Aphex Project 500 - Manual (Page 4)

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2.0 INTRODUCTION
Many other products combine a compressor and gate, but there
are problems making them work together. That’s because the com-
pressor’s release occurs during the gate’s closure. The gate is trying
to reduce the signal level while the compressor is trying to raise it.
The compressor’s gain release counter-effects (fights against) the
gate.
The Aphex Easyrider ® Compressor is gain locked whenever the
Logic-Assisted Gate activates. This holds the compression gain
constant until the gate again opens, when compression is instantly
returned to active duty and continues seamlessly. Gating and Com-
pression happily work together! Even if the GATE DEPTH is set for
zero, the compression gate will operate as indicated by the thresh-
old LED LOGIC ASSISTED GATE (Patent #5,334,947)
The CX 500 features the award-winning Aphex Logic-Assisted Gate
technology that has been so widely acclaimed since its first intro-
duction with the Aphex Model 612 Expander/Gate. It never hesi-
tates or chatters. Once triggered, even by a microscopic transient,
it progresses fully through the attack, hold, and release sequence.
3.0 GATE FUNCTIONS
3.1 THRESHOLD
Range: -60 to +20dB. Adjust to reliably open the gate (let sound
through) but reject unwanted background noise. The Gate can be
effectively turned off by turning the threshold all the way to -60dB.
3.2 ATTACK
Range: 4uS to 100mS. Set to the fastest setting that does not cause
a noticeable click when the gate opens. Slower settings may be
useful for effects.
3.3 HOLD
Range: 5mS to 500mS. Balance HOLD with RELEASE to obtain
the best gating effect. Usually a longer hold time allows you to use
a shorter release time. This can help when gating repetitive sounds
like drums. The gate can be held long enough to transition the
beats, and then a faster release can gate out the rumble and noise
more effectively. The HOLD setting should always be at least equal
to the ATTACK setting to insure the logic properly assists the attack
function.
3.4 RELEASE
Range: 100mS to 1S. Causes the gate to close (stop audio) very
abruptly to very softly. This should be set to bring the best gating
effect to the kind of sound you have.
3.5 DEPTH
Range: 2 to 80dB. Sets the maximum amount of gain reduction
the gate will generate. At 80dB, the gate is virtually a switch. The
audio will gate completely off. Less depth will allow the gate to
reduce the signal but not necessarily cut it off. The best setting is
one that reduces the unwanted noises just enough to be useful.
Deep gating can sometimes be apparently extreme, making the
sound seem chopped, especially with high background noise levels
when the track is naked. Gated tracks added to a mix will have their
gating effects masked by other tracks, allowing deeper gating to be
used in many cases
3.6 GATE ON/OFF BUTTON
Pressing the Gate button in will light the button and the Gate func-
tion will be active. Pushing it again deactivate the Gate function
and the button will not light.