18 EMX512SC/EMX312SC/EMX212S
Making the Most of Your Mixer
BASIC
the way down, then gradually
bring the reverb into the mix until
you can just hear the difference.
Any more than this normally
becomes a “special effect.” You
don’t want reverb to dominate the
mix unless you are trying to
create the effect of a band in a
cave—which is a perfectly
legitimate creative goal if that’s
the sort of thing you’re aiming for.
The Modulation Effects: Phasing, Chorus, and Flanging
All of these effects work on
basically the same principle: a
portion of the audio signal is
“time-shifted” and then mixed
back with the direct signal. The
amount of time shift is controlled,
or “modulated”, by an LFO (Low-
frequency Oscillator). When we
say “time shift,” however, we’re
not talking in terms of minutes or
even seconds.
For phasing effects the shift is
very small indeed – a difference
measured in degrees of phase
shift rather than time units. The
phase difference between the
modulated and direct signals
causes cancellation at some
frequencies and reinforces the
signal at others – a “comb filter”
effect – and this causes the
shimmering sound we hear.
Phasing is the subtlest of all these
effects, producing a gentle
shimmer that can add life to a
wide range of sources without
being too obtrusive.
For chorus and flanging the signal
is actually delayed by several
milliseconds (a millisecond is a
thousandth of a second), with the
delay time modulated by an LFO,
and recombined with the direct
signal. In addition to the comb-
filter effect described above, the
delay modulation in these effects
causes a perceived pitch shift
which, when mixed with the direct
signal, results in a harmonically
rich swirling or swishing sound.
The difference between chorus
and flanging effects is primarily in
the amount of delay time and
feedback used – flanging uses
longer delay times than chorus,
whereas chorus generally uses a
more complex delay structure.
Chorus is most often used to
thicken the sound of an
instrument, while flanging is
usually used as an outright
“special effect” to produce other-
worldly sonic swoops.
Compression
Have you ever wondered why
professionally produced
recordings sound so different
from your own? There are
numerous reasons, of course, but
one important factor is the
judicious use of compression.
One form of compression known
as “limiting” can, when properly
used, produce a smooth, unified
sound with no excessive peaks or
distortion. Compression can also
be used within a mix to make a
voice or instrument seem to come
forward, or simply to even out
level differences. Compression
can be used to make a mix seem
bigger and louder by producing a
more “saturated” sound.
Professional compressors have
numerous parameters that need
to be carefully adjusted: attack,
release, threshold, level, and
sometimes more. A professional
sound engineer might need to
spend a considerable amount of
time, based on a considerable
amount of experience, to set each
of these parameters to achieve
the desired sound.
The EMX compressor makes
achieving great sound much
easier. All you need to do is set a
single “compression” control and
all of the pertinent parameters are
automatically adjusted for you.
The engineers who designed this
fine compressor paid careful
attention to achieving the best
sound quality possible so that you
can quickly achieve pro-quality
compression without having to
OUTPUT
INPUT
(Min)
(Max)