Drawmer DL241 Auto Compressor - Manual (Page 7)

DL241 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 5
CONTROL DESCRIPTION
Both channels of the DL241 are identical and may be used completely independently or
linked for stereo operation. In the linked mode, only the left hand channel controls are
functional and serve as master controls, though the channel bypass switches remain
independent. In linked mode, the compressor / limiters, peak limiters and expanders of
the two channels track together to avoid the inevitable image shifting that occurs if the
two channels of a stereo signal are treated independently.
EXPANDER
Threshold: This control sets the level below which expansion starts to take
place and may be set in the range -70dB to +20dB. W hen the
expander starts to operate, the red status LED will come on. Note:
because the expansion ratio varies with signal level, it is possible
to arrive at a situation where the red expansion LED may be
illuminated when little or no perceived gain reduction is taking
place. This means that the expansion Threshold may need to be
set a little higher than it would with a conventional expander and
final setting is best done by ear. The adaptive expansion system
used in the DL241 means, however, that setting up is not
over-critical and the gating action is far more progressive.
Release: Either a fast or slow release time may be selected depending on
the material being processed. Fast release is achieved with the
switch out and Slow release with the switch depressed. Percussive
material with little or no reverb is generally treated using the fast
release setting, whereas material with slow decays or a significant
amount of added reverberation will usually respond better to the
longer release setting.