TL Audio 5052 - Manual (Page 31)

provides a much higher signal level than a microphone does. Also, mic inputs
are of low impedance whereas a line output is generally high impedance: this
mismatch often results in poor frequency response and increased noise levels.
So always ensure that the line output of any TL Audio product is connected
to the line input of any mixer or recorder.
Q: Why are there two types of insert point on my 5052?
A :
The sidechain insert point is specifically designed to allow frequency
conscious compression such as de-essing. This is achieved by patching an
equaliser (normally a graphic or parametric type such as the Ivory 5013) into
the sidechain insert point (the tip or "send" of the insert point goes to the
equaliser input, while the ring or "return" is connected to the equaliser
output). Boosting any frequency on the equaliser then effectively lowers the
compression threshold for that particular frequency of signal, so that it gets
compressed to a greater degree than other frequencies. Thus boosting the
frequency that corresponds to the sibilance in a vocal performance will allow
de-essing to take place.
The standard insert points on the 5052 are more like conventional mixer insert
points and allow an external piece of equipment to be connected between
the 5052 preamp stage and the compressor, EQ and limiter sections. This
could be a gate, filter or de-esser, or even another compressor or EQ unit.
Q: When using the 5052 compressor section I sometimes experience some LF
distortion when using a fast release time, which disappears as I make the
release time longer. Why is this?
A: This effect tends to be experienced on signals with significant LF content,
when some gain reduction is taking place. The reason it occurs is a result of
the way compression works: As a simple example, imagine you feed a low
frequency source signal such as a 20Hz sine wave into the 5052, whose
release time is set at its fastest position (40mS). The time it takes for a 20Hz
signal to complete one whole cycle is 50mS. Since the fastest release time on
the 5052 is 40mS, this means that once the source signal has fallen back
below the compression threshold, its gain will return to normal in 40mS, which
is a shorter time than the cycle time of the source signal. As a result, the
envelope of the compressed signal is distorted as it is forced in and out of
compression within a single cycle. Increasing the release time to a figure