Sonnox Oxford Reverb User Manual
Page 8
5.1 Early Reflection Setup
5 REALISTIC ROOM SIMULATION
Start with a neutral setting, with WIDTH and TAPER in their mid position, FEED ALONG
and FEEDBACK at minimum, and LF ROLL-OFF (in the INPUT section) at minimum
(mostly HF content).
It should now be possible to perceive the space changing when you adjust the SIZE
control. Initially, set this to something appropriate.
Toggle through the SHAPE selection buttons, noting the difference between them, and
decide on one that most suits what you are looking for.
At this point the FEED ALONG setting can be increased, noting the effect it has on overall
complexity in the reflections and the timbre of the space. For realistic spaces, settings
around the mid position are often best, but experimentation of the full range is
encouraged.
Listening carefully to the resulting reflections, adjust the FEEDBACK fader with the
PHASE SELECT button selected (the default), to introduce some reiteration into the
space, noting that the space becomes more resonant and the reflections more diffuse.
Without feedback, the reflections will end abruptly when they are finished. This is useful
for creating dry spaces often appropriate for percussion tracks. However, for realistic
spaces, an amount of feedback is required to produce a more natural dispersion and
timbre. Too much feedback will result in ringing effects, which can be particularly intrusive
for smaller spaces.
To give the space a realistic absorption and frequency response character, start
increasing the LF ROLL-OFF control to tailor the HF response caused by the reflections
over time. There is no fixed rule for what works best, and creative freedom should take
precedence. However, generally speaking, larger spaces require greater absorption
settings than small spaces, since a major cause of absorption in real spaces is the
distance that the sound travels in air.
The WIDTH and TAPER controls can now be adjusted to give an appropriate stereo
spread and reflection character to the simulation. Some interplay between the FEED
ALONG and the TAPER controls may be required to arrive at the best overall sound
character, as both can give the effect of increasing the prominence of the reflections.
At this point it is worth adjusting the POSITION fader to determine the listening position
within the virtual space. It should be possible to perceive the effect of entering the space
as the setting moves off the back wall (minimum setting) into the virtual space. It is
important to bear in mind that the primary reflection from the back wall can get quite fast
in smaller spaces if the position is too far forwards, so although the simulation may sound