Crane Song TRAKKER - Manual (Page 10)

TRAKKER NOTES:
CHARACTER SWITCH SETTING SUGGESTIONS
A good starting place is optical clean, attack set at 4, release set at 5.5, and knee set at 6.
Sound with these settings will be similar to the classic LA-3. When the character switch is set
to optical vintage, attack set at 4, release set at 5.5, and knee set at 6; the sound is similar to
the classic LA-2A. Varying the release and shape knobs will change the sound from more up
front to softer. The softness is the main sound difference between the modern versions of the
optical compressor and the original.
If a hard edged sound is desired, use the hard knee settings.
* Watch our website, www.cranesong.com ,for additions/changes to this section.
LINK CONNECTOR
The link connector is a 15 pin DB style connector. There are control voltages and logic signals
in the link cable. Because of this the AC power cable should be kept away from it. It is also
good practice to keep audio cables separated from the power cable. The order that the con-
nectors are plugged in does not matter. When using a cable with extra positions the one with
the loop must be plugged in for the system to link.
SIDE CHAIN
The side chain connector is a DB 9 connector. The inputs and outputs are balanced. Keep in
mind that this is an insert point and must be normaled when not being used. If a connector is
not installed in the back of the unit, the side chain insert can be ignored because it is disabled.
The side chain is for inserting an equalizer into the control path. Due to the design of the link
system, separate equalizers (with identical settings) must be used for all channels to achieve
channel matched operation when in the link mode. This scheme allows reliable signal averag-
ing regardless of the phase relationship between the audio channels. The approach used in
TRAKKER is beneficial for stereo FM broadcast where phase relationships can affect the
stereo generator. In a conventional link circuit (one which uses a single EQ for all channels)
out of phase material is ignored by the compressor.
Many different sounds can be created by using an equalizer in the side chain. TRAKKER can
respond to a frequency that is causing a problem. In the hard knee mode, if all lows are cut and
the hi frequency content is boosted, TRAKKER can function as a de’sser. If every thing below
80 Hz is cut, TRAKKER will not respond to the low frequency content of a signal. By modifying
the side chain frequency response, infinite variations can be created.
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