Quote:

I have Lo Contour at just before half way and the Process control at half.



Wise methodology there, because as an Electronics Designer I can tell you that if is standard practice to design a circuit such that the center point of any knob adjustments is right at the middle of whatever it is that circuit is designed to do for you.

As a matter of fact, I teach future technicians and audio engineers to avoid "wild" settings on any audio control without having a very valid reason for doing so.

The same can be said for the Volume Faders, too, only difference is that the normalized spot will be at about the 60 - 70% of full travel mark instead of the 50% mark. Rule of thumb, 12 oclock for tone and time controls, 2 oclock for gain (which corresponds roughly to the 65% mark on an inline nonrotary fader).

The one exception to this basic rule would be the Master Output faders (and Monitors if present, their "Master" is treated the same way) -- these you want to have turned DOWN much more than the input faders for correct gainstaging and a "tight" PA that won't want to go into feedback at the drop of a hat. Typically set the Master faders to somewhere around 20-30% of full travel.

If you have to put a fader or knob to extreme postions away from those points you should be aware that it is typically a sign that something is wrong somewhere else in the signal chain. Gain is too high or too low, Impedance Mismatch, something along those lines.

For most of the knobs, 12 oclock is the sweet spot, or darn near to it, tweak in small amounts then, typically between 9 and 3 at max for most work.


BBE method works well in time alignment and is especially great for the nontechnical types because of its ease of use and the fact that the designer didn't really put in controls that can make the thing sound too terribly bad no matter the settings -- usually.

In my setup I use a DBX rackmount for time alignment, can do much the same thing but the controls are for the hardcore hardware geek. DBX rackmount can also do several other neat things besides just time alignment, built in 29 band digital EQ, built in adjustable electronic crossovers, dynamic feedback destruction that really works, handy for rehearsals in tight spaces, when set properly the singer can walk right up to the front of the speakers holding the mic while singing and no feedback whatsoever. But the DBX takes time with the manual and the user MUST understand the physics of music well to get the most out of it. BBE Sonic Maximizer does the time alignment part very well without forcing the end user to jump through those hoops of technical fire. And it costs about 1/5th the price of the DBX Rackmount, too.


--Mac

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