Attack, Look Ahead, Release, Pumping Breathing

3 Using the Smashup

Attack

The [ATTACK] knob controls the amount of time before compression starts. The range of this control is generally in the range from 0.1 (full counter-clockwise) to 300 milliseconds; but this may vary depending on the [TYPE] setting. [ATTACK] has no effect when the [LOOK AHEAD] switch is engaged.

Long attacks are useful for keeping the initial transients of percussive sounds like drums, lead guitar, and bass. Short attacks are good for melodic parts like vocals and strings. Experiment with different short attack times on snare drums to get more or less of the “stick” attack.

Look Ahead

When the [LOOK AHEAD] switch is turned on, a very small amount of delay (under 3 milliseconds, about the time sound takes to travel 3 feet) is introduced in the signal. The detector of the compressor looks at the peak levels in this delay, so it can “pre- attack” or lower its gain even before the peak arrives for processing.

For obvious reasons, when [LOOK AHEAD] is on, the [ATTACK] knob has no effect.

Release

The [RELEASE] knob controls the amount of time the compressor takes to stop compressing after the signal crosses under the threshold. The range of this control is very different from type to type, but in every case the longest release time is at the full clockwise rotation.

Short release times are good for percussive, punchy sounds; longer release times can make compression less obvious on vocals. Adjusting the release time may be necessary when using extreme compression and “pumping” or “breathing” is audible, or if lower- level signals are getting lost after peaks.

Pumping and

Breathing

When a compressor is making large changes to the input signal (10 to 12 dB or more) the noise floor will also rise and fall with the signal level. When this noise signal rises and falls drastically between signals, such as a heavily compressed, noisy drum track, you might hear the noise level “breathing” between drum hits. One solution to this breathing problem is to turn up the release time. This way, the noise floor won’t have time to rise between drum hits.

However, if the Release time is too long, lower level signals after the peak will be lost as the compressor slowly stops reducing gain. This is called “pumping” as the lower level signals (noise included) slowly fade back up to their normal signal level. The secret to avoiding these problems is to achieve a balanced release time on the input signal.

The PUMP mode of the Smashup is set up intentionally to use pumping as a creative tool.