frequencies
associated with the shelf top become accentuated.
Also notice the shift in the Tune frequency (0 dB
axis) for the range of Null Fill settings.

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 222

T im bre Cont rol
Sw it che s
The Timbre control sets the order or type of har-
monic signal being generated by way of the Har- Drive Sw it ch
monics control. The control can be varied from all
Even harmonics in the Min position, to all Odd har- The Drive switch offers two settings, Normal
monics at the Max position. Odd order harmonics (+6 dB) and High (+18 dB). This sets the input sen-
will sound softer to your ear, while even harmonics sitivity to the harmonics generator. In general, this
will sound harsher. switch will be left in the Normal position. How-
ever, weak signals may require more gain, in which
Varying the Timbre control between the two ex- case you should place this switch in the High posi-
tremes will provide you with a mix of both Even tion.
and Odd harmonics in proportion to the control po-
sition. To emphasize the effect of the Timbre con- Use the Drive meter to determine if the signal gain
trol, set the Density switch to High. needs to be increased. When the meter level stays
in the green area (never rising into the yellow area),
The Timbre control display ranges from +100% then the input signal is too low. Raise the input sen-
(all Odd) to –100% (all Even). sitivity by toggling the Drive switch to High.

The switch illuminates when Drive is set to High.

M ix Cont rol
The Mix control determines the amount of Aural De nsit y Sw it ch
Exciter enhancement mixed into the original sig-
nal. The control ranges from Min (no enhance- The Density switch determines the amount of har-
ment), up to Max, representing approximately a monics generated by choosing one of two different
6 dB boost when the Drive switch is set to Normal, harmonics generator algorithms. When set on
and approximately an 18 dB boost when it is set to High, the output from the harmonic generator ex-
High. pands low level signals and compresses the highest
peaks. This setting provides a higher density of har-
The amount of enhancement mixed into the origi- monics with better control of peak levels.
nal signal is displayed as a percentage.
Since the amount of harmonics is dependent on the
input level, start with the switch set to Normal.
Switch to High if you still want a greater density of
harmonics after the input level is set.

The switch illuminates when Density is set to High.

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 223

Ax Sw it ch To audition the effect of SPR on the audio signal,
turn the Ax switch Off and turn SPR On. Then al-
The Ax switch gives you the choice of turning the
ternately turn the Bypass switch On and Off to hear
Aural Excitement process On or Off. The Ax
the SPR effect on incoming audio.
switch illuminates when Ax is engaged, confirming
that the effect is On. The SPR function is shown in the following figure,
which shows the frequency dependent time delay
Unlike the Bypass switch, the audio signal from the
that is produced. Note that this is not the same as a
input does travel through the processing algorithm
group delay. Group delay is a constant time delay at
on the way to the output whenever Ax is Off. This
all frequencies.
means that the SPR effect can still be active, by
switching Ax Off and SPR On. SPECTRAL PHASE REFRACTOR
PSYCHOACOUSTIC PHASE
400 12

350

10

Solo Sw it ch 300

TIME DELAY (Milliseconds)

LEADING PSYCHOACOUSTIC PHASE RESPONSE
250

PHASE (Degrees)
8

When engaged, the Solo switch gives you a choice 200

6
150

of auditioning the Aural Excitement signal without 100

ACTUAL TIME DELAY
4

the main audio, The switch illuminates when Solo 50

2
0

is active. -50 0
10 100 1000 10000
AUDIO FREQUENCY (Hz)
As an application for the Solo switch, select Solo to
SPR switch
return the pure effect back to the mixing console for
precise memory control of the Aural Excitement
Bypa ss Sw it ch
signal only.
The Bypass switch allows the main audio signal to
bypass the Aural Exciter plug-in completely.
SPR Sw it ch
The SPR switch controls the Spectral Phase Re- The indicator switch illuminates when Bypass is
fractor effect. This effect is independent of all other engaged.
controls or switches, except Bypass. The switch il-
The Bypass switch on the plug-in provides the
luminates when SPR is engaged, confirming that
same function as the Bypass button in the
SPR is On. SPR processes the main audio signal in
Pro Tools Plug-In window, on a per-channel basis.
such a way that bass frequencies (up to 150 Hz)
lead phase in relation to the rest of the spectrum.
Link Sw it ch
Through the many steps of recording, duplicating,
The Link switch is for stereo operation only. It
distributing, and reproducing sound, the phase of
links the left and right controls so they work as one.
the low frequency audio spectrum becomes de-
Grab the control on one page with the cursor and
layed compared to mid and high frequencies. SPR
move it to the required position. The control on the
corrects the bass delay anomaly to restore clarity
other page automatically updates. In this way both
and openness and significantly increases the appar-
controls can be set to the exact same position. Ste-
ent bass energy level without adding any amplitude
reo controls may be linked temporarily by holding
equalization or bass boost.
down the Shift key while adjusting the control.

The switch illuminates when Link is activated.

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 224

LR (Le ft /Right ) Sw it che s When using digital audio as a sound source, such as
a CD Player with S/PDIF outputs, there is a very
The LR switch is for stereo operation only. It al-
high peak-to-peak level because the material on the
lows you to view or change parameters on one
CD is optimized for the best signal-to-noise perfor-
channel at a time.
mance. In this situation the Level fader can be used
The switch for the currently displayed channel illu- to adjust the signal level to gain additional head-
minates. room.

To edit both channels simultaneously, click the In an analog based system you will have the same
Link switch. headroom problem when using a very high peak-
to-peak level signal.

Using the Level fader to adjust for more headroom

U sing Aura l Exc it e r I I I is also useful when restoring older recordings.
In the recording studio, post production suite, or For optimal performance keep the peak hold meter
similar environment, post-processing of previously of the Drive meter inside the yellow area. The
recorded audio tracks with Aural Exciter can re- harder you drive the Exciter, the more Exciter en-
store lost vibrancy and realism, even to the extent hancement you generate. If you cannot get the
of saving dialogue or sound effects which were Drive meter to register in the yellow area, try set-
thought to be unusable. Instruments and vocals can ting the Drive switch to High.
be made to stand out in the mix without substan-
tially increasing the mix levels or using equaliza-
tion. Opt im izing Aura l Exc it e r Effe c t s
When using Aural Exciter, the output signal level
The Pro Tools mixing environment is very flexible,
has to be equal to the input signal level plus the en-
offering several ways to route and use Aural Ex-
hanced Exciter effect. The dynamic characteristics
citer in a session. This section provides some sug-
of the harmonic generator used in the Aural Exciter
gestions for efficient use of Aural Exciter in your
plug-in are based on a complex algorithm that in-
Pro Tools sessions. The exact steps you take to use
cludes the signal peak level, the averaged steady
Aural Exciter’s capabilities will differ depending
state level, and the dynamic characteristics.
on the nature of your session and your specific
Pro Tools mixer configuration. Unlike an EQ, which adds a constant boost in the
high end, Aural Exciter enhancement is added into
Se t t ing t he Ga in St ruc t ure the input signal is such a way that the average sig-
nal level will be virtually unchanged.
If the input material has a very high peak-to-peak
level and no additional headroom for Exciter ef- The Level, Tune, Peaking, Null Fill, Harmonics,
fects, use the Level fader to adjust the signal level Timbre and Mix faders provide separate left and
to avoid over-coloring the signal. right faders when in stereo. For stereo, a separate
set of switches for independent control of the left
and right channels is provided for Ax, Solo, SPR,
Bypass, Drive and Density.

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 225

The Tune fader adjusts the corner frequency of the U sing t he Tune Fa de r
high pass filter and the Mix fader varies the amount
After a while you’ll get a sense of where you like
of Aural Exciter enhancement that is mixed with
your Tune setting when using Aural Exciter on in-
the unmodified signal.
dividual tracks. It’s best not to process the same
Experiment with the Aural Exciter controls to hear range of frequencies with the Tune fader during the
how each one enhances the original audio signal. final mix. If you already processed individual
tracks with Aural Exciter, try starting the final mix
To experiment with Aural Exciter: with the Tune fader in the maximum position
1 Set the Level fader on Max. which is approximately 7 kHz. You should get a
spacious, three-dimensional mix with an open
2 Set the Drive switch to reflect the current nomi- “airy” quality.
nal level.
3 Make sure the Bypass switch is deactivated (By- U sing t he SPR Sw it ch
pass light off).
The SPR function can produce a useful effect with
4 Make sure the Ax switch is activated (Ax light solo voices (human and instrumental) or mixed
on). programs (such as drama and music). There is no
specific time when SPR should or shouldn’t be
5 Set Density to Normal. (Density light off). As
used. Experiment with it on various types of mate-
you make the following adjustments, alternate
rial until you get used to the effect. Listen carefully
the Density switch between Normal and High to
as you operate the SPR switch. The effect may be
hear the change in the Aural Exciter effect.
noticed only at certain times (such as specific mod-
6 Put the Aural Exciter Mix fader on Max, making ulations of a voice or during a particular instrumen-
it easier to hear the effect as it changes. tal playing style or passage). Don't expect to hear
the sound change radically. The SPR is usually
7 Vary the Tune fader and listen for the frequency
subtle, adding a certain beauty and good feeling to
range that is being enhanced. The Tune fader
the sound. In time you will find that the SPR does
can be used to enhance a particular instrument
indeed produce demonstrable results.
so it stands out in the mix.
8 Adjust the Harmonics fader and listen for the For instance, the SPR effect can:
change in harmonics being added to the original • Drop pitch of ultra low bass
audio signal.
• Increase apparent bass power
9 When finished experimenting, set the Mix con- • Unmask instruments or sonic details hidden in
trol to taste. Keep in mind that a little Aural Ex- the mix
citer goes a long way.
• Improve definition of high frequency sounds
(such as on cymbals and bells)
• Improve speech articulation and presence
• Increase depth and clarity of male voices

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 226

Successful use of the SPR depends on the character
of the original sound. It is hard to predict in ad-
vance what will be the effect of the SPR. Typically,
you may find it useful about 50% of the time. At
other times, there will be little or no discernible ef-
fect. Seldom does the effect damage good audio, so
it could be left on as a matter of course.

A few examples of audio material likely to be

helped by the SPR are:
• Highly overdubbed tape tracks
• Live acoustic recordings
• Electronic keyboards
• Productions composed from tape cartridge and
cassette sources
• Material recorded with transformer coupled mic
preamps
• Vocals recorded with dynamic microphones
• Reverberant live sound or recordings
• Highly equalized material
• Delayed, flanged, or digitally processed material
• Material from broadcast audio reception (such as
store casting and muzak)

Chapter 41: Aphex Aural Exciter Type III 227

Cha pt e r 4 2 : Aphex Big Bot t om Pro

Aphex Big Bottom Pro is an AAX plug-in that retains the look and sound of Aphex Systems’ renowned
hardware units. Aphex Systems, Inc. first introduced Big Bottom Pro in 1992 as part of the Model 104.
Since then, Big Bottom Pro has become a standard in the professional audio industry, and has been used on
numerous albums, CDs, movies, broadcast productions, commercials, and concerts. The Big Bottom Pro
plug-in for Pro Tools continues this tradition of success, and is ready for use with the latest cutting edge
music productions.

Aphex Big Bottom Pro

Big Bottom Pro provides more energy to the bass Big Bottom is available in DSP, Native, and Audio-
(increasing its sustain and density). It dynamically Suite formats.
contours the bass response of a complex range of
shapes in the 40 to 400 Hz range, isolating and en- Big Bottom supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
hancing the lowest frequencies to provide a deeper, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
more resonant bass. Big Bottom increases the per- Big Bottom Pro operates as a mono, multi-mono, or
ception of low frequencies without significantly in- stereo plug-in.
creasing the maximum peak output.

Big Bottom Pro is a single-ended process which

can be inserted at any point within the audio chain.
The input signal is split into two parts. One part
goes to the output unmodified, while the other part,
known as a side-chain, goes through Big Bottom
Pro. The side-chain consists of a tunable low pass
filter followed by a dynamic processor.

Chapter 42: Aphex Big Bottom Pro 228

 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF BIG BOTTOM PRO
System
Bypass (closed)
Solo

INPUT
Attenuation Summing
OUTPUT

System Bypass open)

Level (–∞, 0 dB) In/Out
MAIN AUDIO PATH

Drive (+12 dB, –∞)

Programmed Low Pass Dynamic Attenuation

Gain Buffer Filter Compressor

Tune AUTO TRACE Mix Phase

(40 to 400 Hz) (On/Off) (+12 dB, –∞) (On/Off)
BIG BOTTOM SIDE-CHAIN

Block Diagram of Aphex Big Bottom Pro

Out M e t e r
M e t e rs
The Output peak meter indicates the actual peak
Drive M e t e r level after mixing the Big Bottom Pro side-chain
with the original input signal.
The input Drive peak meter indicates the actual
peak level to the Big Bottom Pro side-chain. Audition the loudest or peak sections of
your audio material to avoid Big Bottom
Pro output clipping: Use the Out Meter to
Com pre ssion M e t e r
check for clipping.
The Compression (Comp) meter indicates the ac-
tual amount of compression taking place in the Big
Bottom Pro side-chain. If the Comp meter is not
showing any activity the input level is too low. Ad-
just the Level and Drive controls accordingly.

Chapter 42: Aphex Big Bottom Pro 229

 By adjusting both the Drive and Mix controls, you
Rot a r y Cont rols can experiment with the different “colors” or tim-
bral modifications Big Bottom Pro is able to gener-
Leve l Cont rol ate.
The Level control sets the attenuation of the input
signal. For normal operation set the Level control Tune Cont rol
on Max (0 dB).
The Tune control sets the bandwidth (corner fre-
In the event you are not generating enough bass en- quency) of the low pass filter in the side-chain prior
hancement (even when the Mix control is also set to the dynamics processor. The range of the Tune
on Max), lower the Level control. This will give the control is from 40–400 Hz.
plug-in more headroom by generating less com-
Aside from the Mix control, this is the most import-
pression in the dynamic processor, resulting in a
ant control on the Big Bottom Pro plug-in.
more powerful side-chain signal. If you need more
headroom when adjusting the Mix control, lower The Tune control is used to isolate the range of fre-
the input Level and re-tune the Mix control. quencies being enhanced by Big Bottom Pro.

Drive Cont rol M ix Cont rol

The Drive control sets the sensitivity to the bass The Mix control adjusts the amount of the Big Bot-
generating side-chain. The corresponding Drive tom Pro enhancement signal being added to the
meter shows the actual peak level of the side-chain original signal. The lower the setting the subtler the
input. There is a boost in the side-chain signal of effect. The higher the setting, the more dramatic the
+12 dB, when the Drive control is set to Max. effect. It’s important to note that higher settings
may increase the peak output.
The Drive control needs to be set at a point where
the dynamic processor receives the optimum level
required for Big Bottom Pro to work effectively.
To find the optimum level, adjust the Drive control Sw it che s
until the Comp meter displays in the yellow area.
Make sure the Drive meter does not indicate clip- I n/Out Sw it ch
ping. The In/Out switch gives you the choice of turning
If the Comp meter is not showing any activity, the the Big Bottom Pro process On or Off. When the
input level is too low. Adjust the Level control ac- switch is set to the On position, Big Bottom Pro en-
cordingly. When the AutoTrace switch is set to the hancement is sent to the outputs.
On position, the setting of the Drive control is less The switch illuminates when the Big Bottom Pro
sensitive, and the Big Bottom Pro side-chain af- effect is activated.
fects a wider input range.
Unlike system bypass, the audio from the input
In general, higher Drive settings to the side-chain travels through the DSP algorithm on the way to the
provide better control over peaks, while lower output whenever the In/Out switch is set to Off.
Drive settings tend to produce a more open sound.

Chapter 42: Aphex Big Bottom Pro 230

Switching back and forth from On to Off provides Aut oTra c e Sw it ch
a quick A/B comparison, allowing you to hear the
Activating the AutoTrace switch enables an auto-
enhancements from the Big Bottom Pro effect in
matic threshold function for the compressor within
your program content.
the Big Bottom Pro side-chain. The AutoTrace
function enables the dynamic processor to self-op-
Solo Sw it ch timize during normal operation. The switch illumi-
When engaged, the Solo switch allows you to audi- nates when the AutoTrace switch is activated.
tion the Big Bottom Pro side-chain effect without
This control is particularly useful when you want a
the main audio signal. The switch illuminates when
subtle Big Bottom Pro effect, or when the peak
the Solo switch is activated.
level of the input material varies over time. The
AutoTrace feature is also ideal for changing the
Pha se Sw it ch sound characteristics of the Big Bottom Pro effect.
Drive control adjustments will be reduced when the
The Phase switch allows you to alter the phase of
AutoTrace switch is activated.
the side-chain signal, which contains the Big Bot-
tom Pro effect, before it is mixed with the original
input signal. This function is used as a optional way Link Sw it ch
to change the “quality” of the Big Bottom Pro ef-
The Link switch is for stereo operation only. It
fect.
links the left and right controls so they work as one.
The switch illuminates when the Phase switch is Grab a control on one page with the cursor and
activated. move it to the desired position. The control on the
other page automatically updates. In this way both
Altering the side-chain signal’s phase dramatically controls can be set to the exact same position. Ste-
effects the sound of the Big Bottom Pro enhance- reo controls may be linked temporarily by holding
ment. With the Phase switch turned Off, you will down the Shift key while adjusting the control.
recognize the Big Bottom Pro effect found in the
Aphex Model 104. The switch illuminates when Link is activated.

As an exclusive feature for this DSP plug-in, we

LR (Le ft /Right ) Sw it che s
have added the Phase switch. When activated, the
Phase switch alters the Big Bottom Pro effect by The LR switch is for stereo operation only. It al-
setting the side-chain in-phase with the main sig- lows you to view or change parameters on one
nal. This increases the output peak level. Use the channel at a time.
Mix or Level controls to restore the output peak
The switch for the currently displayed channel illu-
level if the Drive meter indicates clipping.
minates. Clicking the unlit switch changes the dis-
play to the other channel.

To edit both channels simultaneously, click on the

Link switch.

Chapter 42: Aphex Big Bottom Pro 231

 Starting with the factory settings, experiment with
U sing Big Bot t om Pro the controls on Big Bottom Pro to hear how this
By putting Big Bottom Pro to use in a Pro Tools plug-in effects the low-end frequencies of your
session you will find many creative uses for its source material, as follows:
powerful processing capabilities. • If the Drive meter is clipping (in the yellow area),
adjust the Drive control for optimal operation.
The remaining sections provide instructions on
how to get the most out of Big Bottom Pro. • Activate the Solo switch to listen to only the Big
Bottom Pro side-chain effect.

Se t t ing t he Ga in St ruc t ure • Vary the Tune control to hear the low-pass filter
isolate the low-end bandwidths of the original in-
If the amount of Big Bottom Pro effect is limited by put signal.
a lack of headroom in the input material, use the
• De-activate the Solo switch and continue to vary
Level control to adjust the signal level to avoid
the Tune control until you find the optimal set-
clipping. When using Big Bottom Pro with the
ting.
Phase switch in the Off position, it is possible to
achieve a substantial increase in bass energy with- • Adjust the Mix control to set the amount of Big
out significantly increasing the peak level output. Bottom Pro effect.
• Use the In/Out switch for an A/B comparison
For optimal performance keep the peak hold meter
with the output signal and the original input sig-
of the Drive meter inside the yellow area.
nal.
• Activate the Phase switch and observe the
Opt im izing Big Bot t om Pro
Effe c t s change in the sound characteristics of the Big
Bottom Pro effect. For most applications, leave
When using Big Bottom Pro, the output signal level the Phase switch in the Off position.
is equal to the input signal levels plus the bass en-
• Activate the AutoTrace switch and observe the
hanced Big Bottom Pro effect. The dynamic char-
change in the sound characteristics. Also notice
acteristics of Big Bottom Pro are based on a com-
that the compression level in the dynamic pro-
plex algorithm that includes the signal peak level,
cessor, shown by the Comp meter, is affected as
the average steady staid level as well as the dy-
well.
namic characteristics. Unlike a bass EQ, which
adds a constant boost in the low end, Big Bottom • Readjust the Mix control as desired, to experi-
Pro enhancement is added into the input signal dy- ence the benefits of the Big Bottom Pro plug-in.
namically. Remember that a little Big Bottom Pro effect
goes a long way.

Chapter 42: Aphex Big Bottom Pro 232

Cha pt e r 4 3 : Eleve n

Eleven is a guitar amplifier plug-in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite formats. Eleven gives
you stunning guitar amplifier, cabinet, and microphone models of the “best of the best” vintage and con-
temporary gear.

Eleven Free is a free version of Eleven that comes with every Pro Tools system, with a reduced feature set.
Eleven Free comes in Native and AudioSuite formats only.

Eleven Plug-in

Chapter 43: Eleven 233

Eleve n Fre e Plug-I n Fe at ure s Eleve n Plug-I n Fe at ure s
• Two custom amp models from Avid • Classic amp models that faithfully recreate the
• Two speaker cabinet models sound and dynamic response of the original amps

• Amps and cabinets can be mixed and matched • Highly accurate speaker cabinet models with
variable speaker breakup (cone distortion)
• Noise Gate to control any unwanted noise
• Selectable mics, with on- and off-axis options
• Settings files (presets) to store and recall factory
and custom tones • Amps, cabs, and mics can be mixed and matched
into nearly limitless combinations
• Support of any compatible work surface or MIDI
controller. MIDI Learn provides effortless map- • Amps and cabs can be bypassed separately
ping to any continuous controller (CC)–capable • All controls can be automated
MIDI device • Noise Gate to control any unwanted noise
• Support for sample rates of 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, • Settings files (presets) to store and recall factory
88.2 kHz, and 96 kHz and custom tones
• Support for mono or multi-mono operation, in up • Support of any compatible Ethernet or MIDI
to 8 channel (7.1) format controller. MIDI Learn provides effortless map-
.

ping to any continuous controller (CC)–capable

Eleven can share preset data with the
MIDI device
Eleven Rack guitar processor/audio interface
from Avid. For more information, see the • Support for sample rates of 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
Eleven Rack User Guide. 88.2 kHz, and 96 kHz
• Support for mono or multi-mono operation, in up
to 8 channel (7.1) format

Chapter 43: Eleven 234

Eleve n I nput Ca librat ion a nd Quick St a r t
This section shows you how to get connected, calibrated, and cranking through Eleven as quickly as
possible.

Be fore You Be gin w it h Eleve n

Eleven was designed to model the essential aspects of each amplifier including characteristics of the input
stage. Providing an appropriate level of signal delivers the most accurate response from the plug-in.
• If you are working with pre-recorded guitar tracks, see “Using Eleven with Pre-Recorded Tracks” on
page 238.
• If you are working with a live guitar signal, follow the steps on the next few pages for optimal input level
calibration. Input calibration takes only a couple of minutes, and helps ensure the best results with Eleven,
its amps, and its factory presets.

Source Hardware Pro Tools Eleven

Input LED

(Should be
yellow or
orange)
Vol at max

Hardware input gain

Pro Tools level

Basic gain stages to calibrate live guitar input for Eleven

Chapter 43: Eleven 235

Conne c t your Guit a r a nd To connect your guitar to a Pro Tools HD system:
Configure Sourc e I nput 1 Make sure you have a pre-amp (such as an Avid
If your setup includes pedals or other gear, it helps PRE®) or similar unit connected to a Pro Tools
to know whether the final output device is provid- HD audio interface (such as HD I/O). (Note that
ing an instrument- or line-level signal. Choose and HD OMNI provides built-in preamps.)
configure your input and source settings accord- 2 Plug your guitar into an available pre-amp input
ingly. (Check the Setup Guide that came with your and set its source, impedance, and other settings
system for more information.) as needed for your setup.

To connect your guitar to a Pro Tools host-based If you use a direct box to convert your gui-
system: tar’s hi-impedance output to a low-imped-
1 Do one of the following, depending on your ance signal, set the Line/Inst 1 input to Line
hardware configuration: source or the equivalent on your particular
• If you are using an interface that has a DI input pre-amp.
(such as an Mbox Pro), plug your guitar into an
For example, if using a Avid PRE you can plug
available DI input.
your guitar directly into the front panel Line/Inst 1
• If you are using your computer’s built-in inputs, input, then set its source to Inst.
plug your guitar into an available input.

If you use a direct box to convert your gui-

tar’s hi-impedance output to a low-imped-
ance signal, connect the direct box to a mic or
line input instead of the DI input.
PRE (or other pre-amp)
2 Make sure to use the correct input on your inter-
face. For example, on Mbox Pro, plug your gui-
HD audio interface
tar into front-panel DI Inputs 1 or 2.
Guitar into Avid PRE into a 192 I/O

Mbox Pro DI Inputs 1 and 2

Mbox Pro back-panel 1/4” inputs are

line-level only and should not be used
with a guitar.

Chapter 43: Eleven 236

Se t H a rdw a re a nd Leve ls 3 Adjust your pre-amp input gain until you see a
strong signal on your audio interface Input me-
After plugging in, do the following to set your pri-
ters (but not overloading the input).
mary gain and configure your Pro Tools hardware
by watching its input indicators (meters). This sets
the first stage of your gain structure for Eleven. Se t U p a Pro Tools Tra ck
In this step, you’ll create and configure an audio
To prepare your guitar and Pro Tools host-based
track to use for the final stage of input calibration.
hardware for input calibration:

1 In Pro Tools, choose Setup > Playback Engine To set up and check Track level (all systems):
and set your Hardware Buffer to a low enough
1 Choose Tracks > New, and create one mono
setting to reduce monitor latency.
Audio track.
2 On your guitar, select the highest output pickup
2 In the Mix window, click the track Input selector
or position and set the volume and tone controls
and choose your guitar input.
to 10 (maximum).
3 Click the track Insert selector and select Eleven.
3 Strum full chords (your loudest expected play-
ing) while watching the Input indicators on your
Eleven
audio hardware.
4 Adjust the Input Gain on your audio interface
high enough to indicate a strong signal on the
hardware Input LED (but not overloading the
input). Guitar input

Track meter

Input 1 Gain on Mbox Pro

To prepare your guitar and HD hardware for input

calibration:
One audio track for input calibration on Pro Tools
1 On your guitar, select the highest output pickup
or position and set all volume and tone controls 4 Record enable the audio track, or enable its
to the maximum. TrackInput monitoring button (Pro Tools HD
software only).
2 Strum full chords (your loudest expected play-
ing) while watching the Input indicators on your
audio hardware.

Chapter 43: Eleven 237

Se t U p Eleve n 3 Leaving the Input control on the plug-in at its
default setting of 0 (12:00 position), set the sig-
Use Eleven’s Input LED to make final gain adjust-
nal level going to the plug-in by adjusting the in-
ments and complete the input calibration process.
put gain control on your hardware until Eleven’s
Input LED shows yellow or orange.
To calibrate your input signal to the Eleven plug-in:
1 Open the Eleven plug-in window by clicking its 4 After calibrating, strum as you normally would
insert slot. Leave it at its default settings. and/or back down your guitar volume from the
maximum setting used for input calibration.
Don’t worry about the Input LED showing yel-
low or orange when playing normally. As long
as the plug-in isn’t indicating clipping, your gain
staging should be established.
5 Adjust the Output knob in Eleven’s Master sec-
tion to raise or lower the plug-in output signal.

Proper input calibration of live guitar does not

require any adjustment of Eleven’s Input con-
trol. To learn how this control was
designed to work with the amp models, see
“Input” on page 242.

U sing Eleve n w it h Pre -Re c orde d

Tra ck s
If the pre-recorded tracks were not calibrated with
Eleven’s Input LED (top) and Clip LED (bottom)
the Eleven plug-in using the method previously de-
2 Strum as hard as you can a few more times and scribed, you can use the Input control in Eleven to
watch Eleven’s Input LED to see where your adjust the signal level feeding the input stage of the
level registers. The Input LED lights green, yel- amp model.
low, orange, or red to indicate the following
Use your ears as a guide and adjust to taste. Since
level ranges:
the Input LED measures the signal level entering
Green (Off to –8) Indicates signal is present, but the plug-in and precedes the input control, you will
too low. not see any changes to the Input LED as you make
adjustments.
Yellow (–8 to –4) Indicates the best level for low
output sources, such as single coil pickups. See “Processing Pre-Recorded Tracks
Through Eleven” on page 251 for more
Orange (–4 to 0) Indicates the best level for higher
information.
output sources, such as humbucker pickups.

Red (0 and above) Indicates that you have clipped

the plug-in input. Click the Input LED to clear the
clip indicator.

Chapter 43: Eleven 238

Ge t t ing St a r t e d Pla ying M usic
w it h Eleve n U sing Eleve n
The following sections introduce you to the main
To get started playing music with Eleven:
sections and controls in Eleven and show you how
1 Make sure you already calibrated your input sig- to use them. You’ll also find suggested track setups
nal as explained in the previous sections of this and signal routing tips to help you get the most out
chapter. of Eleven.
2 Click the plug-in Librarian menu and choose a
factory preset, then play guitar. Take your time I nse r t ing Eleve n on Tra ck s
to explore — the Presets let you hear all of
Eleven can be inserted on Pro Tools audio, Auxil-
Eleven’s different amps and combos.
iary Input, Master Fader, or Instrument tracks.

To insert Eleven on a track:

 Click an Insert selector on the track and choose

Eleven or Eleven LE.

Cha nnel Format s

Librarian menu (left) and the Settings menu (right) Eleven is available as a mono or multi-mono plug-
in only. For use in stereo or greater formats choose
3 Pick any amp and cabinet from the available the multi-mono version.
types (see “Pairing Amps and Cabinets” on
page 246.) Sa mple Rat e s

4 Refer to “Using Eleven” on page 239 for details Eleven supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz and
on Eleven’s main controls, and for suggested 96 kHz sample rates.
track setups for recording and mixing.
Cat e gor y a nd Ma nufa c t ure r
Use the Settings menu to save, copy, paste,
and manage plug-in settings files. To save a When Pro Tools plug-ins are organized by
setting, see “Eleven Settings (Presets)” on Category or Manufacturer, Eleven is listed as
page 241. follows:

Category Harmonic

Manufacturer Avid

Chapter 43: Eleven 239

Adjust ing Eleve n Cont rols U sing a Cont rolle r w it h Eleve n
This section tells you how to adjust controls using Eleven can be controlled directly from any compat-
your mouse, a Pro Tools controller, or with a MIDI ible Pro Tools controller. Eleven appears along
device. with other plug-ins and can be assigned, edited, by-
passed and automated using the Insert section as
N avigat ing t he Am p, Ca b, and Mic Type available on the particular controller being used.
Se le c t ors
About U nuse d Cont rols a nd Cont rollers
You can click on the name of the current Amp
Type, Cab Type, or Mic Type to display their pop- Some amps that have relatively few controls (such
up menus and select an item. as the Tweed Lux) will display controls on a con-
troller that are not actually available with that par-
You can also click the Previous/Next arrows to step
ticular amp model. Even though you can adjust
through Amp, Cabinet, and Mic choices one at a
these unused encoders or switches, only those con-
time.
trols seen on-screen for any amp can be adjusted
from a controller. Changing an unused control does
nothing to the current amp, but does alter the value
of that unused control. If you switch to a different
amp that does include that (previously unused)
control, the new amp inherits the altered setting
Previous arrow (top) and Next arrow (bottom) (Amp which can lead to sudden jumps in gain or other set-
Type shown)
tings.

You can control the Amp, Cab, and Mic Type

selectors with MIDI. See “Using MIDI and
U sing M I DI a nd M I DI Le a rn w it h
Eleve n
MIDI Learn with Eleven” on page 240.
Eleven supports MIDI Control Change (CC) mes-
Groups a nd Linke d Plug-I n Cont rols sages, meaning that the Master section, amp, cabi-
Eleven’s parameters can follow Pro Tools Groups net and mic parameters can be controlled remotely
(Mix, Edit, or Mix/Edit) for linked control of mul- by any CC-capable MIDI device. This includes
tiple inserts. For more information, see the MIDI controllers, mixers, and instruments, as well
Pro Tools Reference Guide. as the 003® (in MIDI Mode).

MIDI Learn lets you quickly map plug-in controls

Using Aut om at ion
to a MIDI foot pedal, switch, fader, knob, or other
All of Eleven’s parameters can be automated. CC-compatible trigger. You can also manually as-
When a parameter has been enabled for automa- sign controls to specific MIDI CC values.
tion, an LED appears lit near that control.
MIDI control assignments are saved and restored
See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more with the Pro Tools session in which they are de-
information on plug-in automation. fined. Settings files (presets) for Eleven do not
store or recall MIDI Learn assignments.

Chapter 43: Eleven 240

To map a MIDI controller to a parameter: Eleve n Se t t ings (Pre se t s)
1 Make sure your external MIDI device is con- You can pick a preset from the plug-in Librarian
nected to your system, and recognized by your menu.
MIDI Studio Setup (Windows) or Audio MIDI
Setup (Mac). To load a preset:
2 Create a MIDI track.  Click the Librarian menu and select an available
Settings file.
3 Set the input of the MIDI track to accept input
from your external MIDI device.
Librarian menu
4 Set the output of the MIDI track to Eleven. Settings menu

5 Right-click on any control in Eleven, and do one

of the following:
Plug-In controls for Eleven Settings files
• Click Learn, then move a control on your MIDI
controller. Pro Tools maps whichever control You can save, import, copy, paste, and manage set-
you touch to that plug-in parameter. tings using the Settings menu.

• If you know the MIDI CC value of your foot con- To save your settings as an Eleven preset:
troller or other device, select it from the Assign
 Click the Settings menu and choose Save Set-
menu.
tings. Name the preset, choose a location, and
6 Right-click on any control in Eleven. click Save.

You can scroll through and select preconfigured

Eleven Settings files (presets) using the plug-in Li-
brarian menu, and the +/– buttons.

For more information on Settings files and

folders, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Right-clicking for MIDI Learn

On Mac, you can Control-click an Eleven pa-

rameter to show the MIDI Learn menu. 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 43: Eleven 241

M a st e r Se c t ion Out put

The Master section includes plug-in I/O The Output control sets the output gain after pro-
(input/output) and noise gate controls, the cessing, letting you make up gain or prevent clip-
Amp Type selector and the Cab Type selector. ping on the channel where the plug-in is being
used. Output range is –60 dB to +18 dB.
The Master section doesn’t change when you
switch amps. Master section settings are stored and When you want to adjust Eleven’s output
recalled with plug-in presets. level, use the Output knob. For tone/distor-
tion, use the amp Master volume.
Input Amp Type Output
Gate Cab Type Am p Type

Amp Type selects which amplifier model to use

(see “Amp Types” on page 243).
Master section
Ca b Type
I nput LED
This selector lets you select which speaker cabinet
The Input LED shows green, yellow, orange, or red model to use (see “Eleven Cabinet Types” on
to indicate whether you are under- or over-driving page 246).
the plug-in. The Input LED is before the Input sec-
tion of the Master section. To learn more about the Gat e
Input LED within the Eleven signal chain, see
“Eleven Signal Flow Notes” on page 258. Noise Gate Threshold

The Noise Gate Threshold control sets the level at

I nput
which the Noise Gate opens or closes. At minimum
The Input knob provides input trim/boost, for tone Threshold setting, the Noise Gate has no effect. At
and distortion control. The Input range is –18 dB to higher Threshold settings, only louder signals will
+18 dB. open the Gate and pass sound. Threshold range is
from Off (–90 dB) to –20 dB.
The Input knob provides a great way to increase or
decrease gain with amp models that don't have a Noise Gate Release
separate preamp control. It also provides a way to
The Noise Gate Release control sets the length of
trim or boost the level of pre-recorded tracks you
time the Noise Gate remains open and passing au-
want to treat with Eleven
dio. Adjust the Release to find the best setting for
The setting of the Input knob is saved and restored the current task (not too fast to avoid cutting off
with Settings files (presets). notes, and not too slow to avoid unwanted noise).
Release range is from 10 ms to 3000 ms.
To learn more about the Input control, see
“Eleven Signal Flow Notes” on page 258 For suggested gate applications, see “Using
the Noise Gate” on page 243. For details on
where it derives its key (trigger) and applies its
gate, see “Eleven Signal Flow Notes” on
page 258.

Chapter 43: Eleven 242

U sing t he N oise Gat e Am p Type s
You can use the Noise Gate to silence unwanted The Amp Type selector lets you choose an amp.
signal noise or hum, or just for an effect.

To use the Noise Gate to clean up unwanted, low

level noise:

1 Connect and calibrate your guitar as explained

in “Connect your Guitar and Configure Source
Input” on page 236.
Choosing an amp from the Amp Type selector
2 For the next steps, hold your guitar but don’t
play it (and be sure to leave its volume up). You Available Amp Types in Eleven include the fol-
should hear only the noise that we’ll soon get rid lowing:
of. • ’59 Tweed Lux *
3 To make it easier to hear the effect, begin by set- • ’59 Tweed Bass *
ting the Release to its middle (12 o’clock) posi- • ’64 Black Panel Lux Vibrato *
tion.
• ’64 Black Panel Lux Normal *
4 Now raise the Threshold control to its highest
• ’66 AC Hi Boost *
setting, fully clockwise, so that the Gate fully
closes (you shouldn’t hear anything coming • ’67 Black Panel Duo *
through Eleven). • ’69 Plexiglas – 100W *
5 Slowly lower the Threshold control until the • ’82 Lead 800 – 100W *
Gate opens again to find the cutoff (or, thresh- • ’85 M-2 Lead *
old) of the noise.
• ’89 SL-100 Drive *
6 Raise the Threshold control again slightly, in-
• ’89 SL-100 Crunch *
creasing it only enough to once again silence the
noise (hold Command (Mac) or Ctrl (Win) while • ’89 SL-100 Clean *
adjusting to be able to fine-tune the setting in • ’92 Treadplate Modern *
tenths of a dB). Now you’re in the ballpark.
• ’92 Treadplate Vintage *
7 If you lowered the Release setting as suggested • DC Modern Overdrive
in step 3, make sure to return it to its maximum
setting (fully clockwise) before continuing. • DC Vintage Crunch

* These models only appear in the full version of

Eleven.

Eleven is not affiliated with, or sponsored or

endorsed by, the makers of the amplifiers em-
ulated in the product.

Chapter 43: Eleven 243

Eleve n Am p Cont rols
Each Eleven amp provides a set of controls similar to (and in some cases identical to) those on the
actual amp it models. The following sections give a general overview of amp controls.

Bass Mid Treble Speed Depth

Bypass
(Amp) Bright Gain 1 Tone
Presence
Tremolo Master Volume

Amp controls in the default Amp Type

Am p Bypa ss the amp changes, becoming fatter and overdriven.

Gain 1 responds differently with each amp model
The Amp Bypass switch (or lamp) lets you bypass
and is designed to have a musical response that
just the amp model, leaving the cab and mic set-
closely matches that of its original amp, at all set-
tings in effect. The default setting is On. When set
tings. The default setting is 5.0. Gain 1 range is
to Bypass, only the amp is bypassed; Master sec-
from 0 to 10.
tion, cabinet and microphone settings remain ac-
tive. All Eleven controls provide identical ranges
as the original amps, but some numbers have
Bright been adjusted for consistency.
The Bright switch provides extra high frequency
Ga in 2
response to the input signal, and alters the timbre of
the distortion. On some amp models, the effect is Gain 2 is a second Gain knob used with some amp
most apparent at lower volume settings. models that determines the amount of overdrive in
the pre-amp stage. Gain 2 (also known as “Pres-
Ga in 1 ence” on some amps) allows for more harmonic
subtleties in character of the amp tone. The default
Gain 1 determines the overall gain amount and sen-
is 5.0. Gain 2 range is from 0 to 10.
sitivity of the amp. When Gain 1 is low it allows for
cleaner, brighter sounds with enhanced dynamic
response. When set high, the entire personality of

Chapter 43: Eleven 244

Parallel or Series The Gain 2 control on the Tweed Pre se nc e
Lux, AC Hi Boost and Plexiglass is in parallel
(“jumped”) with the Gain 1 control. The The Presence control provides a small amount of
M-2 Lead is in series, meaning the signal goes in boost at frequencies above the treble control. Pres-
and out of Gain 1, then into Gain 2. ence is applied at the end of each amp model pre-
amp stage, acting as a global brightness control that
Tone is independent of other tone controls. The default
setting is 3.0. The Presence range is from 0 to 10.
Tone controls let you shape the highs, mids and
lows of the amp sound. Electric guitar pickups tend Ma st e r
to have a strong low-mid emphasis and little high
frequency response, often producing a mid-range The Master control sets the output volume of the
heavy sound that requires some treble boost. The pre-amp, acting as a gain control for the power am-
response and interaction of the tone controls are plifier. In a standard master-volume guitar amp, as
unique to each amp. the Master volume is increased more power tube
distortion is produced. The default setting is 5.0.
Bass Master range is from 0 to 10.

The Bass control determines the amount of low end Some might assume a Master volume knob
in the amp tone. The response of this control in capable of silencing the amp completely. Not
some models is linked to the setting of the Treble so. Use the Output knob (in the Master sec-
control. The default setting is 5.0. Bass range is tion) to silence the output of the plug-in. Use
from 0 to 10. Master volume for tone and distortion.

Middle Tre m olo

The Middle control determines the mid-range Tremolo is achieved through the use of amplitude
strength in lower gain sounds. With high gain amp modulation, multiplying the amplitude of the pre-
models, the Middle control has a more dramatic ef- amp output by a waveform of lower frequency.
fect and can noticeably shape the sound of the amp Tremolo is not available on all amps.
at both the minimum and extreme settings. The de-
Tremolo Speed The Speed control sets the rate of
fault setting is 5.0. The Middle range is from 0 to
the Tremolo effect. The Tremolo Speed LED
10.
pulses at the rate of Tremolo Speed. The default
Treble setting is 5.0.

In most amp models, the Treble control is the stron- Eleven does not support Tempo Sync.
gest of the three tone controls. Its setting deter-
mines the blend and strength of the Bass and Mid- Tremolo Depth The Depth controls the amount of
dle controls. When Treble is set to higher values, it the Tremolo effect. The default setting for this con-
becomes the dominant tone control, minimizing the trol is 0.0, which is equivalent to off. Some amp
effect of Bass and Middle controls. When Treble is models call the Tremolo Depth control Intensity.
set to lower values, the Bass and Middle have more
effect, making for a darker amp tone. The default
setting is 5.0. The Treble range is from 0 to 10.

Chapter 43: Eleven 245

Eleve n Ca bine t Type s Pa iring Am ps a nd Ca bine t s

The Cab Type selector lets you pick a cabinet to use Eleven lets you combine amps and cabinets in tra-
with the current amp. The selected cabinet and its ditional pairings (such as the combo amps through
controls are displayed directly below the amp con- their default cabinets) and non-traditional match
trols. ups.

Some of the amps modeled in Eleven are “combo”

amps. Combo amps have both their amp and
speaker housed in the same physical box, meaning
there is one and only one cabinet associated with
the signature sound of a combo amp. The Tweed
Lux and AC Hi Boost are both examples of combo
amps.
Cabinet Type selector in the Master section
Other amps are amps-only (heads), and were de-
Available cabinets include the following: signed to be run through a speaker cabinet. Many
• 1x12 Black Panel Lux * amp/cab pairings have become standards.

• 1x12 Tweed Lux * Using Settings for Realistic and Classic

• 2x12 AC Blue * Pairings

• 2x12 Black Panel Duo * You can use Eleven’s factory Settings files (pre-
• 4x10 Tweed Bass * sets) for combo amps and classic combinations.
Settings files store and recall all controls, (includ-
• 4x12 Classic 30 ing Amp and Cabinet Type).
• 4x12 Green 25W
For combo amps and default combinations:
* These models only appear in the full version of
 Choose a factory Settings file for that amp from
Eleven.
Eleven’s Settings menu.
Cabinets are listed by their number and diameter of
their speakers. For example, “1x12” means a cabi- Using the Amp Type and Cabinet Type Selectors
for Unlinked Pairing
net has a single 12-inch speaker.
You can use the Amp Type and Cabinet Type se-
Eleven is not affiliated with, or sponsored
lectors to try your own, unique combinations.
or endorsed by, the makers of the loud-
speakers and cabinets that are emulated in If you want to combine amps and cabs (unlinked):
the product.
 Click and choose from the Amp Type and Cabi-
net Type selectors to create new pairings.
Visit the Avid website (www.avid.com) to
learn about each of the cabinets used to cre- Use the Settings menu to save new combina-
ate Eleven. tions and build your own custom library (see
“Eleven Settings (Presets)” on page 241).

Chapter 43: Eleven 246

Eleve n Ca bine t Cont rols
All cabinets provide Bypass, Speaker Breakup, Mic Type, and Position controls.

Cabinet Bypass Speaker Breakup Mic Type Off/On Axis

Cabinet controls

Ca bine t Bypass Mic Type

The Bypass switch in the Cabinet section lets you The Mic Type selector lets you choose the micro-
bypass cabinet and microphone processing. When phone to use with the selected cabinet.
in the Bypass position, no cabinet or microphone
processing is applied to the signal. When in the On
position, cabinet and microphone settings are ap-
plied.

Spea ke r Bre a kup

(Full version, Pro Tools|HDX Only) Mic Type selector in the Cabinet section

The Speaker Breakup slider lets you specify how Available Mic Types include the following:
much distortion is produced by the current speaker
• Dynamic 7
model. Increasing the Speaker Breakup setting
adds distortion that is a combination of cone • Dynamic 57
breakup and other types of speaker distortion (em- • Dynamic 409
ulated by the speaker cabinet model). Range is • Dynamic 421
from 1 to 10.
• Condenser 67
Below certain frequencies, the speaker cone vi- • Condenser 87
brates as one piece. Above those frequencies (typi-
cally between 1 kHz and 4 kHz), the cone vibrates • Condenser 414
in sections. By the time a wave travels from the • Ribbon 121
apex at the voice coil out to the edge of the speaker
cone, a new wave has started at the voice coil. The Eleven is not affiliated with, or sponsored or
result is comb filtering and other anomalies that endorsed by, the makers of the microphones
contribute to the texture of the overall sound. that are emulated in the product.

When enabled, Speaker Breakup draws

additional CPU resources.

Chapter 43: Eleven 247

Mic Ax is Tra ck s a nd Signa l Rout ing for
Guit a r
When capturing the sound of a speaker cabinet in a
studio, sound engineers select different micro- The way you set up Pro Tools tracks and signal
phones and arrange them in different placements to routing can vary depending on what you want to do
get a particular sound. For example, a mic can be while recording and mixing with Eleven. This sec-
pointed straight at a speaker or angled slightly off- tion gives you a few specific examples of some of
center, in order to emphasize (or de-emphasize) the many different ways you can choose to work:
certain frequencies that the mic picks up. • “Recording Dry: Monitor Through Eleven” on
page 248.
On-axis, for most microphones, is a line in the same
direction as the long dimension of the microphone • “Recording Wet: Record Eleven-Processed
and will produce a noticeable difference in color- Track to Disk” on page 249.
ation when compared to the same microphone in • “Recording Dry and Eleven Simultaneously” on
the off-axis position. page 250.
In Eleven, the Axis switch lets you toggle between • “Processing Pre-Recorded Tracks Through
on- and off-axis setting of the currently selected Eleven” on page 251
microphone model. The default position for Mic • “Blending Eleven Cabinets and Amps” on
position is On Axis. page 252.

Re c ording Dr y: M onit or T hrough Eleve n

This workflow lets you record dry (clean) while the

recorded signal is processed through Eleven, let-
ting you hear it but without committing the track to
that tone forever.
Mic Axis switch in the Cabinet section
The flexibility to audition and compare different
About Mic Placement
settings and combinations of amps, cabinets and
All Eleven cabinets and mics were close mic’d microphones is a very creative and powerful tool
(whether on- or off-axis). This provides the purest for mixing and arranging.
tones possible, of any room tone or ambience spe-
To record dry and monitor through Eleven:
cific to the Eleven recording environment.
1 Choose Track > New and configure the New
Track to create one mono Audio Track.
2 Set the track input to the audio interface input
your guitar is plugged in to (such as In 1
(Mono)).

3 Insert Eleven on the track (see “Inserting Eleven

on Tracks” on page 239).

Chapter 43: Eleven 248

 Re c ording We t : Re c ord Eleve n-
Eleven Proc e sse d Tra ck t o Disk

In this workflow, the audio output of Eleven is re-

corded to disk while tracking. Usually, no addi-
tional dry track is recorded.

Guitar input This method commits your track to the original

Eleven tone used while tracking. It requires two
tracks (an Auxiliary Input and an audio track), but
after tracking, the plug-in can be deactivated or re-
moved to up processing resources.

To record guitar with Eleven while playing:

1 Choose Track > New.

2 Configure a new track by doing the following:
• Create one mono Auxiliary Input track.
• Click the Add Row button (+).

Audio track for recording dry while hearing Eleven • Create one mono audio track.
• Click Create.
4 Choose a Settings file (preset), or adjust
Eleven’s parameters to get your tone (see 3 In the Mix (or Edit) window, configure the Aux
“Eleven Settings (Presets)” on page 241). Input by doing the following:
5 Record enable the track, or enable TrackInput • Click the Input selector and choose your guitar
monitoring (Pro Tools HD only) and check your input (the audio interface input your guitar is
levels. plugged in to).

6 When you’re ready, arm the Pro Tools Transport • Click the Output selector and choose Bus 1.
and press Record to record your part. • Click the Insert selector and select Eleven.

The audio that is recorded is the dry (unprocessed) 4 Configure the audio track by doing the follow-
signal only, while playback of the recording is pro- ing:
cessed through Eleven and any other plug-ins in- • Click the Input selector and choose Bus 1.
serted on the track.
• Record enable the audio track.

Chapter 43: Eleven 249

 Re c ording Dr y and Eleve n
Eleven Simult a ne ously

You can record a dry, unprocessed track and an

Eleven-processed track simultaneously.

This method gets the best of both worlds by track-

ing dry (to experiment with tones later) and at the
Guitar input same time recording the tone used on the original
Bus input
Bus output tracking session. It requires two audio track, as fol-
lows:

To record guitar dry and with Eleven live:

1 Choose Track > New.

2 Configure the New Tracks dialog to create two
mono audio tracks, then click Create.
3 In the Mix (or Edit) window, configure the first
(left-most) new audio track by doing the follow-
ing:
Aux Input Audio Track • Click the Input selector and choose your guitar
input (the audio interface input your guitar is
plugged in to).
• Click the Output selector and choose Bus 1.
Recording Eleven (printing its output) • Click the Insert selector and select Eleven.
5 Make sure you are not overloading your input • Record enable the audio track.
signal by checking levels in all tracks and 4 Configure the second audio track by doing the
Eleven's Input LED. following:
6 When you’re ready, arm Pro Tools and begin re- • Click the Input selector and choose Bus 1.
cording.
• Record enable the audio track.
The output from Eleven is recorded to disk. If you 5 Make sure you are not overloading your input
need to conserve DSP or Native processing re- signal by checking levels in all tracks and
sources, you can remove or deactivate Eleven after Eleven's Input LED.
recording.
6 When you’re ready, arm Pro Tools and begin re-
cording.

The dry guitar is recorded to the first audio track,

processed through Eleven, then bussed to the sec-
ond audio track and recorded to disk.

Chapter 43: Eleven 250

Proc e ssing Pre -Re c orde d Tra ck s To process and re-record tracks through Eleven:
T hrough Eleve n 1 Import and place your audio in a Pro Tools
You can process pre-recorded guitar tracks, or al- audio track.
most any material, through Eleven. 2 Configure the source audio track by doing the
following:
To listen to pre-recorded tracks through Eleven
(without re-recording): • Assign the audio track Output a bus (such as Bus
1 if mono, or Bus 1-2 if stereo).
1 Import and place your audio in a Pro Tools audio
track. • Click the Insert selector and select Eleven.

2 Assign the audio track Output to Bus 1 (or 3 Choose Track > New and create one mono
Bus 1-2 if working with stereo material). audio track.

3 Create an Aux Input track, and configure it by 4 Configure the new audio track by doing the fol-
doing the following: lowing:
• Click its track Input selector and choose Bus 1 • Click its track Input selector and choose the Bus
(or Bus 1-2). 1 (or Bus 1-2).

• Click the Insert selector and select Eleven. • Click the Insert selector and select Eleven.

4 Begin playback and watch Eleven’s Input LED 5 Record enable the new audio track (or enable
to check your level. Make sure you’re not clip- TrackInput monitoring if using Pro Tools HD).
ping Eleven’s input.
6 Begin playback and start listening.
5 While listening, adjust Eleven’s Input knob to
7 While listening, adjust Eleven’s Input knob to
increase or decrease input level.
increase or decrease input level.
6 After setting your gain structure, do any of the
8 When everything sounds and looks good, locate
following:
to where you want to begin recording (or make a
• Try different Settings files (presets) to get your time selection), arm the Pro Tools Transport and
basic amp/cab/mic combination. press Play to start recording.
• Adjust amp controls.
• Try different cabinets and varying amounts of
Speaker Breakup.
• Try different mics and positions to hear how they
affect the track.
7 Apply other plug-ins, or bus the Aux Input to an-
other track for additional processing.

Chapter 43: Eleven 251

Ble nding Eleve n Ca bine t s a nd 4 Select all three Aux Input tracks by Shift-click-
Am ps ing their Track Name displays (make sure your
audio track isn’t still selected). This lets you
You can use Eleven for multi-cabinet and multi-
work with the three Aux tracks “as one” in the
amp setups so you can blend their signals together.
next few steps.
This classic technique lets you get tones that no sin-
gle combo, cabinet, or amp could produce. Unlike
working with real amps, this is simple to achieve
with Pro Tools track, signal routing, and plug-in
features.
Three tracks, selected
Ble nding Eleve n Ca bine t s
5 Hold Option+Shift (Mac) or Alt+Shift
In this example you’ll see how to take the output of (Windows) while doing each of the following:
one Eleven amp and send it to multiple cabinets so • Choose Bus 1 from the Input selector of any of
you can blend different cabinets, multi-mic one the three selected Aux Inputs.
cabinet, or both.
• Click the Insert selector of any of the three and
To blend multiple cabinets:
select Eleven.

1 Choose Tracks > New. • Click the next available Insert selector on any of
three selected Aux Inputs and select the TimeAd-
2 Configure a new track by doing the following: juster (short) plug-in.
• Create one mono Audio Track. 6 Open the Eleven plug-in on the audio track and
• Click the Add Row button. click the Cabinet Bypass to bypass Cabinet and
• Create three mono Aux Inputs. microphone processing.

• Click Create. 7 Open one of the Eleven plug-ins on any of the

three selected Aux Input tracks and
3 In the Mix or Edit window, configure the audio Opt+Shift+click (Mac) or Alt+Shift+click
track by doing the following: (Windows) the Amp Bypass switch.
• Click the audio track Input selector and choose
8 Solo the first Aux Input track.
your guitar input (the audio interface input your
guitar is plugged in to).
• Click the Output selector and choose Bus 1.
• Click the Insert selector and select Eleven.

Chapter 43: Eleven 252

 13 When you have set your cabinet tones, make
Amp on, Amps bypassed/Cabs on sure to unsolo all the Aux Inputs and begin play-
Cab bypassed ing so you can hear the combined tone of all
three cabinet channels.
14 Do the following to continue:
• Balance the tracks using the volume faders on
the Aux Input tracks.
• Try different pan positions for each Aux
Input track.
• Evaluate the phase relationships of the combined
signals and adjust accordingly (see “Phase Con-
siderations with Blending in Eleven” on
page 255).

If You Plan on Blending Cabinets

The Eleven plug-in emulates the variation in cabi-

net response that is unique to each amp/cab combi-
nation. In the physical world, these variations are
the result of the distinct loads put out by each amp,
and the way the cabinet handles (responds to) that
particular type of signal. Though subtle, the effect
of this is a unique cabinet resonance.

In each Eleven plug-in you insert on a track, the

currently selected Amp Type has a similar effect on
Setup for blending cabinets the sound of its current cabinet, even when the amp
section itself is bypassed.
9 Click to open the Eleven plug-in window on the
first Aux Input, and do any of the following: This does not mean that the (bypassed) amp set-
• Choose a cabinet. tings affect the cabinet tone, only the chosen amp
type. This could bring just the right amount of extra
• Choose a mic and its position. low, low-mid, or mid-range response to the cabinet.
• Adjust Speaker Breakup.
Different amps can also have a different num-
10 When you’re done, close the plug-in window ber of stages, which can affect polarity. See
and then unsolo the track. “Phase Considerations with Blending in
11 Solo the next Aux Input track, and repeat to con- Eleven” on page 255 for more information.
figure its cabinet and mic settings.
12 Repeat for other Aux Input tracks to configure
their cabinet and mic settings.

Chapter 43: Eleven 253

How Do I Use This?
Amps and Cabs on
Here are a few suggested ways you can pair No insert
Eleven’s amps and cabinets:
 To accurately capture the sound of one amp split
to and driving multiple cabinets, make sure the
same Amp Type is selected in all the Eleven plug-
ins (all the cabinets as well as the active amp).
 For maximum variety, mix and match bypassed

amps with active cabinets.

 For realism with the combo amps (such as the
Tweed Lux and AC Hi Boost), make sure to use
their default cabinets.

Ble nding Eleve n Am ps

You can easily set up tracks and Eleven for multi-

amp setups.

To blend multiple amps:

1 Set up tracks and signal routing as explained in
the previous workflow (see “To blend multiple
cabinets:” on page 252).
2 Remove (or simply bypass) the Eleven plug-in
on the source input/track.
Setup for blending amps
To maximize processing resources, remove
the Eleven plug-in on the source track, or 3 Solo the first Aux Input track.
make the plug-in Inactive. See the Pro Tools 4 Click to open the Eleven plug-in window on the
Reference Guide for more information. soloed Aux Input, and do any of the following:
• Make sure the amp and cabinet are active (not
bypassed).
• Choose a preset (Settings file).
• Pair any amp with any cabinet.
• Choose a mic and its position.
• Adjust Speaker Breakup.
5 Solo the next Aux Input track, and repeat to con-
figure its settings for a different tone.

Chapter 43: Eleven 254

6 Repeat for other Aux Input tracks to configure Sending a single source track through multiple,
their settings. unique amps can pose an additional challenge in
that each tube stage in an amp usually inverts the
7 When you have set your tones, make sure to un-
signal. So, depending on whether the number of
solo all the Aux Inputs.
tube stages in an amp is odd or even, that amp will
8 Continue playing so you can hear the combined either be inverting or non-inverting, respectively. If
tone of all the amps. you send an identical signal to two amps and one is
inverting while the other is non-inverting, signal
9 Do the following to continue:
cancellation will result. All amps in Eleven accu-
• Balance the tracks using the volume faders on rately model the number of amp stages found in all
the Aux Input tracks. the original hardware.
• Try different pan positions for each Auxiliary
If you want to keep it simple and be able to experi-
Input track.
ment with phase flip, do the following.
10 Evaluate the phase relationships of the com-
bined signals and adjust accordingly (see “Phase To use the TimeAdjuster plug-in to flip phase when
Considerations with Blending in Eleven” on blending amps or cabinets:

page 255). 1 Configure your audio track and Aux Inputs as

instructed in “Blending Eleven Cabinets and
Phase Conside rat ions w it h Ble nding in Amps” on page 252. Make sure each Aux Input
Eleven has an Eleven plug-in followed by a TimeAd-
juster plug-in.
When multi-tracking guitar, experienced engineers
know how to identify and take advantage of the 2 Open the plug-in window for each of the Time-
phase relationships that exist between different sig- Adjuster plug-ins (click the first one to open it,
nals. Adjusting phase is not just a corrective tech- then Shift-click each of the other TimeAdjuster
nique either, it’s also a powerful creative technique plug-ins).
for tone, as well as for special effects.
3 Click the Phase switch in the first TimeAdjuster
You can use the TimeAdjuster plug-in to flip phase plug-in to invert the polarity. Listen to the effect
and to adjust timing in single-sample increments, it has on the combined signal. Click it again to
as described in the next sections. disengage (flip back).
4 Click the Phase switch on the next channel’s
Flipping Phase (Polarity)
TimeAdjuster plug-in, listen, then disengage.
Electric guitar is often recorded to more than one
5 Repeat for additional Eleven/TimeAdjuster
track, such as one dry or DI track, plus one or more
channels.
tracks of a mic’d amp. The different signal paths of
direct tracks versus mic tracks affect the timing re- 6 Try combinations of flipped and non-flipped
lationships of the audio. Depending on the signal Phase settings to find the ideal relationship for
chain of each track, the signals can get so out of the currently blended amps and cabinets.
alignment that they nearly cancel each other out.

Chapter 43: Eleven 255

Tweaking Phase
Eleve n T ips a nd Sugge st ions
If each of the mics used on a single cabinet are not
positioned carefully, comb filtering and other fre- This section leaves you with some tips and sugges-
quency anomalies can occur. With real amps, the tions for other ways you can integrate Eleven into
engineer moves one or more mics to find their op- your sessions.
timal positions relative to the source, and to each
other. Cha nging Se t t ings Ve rsus
Sw it ching Am ps
To hear the effect of small adjustments to the phase
relationships of signals, do the following. Many guitarists use different tones to maximize the
contrast between sections of a song (intro, verse,
To use the Time Adjuster plug-in to control phase: chorus, or bridge). Some examples include:
1 Configure your audio track and Aux Inputs as • Soft (or clean) tone for the verse, kick in the dis-
instructed in “Blending Eleven Cabinets and tortion for the chorus.
Amps” on page 252. Make sure each Aux Input • Using tremolo during the intro and the bridge.
has an Eleven plug-in followed by a TimeAd-
juster (short) plug-in. • Doubling the rhythm track halfway through the
verse to build momentum.
2 Open the plug-in window for each of the Time-
Adjuster plug-ins (click the first one to open it, Pro Tools automaton is the key to these and other
then Shift-click each of the other TimeAdjuster techniques:
plug-ins).  For simple, single amp contrasts such as

3 Adjust the Delay slider in one sample incre- soft/loud, choose an amp and automate its gain,
ments. Listen to the effect it has on the combined drive, volume or other parameter to achieve the de-
signal. Repeat, increasing the Delay by one sam- sired tone change. This uses the least amount of
ple each time. processing resources of the examples provided
here.
4 Try combinations of TimeAdjuster settings with
flipped and non-flipped Phase settings for end-  To switch amps, automate the Amp Type selec-

lessly variable tonal possibilities. tor and any other controls (you cannot automate the
selection of Pro Tools plug-in Settings files). De-
pending on the amount of overlap or crossfading
you want between tones, you might be better off us-
ing the next, multi-Eleven workflow.

See the Pro Tools Reference Guide to learn

about Snapshot automation, Glide, and other
automation features,

Chapter 43: Eleven 256

 For maximum flexibility, control and variety, Pro Tools Reference Guide for mixing and submix-
use a dry track bussed to multiple Aux Inputs, each ing setups and suggestions, and try them out while
with a different Eleven tone (see “Blending Eleven exploring some of the following effects sugges-
Amps” on page 254 for instructions). Configure tions.
one for tone A, configure the next Eleven (on the
next Aux Input) for tone B (which could be a com- Dynamics
pletely different amp and sound) and so on. Then
Compression, limiting, expansion and gating are all
use Pro Tools track Volume (fader) automation to
useful effects for guitar. Different results can be
fade the different Eleven tracks in and out at the
achieved using each of the different types of dy-
right times. This gives the greatest amount of con-
namics processing, in combination with signal
trol over the transition between amps and tones,
routing for individual (discrete) versus submix
while also letting you stack and layer amps.
(shared resource) processing. Here are a few exam-
ples:
M a na ging Eleve n Plug-I n
 If all you seek is the taming of occasional dy-
Re sourc e s
namic aberrations within a track (meaning, you just
If system resources need to be conserved or mini- need to clamp a couple “overs”), try putting a lim-
mized, you can “bus record” with effects to commit iter on the individual track (after Eleven).
Eleven tones to disk. See “Recording Wet: Record
 To “glue” multiple rhythm tracks or tones to-
Eleven-Processed Track to Disk” on page 249.
gether, bus them to a stereo Aux Input and apply
Or, use the AudioSuite version to print Eleven heavy compression or limiting to that Aux Input.
tracks to disk. AudioSuite is especially useful when Experiment with different dynamics plug-ins such
you’re processing loops or other shorter-form gui- as Dyn 3 or any of Avid’s classic compressor pro-
tar material. cessors to find one that works best for the material.
Don’t be afraid to use extreme compression ratios
Be yond Eleve n: Som e Sugge st e d to achieve this effect.
Effe c t s
EQ
If you’re new to guitar or new to Pro Tools, you
might want to know about a few simple effects you Simple EQ processing can be used to soften “hot
can add to your Eleven guitar tracks using nothing spots” in the playing range of some guitars. Using
more than a few of the plug-ins included with any of the included EQ plug-ins, you can also try
Pro Tools. applying drastic shelving or band-limiting as a spe-
cial effect, or automate a filter sweep to simulate a
Bussing and Submixing wah-style effect.

Not so much a plug-in or effect as a standard oper- Echo and Delay

ating procedure, multiple guitar tracks are often
submixed to stereo Aux Input for centralized level To add echo to the guitar track, bus an Eleven track
control of those tracks. This is especially useful for to an Aux Input and put a Delay plug-in on the Aux.
applying compression or limiting, creating stem Try other delay plug-ins to unlock the secrets of
mixes, and many other practical uses. See your multi-tap, ping-pong, and other specialized appli-
cations.

Chapter 43: Eleven 257

Eleve n Signa l Flow N ot e s
The following figure shows the signal flow through Eleven from its input source to its output
destination.

Input Output
from Pro Tools to Pro Tools
track (disk) or live input output or bus

Input LED Input knob Amp Cabinet/Mic Output knob

Gate

Signal flow through Eleven

Plug-I ns a re Pre -Fa de r I nput K nob a nd Am p Ga in

Keep in mind that inserts (plug-ins) in Pro Tools Eleven actually gives you two separate input gain
are post-disk/live input but pre-fader. The track stages to the plug in:
fader does not affect the signal into any plug-ins in-
 The Input knob in the Master section, which af-
serted on that same track. This is the same for all
fects the signal level before entering the amplifier
Pro Tools inserts, not just Eleven.
model.
 The gain knob(s) on each amplifier, which con-
I nput LED be fore t he I nput K nob
trol the main input stage of that particular amplifier
The Input LED is before the Input section of the model.
Master section, which is prior to the first input
stage of each amp. This lets you determine whether This makes the Input knob useful for increasing or
you’re clipping a signal before it enters the Eleven decreasing gain on amps that don’t have a separate
signal chain. The Input LEDs will light red when preamp.
the signal has clipped the input. (If this occurs, in-
sert the Trim plug-in before Eleven and use its N oise Gat e Aft e r t he I nput K nob
(Trim) gain control to attenuate the signal.)
The Noise Gate is keyed (triggered) from the input
signal. The gate is applied to the output of the amp;
when open, it lets sound pass from the amp to the
cabinet module, and when closed, it silences amp
output to the speaker cabinet.

Chapter 43: Eleven 258

Cha pt e r 4 4 : Lo-Fi

Lo-Fi provides “retro,” down-processing effects. Lo-Fi down-processes audio by reducing its sample
rate and bit resolution. It is ideal for emulating the
Lo-Fi features include: grungy quality of 8-bit samplers.
• Bit-rate reduction
• Sample rate reduction
• Soft clipping distortion and saturation
Lo-Fi Cont rols
• Anti-aliasing filter
Sa m ple Rat e
• Variable amplitude noise generator
The Sample Rate slider adjusts an audio file’s play-
Lo-Fi is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite back sample rate in fixed intervals from 700 Hz to
formats. 33 kHz in sessions with sample rates of 44.1 kHz,
88.2 kHz, or 176.4 kHz; and from 731 Hz to
Lo-Fi supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 36 kHz in sessions with sample rates of 48 kHz,
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. 96 kHz, or 192 kHz. Reducing the sample rate of
an audio file has the effect of degrading its audio
Lo-Fi operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
quality. The lower the sample rate, the grungier the
plug-in.
audio quality.

The maximum value of the Sample Rate control is

Off (which effectively means bypass).

The range of the Sample Rate control is

slightly different at different session sample
rates because Lo-Fi’s subsampling is calcu-
lated by integer ratios of the session sample
rate.

Lo-Fi

Chapter 44: Lo-Fi 259

Ant i-Alia s Filt e r Adaptive Adaptive quantization reduces bit depth
by adapting to changes in level by tracking and
The Anti-Alias control works in conjunction with shifting the amplitude range of the signal. This
the Sample Rate control. As you reduce the sample shifting causes the signal to fit into the lower bit
rate, aliasing artifacts are produced in the audio. range. The result is a higher apparent bit resolution
These produce a characteristically dirty sound. with a raunchiness that differs from the harsher
Lo-Fi’s anti-alias filter has a default setting of quantization scheme used in linear resolution.
100%, automatically removing all aliasing artifacts
as the sample rate is lowered.
N oise Ge ne rat or
This control is adjustable from 0% to 100%, letting
The Noise slider mixes a percentage of pseudo-
you add precisely the amount of aliasing you want
white noise into the audio signal. Noise is useful for
back into the mix. This slider only has an effect if
adding grit into a signal, especially when you are
you have reduced the sample rate with the Sample
processing percussive sounds. This noise is shaped
Rate control.
by the envelope of the input signal. The range of
this control is from 0 to 100%. When noise is set to
Sa m ple Size 100%, the original signal and the noise are equal in
The Sample Size slider controls the bit resolution level.
of the audio. Like sample rate, bit resolution affects
audio quality and clarity. The lower the bit resolu- Dist ort ion/Sat urat ion
tion, the grungier the quality. The range of this con-
The Distortion and Saturation sliders provide sig-
trol is from 24 bits to 2 bits.
nal clipping control.

Qua nt izat ion The Distortion slider determines the amount of

gain applied and lets clipping occur in a smooth,
Lo-Fi applies quantization to impose the selected rounded manner.
bit size on the target audio signal. The type of quan-
tization performed can also affect the character of The Saturation slider determines the amount of sat-
an audio signal. Lo-Fi provides you with a choice uration added to the signal. This simulates the ef-
of Linear or Adaptive quantization. fect of tube saturation with a roll-off of high fre-
quencies.
Linear Linear quantization abruptly cuts off sample
data bits in an effort to fit the audio into the selected
bit resolution. This imparts a characteristically Out put M e t e r
raunchy sound to the audio that becomes more pro- The Output Meter indicates the output level of the
nounced as the sample size is reduced. At extreme processed signal. Note that this meter indicates the
low bit-resolution settings, linear quantization will output level of the signal—not the input level. If
actually cause abrupt cut-offs in the signal itself, this meter clips, the signal may have clipped on in-
similar to gating. Thus, linear resolution can be put before it reached Lo-Fi. Monitor your send or
used creatively to add random percussive, rhythmic insert signal levels closely to prevent this from hap-
effects to the audio signal when it falls to lower lev- pening.
els, and a grungy quality as the audio reaches mid-
levels.

Chapter 44: Lo-Fi 260

Cha pt e r 4 5 : Re c t i-Fi

Recti-Fi provides additive harmonic processing ef- Recti-Fi provides additive synthesis effects
fects through waveform rectification. Recti-Fi fea- through waveform rectification. Recti-Fi multiplies
tures the following effects: the harmonic content of an audio track and adds
• Subharmonic synthesizer subharmonic or superharmonic tones,

• Full wave rectifier

• Pre-filter for adjusting effect frequency Re c t i-Fi Cont rols
• Post-filter for smoothing generated waveforms
Re c t i-Fi Pre -Filt e r Cont rol
Recti-Fi is available in DSP, Native, and Audio-
Suite formats. The Pre-Filter control filters out high frequencies
in an audio signal prior to rectification. This is de-
Recti-Fi supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, sirable because the rectification process can cause
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. instability in waveform output—particularly in the
case of high-frequency audio signals. Filtering out
Recti-Fi operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo
these higher frequencies prior to rectification can
plug-in.
improve waveform stability and the quality of the
rectification effect. If you wish to create classic
subharmonic synthesis effects, set the Pre-Filter
and Post-Filter controls to a relatively low fre-
quency, such as 250 Hz.

The range of the Pre-Filter is from 43 Hz to

22 kHz, with a maximum value of Thru (which ef-
fectively means bypass).

Recti-Fi

Normal waveform

Chapter 45: Recti-Fi 261

Re c t i-Fi Re c t ific at ion Cont rols Alternating Rectification This alternates between
rectifying the phase of the first negative waveform
Positive Rectification This rectifies the waveform
excursion to positive, then the next positive excur-
so that its phase is 100% positive. The audible ef-
sion to negative, and so on, throughout the wave-
fect is a doubling of the audio signal’s frequency.
form. The audible effect is a halving of the audio
signal’s frequency, creating a subharmonic tone.

Positive rectification

Negative Rectification This rectifies the wave- Alternating rectification

form so that its phase is 100% negative. The audi- Alt-Max Rectification This alternates between
ble effect is a doubling of the audio signal’s fre- holding the maximum value of the first positive ex-
quency. cursion through the negative excursion period,
switching to rectify the next positive excursion, and
holding its peak negative value until the next zero
crossing. The audible effect is a halving of the au-
dio signal’s frequency, and creating a subharmonic
tone with a hollow, square wave-like timbre.

Negative rectification

Alt-Max rectification

Chapter 45: Recti-Fi 262

Re c t i-Fi Ga in Cont rol
Gain lets you adjust signal level before the audio
reaches the Post-Filter. This is particularly useful
for restoring unity gain if you have used the Pre-
Filter to cut off high frequencies prior to rectifica-
tion. The range of this control is from –18dB to
+18dB.

Re c t i-Fi Post -Filt e r

Waveform rectification, particularly alternating
rectification, typically produces a great number of
harmonics. The Post Filter control lets you remove
harmonics above the cutoff frequency and smooth
out the sound. This is useful for filtering audio that
contains subharmonics. To create classic subhar-
monic synthesis effects, set the Pre-Filter and Post-
Filter to a relatively low frequency.

The range of the Post-Filter control is 43 Hz to

22 kHz, with a maximum value of Thru (which ef-
fectively means bypass).

Re c t i-Fi M ix Cont rol

Mix adjusts the mix of the rectified waveform with
the original, unprocessed waveform.

Re c t i-Fi Out put M e t e r

The Output Meter indicates the output level of the
processed signal. Note that this meter indicates the
output level of the signal—not the input level. If
this meter clips, the signal may have clipped on in-
put before it reached Recti-Fi. Monitor your send
or insert signal levels closely to prevent this from
happening.

Chapter 45: Recti-Fi 263

Cha pt e r 4 6 : Re e l Ta pe Sat urat ion

Reel Tape Saturation is part of the Reel Tape suite Reel Tape Saturation models the sonic characteris-
of tape-simulation effects plug-ins. Reel Tape Sat- tics of analog tape, including the effects of tape
uration simulates the saturation effect of an analog speed, bias setting, and calibration level of the
tape machine, modeling its frequency response, modeled tape machine.
noise and distortion characteristics, but without any
delay or wow and flutter effects. Reel Tape Saturation can be placed on mono, ste-
reo, or multichannel tracks.
Reel Tape Saturation is available in DSP, Native,
and AudioSuite formats.

Reel Tape Saturation supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,

Re e l Ta pe Com m on Cont rols
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample All Reel Tape plug-ins share the following
rates. controls:

Reel Tape Saturation operates as a mono, multi-

mono, or stereo plug-in. Drive
Drive controls the amount of saturation effect by
increasing the input signal to the modeled tape ma-
chine while automatically compensating by reduc-
ing the overall output. Drive is adjustable from
–12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB.

Out put
Output controls the output signal level of the plug-
in after processing. Output is adjustable from
Reel Tape Saturation –12 dB to +12 dB, with a default value of 0 dB.

For years, engineers have relied on analog tape to

add a smooth, warm sound to their recordings.
Ta pe M a chine
When driven hard, tape responds with gentle dis- The Tape Machine control lets you select one of
tortion rather than abrupt clipping as in the digital three tape machine types emulated by the plug-in,
domain. Magnetic tape also has a frequency-depen- each with its own sonic characteristics:
dent saturation characteristic that can lend punch to
the low end, and sweetness to the highs. US Emulates the audio characteristics of a 3M M79
multitrack tape recorder.

Chapter 46: Reel Tape Saturation 264

Swiss Emulates the audio characteristics of a The Noise control adjusts the level of simulated
Studer A800 multitrack tape recorder. tape noise that is added to the processed signal. The
characteristics of the noise depend on the Speed,
Lo-Fi Simulates the effect of a limited-bandwidth
Bias, and Tape Machine settings, and the relative
analog tape device, such as an outboard tape-based
level of the noise depends on the Drive, Cal Adjust,
echo effect.
and Tape Formula settings.

Ta pe For m ula Noise is adjustable from Off (–INF) to –24 dB,

with the default value being Off.
The Tape Formula control lets you select either of
two magnetic tape formulations emulated by the
plug-in, each with its own saturation characteris-
Bia s
tics: The Bias control simulates the effect of under- or
over-biasing the modeled tape machine. Bias is ad-
Classic Emulates the characteristics of
justable from –6 dB to +6 dB, with a default value
Ampex 456, exhibiting a more pronounced satura-
of 0.0 dB. The 0.0 dB value represents a standard
tion effect.
overbias calibration of 3 dB for analog tape ma-
Hi Output Emulates the characteristics of chines, so the control acts as a bias offset rather
Quantegy GP9, exhibiting a more subtle saturation than as an absolute bias control.
effect.
Ca l Adjust
Cal Adjust simulates the effect of three common
Re e l Ta pe Sat urat ion calibration levels on the modeled tape machine and
Cont rols magnetic tape formulations.
In addition to the Drive, Output, Tape Machine,
With the evolution of tape formulations, it was pos-
and Tape Formula controls, Reel Tape Saturation
sible to increase the fluxivity level, or magnetic
has the following controls:
strength, of the signals on tape. Over the years, this
resulted in an elevation of recorded levels relative
Spe e d to a standard reference fluxivity (185 nW/m at
The Speed control adjusts the tape speed in ips 700 Hz). The Cal Adjust value expresses the ele-
(inches per second). Tape speed affects the fre- vated level in dB over this standard reference level.
quency response of the modeled tape machine.
The Cal Adjust control does not affect the overall
Available tape speeds include 7.5 ips, 15 ips, and
gain, but does affect the amount of saturation effect
30 ips, with a default setting of 15 ips.
for a given input signal.

N oise Available Cal Adjust values are:

• +3 dB (equivalent to 250 nW/m)
Reel Tape Saturation produces noise only during
playback and recording, and not when the transport • +6 dB (equivalent to 370 nW/m)
is stopped. • +9 dB (equivalent to 520 nW/m)

The default value is +6 dB.

Chapter 46: Reel Tape Saturation 265

Re e l Ta pe Sat urat ion T ips
 Use Reel Tape Saturation on individual tracks to

round out sharp transients or add color to sustained

tones.
 Use Reel Tape Saturation on a group of tracks
(for example drums) to add cohesiveness to the
sound of the group.
 Use Reel Tape Saturation on a Master Fader to
apply analog tape-style compression to a mix.

Re e l Ta pe Sat urat ion Pre se t s

The sonic effect of Reel Tape Saturation depends
on many factors, including the signal level of the
source material; these presets are just starting
points. With some experimentation, Reel Tape Sat-
uration can yield warmer-sounding results than
conventional digital compression.

Bass Drum Rounds out and adds consistency to

bass drum hits.

Bass Gtr Adds consistency and warmth to bass

guitar sound while avoiding compression artifacts

Snare Drum Reduces harsh peaks resulting from

EQ-boosted snare drum or rim shots.

Chapter 46: Reel Tape Saturation 266

Cha pt e r 4 7 : Sa nsAm p PSA-1

SansAmp PSA-1 is a guitar amp simulator plug-in. Punch up existing tracks or record great guitar sounds
with the SansAmp PSA-1. Capture bass or electric guitar free of muddy sound degradation and dial in the
widest range of amplifier, harmonic generation, cabinet simulation and equalization tone shaping options
available! Tube sound, speaker simulation, warm equalization and cool lo-fi textures—no wonder thou-
sands of records feature the classic sounds of SansAmp!

SansAmp PSA-1

SansAmp PSA-1 is available in DSP, Native, and SansAmp’s FET-hybrid circuitry emulation cap-
AudioSuite formats. tures the low-order harmonics and sweet overdrive
unique to tube amplifiers. And pushed harder,
SansAmp PSA-1 supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, SansAmp also generates cool lo-fi and grainy
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample sound textures that still retain warmth.
rates.
SansAmp also features a proprietary speaker simu-
SansAmp PSA-1 operates as a mono, multi-mono, lator which emulates the smooth, even response of
or stereo plug-in. a multiple-miked speaker cabinet—free of the
B. Andrew Barta of Tech 21, Inc. introduced the harsh peaks, valleys and notches associated with
SansAmp Classic in 1989. A guitar player with single miking or poor microphone placement.
both a trained ear and electronics expertise, An- Finally, SansAmp provides two extremely sweet
drew and Tech 21 pioneered the market for tube sounding tone controls (high and low) that sound
amplifier emulation. great on most anything.

Chapter 47: SansAmp PSA-1 267

 Low
PSA-1 Cont rols
Provides a tone control specially tuned for maxi-
Use the eight knobs to dial in your tone or effect. mum musicality when used to EQ low frequencies
on instruments. Boost or cut by ±12 dB by turning
Pre -Am p from the center point indicated by the arrows.
Determines the input sensitivity and pre-amp dis-
tortion. Increasing the setting produces an effect H igh
similar to putting a clean booster pedal ahead of a Boosts or cuts high frequencies by ±12 dB.
tube amp, overdriving the first stage. For cleaner
sounds, use settings below the unity-gain point.
Leve l
Buzz Boosts or cuts the overall gain to re-establish unity
after adding distortion or equalizing the signal.
Controls low frequency break up and overdrive.
Boost the effect by turning clockwise from the cen-
ter point indicated by the arrows. As you increase
towards maximum, the sound becomes (you
PSA-1 T ips a nd Trick s
guessed it) buzzy, with added harmonic content.
For increased clarity and definition when using dis- Pe a c e a nd U nit y
tortion, position the knob at its midpoint or towards The arrows in the SansAmp controls indicate the
minimum. unity-gain position.

Punch Loude r a nd Cle a ne r

Sets midrange break up and overdrive. Decreasing For best results, don’t set the Pre-Amp level lower
from the center produces a softer, “Fender”-style than unity gain when the Drive knob is at 9 o’clock
break up. Increasing the setting produces a harder, or higher. However, if you want a crystal-clear
heavier distortion. At maximum, it produces a sound and the Drive control is already near mini-
sound similar to a wah pedal at mid-boost position mum, decrease Pre-Amp to further remove distor-
placed in front of a Marshall amp. tion.

Crunch Pre -Am p Ve rsus Drive

Brings out upper harmonic content and, on guitars, To create varying types of overdrive, vary
pick attack. For cleaner sounds or smoother high Pre-Amp in relation to Drive. A high Pre-Amp set-
end, decrease as needed. ting emphasizes pre-amp distortion (see “Mark 1”
preset), while high Drive settings emphasize power
Drive amp distortion (see “Plexi” preset).

Increases the amount of power amp distortion.

Power amp distortion is associated with the “Vin-
tage Marshall” sound—using SansAmp, you can
produce the effect even at low levels.

Chapter 47: SansAmp PSA-1 268

Pa rt I X : Dit he r Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 4 8 : Dit he r

Dither is a dither-generation plug-in. The Dither The Dither plug-in has user-selectable bit resolu-
plug-in minimizes quantization artifacts when re- tion and a noise shaping on/off option.
ducing the bit depth of an audio signal to 16-, 18-,
or 20-bit resolution. If you are mixing down to an analog
destination with any 24-bit capable interface,
Dither is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite you do not need to use Dither. This allows
formats. maximum output fidelity from the 24-bit digi-
tal-to-analog converters of the interface.
Dither supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

Dither operates as a mono, multi-mono, or stereo Dit he r Cont rols

plug-in. The Dither plug-in has a Bit Resolution button and
a Noise Shaping button.

Bit Re solut ion But t on

Use this pop-up menu to choose one of three possi-
Dither
ble resolutions for the Dither processing. Set this
Whenever you are mixing down or bouncing to control to the maximum bit resolution of your des-
disk and your destination bit depth is lower than 24- tination.
bit, insert a dither plug-in on a Master Fader track
16-bit Recommended for output to digital devices
that controls the output mix.
with a maximum resolution of 16 bits, such as DAT
Using a dither plug-in on a Master Fader is prefer- and CD recorders.
able to an Auxiliary Input because Master Fader in-
18-bit Recommended for output to digital devices
serts are post-fader. As a post-fader insert, the
with a maximum resolution of 18 bits.
dither plug-in can process changes in Master Fader
level.

For more information on using dither plug-ins

in Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools Reference
Guide.

Chapter 48: Dither 270

20-bit Recommended for output to digital devices
that support a full 20-bit recording data path, such
the Sony PCM-9000 optical mastering recorder, or
the Alesis ADAT XT 20. The 20-bit setting can
also be used for output to digital effects devices that
support 20-bit input and output, since it provides
for a lower noise floor and greater dynamic range
when mixing 20-bit signals directly in Pro Tools.

The Dither plug-in only provides eight chan-

nels of uncorrelated dithering noise. If Dither
is used on more than eight tracks, the dither-
ing noise begins to repeat and dither perfor-
mance is impaired. For example, if two Quad
Dithers are used, both Quad instances of
Dither will have all of their dither noise un-
correlated. However, any additional in-
stances of the Dither plug-in will begin to re-
peat the dithering noise.

N oise Sha ping But t on

The Noise Shaping button engages or disengages
Noise shaping. Noise shaping is on when the button
is highlighted in blue.

Noise shaping can further improve audio perfor-

mance and reduce perceived noise inherent in dith-
ered audio. Noise shaping uses filtering to shift
noise away from frequencies in the middle of the
audio spectrum (around 4 kHz), where the human
ear is most sensitive.

Chapter 48: Dither 271

Cha pt e r 4 9 : POW-r Dit he r

POW-r Dither is a dither-generation plug-in. The

POW-r Dither plug-in is an advanced type of dither POW-r Dit he r Cont rols
that provides optimized bit depth reduction. It is POW-r Dither provides a variety of controls for ad-
designed for final-stage critical mixdown and mas- justing plug-in parameters.
tering tasks where the highest possible fidelity is
required when reducing bit depth.
Bit Re solut ion
POW-r Dither is available in DSP, Native, and
Use this pop-up menu to choose either 16- or 20-bit
AudioSuite formats.
resolutions for POW-r Dither processing. Set this
POW-r Dither supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, control to the maximum bit resolution of your des-
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample tination.
rates. 16-bit Recommended for output to digital devices
POW-r Dither operates as a mono, multi-mono, or with a maximum resolution of 16 bits, such as DAT
stereo plug-in. and CD recorders.

20-bit Recommended for output to devices that

support a full 20-bit recording data path.

N oise Sha ping

POW-r Dither Noise shaping can further improve audio perfor-
mance and reduce perceived noise inherent in dith-
ered audio. Noise shaping uses filtering to shift
noise away from frequencies in the middle of the
audio spectrum (around 4 kHz), where the human
ear is most sensitive.

The POW-r Dither plug-in is not appropriate

for truncation stages that are likely to be fur-
ther processed. It is recommended that POW-r
Dither be used only as the last insert in the sig-
nal chain (especially when using Type 1 Noise
Shaping).

Chapter 49: POW-r Dither 272

The POW-r Dither plug-in provides three types of
noise shaping, each with its own characteristics.
Try each noise shaping type and choose the one that
adds the least amount of coloration to the audio be-
ing processed.

Type 1 Has the flattest frequency spectrum in the

audible range of frequencies, modulating and accu-
mulating the dither noise just below the Nyquist
frequency. Recommended for less stereophonically
complex material such as solo instrument record-
ings.

Type 2 Has a psychoacoustically optimized low or-

der noise shaping curve. Recommended for mate-
rial of greater stereophonic complexity.

Type 3 Has a psychoacoustically optimized high

order noise shaping curve. Recommended for full-
spectrum, wide-stereo field material.

For more information on using dither plug-ins

in Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools Reference
Guide.

Chapter 49: POW-r Dither 273

Pa rt X : Sound Fie ld Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 5 0 : Aut oPa n

AutoPan is an automatic panning plug-in that is

available in DSP and Native formats. AutoPan pans Aut oPa n Cont rols
a mono input to a multichannel (stereo, LCR, quad, AutoPan provides output meters, panner controls,
or 5.0) output based on a LFO, envelope follower, LFO controls, tempo controls, and envelope con-
MIDI Beat Clock, or manual automation. AutoPan trols.
is ideal for rhythmic panning effects based on your
Pro Tools session tempo. It also provides an easy
and elegant way to automate panning to multichan-
Aut oPa n Out put M e t e rs
nel surround formats for post-production. The Output meters display the amplitude of the out-
going audio. In mono-to-stereo mode, a two meter
bar is shown. In mono-to-LCR, quad, or 5.0 mode,
three, four, or five channels are shown respectively.

Output meters (L, C, R, Ls, Rs)

The Clip indicator lights red when the channel has

AutoPan clipped. The clip indicator for each channel can be
cleared by clicking it.

Chapter 50: AutoPan 275

Aut oPa n Pa nne r Cont rols Width slider to 0%. When the Width slider is at
100%, the Manual slider has no effect on the pan
The Panner section provides different controls for
position. When Width is set to 50%, the LFO
different output channel configurations. AutoPan
sweeps the position through 50% of its range and
in mono-to-stereo and mono-to-LCR formats pro-
the Manual slider lets you move the position of that
vide controls common to all output configurations:
50% range.
Output, Width, and Manual. AutoPan mono-to-quad
and mono-to-5.0 formats provide additional con- Angle
trols depending on the Path selection: Angle and
Place, or Spread. Additionally, the Panning Source The Angle slider adjusts the orientation of the pan-
selector, Panning display, and Path selectors are ning field from –90° to +90°. At 0°, the panning
common to all output channel configurations. field is oriented strictly left/right. At –90° or +90°,
the panning field is oriented strictly front/back.
Out put

The Output slider lets you cut or boost the output

signal level from –24 dB to +12 dB.

Panner section, mono-to-5.0, left to right path selected

The Angle slider is only available with mono-to-

quad and mono-to-5.0 formats, and a left to right or
Panner section, mono-to-stereo, left to right path right to left path selected.
selected
Pla ce
Widt h
The Place slider adjusts the front/back placement
The Width slider controls the width of the panning
of the panning field. At 0%, the panning field is
field. At 100%, the panning field is at its widest. At
centered front/back. At +100%, it is placed all the
0%, the panning field is centered and stationary.
way front. At –100%, it is placed all the way back.
The Width slider effectively determines the amount
of LFO or Envelope control on the pan position. The Place slider is only available with mono-to-
quad and mono-to-5.0 formats, and a left to right or
Ma nua l right to left path selected.
The Manual slider directly controls the pan posi-
tion, this lets you manually control the pan position
from a control surface or by using automation. The
amount of manual control is affected by the setting
of the Width slider. For full manual control, set the

Chapter 50: AutoPan 276

Spre a d Pa nning Displa y

The Spread slider opens or constricts the field of The Panning display graphically represents the
panning. At 100%, the spread of the panning field panning field and the location of the sound source
is at its greatest. At 0%, the spread of the panning within that field.
field is completely constricted, and the sound is
centered and stationary (left/right and front/back).

Panning display, mono-to-5.0, left to right path selected

Sound Location Indicator This bright yellow light

indicates the location of the sound source.

Panning Field Indicator This is the grey line on

which the yellow Sound Location indicator travels
and indicates the panning field.
Panner section, mono-to-5.0, clockwise path selected
Pat h
The Spread slider is only available with mono-to-
quad and mono-to-5.0 formats, and a circular path The Path selectors determine whether the audio
(clockwise or counterclockwise) selected. signal pans left to right, right to left, or in a circular
motion clockwise, or counterclockwise. The circu-
Pa nning Sourc e lar path selectors (clockwise and counterclock-
Click LFO or Env to select the source for panning. wise) are only available with mono-to-quad and
When the Source is set to LFO, panning is con- mono-to-5.0 formats.
trolled by the LFO and its controls (see “AutoPan
LFO Controls” on page 278). When the Source is
set to Envelope (Env), panning is controlled by the
Envelope Detector and its controls (see “AutoPan
Envelope Controls” on page 280). The Envelope
Path selectors, left to right path selected
Detector can be triggered by the panned audio sig-
nal, or by a side-chain input (see “Using the Side-
Chain Input” on page 281).

Panning Source buttons

Chapter 50: AutoPan 277

Aut oPa n LFO Cont rols
The LFO section provides controls for the Low Fre-
quency Oscillator that can be used to modulate pan-
ning. The controls in the LFO section only affect
the panning if LFO is selected as the panning
source in the panning section (see “Panning
Source” on page 277).

Selecting the LFO Waveform

LFO Trigge rs

By default, the LFO cycles continuously through

the selected waveform. The LFO can be set to cycle
through the selected waveform just once, or it can
LFO section be triggered by MIDI Beat Clock, the Envelope, or
manually.
When the Panner section is set to Envelope
(Env), the controls in the LFO section have
no effect on panning.

Rat e

The Rate slider adjusts the rate of the LFO in beats

per minute. When Link to Tempo is activated, the LFO Triggers
slider is ignored and the Tempo display always
shows the current session tempo (see “Tempo Dis- Single When the Single trigger is selected, the LFO
play” on page 280). will cycle through the waveform once only and
then stop.
Wave form

The Waveform selector determines the wave shape

used by the LFO. The waveform shape in use is
graphically depicted by the movement of the Sound
Location indicator in the Panning display.

Chapter 50: AutoPan 278

Beat Clock When the Beat Clock trigger is se- Aut oPa n Te m po Cont rols
lected, the LFO synchronizes to MIDI Beat Clock.
TL AutoPan receives Beat Clock signal every 64th- Link To Te m po
note. The Duration menu determines how often the
When the Link To Tempo option is enabled, the
Beat Clock signal triggers TL AutoPan, ranging
LFO rate is set to the Pro Tools session tempo, and
from every 16th-note to every 4 bars. When Beat
any tempo changes in the session are followed au-
Clock signal is received, the Beat Clock trigger
tomatically. In addition, the LFO rate slider is ig-
light blinks brightly. Using the Beat Clock function
nored and the Tempo display always shows the cur-
enables TL AutoPan to produce consistent panning
rent session tempo.
results, ensuring that the LFO is always in the same
state at each beat.

Envelope When the Envelope trigger is selected,

the LFO is triggered directly by the Envelope De- Tempo controls
tector, which analyzes the amplitude of the audio
signal. If the Side-Chain Input selector in the Enve- Durat ion Sele c t or
lope section is activated, then the side-chain audio The Duration selector works in conjunction with
signal is used instead. When activated, the Enve- the session tempo, LFO rate, and Beat Clock trig-
lope light blinks brighter when an audio signal is ger. By default, Duration is set to 1 bar. At that set-
detected. The threshold level can be adjusted using ting, the LFO cycles once within one bar. When
the Threshold control in the Envelope section. Duration is set to 1 beat, the LFO cycles within the
If the Envelope Detector is completely released due duration of one beat. When Link to Tempo is en-
to previous portions of the audio signal going abled, the Duration menu allows the LFO rate to be
above threshold, a trigger occurs the next time the set as a function of the tempo of the Pro Tools ses-
audio goes above the threshold level. Another trig- sion. The Duration menu also controls how often
ger will not happen until the Envelope Detector has the Beat Clock trigger is activated.
completely released after the audio goes below the
specified threshold. Increasing the release time re-
duces the rate at which triggers can occur and de-
creasing the release time increases the rate at which
triggers can occur.

Manual When the Manual trigger is selected, the

LFO is triggered manually. This can be especially
useful if you want to trigger the LFO using
Pro Tools automation.

With control surfaces and automation, the Manual

trigger acts like an on/off switch and triggers the
LFO every time it changes state.
Selecting Duration

Chapter 50: AutoPan 279

Te mpo Display T hre shold

The Tempo display shows the tempo in BPM. The The Threshold slider sets the amplitude level re-
value in the Tempo display can also be edited di- quired for the Envelope Detector. The LFO Enve-
rectly by clicking it and typing a new value. lope Detector light blinks brighter when audio is
detected above the threshold.

At t a ck

Tempo display The Attack slider sets the attack rate of the Enve-
lope Detector.
Aut oPa n Enve lope Cont rols
Re le a se
When Envelope (Env) is selected as the Panning
source, Panning (as shown in the Panning display) The Release slider sets the release rate of the En-
is controlled by the audio signal and the Envelope velope Detector.
section controls.

U sing Aut oPa n

AutoPan can be used for dynamic panning effects
based on a Low Frequency Oscillator (LFO), an
amplitude envelope (ENV), or manual control.
AutoPan makes it easy to pan to the beat of a music
track, as well as panning “fly-around” effects. The
following section describes two possible scenarios
for using AutoPan: panning to the beat for rhythmic
panning effects and surround panning effects for
Envelope section post production.

When Envelope (Env) is not selected as the

Pa nning t o t he Be at
Panning Source, the controls in this section
have no effect on the sound. AutoPan lets you synchronize the LFO to MIDI
Beat Clock for rhythmic panning effects.
Side -Cha in I nput
To synchronize AutoPan to MIDI Beat Clock:
When the Side-Chain Input selector (the key icon)
is enabled, the audio for the Envelope Detector is 1 Make sure that your session tempo matches the
taken from the side-chain input rather than the cur- tempo of the music.
rent track. Select the Side-Chain Input using the 2 Insert a mono-to-stereo instance of AutoPan on
Pro Tools Key Input selector at the top of the plug- the mono audio track containing the audio you
in window. want to pan. The track’s channel width changes
from mono-to-stereo.

Side-Chain Input selector enabled

Chapter 50: AutoPan 280

3 In the AutoPan Plug-In window, enable Link To 3 In the AutoPan Plug-In window, select a clock-
Tempo. This sets the LFO rate to follow the ses- wise or counter-clockwise Path.
sion tempo.
4 Adjust the Spread and Width sliders.
4 Select a duration from the Duration selector. For
example, select 2 Beats. Try automating Spread and Width to alter the
positioning of the panned sound.
5 Select a waveform for the LFO from the Wave-
form selector. For example, select 4 Step Trian- 5 From the LFO Waveform selector, select Half
gle. Sine.
6 Enable Beat Clock for the LFO Trigger. This en- Try automating the Manual control instead of
sures that the LFO is synchronized to the beat. using the LFO to create a more erratic pan-
7 Play back the session to hear the panning effect. ning of the “mosquito” sound.

6 Adjust the Rate slider.

Post Produc t ion Pa nning
(Pro Tools HD Only) Try automating Rate to alter the speed of the
panned sound over time.
AutoPan lets you pan a mono track to a greater than
stereo (LCR, Quad, or 5.0) output in a surround 7 Play back the session to hear the “mosquito” fly-
path. This is especially useful for post-production ing around your head.
applications. The following example describes how
to use TL AutoPan to pan a “mosquito” sound in U sing t he Side -Cha in I nput
5.0 surround.
The Side-Chain Input option in AutoPan lets you
To pan a mono track to 5.0 with AutoPan: direct audio from another track in your Pro Tools
1 Insert a mono-to-5.0 instance of AutoPan on the session to the Envelope Detector. This is achieved
mono track containing the audio you want to by sending the audio from a channel to a bus and
pan. The track’s channel width changes from setting the side-chain input on AutoPan to the same
mono-to-5.0. bus.

2 Select a 5.0 output path from the track’s Output For more information on using the Side-
selector. Chain Input, see the Pro Tools Reference
Guide.

Chapter 50: AutoPan 281

Cha pt e r 5 1 : Dow n M ixe r

Avid Down Mixer can be used to automatically When inserting Down Mixer on a compatible
mix greater-than-stereo multichannel tracks (such greater-than-stereo multichannel track, the channel
as 5.1) down to stereo (Pro Tools HD only) or ste- format of the track output changes to stereo.
reo tracks down to mono.
When inserting Down Mixer on a stereo track, the
Down Mixer is available in DSP and Native channel format of the track output changes to
formats. mono.

Down Mixer supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,

96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.

Avid Down Mixer (Stereo to Mono)

Down Mixer (5.1 to Stereo)

Down Mixer supports the following greater-than-

stereo multichannel formats:
• LCR
• LCRS
• 5.0
• 5.1
• 7.1 SDDS
• 7.1

Chapter 51: Down Mixer 282

Sourc e Dow nm ix
The Source section of the Down Mixer plug-in pro- The Downmix section of the Down Mixer plug-in
vides controls that let you mute, invert the phase, provides output meters and a single fader to adjust
and adjust the level of each input channel to the the output level of the Down Mixer from –45 dB to
Down Mixer. +12 dB.

M ut e
When enabled, the Mute button mutes the channel
input to the Down Mixer.

Pha se
When enabled, the Phase button inverts the phase
of the channel input to the Down Mixer.

Leve l
You can adjust the level of the channel input to the
Down Mixer from –45 dB to +12 dB. For stereo to
mono down mixing, both the Left and Right chan-
nels are mixed to summed mono. For greater-than-
stereo multichannel down mixing, the following
rules apply:
• All left-channel sources (L, Lc, Ls, Lss, Lsr) feed
to the left channel (L) of the down mixer.
• All right-channel sources (R, Rc, Rs, Rss, Rsr)
feed to the right channel (R) of the down mixer.
• The center channel (C) and low-frequency chan-
nel (LFE) are panned center into the stereo field
of the down mixer.

Meter
The level meters for source channels always show
the input level (pre-fader) for the channel regard-
less of the Source Level setting.

Chapter 51: Down Mixer 283

Pa rt X I : I nst rum e nt Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 5 2 : Click I I

Click II is a metronome plug-in. The Click II

plug-in creates an audible click during session Click I I Cont rols a nd Displa ys
playback that you can use as a tempo reference Click II provides displays for the session Meter and
when performing and recording. The Click II Tempo settings (which can be set manually in the
plug-in receives its tempo and meter data from the Transport window or can follow the conductor rul-
Pro Tools application, letting it follow any changes ers for Meter and Tempo in the session Timeline).
in tempo and meter in a session. The Click II
plug-in is a Native mono-only plug-in. Several
click sound presets are included.
Be at Displa y
The Beat display shows the number of beats in a
Click II supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
bar as determined by the Meter for the session. If
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
the session contains meter changes, the Beat dis-
play shows the number of beats in a bar for the Me-
ter at the current location of the Playback Cursor.

Follow M e t e r
When the Follow Meter option is enabled (high-
lighted), Click II follows the Meter track for the
session. If this option is disabled (un-highlighted),
you can set the rhythmic values for Click 1 and
Click 2 independently of the Meter track.
Click II
To enable (or disable) the Follow Meter option:

 Click the Follow Meter toggle below the Beat

Click II does not sound if the Click option is
disabled (Options > Click) or if the Click
display.
track has been muted.
BPM Displa y
The BPM display shows the current tempo in the
session. If Tempo is set manually, with the Con-
ductor track disabled, the tempo as set in the Trans-
port window is displayed. If the Conductor track is
enabled, the Tempo at the current location of the
Playback Cursor is displayed.

Chapter 52: Click II 285

ON But t on a nd M I DI I N LED Click Be at Va lue

Click the ON button to manually turn the Click on If the Follow Meter option is disabled, you can
or off. It is on when it is lit. Just below the ON but- manually set the rhythmic value for the downbeat
ton is an LED that illuminates each time the Click click. If the Follow Meter option is enabled, the
plug-in receives a click message from the Pro Tools Click Beat Value options grayed out.
application, indicating the click tempo.
To set the Click Beat Value independently of the
Meter track:
Click 1
1 Ensure that the Follow Meter option is disabled.
The Click 1 section provides controls for the down-
beat click. 2 Click to select a rhythmic value for the down-
beat click (whole, half, quarter, eighth, or six-
Ac c e nt Fade r teenth note).
3 Click to select (or deselect) the triplet or dot
The Accent fader lets you set the relative strength
modifier for the beat value.
of the accent (output MIDI velocity) for the down-
beat click. The Click Beat Value options can be auto-
mated to support the appropriate accent pat-
Click Sound Se le c t or terns for different meters for the click.
You can choose from several click sound options
using the Click Sound selector. Click 2
The Click 2 section provides the same controls as
the Click 1 section, but for all beats other than the
downbeat.

Chapter 52: Click II 286

Cre at ing a Click Tra ck
To create a click track with the Click II plug-in:
1 Ensure that the Options > Click is enabled.
2 Choose Track > Create Click Track.

Pro Tools creates a new Auxiliary Input track

named “Click” with the Click II plug-in already in-
serted. In the Edit window, the track’s Track
Height is set to Mini.

To manually create a click track with the Click

plug-in:
1 Select Options > Click to enable the Click option
(or enable the Metronome button in the Trans- Click Options dialog
port).
5 Begin playback. A click is generated according
2 Create new a mono Auxiliary Input track and in- to the tempo and meter of the current session and
sert the Click II plug-in. the settings in the Click/Countoff Options dia-
log.
3 Select a click sound preset.
4 Choose Setup > Click/Countoff and set the Click See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more
and Countoff options. information on configuring Click options.

The Note, Velocity, Duration, and Output

options in this dialog are for use with MIDI
instrument-based clicks and do not affect
the Click II plug-in.

Chapter 52: Click II 287

Cha pt e r 5 3 : Re Wire

Pro Tools supports ReWire version 2.0 technology Once the outputs of your software synthesizers and
developed by Propellerheads Software. ReWire is samplers are routed to Pro Tools, you can:
available in Pro Tools using the ReWire Native • Process incoming audio signals with plug-ins
plug-in.
• Automate volume, pan, and plug-in
ReWire provides real-time audio and MIDI controls
streaming between applications, with sample-accu- • Bounce To Disk
rate synchronization and common transport func-
tionality. • Take advantage of the audio outputs of your
Pro Tools audio interfaces

Pro Tools does not support sending audio to

ReWire client applications.

Not all ReWire client applications support

automatic launch from a ReWire-mixer ap-
plication. For these applications, launch the
ReWire ReWire client app separately, and then select
Using ReWire, Pro Tools can send and receive it as a plug-in insert in Pro Tools.
MIDI to and from a ReWire client application, such
as a software synthesizer, and receive audio back Exchange of additional metadata such
from the ReWire client. Pro Tools applies MIDI as controller and note names between
time stamping to all incoming MIDI. Pro Tools and ReWire clients is not sup-
ported.
Compatible ReWire client applications are auto-
matically detected by Pro Tools and are available
in the Plug-Ins (Native) Insert menus in Pro Tools.
Selecting a ReWire client application within
Pro Tools automatically launches that application
(if the client application supports this feature). Any
corresponding MIDI nodes for that application are
available in any Instrument track’s MIDI Output
selector (Instrument view) and any MIDI track’s
Output selector.

Chapter 53: ReWire 288

 MIDI from Pro Tools to ReWire client (Reason)

Audio from ReWire client (Reason) to Pro Tools

MIDI from ReWire client (Reason) to Pro Tools

Audio and MIDI signal flow between Pro Tools and a ReWire client application (Reason shown)

Chapter 53: ReWire 289

 Using ReWire at higher sample rates will increase
Re Wire Re quire m e nt s the load on the CPU. For example, CPU load at
To use the ReWire plug-in, you will need: 96 kHz is double the load at 48 kHz. You can mon-
itor Pro Tools CPU usage in the System Usage
• An Avid-qualified Pro Tools system
window, making sure to not overtax your system.
• 64-bit ReWire-compatible client software (such
as Reason from Propellerheads Software) With Pro Tools HD, the standard Hardware
Buffer size of 512 samples is recommended
Client software must support the same sample for using ReWire in sessions with sample
rate as the session using ReWire. For example, rates above 48 kHz.
third-party client software that does not sup-
port sample rates above 48 kHz cannot be used Track Count with Pro Tools Host-based
in a 96 kHz Pro Tools session. Systems

With Pro Tools host-based systems, performance is

ReWire support is also under development for
determined by several factors, including host CPU
other third-party companies. For availability, check
speed, available memory, and buffer settings. Avid
with the manufacturer or visit the Avid website
cannot guarantee 64 simultaneous audio channel
(www.avid.com).
outputs with ReWire on all computer configura-
Track Count with Pro Tools HD tions.

With Pro Tools HD, the ReWire plug-in can be in- For the latest information on recommended CPUs
serted on any kind of track. Each channel of audio and system configurations, visit the Avid website
transmitted through ReWire then uses the same (www.avid.com).
amount of resources as the audio track on which it
is inserted.

Consequently, you can only use a total combination

of audio track channels and ReWire audio streams
that does not exceed the maximum number of pos-
sible voices for your system. For example, if you
are playing 96 stereo audio tracks in a 48 kHz/24-
bit session on a system that supports 256 voices at
that sample rate, another 64 channels of audio will
be available for use with ReWire. However, note
that ReWire only supports a maximum of 64 audio
streams per host application.

Chapter 53: ReWire 290

U sing Re Wire
The ReWire plug-in is installed when you install
Pro Tools. All inter-application communications
between Pro Tools and ReWire client software is
handled automatically.

To use a ReWire client application with Pro Tools:

1 In Pro Tools, choose Track > New and specify
one Instrument track (or audio or Auxiliary In-
put track), and click Create.
2 In the Mix window, click the Insert selector on
the track and assign the ReWire client plug-in to
the track insert.

The ReWire client application launches automati-

cally in the background (if the client applications
supports auto-launch).

If the client application does not support

auto-launch, launch it manually. Some Re-
Wire client applications may need to be
launched and configured before launching
Pro Tools (such as Cycling 74 Max/MSP).
Others may need to be launched after
Pro Tools is launched (such as Ableton Live).
For more information, refer to the manufac-
turer’s documentation for your ReWire client Selecting the audio output from a ReWire client
application.

3 Configure the ReWire client application to play

the sounds you want.
4 In Pro Tools, set the output of the client applica-
tion in the ReWire plug-in window. This is the
audio output of the ReWire client to Pro Tools.

Chapter 53: ReWire 291

5 In the Mix window, click the track’s MIDI Out-
put selector a and select the ReWire client appli- M I DI Aut om at ion w it h Re Wire
cation. Some ReWire clients (such as Reason) You can use Pro Tools MIDI tracks to record MIDI
may list multiple devices. If so, choose the de- continuous controller (CC) data from a ReWire cli-
vice that you want. ent application, and then play back MIDI from
Pro Tools to send the recorded MIDI CC data back
to the ReWire client application. In this way, you
can adjust controls in the ReWire client application
(using the mouse or an external MIDI controller)
and record those changes in Pro Tools.

Re c ording M I DI Cont inuous

Cont rolle r Dat a Ove r Re Wire
Selecting the ReWire client device to receive MIDI The first step in automating a ReWire client appli-
from Pro Tools (Instrument track shown)
cation’s controls is to record the CC data to a MIDI
6 Choose Options > MIDI Thru and record enable track in Pro Tools.
the MIDI track. Play some notes on your MIDI
controller to trigger the client application. The
selected ReWire device responds to MIDI sent
from Pro Tools and plays back audio through the
assigned Pro Tools track (Instrument, Auxiliary
Input, or audio track).

If your ReWire client application is a sequencer

and you want to begin synchronized playback with
Pro Tools, press the Spacebar or click the Play but-
ton on the Pro Tools Transport.

Chapter 53: ReWire 292

To record MIDI from a ReWire client application in
Pro Tools:

1 In Pro Tools, create a new MIDI track.

2 From the track’s MIDI Input selector, select the
ReWire device that you want to record.

Adjusting a control in a ReWire client application

(Reason’s SubTractor shown)

If your external MIDI controller is correctly

mapped to the corresponding ReWire client
application’s controls, and it is correctly
routed through Pro Tools, use your MIDI
controller to adjust the parameter you want
to record.

7 When you are done adjusting the control, return

to Pro Tools and stop recording.
Selecting the ReWire client device to record MIDI CC
data in Pro Tools 8 Record disable the MIDI track.
9 From the MIDI Track View selector in the Edit
You must select the ReWire device from window, select the view for the CC data you just
which you want to record MIDI controller recorded.
data. Leaving the track’s MIDI Input set to
All does not record any MIDI data over
ReWire.

3 Record enable the MIDI track.

MIDI CC data recorded from a ReWire client
4 Start recording in Pro Tools. application
5 Switch to the ReWire client application.
6 Adjust the control for which you want to record
MIDI CC data. Control changes are recorded to
the Pro Tools MIDI track as CC data.

Chapter 53: ReWire 293

Pla ying Ba ck M I DI Cont inuous
Cont rolle r Dat a Ove r Re Wire Se ssion Te m po a nd M e t e r
Cha nge s a nd Re Wire
Once you have recorded MIDI CC data from the
ReWire client application to a MIDI track, config- Pro Tools transmits both Tempo and Meter data to
ure the MIDI track to play the ReWire client appli- ReWire client applications, allowing ReWire-com-
cation. You can also edit the MIDI CC data in patible sequencers to follow any tempo and meter
Pro Tools until you achieve the best results. changes in a Pro Tools session.

With the Pro Tools Conductor button selected,

To play back MIDI CC data over ReWire:
Pro Tools always acts as the Tempo master, using
1 From the MIDI track’s MIDI Output selector, the tempo map defined in its Tempo Ruler.
select the ReWire client application device you
want to control (the same device from which With the Pro Tools Conductor button deselected,
you recorded the MIDI CC data). the ReWire client acts as the Tempo master. In both
cases, playback can be started or stopped in either
2 Start playback in Pro Tools.
application.
3 Switch to the ReWire client application. Notice
that the corresponding control changes accord- Pro Tools supports tempo values from
ing to the MIDI CC data from Pro Tools. 30–300 bpm. When slaved to a ReWire client
application, Pro Tools playback will be re-
stricted to this range even if the client appli-
cation’s tempo is outside this range. Addi-
Quit t ing Re Wire Clie nt tionally, some ReWire client applications
Applic at ions (such as Reason) may misinterpret Pro Tools
When quitting Pro Tools sessions that integrate Re- meter changes, resulting in mismatched lo-
Wire client applications, quit the client application cate points and other unexpected behavior.
first, then quit Pro Tools. To prevent this, avoid using meter changes in
Pro Tools when using Reason as a ReWire
If you quit Pro Tools before quitting ReWire client.
client applications, a warning dialog may ap-
pear stating that “one or more ReWire appli-
cations did not terminate.” To avoid this, quit
all ReWire client applications before quitting
Pro Tools.

Chapter 53: ReWire 294

Looping Pla yba ck w it h Aut om at ing I nput Sw it ching
Re Wire w it h Re Wire
Because Pro Tools does not offer separate loop ReWire supports automation for switching inputs
markers as found in other third-party applications during playback.
such as Reason, if you want to loop playback, do
one of the following: To automate switching inputs during playback:
1 Set the track’s automation to write.
To loop playback in Pro Tools:
2 Do one of the following:
1 In the Pro Tools Timeline, select the time range
that you want to loop. • Change the input link pop-up menu
manually.
2 Begin playback by pressing the Spacebar or
clicking the Play button in the Transport. • Draw the automation in the Edit window.

For information on drawing automation, see

To loop playback within a ReWire client sequencer
the Pro Tools Reference Guide.
 With playback stopped, specify the loop within
the ReWire client application and begin play-
back.

If you create a playback loop by making a se-

lection in the Pro Tools Timeline, once play-
back is started, any changes made to loop or
playback markers within the ReWire client
application will deselect the Pro Tools Time-
line selection and remove the loop.

Chapter 53: ReWire 295

Pa rt X I I : Ot he r Plug-I ns
Cha pt e r 5 4 : I nTune

InTune is a professional instrument tuner plug-in When InTune detects an audio signal from the
that is available in DSP and Native formats. It of- track, the meter lights up and displays the relative
fers the features and performance of a rack pitch of the incoming signal. With stringed instru-
mounted digital tuner in the convenience of a plug- ments, this will vary during the attack and decay of
in. InTune provides accurate and rapid tuning for a the note.
wide range of musical instruments, saving valuable
studio time and adding a level of unprecedented By default, InTune loads the Chromatic tuner pre-
convenience for musicians and audio engineers. set. This displays all notes in the scale and automat-
ically displays the required octave.
To use InTune with Pro Tools, simply create a new
mono audio or Auxiliary Input track in Pro Tools, InTune provides a number of factory presets for
and select InTune from the plug-in menu for that stringed instruments in alternate tunings. Each fac-
track. tory preset is programmed with the specific notes
for each string of the instrument in order to speed
the tuning process, as well as making it easier for
engineers to generate test tones for musicians to
tune with.

InTune

Chapter 54: InTune 297

 I nTune Te st Tone M e nu Se le c t or
I nTune Cont rols a nd Displa ys
InTune will generate both sine wave and triangle
I nTune Aut o But t on wave test tones as shown in the tone menu. The
“Audible” tuning tone modulates the input signal
Click the Auto button to toggle Automatic Mode on against the reference tone.
and off. When Automatic mode is active, InTune
will detect the note played and automatically show To hear a test tone:
the pitch for that note. 1 Select Sine, Triangle, or Audible from the Test
Tone selector.
To enable Automatic mode:

 Click the Auto button to enable Automatic

mode. The Auto button highlights.

To tune to a single note and turn off Automatic

mode:

 Click the button for a note.

Selecting a test tone

2 Click the Note button for a note.

3 Adjust the Tone Volume slider.

When a test tone is playing, “Tone Playing”

appears in the information display.

I nTune Edit But t on

Clicking the Edit button displays the Tuner Pro-
Selecting a note gramming screen, where you can create custom-
This turns off automatic mode. InTune will now ized tuning presets that display note selections for
display pitch relative to the selected note only. specific instruments and tunings. See “Creating In-
Tune Tuning Presets” on page 300.

Chapter 54: InTune 298

I nTune M e t e r Se le c t or I nTune Re fe re nc e Fre que ncy
Cont rol
The Meter selector lets you use a standard
needle style meter or a strobe style display.

To select the Meter display:

 Select Needle or Strobe from the Meter

selector. InTune, Reference Frequency

You can adjust the tuning reference frequency us-

ing the arrows inside the information display. By
default, reference frequency is A=440 Hertz.

I nTune N ot e But t ons

Selecting Meter display The Note buttons provide two functions:

Strobe Display
• When in automatic mode, clicking on a note but-
ton will turn off automatic mode and InTune will
now display pitch relative to the selected note
only.
• When a tone is selected in the test tone menu,
clicking on a note button will play a test tone for
that note. Click the note button again to turn off
the test tone.
InTune, Strobe display
The number of note buttons will depend on the pre-
The Strobe display scrolls to the left when the tuned
set selected. The default chromatic preset will dis-
note is flat, and to the right when the tuned note is
play all twelve notes. A preset for a six string guitar
sharp. When the tuned note is close to the target
will only display six notes.
note, the strobe slows to a stop. The information
display shows the exact number of cents sharp or
Octave Buttons
flat from the target note.

Down Octave button Up Octave button

Octave buttons

The octave range of 0–8 displayed in InTune is

based on middle C being equal to C4. In chromatic
presets, you can select a tuning octave from 0–8 us-
ing the arrows at each end of the note display.

Chapter 54: InTune 299

I nTune Tone Volum e
For more information on using plug-in
The Tone Volume slider controls the volume of the presets in Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools
test tone audio signal. Reference Guide.

I nTune I nfor m at ion Displa y Cre at ing I nTune Tuning Pre se t s

The LCD style information display in InTune dis- InTune lets you create customized tuning presets
plays the following: that display note selections for specific instruments
and tunings. Once created, these tuning presets can
• The reference frequency
be saved as part of a standard Pro Tools plug-in
• The current note to which InTune is tuning preset.
• The number of cents sharp or flat from the cur-
From the main InTune screen, click the Edit button
rent note
to display the Tuner Programming screen.
• The status of any test tones playing

I nTune Pre se t s
InTune provides a selection of factory presets for
stringed instruments. These presets can be selected
from the Plug-In Librarian menu.

Tuner Programming

Chromatic Mode

When selected, Chromatic Mode overrides any cus-

tom note selections and displays a 12-note chro-
matic scale. The note entry fields are disabled when
Chromatic Mode is selected.

Selecting a InTune preset Single Octave Mode

To make any preset the default when InTune is When selected, Single Octave Mode disables the
instantiated: display of octave information with each note on the
1 From the Plug-In Librarian menu, select a main InTune screen. When tuning in this mode, In-
preset. Tune ignores the octave of the note being tuned.
The octave information entered in the Edit screen is
2 From the Plug-In Settings menu, select Set As used only for generating test tones.
User Default.

3 From the Plug-In Settings menu, select Settings

Preferences > Set Plug-In Default To > User Set-
ting.

Chapter 54: InTune 300

Single Octave Mode is typically used for instru- Exit
ments which generate harmonics in multiple oc-
In the Tuner Programming screen, click the Exit
taves, such as bass guitars. Because of the low fre-
button to return to the main InTune screen.
quency waveform generated by a bass guitar, it is
easier for InTune to tune to a higher harmonic of
the note instead.
U sing I nTune
Display Flat Semitones
When InTune detects a signal, the meter lights up
InTune will display all semitones entered into note and displays the relative pitch of the incoming sig-
fields as sharp by default. For example, a guitar nal. With stringed instruments, this will vary
tuned to E-flat is usually represented by the follow- during the attack and decay of the note.
ing.
In Automatic mode, InTune estimates the note to
Eb2, Ab2, Db3, Gb3, Bb3, Eb4 which you are trying to tune. If the correct note is
not lit in automatic mode, click on the note to which
By default, if these notes are entered in the Edit you are trying to tune for greater accuracy. This
screen, InTune will display these same notes in the will lock InTune to the specified note.
following way.
The meter will display the frequency of the note de-
D#2, G#2, C#3, F#3, A#3, D#4 tected, and the accuracy is displayed on a scale of
plus/minus 50 cents. In addition, the information
The Display Flat Semitones option overrides the
display will display the note and the number of
default behavior and displays semitones as flats,
cents from perfect tuning.
not sharps. It is not possible to display both sharp
and flat semitones in the same tuning When loading factory presets, stringed instruments
preset. are laid out from the highest numbered string (usu-
ally the lowest tone) to the highest, from left to
Note Entry Fields
right. For example, a six string guitar in standard
The twelve note entry fields allow entry of individ- tuning is shown as E2, A2, D3, G3, B3, E4, which
ual notes from A0 to G7. Flat semitones are entered are the notes and octaves for the sixth string
with a “b” (for example, Ab2), and sharp semitones through to the first string respectively.
are entered with a hash or pound character (for ex-
ample, A#2). To clear an entry, enter “– –.”

Note fields are committed by pressing Return

(Macintosh) or Enter (Windows). If you do not
press Return or Enter, the note field will return to
the previous value entered. InTune will automati-
cally justify the note buttons as needed so they fit in
the correct area on the main screen.

The Note Entry fields are not available in

Chromatic mode.

Chapter 54: InTune 301

For best tuning results with guitars, do the
following:
• Use headphones, as loud monitors can modulate
the guitar string.
• Switch your guitar to its rhythm (neck) pickup, if
it has one.
• Roll your guitar’s tone knobs all the way off to
remove all the highs.
• Pluck the open string right over the twelfth fret,
not over the pickup.

To produce convenient test tones, select the appro-

priate preset from the Librarian menu and select an
appropriate test tone from the Test Tone menu.
Click a Note button to produce the appropriate test
tone. Test tones can be routed to headphones as re-
quired for musicians during session.

Chapter 54: InTune 302

Cha pt e r 5 5 : M a st e rM e t e r

MasterMeter is an oversampling meter plug-in that is designed for critical mixing and mastering applica-
tions. MasterMeter is available in DSP and Native formats.

MasterMeter

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 303

 The following four figures show how the same
M a st e rM e t e r Ove r vie w complex waveform shown in the previous figure
This section provides an overview of metering and can be represented in the digital domain.
mastering, and how MasterMeter can help you pro-
duce great sounding mixes.

U nde rst a nding Digit a l Dist ort ion

Clients in the music industry regularly demand the
loudest possible mixes. In the process of achieving
such a “hot mix,” unwanted distortion can be intro- A complex waveform
duced. Intersample peaks that exceed 0 dB may
play without distortion in a studio environment, but
when the same mix is played through a consumer
CD player, the digital to analog conversion and
oversampling process can reproduce a distorted
mix.

Digit a l Audio T he or y
Waveform sampled
A key observation in digital audio theory is that the
entire waveform is represented by the sampling
points, but a reconstruction process still needs to
occur in order to recreate the waveform repre-
sented. One cannot simply “connect the dots” be-
tween sample points and yield the original wave-
form.

Waveform as represented in DAW

Sampling

A waveform can be represented in multiple ways

during the process of sampling, display and recon-
Waveform as reconstructed at the D/A
struction.
The process of recreating the original waveform
from the sampled waveform involves a filter called
a reconstruction filter. This filter removes all con-
tent above the Nyquist frequency (half the sample

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 304

rate). The range below the Nyquist frequency de- Applic at ion
fines the “legal” range of allowed frequencies as
Most contemporary audio recording is done with
frequencies in this range can be accurately repro-
Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), although
duced. All frequencies above the Nyquist fre-
digital mixing systems in the form of outboard dig-
quency do not adhere to Nyquist or Shannon’s the-
ital mixers are also very popular. To the user, these
orems regarding allowable frequencies, cannot be
digital systems appear similar to traditional audio
reproduced and are therefore considered “illegal”
tools and are designed order to emulate the opera-
frequencies. Because of mathematical realities ob-
tion of a conventional analog recording system.
served by Fourier in the 1800s and subsequently by
Shannon in 1948, when a waveform has all fre- One familiar analog tool that has been carried over
quencies removed above the Nyquist frequency, to the digital realm is a “peak meter” that tells the
the resulting waveform will be the original wave- amplitude of the waveform’s peaks. In the analog
form that was sampled. realm, peak signal was an indicator that would alert
the audio engineer when the peak signal level was
This process is significantly more involved than
getting too high. A peak signal in analog recording
simply “connecting the dots” between sample
would cause the tape to saturate, creating distor-
points. Today it involves extremely sophisticated
tion. In an analog system however, this type of dis-
means of reconstructing the waveform, using filters
tortion was often deliberately engineered into
that are highly complex mathematical systems uti-
tracks in order to achieve a certain sound.
lizing “oversampling,” “upsampling,” “linear
phase, equiripple FIR” designs and much more. In the digital realm this type of meter is important
and more vital, because if the amplitude of a wave-
Oversampling creates a more accurate digital rep-
form exceeds the top of the measurable scale (full
resentation of an analog signal by sampling some
scale, or “full code”), the signal will “clip” causing
number of times per second (frequency) and con-
unwanted and unpleasant distortion rather than the
verting into digital form. Oversampling requires at
traditional distorted sound of analog. This digital
least twice the bandwidth of the frequency being
clipping occurs because the waveform is “lopped
sampled. For example, a consumer CD player us-
off” and the data is changed. When the waveform is
ing 2x oversampling is processing information at
reconstructed it cannot be accurately done in order
88.2 kHz.
to represent the original waveform. Instead, it has a
The result is that today’s digital to analog convert- significant amount of inharmonic distortion caused
ers get closer to the original than ever before, mak- by aliasing. For this reason, digital recording has a
ing music played on systems today as accurate as maximum level at which signals can be recorded.
possible. Even today’s inexpensive components Anything exceeding this level (full scale) has unde-
such as off-the-shelf CD players have drastically sirable consequences.
improved filters and thus better reconstruction abil-
The method used for computing the peak value in-
ities than in years past.
side the system however is not particularly accu-
rate. DAW systems typically take the amplitude of
the samples and use these as the basis for the peak
meter. The problem with this approach is easily
identified: the samples themselves do not represent
the peak value of the waveform. The waveform is
only complete after the reconstruction process. Un-
Chapter 55: MasterMeter 305
til this process has been completed, the waveform The problem is realized in that while going through
is inaccurately represented by the samples. This is these digital gyrations and utilizing digital tools to
the reason that in most DAWs the waveform is rep- amplify the signal as much as possible, both during
resented on the screen as a “dot to dot” connection mixing and during mastering, the “peak value” of
between sample points. They do not undergo the the sample points is closely watched to ensure that
reconstruction process inside the system, so all that it does not get to full scale. Since the peak meters in
can be represented is the sample points and for the said DAW and digital mixing systems are inaccu-
sake of visual ease, they connect the dots between rate, and do not actually indicate the peak values of
them with straight lines. They save the reconstruc- the resulting waveform, the result is that while the
tion process for the digital to analog converters. samples themselves do not exceed full scale and are
carefully monitored to ensure this, the resulting
waveforms represented by the samples may exceed
full scale throughout any standard CD!

While the digital mixing system is not clipping the

music or distorting the music, the digital to analog
converters that have the task of recreating the audio
through digital reconstruction filters are clipping
Intersample peaks repeatedly throughout most CDs on the market.
The result is that most CDs and DVDs end up dis-
The consequence of the way in which DAWs treat torting with regularity when they are asked to re-
waveforms is that the meter inside the DAW or construct and play back audio that appears to be
other digital mixers inevitably shows inaccurate in- completely “legal” because not a single sample ac-
formation. It is virtually a mathematical certainty tually clipped.
that the waveform will exceed the amplitude of the
samples in any sampling system. The samples
themselves only represent a waveform. It is import-
ant to understand that the amplitude of the wave-
form will invariably exceed the sample values.

M a nife st at ion
Today’s recording environment demands that ses- D/A converter range
sions are mixed and mastered as “hot” as is possi-
ble, pushing the levels up to the highest tolerable
amount, supposedly just short of clipping. Sophis-
ticated digital tools allow music to be highly com-
pressed, then recompressed, compressed even
more so with multi-band compressors, limited, nor-
malized, and maximized to get the audio to play as
loud as possible out of a consumer’s system.
Hence, it is very common for popular music CDs to
be full of digital samples that are at, or nearly at full
scale.

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 306

Seven consumer CD players were subjected to tests
[Nielsen 2003] designed to analyze their ability to U sing M a st e rM e t e r
reproduce and reconstruct signal levels above full MasterMeter uses the DSP power of Pro Tools to
scale (0 dBFS). All of the players experienced dif- model the conversion process found in typical con-
ficultly dealing with signal levels this high, further sumer devices. In technical terms, the MasterMeter
showing that, while all of the samples can be legal, algorithm uses a 31-tap Blackman-Harris win-
the level can still be hotter than is legal. The result dowed sync conversion with oversampling ratios
is that a CD player can be unable to reproduce the from 2x to 8x depending on the session sample rate.
audio accurately. In some cases, the reconstruction The output of this DSP algorithm is then displayed
sounds “perfect” to the mastering engineer, be- visually. This assists engineers in highlighting po-
cause the engineer’s equipment can actually repro- tential distortion which may be introduced on play-
duce the waveforms properly. back of mixes, especially mixes which have been
processed to be particularly loud or “hot.”
The Red Book format for CDs and the DVD specs
both allow for this illegal content and the mastering MasterMeter can be used in two different ways
engineer is still allowed to put out releases that during a session: Real-Time Metering or Historical
meet the spec while allowing consumers’ players to Metering.
distort. With an oversampled peak meter, the engi-
neer will be able to know that the music is clipping, Real-Time Metering
by how much and where. With this knowledge the
engineer can then decide with complete informa- MasterMeter can be used to monitor live signal lev-
tion whether or not to accommodate the legal range els, even if the Pro Tools transport is stopped. This
of digital audio on a PCM sampled system. can be useful in quickly determining the appropri-
ate level for mixing and mastering.
The goal of MasterMeter is to allow an engineer to
use a DSP model of the reconstruction process to When used in real time, the timecode information
monitor the reconstructed waveform for potential displayed in the browsers should be ignored.
clipping at the final mix and mastering stages. Us-
Historical Metering
ing MasterMeter, engineers can compare regular
and intersample peaks over time and make appro- To gain an overall picture of the levels in an entire
priate adjustments without sacrificing overall level session, MasterMeter can be inserted on a Master
or dynamic range. Utilizing an oversampled peak Fader track and the entire session played from be-
meter in the digital audio studio that represents the ginning to end. This is typically done during final
reconstruction filters in digital to analog converters mix and mastering.
is the first step toward an improvement in audio
quality in music releases. When session playback is complete, MasterMeter
shows historical peak and event information for the
entire session, as well as a historical list of events in
the browsers for both signal clips and oversampled
clips. You can then manually examine the relevant
parts of the session using the timecode listed in the
browsers to determine any appropriate corrective
actions.

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 307

 active and the Peak field continues to be updated,
M a st e rM e t e r Cont rols a nd new events will not be added to the browsers. The
Displa ys Events field flashes “2000” to indicate this condi-
tion.
M a st e rM e t e r Brow se rs
The information in this browser is cleared using the
Signal Clip Events Browser Clear button, or is cleared automatically whenever
the Pro Tools transport is started.

Oversampled Clip Events Browser

Signal Clip Events browser

The Signal Clip Events browser displays historical

clip events from the current session. The columns Oversampled Clip Events browser
displayed show the relevant timecode for the be-
ginning and ending of a clip event. When used in a The Oversampled Clip Events browser displays
stereo track, the first column shows L or R to indi- historical clip events from the DSP oversampling
cate if the left or right channel has clipped. The Min of the session audio. The amount of potential clip-
and Max values in this browser will always be zero, ping in excess of 0 dB is also displayed.
unless the Clip level is set below zero. The contents
The columns displayed show the relevant timecode
of this browser can be sorted in ascending and de-
for the beginning and ending of a clip event, as well
scending order by any column simply by clicking
as the minimum and maximum clip values created
on a column one or more times.
after passing through the DSP processing. When
The time information displayed in this browser is used in a stereo track, the first column shows L or R
relative to where the transport started. The Offset to indicate if the left or right channel has clipped.
field can be used to adjust the timecode values if The contents of this browser can be sorted in as-
MasterMeter is being used for historical metering cending and descending order by any column sim-
but the session was started from a point other than ply by clicking on a column one or more times.
the beginning. If MasterMeter is being used in real
The time information displayed in this browser is
time, the timecode information in this browser can
relative to where the transport started. The Offset
be ignored.
field can be used to adjust the timecode values if
At the bottom of the browser, the Peak field dis- MasterMeter is being used for historical metering
plays the highest dB value of the audio signal re- but the session was started from a point other than
ceived so far. The Events field shows the historical the beginning. If MasterMeter is being used in real
total of clip events in the audio signal. Once Mas- time, the timecode information in this column can
terMeter reaches 2,000 clip events, it ceases to re- be ignored.
cord additional events. Although the meters remain

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 308

At the bottom of the browser, the Peak field dis- M a st e rM e t e r Cle a r But t on
plays the highest dB value of the oversampled au-
The Clear button clears all of the historical infor-
dio received so far. The Events field shows the his-
mation displayed in Signal Clip Events browser
torical total of clip events in the oversampled audio
and the Oversampled Clip Events browser. It also
signal. Once MasterMeter reaches 2000 clip
click the clip lights at the top of the Signal Level
events, it ceases to record additional events. Al-
and Oversampled Level meters. This information is
though the meters remain active and the Peak field
also cleared when the Pro Tools transport is acti-
continues to be updated, new events will not be
vated by pressing Play or Record.
added to the browsers. The Events field flashes
‘2000’ to indicate this condition.
M a st e rM e t e r Ex port But t on
The Oversampling field displays the current over-
sampling factor in use by the DSP processing. This The Export button exports all of the information
will vary between 2x, 4x and 8x oversampling de- displayed in the two browsers to the clipboard as
pending on the session sample rate. tab delimited text. It can then be pasted into any
text or spreadsheet application.
The information in this browser is cleared using the
Clear button, or is cleared automatically whenever
M a st e rM e t e r V ie w T im e M e nu
the Pro Tools transport is started.
The View Time menu lets you select the way in
which timing information is displayed, in either
M a st e rM e t e r M e t e rs
minutes and seconds format, or in samples format.
Signal Level Meters This affects the timecode display in both the data
browsers and the Offset field.
The Signal Level meter shows the instantaneous
signal level of the current audio signal. The clip
light at the top of the meter can be cleared by click-
ing on it, or by using the Clear button.

Oversampled Level Meter

The Oversampled Level meter shows the instanta-

neous signal level of the current audio signal after it
has been oversampled. As the oversampling pro-
cess can create levels above 0 dB, this meter shows
an expanded scale from –6 dB to 0 dB and from
0 dB to +6 dB.

The clip light at the top of the meter can be cleared

by clicking on it, or using the Clear
button.

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 309

M a st e rM e t e r Offse t Fie ld
The Offset field offsets the values displayed in both
the browsers by the value entered. This is useful for
historical metering but the session was started from
a point other than the beginning. The Enter key
must be used after a new offset is typed for it to be-
come active. The information shown in the brows-
ers is updated immediately when the new Offset is
entered.

For example, if the session was started from the

point 1:03.901 (1 minute 3.901 seconds), this value
should be entered into the Offset to ensure the time-
code displayed in both of the browsers matches that
of the Pro Tools session.

M a st e rM e t e r Clip Fie ld
The Clip field can be used to set the clip threshold
at a lower point. For example, if a session must not
exceed –10 dB, the Clip field can be set to –10 dB
and MasterMeter will treat that as the clip threshold
for both signal and oversampled clip events. When
the Clip field is set to a non-zero value, the Min and
Max values of the Signal Clip browser are used to
indicate the clip range.

Chapter 55: MasterMeter 310

Cha pt e r 5 6 : Signa l Ge ne rat or

The Signal Generator plug-in produces audio test

tones in a variety of frequencies, waveforms, and Signa l Ge ne rat or Cont rols
amplitudes. It is particularly useful for generating The Signal Generator plug-in provides the
reference signals with which to calibrate audio in- following controls:
terfaces and other elements of your studio.
Frequency Sets the frequency of the signal in hertz.
Signal Generator is a mono (or multi-mono) plug- Values range from a low of 20 Hz to a high of
in that is available in DSP, Native, and AudioSuite 20 kHz in a 44.1 kHz session. The upper limit of
formats. the frequency range for this setting will increase to
match the Nyquist frequency (half the sample rate)
Signal Generator supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,
in 96 kHz and 192 kHz sessions (HD-series sys-
88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample
tems only).
rates.
Level Sets the amplitude of the signal in decibels.
Values range from a low of –95 dB to a high of
0.0 dB.

Signal These buttons select the waveform. Choices

are sine, square, sawtooth, triangle, white noise,
and pink noise.
Signal Generator
The Signal Generator plug-in is not
intended for rigorous test purposes; it
Refer to the guide for your audio interface for is a simple level calibration tool.
instructions on using Signal Generator to cal-
ibrate that interface. Peak Generates signal at the maximum possible
level without clipping.

Signal Generator produces a tone as soon as RMS Generates signal at levels consistent with the
it is inserted on a track. To mute the Signal RMS (Root-Mean-Square) value, or the effective
Generator, use the Bypass button. average level of the signal.

Chapter 56: Signal Generator 311

AudioSuit e Proc e ssing w it h
Signa l Ge ne rat or
To create an audio clip using the Signal Generator
plug-in:
1 Make a selection in the Edit window.
2 Choose AudioSuite > Signal Generator.
3 Enter values for the Frequency, Level, and
Signal controls.
4 Click Render in the Signal Generator plug-in.

Select the Create Continuous File option for

greater flexibility in making audio selections
for use with the Signal Generator plug-in.

You can use the AudioSuite Signal Generator

plug-in for musical purposes as well as for
testing purposes. For example, you might
want to add a little color to a kick drum track
by doubling it with a 50 Hz tone, using the
kick track as the key input signal gating the
tone track.

Chapter 56: Signal Generator 312

Cha pt e r 5 7 : SoundRe pla c e r

SoundReplacer is an AudioSuite only plug-in de-

signed to replace audio elements such as drums,
percussion, and sound effects in Pro Tools tracks
with alternate sounds. SoundReplacer can quickly
and intelligently match the timing and dynamics of
original performance material, making it ideal for
both music and audio post production.

SoundReplacer features:
• Sound replacement with phase-accurate peak
alignment
• Intelligent tracking of source audio dynamics for
matching the feel of the original performance SoundReplacer
• Three separate amplitude zones per audio event
for triggering different replacement samples ac-
cording to performance dynamics Audio Re pla c e m e nt
Te chnique s
• Zoomable waveform display for precision
threshold/amplitude zone adjustment Replacing audio elements during the course of a re-
cording session is a fairly common scenario. In mu-
• Crossfading or hard-switching of replacement
sic production it is often done in order to replace or
audio in different amplitude zones for optimum
augment an element that lacks punch. In film or
realism and flexibility
video post-production it is typically done to im-
• Online help prove or vary a specific sound cue or effect.

In the past, engineers and producers had to rely on

sampling audio delay lines or MIDI triggered audio
samplers—methods that had distinct disadvan-
tages. Delay lines, for example, support only a sin-
gle replacement sample, and while they can track
the amplitude of the source events, the replacement
sample itself remains the same at different ampli-
tude levels.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 313

The result is static and unnatural. In addition to
these drawbacks, sample triggers are notoriously SoundRe pla c e r Cont rols
difficult to set up for accurate timing.
SoundRe pla c e r Wave for m
Similarly, with MIDI triggered samplers, MIDI Displa y
timing and event triggering are inconsistent, result-
ing in problems with phase and frequency response The waveform display shows the audio that you
when the original audio is mixed with the triggered have selected for replacement. When you select au-
replacement sounds. dio on the source track, then open Sound-
Replacer, the audio waveform will automatically
The SoundReplacer Solution be displayed here.

SoundReplacer solves these timing problems by

matching the original timing and dynamics of the
source audio while providing three separate ampli-
tude zones per audio event. This lets you trigger
different replacement samples according to perfor-
mance dynamics.
Waveform display with trigger markers shown
Each replacement sample is assigned its own ad-
Once the audio selection is displayed, you can load
justable amplitude zone. Variations in amplitude
replacement samples and adjust their trigger
within the performance determine which sample is
thresholds while viewing the waveform peaks.
triggered at a specific time. For example, you could
Trigger markers then appear in the waveform, indi-
assign a soft snare hit to a low trigger threshold, a
cating the points at which the samples will be trig-
standard snare to a medium trigger threshold, and a
gered.
rim shot snare to trigger only at the highest trigger
threshold. The color of each marker indicates which thresh-
old/replacement sample will be triggered. The blue
Replacement samples that are triggered in rapid
Trigger Envelope shows the waveform slope that
succession or in close proximity to each other will
determines the trigger points. The Zoomer lets you
overlap naturally—avoiding the abrupt sound trun-
increase or decrease waveform magnification here
cation that occurs on many samplers.
to help accurately set trigger thresholds.
In addition to its usefulness in music projects,
If you change the audio selection on the source
SoundReplacer is also an extremely powerful tool
track, SoundReplacer automatically updates the
for sound design and post production. Morphing
waveform display each time you make a new selec-
gun shots, changing door slams, or adding a Dop-
tion or begin playback.
pler effect can now be accomplished in seconds
rather than minutes—with sample-level precision.

Replacement audio events can be written to a new

audio track, or mixed and re-written to the source
audio track. Sample thresholds can be amplitude-
switched between the replacement samples, or am-
plitude crossfaded for seamless transitions.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 314

SoundRe pla c e rTrigge r SoundRe pla c e r Loa d/U nloa d
T hre shold Sound But t ons

Load/Unload Sound

Clicking the Load/Unload Sound icons loads or un-

loads replacement samples for each of the three
trigger threshold amplitude zones. Clicking the
Threshold controls
Floppy Disk icon loads a new sample (or replaces
The color-coded Trigger Threshold sliders set a to- the current sample). Clicking the Trash Can icon
tal of three amplitude zones (one for each replace- unloads the current sample.
ment audio file) for triggering replacement sam-
ples: SoundReplacer lets you choose whether or
not to use sample rate conversion before
• The yellow slider represents amplitude zone 1, loading replacement samples if they are at a
the lowest-level trigger. different sample rate from the session.
• The red slider represents amplitude zone 2, the
middle-level trigger. To audition a replacement sample before loading it
into SoundReplacer, use the Import Audio com-
• The blue slider represents amplitude zone 3, the
mand in Pro Tools. Once you have located and pre-
highest-level trigger.
viewed an audio file, you can then load it into
With a replacement sample loaded, drag the SoundReplacer using the Load/Unload Sound
Threshold slider to set the amplitude level. Color- icons.
coded trigger markers will appear in the Waveform
SoundReplacer does not load clips that are
at points where the source audio signal exceeds the
part of larger audio files. To use a clip as a
threshold set for that amplitude zone. The replace-
replacement sample, you must first save it as
ment sample will be triggered at these points.
an individual audio file.
The color of the Trigger markers correspond to the
matching Threshold slider. This lets you see at a
glance which replacement samples will be trig-
gered and where they will be triggered.

If you zoom the waveform display below a

specific Trigger Threshold slider’s amplitude
zone, the slider will be temporarily unavail-
able. To access the slider again, zoom back
out to an appropriate magnification level.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 315

SoundRe pla c e r Z oom e r SoundRe pla c e r Pe a k Align
When Peak Align is on, SoundReplacer aligns the
peak of the replacement file with the peak of the
source file in a way that best maintains phase co-
herency. When Peak Align is off,
SoundReplacer aligns the beginning of the replace-
ment file with the trigger threshold point.
Zoomer
Depending on the characteristics of your source
The Zoomer increases or decreases magnification and replacement audio files, using Peak Align can
of the waveform data currently visible in the center significantly affect the timing of audio events in the
of the waveform display so that you can more accu- replacement file. It is essential that you choose the
rately set sample trigger thresholds. option most appropriate to the material that you are
• To zoom in on amplitude, click the Up Arrow. replacing.
• To zoom out on amplitude, click the For more information on using Peak
Down Arrow. Align, see “Getting Optimum Results with
• To zoom in on time, click the Right Arrow. SoundReplacer” on page 318.
• To zoom out on time, click the Left Arrow.
SoundRe pla c e r M ix
If you zoom the waveform display below a
Mix adjusts the mix of the replacement audio file
specific Threshold slider’s amplitude zone,
with the original source file. Higher percentage val-
the slider will be temporarily unavailable. To
ues weight the mix toward the replacement audio.
access the slider again, zoom back out to an
Lower percentage values weight the mix toward
appropriate magnification level.
the original source audio.

SoundRe pla c e r Crossfa de The Mix button toggles the Mix control on and off.
When Mix is toggled off, the balance is instantly
When Crossfade is selected, SoundReplacer cross-
set to 100% replacement audio.
fades between replacement audio files in different
amplitude zones. This helps smooth the transition Setting Mix to 50% and clicking Preview lets
between them. you audition source audio and replacement
audio together to check the accuracy of re-
When Crossfade is deselected, SoundReplacer hard
placement triggering timing.
switches between replacement audio files in differ-
ent amplitude zones.

Crossfading is particularly useful for adding a

sense of realism to drum replacement. Crossfading
between a straight snare hit and a rim shot, for ex-
ample, results in a much more “live” feel than sim-
ply hard switching between the two samples.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 316

SoundRe pla c e r Dyna m ic s 3 Click the Load Sound icon (the icon beneath the
yellow slider) to import the replacement sound
Dynamics controls how closely the audio events in
for amplitude zone 1.
the replacement file track the dynamics of the
source file: 4 Locate an audio file and click Open.

 Setting the ratio to 1.00 matches the dynamics of 5 Adjust the amplitude zone slider.
the source file.
6 Repeat steps 3–5 to load replacement sounds
 Increasing the ratio above 1.00 expands the dy- into amplitude zones 2 and 3.
namic range so that softer hits are softer, and louder
hits are louder. This is useful if the source material If you use only a single replacement sample,
lacks variation in its dynamic range. you should still set all three amplitude zones
for optimum results. This will ensure accu-
 Decreasing the ratio below 1.00 compresses the rate triggering. For details, See “Mapping
dynamic range so that there is less variation be- The Same Sample Into Multiple Amplitude
tween loud and soft hits. This is useful if the dy- Zones with SoundReplacer” on page 319.
namics of the source material are too extreme.
7 To align the amplitude peak in the replacement
The Dynamics button provides a quick means of file(s) to threshold trigger markers in the source
toggling on and off the Dynamics control. When audio, enable Peak Align.
Dynamics is toggled off, SoundReplacer will not
track changes in the source audio file’s dynamics. 8 Click Preview to audition the replacement audio.
Audio events in the resulting replacement audio 9 Adjust the Threshold sliders to fine tune audio
file will uniformly be at the amplitude of the re- replacement triggering.
placement samples themselves, with no variation in
dynamics. 10 Adjust the Dynamics slider to fine tune how
SoundReplacer tracks and matches changes in
the source audio’s dynamics.
SoundRe pla c e r Online H e lp
11 Adjust the Mix slider to set the balance between
To use online help, hold the pointer over any
replacement audio and source audio.
control and an explanation will appear.
12 Adjust the AudioSuite File controls. These set-
tings will determine how the file is rendered and
U sing SoundRe pla c e r what effect the rendering will have on the origi-
nal clips.
Following are basic guidelines for using
SoundReplacer effectively. Also see “Getting Op- 13 Render the selected clip by doing one of the fol-
timum Results with SoundReplacer” on page 318. lowing:
• To render the selected clip only in the track in
To use SoundReplacer: which it appears, choose Playlist from the Selec-
1 On the source track, select the audio you want to tion Reference pop-up.
replace. Only selected audio will be replaced. • To render the selected clip in the Audio Clip List
2 Choose SoundReplacer from the AudioSuite only, choose Clip List from the Selection Refer-
menu. ence pop-up.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 317

14 Determine which occurrences of the selected
clip you want to render by doing one of the fol- Ge t t ing Opt im um Re sult s
lowing: w it h SoundRe pla c e r
• To render and update every occurrence of the se- Getting optimum results with SoundReplacer gen-
lected clip throughout your session, enable Use erally means making sure that the audio events in
In Playlist (and also choose Clip List from the Se- the replacement audio file have accurate timing in
lection Reference pop-up). relation to the source audio. The techniques given
here help ensure this.
• If you do not want to update every occurrence of
the selected clip, disable Use In Playlist.
U sing Pe a k Align in
15 If you have selected multiple clips for rendering SoundRe pla c e r
and want to create a new file that connects and
consolidates all of these clips together, choose Proper use of the Peak Align feature can signifi-
Create Continuous File from the File mode pop- cantly improve the results of sound replacement.
up menu. Since turning Peak Align on or off controls how
SoundReplacer aligns the replacement audio with
Because SoundReplacer does not allow the source audio, it will significantly affect the tim-
destructive rendering, the AudioSuite ing of audio events in the replacement file.
Overwrite Files option is not available.
In general:
16 From the Destination Track pop-up, choose the
 Turn on Peak Align if you are replacing drum or
destination for the replacement audio.
percussion sounds whose peak level occurs at the
17 Click Render. initial attack.
 Turn off Peak Align if you are replacing sounds
whose peak level occurs somewhere after the ini-
tial attack. Peak Align should also be turned off if
the sounds you are replacing are not drum or per-
cussion sounds.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 318

To illustrate why Peak Align makes a difference, Imagine that you are replacing a kick drum part. If
look at the following two illustrations. you look at the waveform of a kick drum, you will
often see a “pre-hit” portion of the sound that oc-
curs as soon as the ball of the kick pedal hits the
drum. This is rapidly followed by the denser attack
portion of the sound, where most of sound’s weight
is.

A fast-peaking kick drum

A kick drum with a pre-hit preceding a denser attack

With a sound like this, using a single amplitude

threshold presents a problem because typically, in
pop music, kick drum parts consist of loud accent
A slower-peaking kick drum
hits and softer off-beat hits that are often 6 dB or
The first figure shows a fast-peaking kick drum more lower in level.
whose peak level occurs at its initial attack.
If you use a single amplitude threshold to trigger
The second figure shows a slower-peaking kick the replacement sample, you have to set the thresh-
drum whose peak level occurs after its initial at- old low enough to trigger at the soft hits. The prob-
tack. lem occurs at the loud hits: The threshold is now set
so low that the pre-hit portion of the loud hits can
If you turn on Peak Align and attempt to replace the exceed the threshold—triggering the replacement
fast-peaking kick with the slow-peaking kick (or sample too early. This results in a replacement
vice-versa), SoundReplacer will align their track with faulty timing.
peaks—which occur at different points in the
sound. The audible result would be that the replace-
ment audio file (slow-peaking kick) would trigger
too early.

M a pping T he Sa m e Sa m ple I nt o
M ult iple Am plit ude Z one s w it h
SoundRe pla c e r A single low threshold causes the second, louder kick
to trigger too early, as evidenced by the trigger marker
If you are performing drum replacement and intend at the very start of the waveform.
to use just a single replacement sample, mapping it
into multiple amplitude zones will ensure more ac-
curate triggering. Here is why:

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 319

The best way to avoid this problem is to set multi-
ple threshold zones for the same sample using a U sing t he Audio File s Folde r
higher threshold for the louder hit. Soft hits will for Fre que nt ly U se d
trigger threshold 1 and louder hits will trigger SoundRe pla c e r File s
threshold 2. If you often use the same settings and replacement
sounds in different sessions, Sound-
Replacer provides a convenient way to keep the re-
placement audio files and settings linked together.

When you choose a preset from the Plug-In Librar-

ian menu, SoundReplacer looks for the replace-
ment audio files associated with that preset. Sound-
Using a second, higher threshold for the louder kick will Replacer first looks in the audio file’s original hard
make it trigger properly, as shown by the now properly- disk location (at the time you saved the setting).
aligned trigger marker.
If it is not there, SoundReplacer looks in a folder
To set the precise threshold for louder hits, you
named Audio Files within SoundReplacer’s Root
may need to zoom in carefully to examine the
Plug-In Settings folder (Plug-In Settings/Sound-
waveform for trigger points (indicated by color-
Replacer/Audio Files).
coded trigger markers) and then Command-drag
the Threshold slider for more precise adjustment. If SoundReplacer finds the replacement audio file
there, the Settings file will load with the associated
If there is a great deal of variation in the dynamics
audio.
of the source audio, you may need to use all three
Trigger Thresholds/Amplitude Zones for optimum By always putting replacement audio files in this
results. special folder, you can freely exchange Sound-Re-
placer settings—and the audio files associated with
If only one replacement sample is loaded into
them—with other users.
SoundReplacer and it is loaded into Trigger
threshold/amplitude zone 1 (yellow), Soun- Do not create subfolders within
dReplacer will let you use the red and blue SoundReplacer’s Audio Files folder.
Trigger Threshold sliders to set Amplitude Files located within subfolders are
Zones 2 and 3—without having to load the not recognized.
same sample again.

Chapter 57: SoundReplacer 320

Cha pt e r 5 8 : T im e
Com pre ssion/Ex pa nsion

Time Compression/Expansion is an AudioSuite-

only time-processing plug-in. The Time Compres- T im e Com pre ssion/
sion/Expansion plug-in adjusts the duration of se- Ex pa nsion Cont rols
lected clips, increasing or decreasing their length The Time Compression/Expansion plug-in
without changing pitch. provides the following controls:

Source and Destination The Source fields display

the length of the current selection before process-
ing in each of the listed formats. All fields are al-
ways active; a change made to one value is imme-
diately reflected in the others.

The Destination fields both display and control the

final length of the selection after processing. Enter
the length of the Destination file by double-click-
ing the appropriate field in the Destination column.

Use the Ratio, Crossfade, Min Pitch, and Accuracy

controls to fine-tune the Time Compression/Ex-
pansion process.

Ratio Sets the destination length in relation to the

source length. Moving the slider to the right in-
creases the length of the destination file, while
moving the slider to the left decreases its length.
Time Compression/Expansion plug-in

It is especially useful in audio post production for Crossfade Adjusts the crossfade length in milli-
adjusting audio to specific time or SMPTE dura- seconds, optimizing performance of the Time
tions for synchronization purposes. Time Com- Compression/Expansion according to the type of
pression/Expansion is nondestructive. audio material being processed. (This plug-in
achieves length modification by replicating or sub-
Normalizing a selection before using Time tracting very small portions of audio material and
Compressing/Expansion may produce better very quickly crossfading between these alterations
results. in the waveform of the audio material.)

Chapter 58: Time Compression/Expansion 321

 Crossfade length affects the amount of smoothing Accuracy Prioritizes the processing resources al-
performed on audio material. This prevents audio located to audio quality (Sound) or timing
artifacts such as clicks from occurring. Long cross- (Rhythm). Moving the slider towards “Sound”
fade times may over-smooth a signal and its tran- generally results in better sonic quality and fewer
sients. This may not be desirable on drums and audio artifacts. Moving the slider towards
other material with sharp transients. “Rhythm” puts the emphasis on keeping the tempo
consistent.
Use the Crossfade slider to manually adjust and
optimize crossfade times if necessary. For audio When you are working with audio loops, listen
material with sharper attack transients, use smaller carefully and adjust the Accuracy slider until you
crossfade times. For audio material with softer at- find a setting that keeps timing solid within the
tack transients, use longer crossfade times. clip. If you don’t, start and end times may be pre-
cise, but the beats in rhythmic material may appear
Min Pitch Sets the minimum, or lowest, pitch that to be shuffled if too little priority is given to
will be used in the plug-in’s calculations during the Rhythm.
Time Compression/Expansion process. The con-
trol has a range of 40 Hz to 1000 Hz.

This control should be set lower when processing

bass guitar or audio material with a low frequency
range. Set this control higher when processing
higher frequency range audio material.

322 Audio Plug-Ins Guide

Cha pt e r 5 9 : Trim

Trim is a mono (or multi-mono) plug-in that is

available in DSP and Native formats. Trim Cont rols
The Trim plug-in provides the following
Trim supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz,
controls:
96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates.
Phase Invert Inverts the phase (polarity) of the in-
Use Trim to attenuate an audio signal from –
put signal to change the frequency response charac-
(Infinity) dB to +6 dB or – (Infinity) dB to
teristics between multi-miked sources or to correct
+12 dB. For example, using a multi-mono Trim
for miswired microphone cables.
plug-in on a multi-channel track provides simple,
DSP-efficient muting control over the individual Gain Provides – dB to +6 dB or +12 dB of gain
channels of the track. adjustment, depending whether the Gain toggle is
set to +6 or +12.
This capability is useful, since Track Mute buttons
mute all channels of a multi-channel track and do +6/+12 Gain Toggle Switches the maximum level
not allow muting of individual channels within the of attenuation between – dB to +6 dB and – dB
track. to +12 dB.

Automation data adjusts to reflect the cur-

rent Gain setting. When working with au-
tomation data from an older version of the
Trim plug-in, ensure the Gain setting is set
at +6 dB.

Output Meter Indicates the output level, including

any gain compensation added using the Gain con-
Trim trol.

Mute Mutes the signal output.

Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac)
the Trim selector to open a plug-in window
for each channel of a multi-channel track.

Chapter 59: Trim 323

Cha pt e r 6 0 : Ot he r AudioSuit e Plug-I n U t ilit ie s

The following AudioSuite-only utility plug-ins are

installed when you install Pro Tools: DC Offse t Re m ova l
• DC Offset Removal The DC Offset Removal plug-in removes DC off-
set from audio files. DC offset is a type of audio ar-
• Duplicate
tifact (typically caused by miscalibrated analog-to-
• Gain digital converters) that can cause pops and clicks in
• Invert edited material.
• Normalize To check for DC offset, find a silent section in the
• Reverse audio material. If DC offset is present, a near-verti-
cal fade-in with a constant or steady-state offset
from zero will appear in the waveform. Use the DC
Offset Removal plug-in to remove it.

DC Offset Removal

To remove DC offset from an audio clip:

1 Select the clip with DC offset.

2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > DC Offset
Removal.

3 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.

4 Click Render.

Chapter 60: Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities 324

Duplic at e Ga in
The Duplicate plug-in duplicates the selected audio The Gain plug-in boosts or lowers a selected clip’s
in place. Depending on how its controls are config- amplitude by a specific amount. Use it to smooth
ured, the new clip will appear in either the Clip List out undesired peaks and other dynamic inconsis-
or playlist. You can use this to flatten or consoli- tencies in audio material.
date an entire track consisting of multiple clips into
one continuous audio file that resides in the same
place as the original individual clips.

Duplicate
Gain
The audio is unaffected by Pro Tools volume or
pan automation, or by any real-time plug-ins that Gain Specifies the gain amount. Set this value by
may be in use on the track as inserts. The original manually adjusting the Gain slider, by entering a
audio file clips are merely rewritten in place to a numeric decibel value, or by entering a percentage.
single duplicate file.
Analyze When clicked, displays the peak
The Duplicate plug-in works nondestructively. amplitude value of the current selection.
You cannot choose to overwrite files.
RMS/Peak Toggle Switches the calibration of gain
To duplicate an audio selection: adjustment between Peak or RMS modes. Peak
mode adjusts the gain of the input signal to the
1 Select the audio you want to duplicate.
maximum possible level without clipping. RMS
2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Duplicate. mode adjusts the input signal to a level consistent
with the RMS (Root-Mean-Square) value, or the
3 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.
effective average level of the selected clip.
4 Click Render.
To change the gain of an audio clip:
1 Select the clip whose gain you want to change.
2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Gain.
3 Adjust the Gain slider.
4 Click Preview to audition your changes.
5 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.
6 Click Render.

Chapter 60: Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities 325

I nve r t N orm a lize
The Invert plug-in reverses the polarity of selected The Normalize plug-in optimizes the volume level
audio. Positive sample amplitude values are made of an audio selection. Use it on material recorded
negative, and all negative amplitudes are made pos- with too little amplitude, or on material whose vol-
itive. ume levels are inconsistent (as in a poorly recorded
narration).
This process is useful for altering the phase or po-
larity relationship of tracks. The Invert plug-in is Unlike compression and limiting, which modify
useful during mixing for modifying frequency re- the dynamics of audio material, normalization pre-
sponse between source tracks recorded with multi- serves dynamics by uniformly increasing (or de-
ple microphones. You can also use it to correct au- creasing) amplitude.
dio recorded out of phase with an incorrectly wired
cable. To prevent clipping during sample rate
conversion, Normalize in Peak mode to no
greater than the range between –2 dB to
–0.5 dB. Optimum settings will vary with
your program material and your Conversion
Quality setting (in the Editing tab of the Pref-
erences dialog). Observe caution when nor-
Invert
malizing in RMS mode, as that mode of
To invert the phase an audio clip (or selection): analysis does not account for instantaneous
1 Select the clip whose phase you want to invert. peaks.

2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Invert.

3 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.
4 Click Render.

Normalize

Level

Specifies how close to maximum level (clipping

threshold) the peak level of a selection is boosted.
Set this value by adjusting the Max Peak At slider,
by entering a numeric decibel value below the clip-
ping threshold, or by entering a percentage of the
clipping threshold.

Chapter 60: Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities 326

Channel Mode
Reve rse
When processing a selection that spans across mul-
tiple channels or tracks, the Normalize plug-in has The Reverse plug-in replaces the audio with a re-
two modes of operation: versed version of the selection. This is useful for
creating reverse envelope effects for foley, special
Mono Normalizes each channel independently. effects, or musical effects.
Multi-Input Normalizes program material across all
selected channels together, so that the channels are
processed relative to each other.

Peak/RMS Toggle
Reverse
Switches the calibration of normalizing between
Peak or RMS modes: To reverse an audio clip (or selection):
1 Select the clip you want to reverse.
Peak Normalizes the input signal at the maximum
possible level without clipping. 2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Reverse.
RMS Normalizes the input signal at a level consis- 3 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.
tent with the RMS (Root-Mean-Square) value, or
4 Click Render.
the effective average level of the selected clip.

Normalizing Multiple Clips

When multiple clips are selected, the Normalize

plug-in can search for peaks in two different
modes:

Clip by Clip Searches for the peak level on a clip-

by-clip basis.

Entire Selection Searches for the peak level of all

clips in the selection.

To normalize an audio clip (or selection):

1 Select the audio you want to normalize.

2 Choose AudioSuite > Other > Normalize.
3 Adjust the Level slider.
4 Ensure that Use In Playlist is enabled.
5 Click Render.”

Chapter 60: Other AudioSuite Plug-In Utilities 327

I ndex

Numerics Solo switch 224

1-2 Band EQ (Focusrite D2) 26 SPR switch 224, 226
1-Band EQ (EQ III) 12 Timbre control 223
4-Band EQ (Focusrite D2) 26 Tune control 221
660 (Fairchild Limiter) 75 Tune fader 226
670 (Fairchild Limiter) 77 AutoPan plug-in
6-Band EQ (Focusrite D2) 26 Angle slider 276
7-Band EQ (EQ III) 13 Attack slider 280
Beat Clock trigger 279
Duration selector 279
A ENV 277
AAX (Avid Audio Extension) plug-ins 2
Envelope section 280
AudioSuite
Envelope trigger 279
Input Mode selector 142
LFO 277, 278
Preview 142
LFO triggers 278
processing preferences 142
Link To Tempo option 279
AudioSuite plug-ins
Manual slider 276
DC Offset Removal 324
Manual trigger 279
Duplicate 325
Output meters 275
Gain 325
Output slider 276
Invert 326
Panner section 276
Normalize 326
Panning display 277
Reverse 327
panning examples 280
SoundReplacer 313
Panning Field indicator 277
Time Compression/Expansion 321
Path selectors 277
Aural Exciter plug-in 219
Place slider 276
Ax switch 224
Rate slider 278
Bypass switch 224
Release slider 280
Density switch 223
Side-Chain Input option 281
Drive meter 221
Side-Chain Input selector 280
Drive switch 223
Single trigger 278
gain structure 225
Sound Location indicator 277
Harmonics control 222
Spread slider 277
Level control 221
surround panning 281
Link switch 224
synchronizing tempo 280
LR (Left/Right) switches 225
Tempo controls 279
Mix control 223
Tempo display 280
Null Fill control 222
Threshold slider 280
optimizing 225
Waveform selector 278
Out meter 221
Width slider 276
Peaking control 221

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 328

B D
BF-2A plug-in 37 D2 27
side-chain processing 38 D3 78
BF-3A plug-in 40 DC Offset Removal plug-in 324
side-chain processing 41 Dither plug-in 270, 272
BF76 plug-in 42 bit resolution 270
side-chain processing 43 Noise Shaping 271
Big Bottom Pro plug-in 228 Down Mixer plug-in 282
AutoTrace switch 231 Duplicate plug-in 325
Compression meter 229 flattening a track 325
Drive control 230 D-Verb plug-in 155
Drive meter 229 Algorithm control 156
gain structure 232 Church algorithm 156
In/Out switch 230 clipping indicator 155
Level control 230 Diffusion control 157
Link switch 231 Hall algorithm 156
Mix control 230 Hi Frequency Cut control 157
optimizing 232 input level meters 155
Out meter 229 Low-Pass Filter control 157
Phase switch 231 output level meters 155
Solo switch 231 Size control 156
Tune control 230 dynamics
block diagram 220, 229 BF-2A 37
BF-3A 40
C BF76 42
Channel Strip plug-in 44 Channel Strip 44
bypassing effects modules 49 Dynamics III 59
Compressor/Limiter 51, 52 Fairchild 660 75
Dynamics Graph display 50 Fairchild 670 77
Dynamics section 49 Focusrite D3 78
enabling (or disabling) effects 46 Impact 85
Expander/Gate 51 JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor 89
FX Chain 49 Maxim 91
Gain Reduction meters 47 Pro Compressor 97
Input meters 47 Pro Expander 107
Input Trim 47 Pro Limiter 117
Listen button 46 Purple Audio MC77 125
Phase Invert 47 Smack! 126
Side Chain Dynamics III plug-ins 59
Detection options 54 common controls 59
Filter Frequency control 54 Compressor/Limiter 62
Filter Type options 54 De-Esser III 68
Side Chain Processing Graph display 54 Expander/Gate 65
Source selector 53 side-chain processing 70
Click plug-in 285
Compressor/Limiter (Dynamics III) 62

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 329

E input calibration 238
Eleven Free plug-in 233 HW Buffer 237
Eleven plug-in 233 Input LED 242
advanced applications 256 inserting Eleven 239
Amp Bypass 244 intensity (Tremolo) 245
Amp Type 243 lamp (bypass) 244
navigating 240 LED colors for input calibration 238
amps 246 load 253
controls 244 Manufacturer 239
list of 243 Master 245
AudioSuite 257 Master section 242
Axis (On/Off) 248 mic placement 248
beat clock (see Tempo Sync) 245 Mic Type 247
blending navigating 240
amps and cabinets 252 mics (microphones) 248
and cab resonance 253 on- and off-axis 248
and phase 255 MIDI 240
buffer 237 Learn 241
bypass tempo sync 245
amp only 244 mono / multi-mono 239
cabinet and mic 247 multichannel 239
Cab Type 246 multiple cabinets 252
navigating 240 noise gate 243
Cabinet bypass 247 Output 242
cabinets 246 phase 255, 256
Category 239 polarity (see phase) 255
close mic 248 Presence 245
comb filtering 255 presets 241
combining 252 Previous/Next arrows 240
combo amps 246 pure excess 252
condenser 247 recording 249
cone breakup 247 dry 248
control surfaces and unused controls 240 dry and Eleven simultaneously 250
controls 240 processing pre-recorded tracks 251
CPU Usage 247 Release 242
Depth 245 resonance 253
DSP 257 resources 257
dynamic 247 ribbon 247
flip phase 255 sample rates 239
format (mono or multi-mono) 239 Settings Files 241
Gain 1 244 signal flow 258
Gain 2 244 signal routing and track setups 248
gate 243 single coil 238
Hardware Buffer for Input Calibration 237 Speaker Breakup 247
Harmonic 239 Speed 245
humbucker 238 stacking 252
impedance 236 standby 244
input stereo 239
about guitar amps and levels 235 tap 257
Input (Trim) 242 Tempo Sync 245

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 330

 Threshold 242 controls 80, 83
tips 256 External Key control 80, 84
tracks processed through Eleven 249 Gain Reduction meter 81
Tremolo 245 in/out icon 81, 83
EQ Limit LED 83
Channel Strip 44 Limiter 79
EQ III 12 meters 81
Focusrite D2 26 Ratio control 82
JOEMEEK VC5 Meequalizer 32 RMS detector 79
Pultec EQH-2 34 side-chain processing 84
Pultec EQP-1A 33 Threshold parameter 82
Pultec MEQ-5 34
EQ III plug-in 12 G
1-Band EQ 12 Gain plug-in 325
7-Band EQ 13 guitar amp simulators 233, 267
Frequency Graph display 13, 56
gain (inverting) 13
Expander/Gate (Dynamics III) 65 I
external side-chain processing 84 Impact plug-in 85
Attack 85
clip indicator 87
F compression ratio 87
Fairchild plug-ins External On/Off 86
660 75 gain (make-up) 86
670 77 Gain Reduction meter 86
Focusrite D2 plug-in 26 Input/Output Meter 87
bypassing 28 Key Listen On/Off 86
configurations 26 Make-Up 86
curves 28 meters 86
disabling 28 Ratio 85
enabling 28 Release 86
filter controls 28 side-chain processing 87
High-Mid Peak Filter 29 Threshold 85
High-Pass Filter 29 installing plug-ins 8
High-Shelf Filter 30 internal side-chain processing 84
Input Level parameter 27 InTune plug-in 297
Left Channel button 31 Automatic mode 298
Link button 31 Chromatic mode 300
Low-Mid Peak Filter 29 creating presets 300
Low-Pass Filter 30 Display Flat Semitones option 301
Low-Shelf Filter 29 factory presets 300
meters 27 information display 300
Output Level parameter 27 Meter selector 299
Right Channel button 31 Needle meter 299
Focusrite D3 plug-in 78 note entry fields 301
Attack 82 Note Selection buttons 299
Auto Release button 82 Octave range 299
brick wall limiter 79 reference frequency 299
Compressor 78 Single Octave mode 300
Compressor/Limiter 78 Strobe display 299
Compressor+Limiter 78
Audio Plug-Ins Guide 331
 test tones 298 Maxim plug-in 91
Tone Volume slider 300 Attenuation control 94
tuner 297 Ceiling control 94
Tuner Programming screen 298, 300 controls 93
Invert plug-in 326 Dither control 95
drum limiting 92
J dynamic range of a mix 92
JOEMEEK SC2 Compressor plug-in dynamic range of individual instruments 92
compound release circuit 90 Histogram 91, 93
deadness (avoiding) 90 Input Level control 93
overshoot 90 Limiting 92
Link button 95, 96
Mix control 95
K Noise Shaping control 95
Key Listen parameter 80, 84 Online Help 91
Key On/Off parameter 84 Output control 94
peak levels 91
L Peak limiting 91, 92
limiter quantization noise 95
Dynamics III Compressor/Limiter 62 Release control 94
Fairchild 660 75 signal delay 93
Fairchild 670 77 signal peaks 92
Focusrite D3 78 Threshold control 94, 96
Lo-Fi plug-in 259 X axis of histogram 93
adaptive quantization 260 Y axis of histogram 93
aliasing artifacts 260 Mod Delay III plug-in 182
Anti-Alias Filter control 260 Delay Time 183
Distortion/Saturation controls 260 Feedback setting 183
down-processing audio 259 Groove control 184
Linear Quantization control 260 Input meters 182
Noise Generator 260 Link button 183
Output Meter 260 Low Pass Filter 183
Quantization control 260 Meter setting 183
Sample Rate control 259 Mix control 184
Sample Size control 260 Output Gain control 184
Output meters 184
Phase Invert 182
M
Sync option 183
MasterMeter plug-in 303
Tempo control 183
Clear button 309
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser plug-in 200
Clip field 310
allpass 200
Export button 309
analog filters 200
historical metering 307
modulation 200
Offset field 310
resonant filters 200
Oversampled Clip Events browser 308
tremolo 200
Oversampled Level meter 309
whooshing 200
real-time metering 307
Signal Clip Events browser 308
Signal Level meter 309
View Time menu 309

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 332

Moogerfooger Analog Delay plug-in 185 Link 135
Bucket Brigade Analog Delay Chips 185 Ratio 135
echo (analog delay) 185 Pitch transposition 134
lo-fi 186 PitchII
sound generator 186 Input Polarity 134
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter plug-in 197 POW-r Dither plug-in 272
auto wah 199 bit resolution for Dither plug-in 272
envelope follower 198 Noise Shaping 272
filters 198 Pro Compressor plug-in 97
resonance filter 197 Attack control 103
whistling 198 Attenuation meters 99
Moogerfooger plug-ins Depth control 104
Analog Delay 185 Dry Mix control 104
Moogerfooger 12-Stage Phaser 200 Dynamics Graph display 100
Moogerfooger Lowpass Filter 197 Input Level 98
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator 203 Input meters 98
Moogerfooger Ring Modulator plug-in 203 Knee control 103
Carrier Oscillator 204 Makeup control 104
LFO 203 Ratio control 102
metallic 204 Release control 103
oscillator 203 Side Chain
sinusoidal 203 Detection options 101
sum and difference frequencies 203 Filter Type options 106
tremolo 203 Side Chain Processing Graph display 106
vibrato 203 Source selector 104
Threshold control 102
N Pro Expander plug-in 107
Normalize plug-in 326 Attack control 113
Attenuation meters 109
Depth control 113
P Dry Mix control 113
phase 255 Dynamics Graph display 109
Pitch II plug-in 133 Hold control 113
Effects controls Hysteresis control 113
Delay 136 Input Level 108
Feedback 136 Input meters 108
Low Pass Filter 136 Knee control 112
Mix 136 Ratio control 112
Input and Transient controls Release control 113
Clip indicator 134 Side Chain
Follow 135 Detection options 111
Input 134 Filter Type options 116
Level indicator 135 Side Chain Processing Graph display 116
Range 134 Source selector 114
Threshold 135 Threshold control 112
Window 135 Pro Limiter plug-in 117
Pitch Shift controls Ceiling control 120
Coarse 135 Character control 121
Fine 135 Input Level 118
keyboard 135 Input meters 119

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 333

 Release control 121 Reel Tape plug-ins 205
Threshold control 120 Drive control 188, 206, 264
Pultec EQH-2 plug-in 34 Output control 188, 206, 264
Pultec EQP-1A plug-in 33 Tape Formula control 188, 206, 265
phase (EQ filters) 35 Tape Machine control 188, 206, 264
program equalization 33 Reel Tape Saturation plug-in 264
smooth EQ 33 Bias control 265
Pultec MEQ-5 plug-in 34 Cal Adjust control 265
pumping 76 Noise control 265
Purple Audio MC77 plug-in 125 presets 266
removing plug-ins 8
R reverb
Recti-Fi plug-in 261 D-Verb 155
Alternating Rectification 262 Reverb One 158
Alt-Max Rectification 262 ReVibe II 167
Mix control 263 Reverb One plug-in 158
negative excursion period of waveform 262 100% Wet control 160
Negative Rectification 262 acoustic environments 159
Output Meter 263 anechoic chamber 159
Positive Excursion 262 Attack control 161
Positive Rectification 262 Band Breakpoints 164
Post-Filter 263 Chorus controls 161
Pre-Filter 261 clipping indicator 166
Rectification 262 Crossover sliders 165
Subharmonic synthesis 263 Decay Ratio control 161
zero crossing 262 Delay Master control 163
Reel Tape Delay plug-in 187 Depth control 161
Bass control 189 Diffusion control 162
Feedback control 188 Dynamics controls 160
Mix control 189 early reflections 159
Noise parameter 189 Early Reflect On 163
presets 190 Early Reflection control 162
Speed control 188 ER (early reflection) button 165
synchronizing to session tempo 190 ER Settings control 163
Treble control 189 presets 163
Wow Speed parameter 189 simulating 162
Wow/Flutter control 189 Frequency control 164
Reel Tape Flanger plug-in 205 HF Cut control 164
Feedback control 207 HF Damp control 165
Invert parameter 207 input level meters 166
LFO Depth control 207 late reverberation 159
LFO Rate control 207 Level control 161, 163
Mix control 207 Master Mix controls 160
Noise parameter 208 meters
presets 209 clipping indicator 166
Range control 206 input 166
synchronizing to session tempo 208 output 166
Wow/Flutter control 207 Output Level meters 166
Pre-delay 159
presets 162

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 334

 Rate control 161 Levels section 173
RC (reverb contour) button 165 Low Frequency Color control 173
reverb character 159 Low Frequency control 175
reverb graphs Low Frequency Crossover 176
editing 164 Low Frequency Ratio 176
Reverb Color 165 Low Gain control 175
Reverb Contour 165 Mix section 174
Reverb EQ 164 Next and Previous Room Type buttons 170
simulating early reflections 162 Pre-Delay control (reverb tail) 171
Size control 162 Pre-Delay Link button 172
Spread control 162, 163 Rate control 174
Stereo Width control 160 Rear button 177
Threshold control 161 Rear ER control 173
Time control 161 Rear Level Link button 173
tool tips 166 Rear Reverb control 173
Wet/Dry control 160 Rear Shape control 171
Reverse plug-in 327 Reverb Contour button 176
ReVibe II plug-in 167 Reverb section 170
100% Dry Mix button 174 reverb tail controls 170
100% Wet Mix button 174 Reverb tail type 170
Attack Shape control 171 Reverb Type 169
Attack Time control 171 Reverb Type menu 170
bipolar controls 9 Room Coloration section 172
Center control 173 Room Type 169
Chorus On button 174 Room Type Category menu 170
Chorus section 174 Room Type Name menu 170
clip indicator 169 Size control 170
Color graph display 175 Spread control 171
Coloration control 172 Stereo Width control 174
Contour display 176 supported channel formats 167
Depth control 174 Time control 170
Diffusion control 171 Wet/Dry control 174
Early Reflection Level control 172 ReWire plug-in
Early Reflection Pre-Delay control 172 and voices 290
Early Reflection section 171 automating input switching 295
Early Reflection Spread control 172 client applications 288
Early Reflections button 176 looping playback 295
Early Reflections On button 172 meter changes 294
EQ graph display 175 MIDI automation 292
Front button 177 MIDI continuous controller (CC) data 292, 294
Front control 173 MIDI Output selector 292
High Frequency Color control 173 quitting client applications 294
High Frequency control 175 recording MIDI over 293
High Frequency Crossover 176 requirements 290
High Frequency Ratio 176 signal flow for audio and MIDI 289
High Frequency Rear Cut control 175 software synthesizer 288
High Gain control 175 tempo sync 294
Input control 173 track count 290
Input/Output meter 169 using with Pro Tools 291
Level control 170

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 335

S Input meter 131
SansAmp PSA-1 plug-in 267 key input 131
amp simulation 267 level 126
buzz 268 limiting 128
cabinet simulation 267 Meter Mode button 130
crunch 268 Norm mode 127
distortion 268 Opto mode 127
equalization 267 output gain 128
harmonic generation 267 Output meter 131
lo-fi textures 267 Ratio control 128
punch 268 reducing waveform distortion 127
tube sounds 267 Release control 128
unity 268 Side-Chain EQ control 129
wah 268 side-chain frequency filters 129
Sci-Fi plug-in 210 side-chain processing 131
Effect Amount control 211 threshold and ratio 128
Effect Frequency control 211 unity gain 127
Envelope Follower 211 VU meter 130
Freak Mod 211 SoundReplacer plug-in 313
Input Level 210 Crossfade control 316
LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) 211 Dynamics controls 317
Mod Amount/Mod Rate control 212 Load/Unload Sound icons 315
Mod Slewing control 211 MIDI-triggered samplers 314
Modulation Type control 211 Mix control 316
Output Meter 212 Online Help 317
Resonator– 211 Peak Align control 316
Resonator+ 211 Trigger envelope 314
Ring Mod control 210 Trigger markers 314
ring modulation 210 Trigger Threshold 315
Sample+Hold control 211 waveform display 314
Slewing 211 Zoomer 314, 316
triangle wave 211
Trigger and Hold 212 T
side-chain processing 41, 43, 53, 70, 84, 87, 104, 114 TCE Trim tool 142
Signal Generator plug-in 311 Tel-Ray Variable Delay plug-in 191
Frequency control 311 Electronic Memory Unit 191
Level control 311 tuna can 191
pink noise 311 Time Compression/Expansion plug-in 321
Signal control 311 Accuracy control 322
white noise 311 Crossfade control 321
Smack! plug-in 126 destination fields 321
adjusting input 127 Minimum Pitch control 322
Attack control 128 Ratio control 321
band emphasis 129 Source and Destination controls 321
clip indicator 130, 131 Time Shift plug-in 137
compression modes 127 Audio Gain control 138
Distortion control 130 Audio Mode pop-up menu 138
hard limiting ratio setting 128 Audio Range pop-up menu 138
high-pass detector 129 Audio section 138
high-pass filter 130 changing pitch 143
Audio Plug-Ins Guide 336
 changing time 143 X
changing time and pitch 143 X-Form plug-in 147
Clip indicator 138 2x, 4x, and 8x Range buttons 149
Decay Rate 141 Audio section 147
displays and controls 137 Audio Type pop-up menu 148
Follow button 140 AudioSuite Input 151
Formant section 140 AudioSuite Preview 151
Input modes 142 AudioSuite processing preferences 151
Level indicator 139 Clip indicator 148
Monophonic mode 138 Formant Shift control 150
Original time 139 Gain control 148
Pitch section 141 Level indicator 148
Pitch Shift 141 Monophonic mode 148
Polyphonic mode 138 Original time 148
post production workflow 144 Pitch section 147, 150
Processed time 139 Pitch Shift control 150
pull up/pull down TCE percentages 144 pitch shifting a selection 152
Rhythmic mode 138 Poly (Faster) mode 148
Speed 139 Polyphonic mode 148
Tempo displays 139 post-production workflow 153
Threshold control 141 Processed time 148
Time section 139 processing audio 152
timebase 139 pull up/pull down TCE percentages 153
Transient section 140 Sensitivity control 149
Transpose 141 TCE Trim tool 151
Unit pop-up menu 139 Tempo (original and processed) 148
Varispeed mode 138 Time section 147, 148
Window 141 Time Shift control 149
TimeAdjuster plug-in 193 time shifting a selection 152
DSP delay compensation 194, 195 Transient section 147, 149
phase cancellation 194 Transpose control 150
Phase Invert button 193 Unit timebase selector 148
Trim plug-in 323 Window control 150

V Z
variable-mu 75 z (Eleven input impedance) 236
Vari-Fi plug-in 145
Fades controls 146
Selection controls 145
Slow Down control 145
Speed Up control 145
vinyl mastering 77
Voce plug-ins
Voce Chorus/Vibrato 213, 214
Voce Spin 214
Rotor Balance 215

Audio Plug-Ins Guide 337

Avid Technical Support (USA) Product Information
2001 Junipero Serra Boulevard Visit the Online Support Center at For company and product information,
Daly City, CA 94014-3886 USA www.avid.com/support visit us on the web at www.avid.com