MACKIE Stereo and Mono Side chain Compressor - Manual (Page 22)

User’s Guide
22
Stereo and Mono Sidechain Compressors for Tracktion
Snare Track Compression
The graph below could be used on a snare track
to drastically lower the volume of a few snare
hits by an over-excited drummer, while leaving
most of the snare track unaffected.
Hard Knee and Soft Knee Compression
The terms hard and soft do not refer to sound,
but rather the way that the compressor reacts
to incoming signals. The difference is somewhat
subtle to hear, but is more apparent at higher
compression ratios. A hard knee setting is well
suited to lower ratios. When using higher com-
pression ratios, you may fi nd it a little better-
sounding to draw in a smoother knee curve.
A hard knee curve is represented as a straight
line that connects a point on the threshold to
the end point or maximum output on the graph.
A soft knee curve has a smoother curve that
connects the two points. This creates a more
gradual transition between non-compressed and
compressed signals.