Crane Song TRAKKER - Manual (Page 6)

PAGE 4
CLASS A DISCRETE TOPOLOGIES
The TRAKKER has a Class A audio path which is significantly different than designs that use
integrated circuits. Class A circuits sound musically pleasing because their distortion compo-
nents tend to be Second Harmonic. IC Op-Amps do not have class A output circuits and their
distortion components tend to be high order odd harmonics; not musical. The two important
things to remember are that Class A circuits sound musically pleasing and discrete circuits can
be tailored for optimum performance.
Class A discrete technology has 2 disadvantages when compared to IC designs. 1) Due to the
large number of parts in discrete circuits; they are costly. 2) Class A circuits run hot.
HEATING AND WARM-UP
The TRAKKER must have adequate ventilation. Make sure the vent holes are not blocked.
Do not set anything directly on top of the TRAKKER. When mounting the unit in a rack, provide
as much air flow as possible. A 220 volt muffin fan run on 115 volts makes a quiet fan and can
provide good cooling for the rack if needed. Leaving the back of the rack open is another option.
Providing adequate ventilation, will reward you with years of reliable operation.
All precision electronic equipment has an operating temperature that when reached will result in
best performance. The TRAKKER should be allowed a 10 to 15 minute warm up period before
use.
CONTROL DESCRIPTION
THRESHOLD
The threshold control governs the amount of gain reduction. The amount of compression is
increased as the control is turned clock wise. The compressor can be operated with "soft-knee"
or "hard-knee" compression curves. When changing between the soft and hard knee, readjust-
ment of the threshold control is necessary because the side chain operates differently. Opera-
tion in "hard-knee" may require a higher threshold setting than operation in "soft-knee".
GAIN CONTROL
The gain control will adjust the compressor gain from 0 to 14 dB of gain. When in link mode the
gain control operates independently to allow balancing of the program source. (See "link switch"
description.)
ATTACK CONTROL
The attack control determines the time it takes the compressor to respond to the input signal and
have gain reduction take place. Zero on the control is fast; 10 is slow.
RELEASE CONTROL
The release control sets the time for the compressor’s gain to return to the point of no gain
reduction in the absence of program. Zero on the control is fast; 10 is slow.
The attack and release times depend on the knee control setting, the amount of gain change, the
setting of the character switch, and the program material. They all interact and allow the creation