dbx Quantum
Contents
1. sss 35 4 6 Broadband Limiting sss 36 APO m 38 O RN 38 49 SEQ iia ai dia 39 EIO Te IV E ae T didas ener re 40 4 11 Stereo Adjust sse 40 4 12 Ambience ert ttes 41 Table of Contents dbx un PRODUCTS 4113 TEMA ie 41 4 14 De Bsser cscccsssccossssscesesvsstesseecssssessesseees 41 4 15 Normalization seen 42 4 10 iple IT v ROTE 42 Section 5 Utilities 5 1 PU e iet hr reet aah 46 SAO uE A 46 5 3 Digital Input Controls sees 47 5 4 MIDI CC MaDocconoccnnnonononnnononnnononnnnnnononananononnnos 47 5 5 MIDI Channels eee 48 5 6 MIDI Program Changes sess 48 5 1 OY SEX DU Pia dia 48 5 8 Setup SYSEX Data sss 48 5 9 A D Calibrate esee 49 5 40 MISC E RNE 49 Section 6 Application Guide 6 1 Analog Masteridg oooconnnnnnnnnncnnonoconancnnonnonno 52 6 2 Digital Mastering sse 53 6 3 DAW to DAT iine dne tete teretes 54 6 4 Analog Tracking eee 55 6 5 Digital Tracking sissies iiis ssnin 56 6 6 Analog Mixing seen 57 6 7 Digital Mixing iiec ds 58 6 8 Analog to Digital Converter 59 6 9 Sample Rate Converter sssssssses 60 Appendix A 1 Hard amp Soft Resets sss 62 A 2 Change Default Startup Program 62 A 3 F2. Threshold 60 to O dB per band or global This is at what level the limiter kicks in and says NO LOUDER It is recommended that the limiter s threshold be set to slightly below the point of no return so that there is a slight mar gin of safety You of course want to be careful not to set the threshold to low as this would prevent you from getting the full dynamic range possible out of your gear Finding the right lim iter threshold for your equipment will take some experimentation In a recording application most people will set the limiter up to prevent the signal from distorting the tape Analog tape will saturate slowly and a higher threshold will let you take advantage of this if you choose to Digital recording is far less forgiving and a correctly set limiter threshold will prevent any ugly digital overs from ruining a take By dropping the threshold down below the bulk of the signal level we can then be limiting all the time This will effectively take all the dynamics out of a signal and is used as a form of extra heavy compression OverEasy Off to 10 per band or global There are ten levels of OverEasy that can be used on the QUANTUM s limiters Auto On Off LOC and On Off When auto is turned on the QUANTUM will continuously set the attack hold release con trols itself It can be set globally or locally per band d b X eroressioNaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 35 4 5 Multiband Limiting cont Attack 01 to 200 m Sec
3. there are instructions for you in the Curve Window Press STORE when you are done 3 You now must choose what you want to do with the setup you are going to save You have two choices you may write over another setup or you may make a new one Replace Old Notice that as you write over an old setup all other programs will now recall the newly saved setup To replace an old setup move the cursor to the Replace Old choice and press STORE You are given a choice of which setup to replace Using the DATA WHEEL scroll to the name of the setup you wish to replace Notice that as you replace a setup all other programs that recall that setup will now recall the newly saved setup using the new setup name Store New 1 To store a new setup choose Store New after pressing the STORE button Afteryou are done press STORE once again You now must choose a place for the new setup to be placed in the library The name of your new setup is displayed on the middle line of text the Parameter 2 line 2 Use the DATA WHEEL to scroll to the place where you want to add the new setup The QUANTUM makes room for your setup no matter where you want to place it 3 4 Saving a Program Saving a program Saving a program is done by following these steps 1 Press the STORE button The screen looks like this i B er 1 E NEEEH L E L L n Link E 2 You have the choice of saving the Program or saving the setup Ch
4. Conversion System your signal retains its analog warmth and charac ter with the clarity demanded by today s digital standards Our patent pending TSE Tape Saturation Emulation processing makes it easy The discussion of the binary system sample rate frequencies and bit rates would easily take up an entire semester of college For the sake of brevity more is better Theoretically 96kHz 48 bit resolution is beyond the limits our ears can perceive The QUANTUM s 96kHz A D D A s result in improved frequency response The QUANTUM s 48 bit path gives you the hard and fast room required for a true 24 bit output This allows the use of only 1 stage of dither at the output where it belongs The engineers at dbx designed the QUANTUM to be the Rosetta Stone of digital formats clocks and bit rates Whatever permutation of AES EBU or S PDIF is brought to you the QUANTUM will be able to understand it and output whatever format you need il QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 1 1 W hat is QUANTUM cont Imagine this scenario as an example A client brings in a stereo mix on a sampling workstation The mix is recorded at 96kHz 24 bit In order to create a CD compatible mix you need to con vert to 44 1kHz 16 bit With the QUANTUM this is not a problem Simply follow the instructions in the Application Guide in section 5 Whether you are going from the workstation to a DAW DAT or a stand alone CD R the QUANTUM covers all the d
5. On Off I think you get it by now turns it on tums it off Balance 100 to 100 This lets you adjust the panning of your signal from one side to the other 0 is center so 100 becomes extreme left and 100 becomes extreme right M S 100 to 100 This controls the width of your stereo image 0 is untouched so 100 becomes the narrow est mono while 100 become the widest possible stereo image 40 QUANTUM User Manual d b X ProressiowaL PRODUCTS 4 12 Ambience Ambience uses a combination of gain and compression to enhance low level information Reverb tails and acoustic guitar finger picking are examples of sounds that can be enhanced by using the Ambience effect Ambience On Off Sort of self explanatory by now Amount 1 0 1 to 5 1 This sets the amount of ambience Width 10 to 30 dB This controls the portion of the signal that the ambience is applied to Thresh 60 to O dB Sets the threshold of the ambience processor 4 13T CM Transient Capture Mode or TCM was first seen in the dbx 172 Super Gate Basically what it does is delay the input of the VCA enough that the detector is able to read ahead in the signal With a long enough TCM time it is possible to have a gate start to open or compressor start to compress before the signal hits the VCA This can be used to achieve very intelligent limit ing and gating along with very smooth and transparent compression Once the TCM is turned on it works on the co
6. Pass Filter 4 15 Normalization The Normalizer in the QUANTUM adds gain to the signal right before the output By adding gain to the signal right at the end of the chain we can then make sure that it goes to tape disk etc as hot as possible The gain optimize function automatically adjusts the QUANTUM s gain to maximize output without going over OdBFS The gain optimize function sets the output gain of the QUANTUM by looking at a sample of music and keeping track of the highest level of that audio signal The output gain is then set so that the highest level reaches but does not go over 0 dBFS The gain optimize can be accessed from the Nomalizer by pressing the EDIT ALI BAND button This starts the gain optimize sample period The EDIT ALL BAND button must be pressed to complete the gain optimize sample period EDIT ALL BAND and PROGRAM are the only but tons that will allow the user to exit the gain optimize As the gain is being optimized the out put gain is set to 12 dBFS to compensate for any peaks in the program material If the PRO GRAM button is pressed during the gain optimize operation the output gain level will be set to it s previous level and the QUANTUM will go back to the program mode Within the NORM OUTPUT menu the following parameters are user adjustable Normalize On Off Turns the Normalizer on or off Level 12 dB to 12 dB The final output stage of the QUANTUM This lets you adjust the final volume you
7. S De Esser On Off Freq Amount TCM On Off TCM Time Ambience On Off Amount Width Type Width Thresh1 d b X ProressIoNAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 17 2 11 Utility Navigating Utility Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE P UTILITY Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Output i i i Dump Setup Bulk Dump A D Cal Contrast BNC Freq i Type i AutoLoad Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter 18 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS SOFTWARE a NTUM QUAS ens E p nace Lt dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS This section explains how signals are routed monitored and controlled in the QUANTUM Changes that are made to the QUANTUM s dynamic processing can be monitored visually and aurally at several different points in the chain Storing and organizing user and factory setups in task specific libraries is also covered in this section By following the outlined steps you will quickly understand the usage and benefits of the QUANTUM s storage system 3 1 FX Chains The following charts show the signal flow through the QUANTUM s FX chains Note that the location of the parametric EQ PEQ changes according to Pre Post settings ChainType Stereo Multi
8. User Manual d b X proressional PRODUCTS 1 5 Mastering and the Q uantum The Quantum is a Mastering Processor that has many features Multiband compression Multiband gating Multiband limiting Parametric equalizer Normalize function with gain optimization 8 24 bit dither with noise shaping These tools used together can give your recording studio the power to create the big sound associated with a mastered recording Traditionally mastering was accomplished by a combination of compression and equalization Specifically multiband compression was used to allow the mastering engineer to control the dynamics of the mix without making the recording seem lifeless The QUANTUM has four bands of multiband compression Multiband compression is a three step process First a crossover is used to separate the audio into different frequency bands Next separate compressors process the individual bands Finally the bands are summed back together Because these bands contain different amounts of energy they can be compressed using widely varying settings The end result is that parts of the mix the low frequency bands for example can be compressed more heavily than if a single compressor was used on the entire mix thereby allowing a greater overall level and a hotter mix The easiest way of setting up the multiband compressor in QUANTUM is to use the monitor in conjunction with the crossover and the compressor For exampl
9. assume that you had a rock mix that you wanted to master Specifically you want to compress the kick and bass parts to create a more punchy mix You also want to control the vocals to keep them from being too prominent in the mix The first thing you would do is to set up the crossover so that most of the low frequency energy of the kick and bass is in the sub and low bands The vocal band should also be separated from the other bands The Monitor page allows the engineer to toggle the monitor position between the main I R and individual bands both pre and post processing By rotating the DATA WHEEL the monitor position is changed As you listen to the bands you realize that Band two has too much of the vocal in it so crossover band two should be adjusted to a lower frequency The crossover page shows the crossover points as well as their slopes The crossover points can be adjusted by rotating the DATA WHEEL and using the NEXT PAGE and PREV PAGE buttons to move between different crossover points The slope can be changed by pushing the DATA WHEEL to move to the slope parameter line Turning the DATA WHEEL changes the slope of the crossover Changing the crossover slope changes the way the frequency bands interact For example a broader slope e g 6 dB Octave allows the adjacent bands to have much more interaction than a slope of 18 dB Octave Broader slopes provide a more seamless transition between bands while steeper slopes allow tighter c
10. console where the width of the band is constant regardless of the cut or boost The following figure shows the difference between constant and adaptive Q parametric filters Contain E T e a oe 4 t Boi M o A M 8 4 Ys z O E t f La Ada ber g A i gt Fig 4 2 d b X ProressIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 37 4 7 EQ cont Band 1 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the corner frequency for the low frequency shelving EQ band Slope 3 to 12 dB Octave Sets the slope of the shelf Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps Band 2 3 4 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the center point for the parametric EQ Q 0 25 to 16 0 Sets the width of the boost cut Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps Band 5 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the corner frequency for the high frequency shelving EQ band Slope 3 to 12 dB Octave Sets the slope of the shelf Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps 4 8 XOver There are three crossover points on the QUANTUM creating 4 bands Tuning them allows you to select which frequencies to process with which of the multiband dynamics processors The QUANTUM uses phase compensated Butterworth 1st and 3rd order filters Within the crossover menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable Edge 1 Fc 20 0 Hz to 5 0 kHz Sets the crossover
11. gt De Esser Comp gt Noise gt Limiter Shape W hat the QUANTUM screen shows for Post Aa Mono Input Side C hain CHlorCH2 PEQ Y Gate Dither gt De Esser Comp Post Noise Lim PEQ Shape Fig 3 3 22 QUANTUM User Manual d b X Proressiowal PRODUCTS 3 2 Programs Setups The QUANTUM has a unique method of storing your settings It stores your changes to para meters as setups These setups are an immediately accessible library of your changes No mat ter what program you are currently working with you can call up any setup that uses that same configuration stereo linked or dual mono See Appendix F Each configuration has its own separate library of user factory setups available This allows you to stay in a program but still change the setups within that program The easiest way to demonstrate this is by using a dual mono program Imagine that you have the perfect settings for a kick drum dialed in on channel one but you need to find a better setup for the snare The CHANNEL button will toggle you between chan nels 1 amp 2 You are now able to browse the setup library by using the DATA WHEEL When you have found a setup that is closest to what you need press PROGRAM The changes that have been made are now waiting to be saved as a program and the STORE light will be lit Another helpful feature of this library system is that you may place your stored setups anywhere you like within your library If you cho
12. point between bands 1 and 2 Edge 2 Fc 40 0 Hz to 10 0 kHz Sets the crossover point between bands 2 and 3 Edge 3 Fc 79 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz Sets the crossover point between bands 3 and 4 Slope 6 or 18 dB Octave per band Your choice of 2 different slopes for each of the 3 crossover points 38 QUANTUM User Manual d b x PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS When in the broadband mode not only do you have access to the equalizer but also another EQ in the sidechain Having EQ in the sidechain lets you boost or cut various frequencies prior to the dynamics processor detector Cutting low end in the sidechain will mean the detection circuit will see less low end thus the signal will be compressed based on it s high frequency content 2 Sidechain Detection EQ Circuit oust luas Within the SEQ menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable Press the EQ XOVER button twice when in non multiband mode to access the SEQ Schain EQ On Off This control tums all 5 bands on off Type Const Q Adapt Q This controls all 5 bands All bands must use the same Q type SEQ1 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the corner frequency for the low frequency shelving EQ band Slope 3 to 12 dB Octave Sets the slope of the shelf Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps SEQ2 3 4 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the center point for the parametric EQ Q 0 25 to 16 0 Sets the width of the boost
13. send out of the unit Ceiling 3 0 to 0 0 dBFS This parameter allows you set the overall output ceiling level of normalization 4 16 Output Bits 8 to 24 The selection of the QUANTUM s final output word length 8 16 20 or 24 bit word lengths can be selected See Figure H 1 in the Appendix pg 81 Dither SNR HPTPDF TPDF OFF Select from one of 3 dither algorithms HPTPDF and TPDF are the text book versions SNR is the dbx proprietary dither algorithm 42 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 16 Output cont Shaping S1 or S2 This lets you change between the 2 different digital noise shape algorithms See Figure H 2 in the Appendix pg 82 Dither Out All or Digital Sets the routing of the Dither output When All is selected the Dither is routed to the digital outputs and the D A When the Dither Out is set to Digital the dithered signal is sent to the digital outputs and the full 24 bit output is sent to the D A d b X ProressIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 43 F 1 Factory Programs 1 Pop Masterl 51 Pop Masterl 2 Piano Track 52 Piano Track 3 Studio Voc Acoustic Gt 53 Studio Voc Acoustic Gt 4 Country Mix 54 Country Mix 5 Classical CD 55 Classical CD 6 Squash It 56 Squash It 7 Expand It 57 Expand It 8 Funkngroove 58 Funkngroove 9 Jazz Master 59 Jazz Master 10 Smooth Voc 60 Smooth Voc 11 Rockin CD 61 Rockin CD 12 Mix Maximum 62 Mix Maximum 13 RAP It Up 6
14. the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter 12 QUANTUM User Manual d b X Proressiowal PRODUCTS 2 6 Broadband Limiter Navigating the Broadband Limiter Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt a PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE gt gt LIMITER Limiter On Loc Off OverEasy Threshold Auto On Off Type Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter d b X proressional PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 13 Navigating the Multiband EQ X Over Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt A PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE gt EQ XOVER Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Pages Page 6 The EQ XOver EQ On Off n button toggles EQ Pos Pre Post between Type EQ and XOver EGrSSVER Depress once to Edge 1 FC Edge 2 FC Edge 3 FC ge ge ge access EQ and a XOver Slope Slope Slope second time for XOver Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter 14 QUANTUM User Manual d b X Proressiowal PRODUCTS Navigating the Broadband EQ SEQ Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at
15. 0 m Sec per band or global Hold is the time the QUANTUM remains in compression after the signal has dropped below the threshold A longer hold time is useful in smoothing out the sound when compressing several fast peaks that are fairly close together in time In general some hold time helps to make the compression sound more natural but too much can over compress your signal making for an unwanted drop in level The hold control is not active while in auto mode Release 360 dB Sec to 5 dB Sec per band or global Release is how fast the QUANTUM comes out of compression The release is in dB per second For example if release is set to 5 dB sec signal at 10dB of gain reduction release time is 2 seconds Too fast a release time can result in an audible volume jump while too slow a release time can result in the compression of a signal that is not above the threshold This can cause volume drops in your signal that may not be desired The release control is not active while in auto mode d b X ProressIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 31 4 2 Broadband Compression The broadband compressor can be used in both stereo or dual mono configurations Within the broadband compressor menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable on all setups Compressor On Off Turns compressor module on and off OverEasy 1 10 The point when the QUANTUM or any compressor starts to compress is the knee When the QUANTUM starts t
16. 3 RAP It Up 14 Ballad CD 2 64 Ballad CD 2 15 DanceMaster 65 DanceMaster 16 Demo CD 1 66 Demo CD 1 17 Kick Track 67 Kick Track 18 Ambient CD 68 Ambient CD 19 Telephone 69 Telephone 20 Rock Master 70 Rock Master 21 Hip Hop CD 71 Hip Hop CD 22 Techno Mix 72 Techno Master 23 Ballad CD 1 73 Ballad CD 1 24 World Mix 74 World Mix 25 Folk Master 75 Folk Master 26 Subtle Mix 76 Subtle Mix 27 Live CD 77 Live CD 28 Country CD 78 Country CD 29 Cass To CD 79 Cass To CD 30 Default MB 80 Default MB 31 Drum Room 81 Drum Room 32 STE Gtr 82 ST E Gtr 33 ST Vocal 83 ST Vocal 34 Horn Sec 84 Hom Sec 35 Piano Room 85 Piano Room 36 String Sec 86 String Sec 37 ST Ac Gtr 87 ST Ac Gtr 38 Orchestral 88 Orchestral 39 Synth Track 89 Synth Track 40 Default ST 90 Default ST 41 Fat Kick Slam Snare 91 Fat Kick Slam Snare 42 Brite Snare Brite Horns 92 Brite Snare Brite Homs 43 Small Voc Big Piano 93 Small Voc Big Piano 44 Thick Kick Tight Toms 94 Thick Kick Tight Toms 45 Rim Shot Ringing Tom 95 Rim Shot Ringing Tom 46 R amp B Vocal Slap Bass 96 R amp B Vocal Slap Bass 47 De ess Voc Monster Gtr 97 De ess Voc Monster Gtr 48 Country Voc Twang E Gtr 98 Country Voc Twang E Gtr 49 Rumble Bass FunkstompGt 99 Rumble Bass FunkstompGt 50 Mono Def Mono Def 100 Mono Def Mono Def 78 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS
17. 90 75 60 45 30 15 0 15 d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 3 1 2 Front Panel cont When working with the sidechain EQ or the in line EQ the curve window changes to show a graphical representation of the 5 parametric bands in a frequency grid Your adjustments to the 5 bands are shown in real time Additionally the De Esser has its own graphical way of displaying its parameters The frequency is shown on the bottom or X axis and the low frequency rolloff is shown on the side or Y axis 1 3 QUANTUM Wizard The easiest way to program the QUANTUM is using the Wizard To access the Wizard press and hold the PROGRAM button Once in the Wizard mode you will select the task that you are performing The QUANTUM will automatically choose the correct chain type foryourtask Ifyou select Mastering or Mixing the Wizard will then have you choose your music type Afteryou have selected the music type you will then select the type of EQ gating compression and limiting These are all influenced by the music type For example a Light compression setting with the music type set to Hard Rock will be heavier than Heavy compression with the music type set to Classical If you select Tracking then you will be asked to set up either channel one channel two or stereo If you are tracking two separate instruments in dual mono then you can go through the Wizard twice the first time setting up channel one and the second t
18. Band PEQ may be Pre or Post Dynamics W hat the QUANTUM screen shows for Pre Gate Comp Stereo Input Limiter N Gate gt Comp Dither CH1_y Stereo _ Pre Limiter gt Nom Noise gt gt CH2 Adjust PEQ Ambience gt gt gt gt Gate gt Y e Comp y gt gt Crossover Limiter sus Comp Limiter W hat the QUANTUM screen shows for Post Fig 3 1 Gate gt Comp Stereo Input gt gt Limiter N gt yes Fa Dither i sie Ambience 2 gt Limiter i gt Norm gt Noise cH2 d gt gt A y PO gt gt Shape gt E Es Comp y gt gt 20 QUANTUM User Manual d b X ProressiowaL PRODUCTS 3 1 FX Chains cont ChainType Stereo Broadband PEQ may be Pre or Post Dynamics W hat the QUANTUM screen shows for Pre a e EN PEG Lo J mE Dither E a FEO 2 Ambience 2 De Esser Comp Norm 2 Noise gt CH2 8 E gt Lim gt Shape gt W hat the QUAN TUM screen shows for Post a EL eng Stereo Input 1 gt Y Dither i jue Ambience De Esser Comp Pot 3 Nom gt Noise CH2 gt gt EA gt PEQ gt Shape Fig 3 2 d b X proressioNAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 21 3 1 FX Chains cont ChainType Mono PEQ may be Pre or Post Dynamics W hat the QUANTUM screen shows for Pre soe Mono Input Side C hain CH1 or CH2 PEQ Pre Gate prm gt PEQ
19. F 2 Factory Setups Stereo Default MB Default ST Mix Maximum Country Mix Folk Master Subtle Mix Pop Masterl Pop Master2 Classical CD Funkngroove Rock Master Country CD Jazz Master Cass To CD Ambient CD Smooth Voc Rockin CD World Mix Squash It Expand It Metal CD Telephone Hip Hop CD RAP It Up Ballad CD 1 Ballad CD 2 DanceMaster Techno Mix Demo CD 1 Demo CD 2 Kick Track Live CD Choral Ens Piano Track ST E Gtr Drum Room ST Vocal Piano Room ST Ac Gtr String Sec Synth Track Horn Sec Orchestral Mono Mono Def R amp B Vocal Studio Voc Small Voc Country Voc De ess Voc Fat Kick Thick Kick Brite Snare Slam Snare Rim Shot Tight Toms Ringing Tom Rumble Bass Slap Bass Big Piano Brite Horns Acoustic Gt Folk Gtr Twang E Gtr Monster Gtr FunkstompGt d b X ProressIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 79 Specifications Inputs Connectors Type Impedance Max Input Level CMRR Input Gain Range MIDI Outputs Connectors Type Impedance Max Output Level Output Gain Range MIDI A D System Performance A D Conversion Convertor Dynamic Range Type IV Dynamic Range THD Noise Frequency Response Interchannel Crosstalk D A System Performance D A Conversion Dynamic Range THD Noise Frequency Response Interchannel Crosstalk Female XLR and 1 4 TRS Pin 2 and tip hot Electronically balanced unbalanced RF filtered Balanced gt 18 kQ unbalanced gt 9 k
20. Gain Reduction meters are a measurement of the sum of all active dynamic modules In multiband mode the meters function a little differently Each LCD segment represents a sepa rate band This allows an accurate meter representation of the signal at a glance Gain Reduction Meter Input Output Curve Meter Options Two different meter options are available By pushing the METER MONITOR button your choice of a High Resolution dBFS Output meter w clip counter or a Gate Compressor and Limiter threshold meter are available The Gate Compressor and Limiter threshold meters shows if your signal has reached the threshold set in each dynamic processor This is indicated by symbols On every program you will find threshold metering for each processing element Compressor Cli For the compressor the threshold meter has three segments The first is the minus sign It indicates that the threshold set in the compressor section is not being exceeded by the program material There is no processing taking place in the compressor section if the threshold is not being exceeded no matter what the other compressor settings are The next part of the thresh old meter is the o It represents the OverEasy range of compression When the signal level is in the OverEasy range the o part of the meter will be blackened indicating that the sig nal is in the OverEasy mode of compression For a complete explanation of the OverEasy paramet
21. Q 24 dBu balanced or unbalanced gt 40 dB typically gt 55 dB at 1 kHz to 16 dB 5 Pin DIN MIDI Input Jack Male XLR and 1 4 TRS Pin 2 and tip hot Servo balanced unbalanced RF filtered Balanced 120 Q unbalanced 60 Q gt 21dBu balanced unbalanced into 2kQ or greater gt 20dBm balanced unbalanced into 6000 to 16 dB 5 Pin DIN MIDI Out Thru Jack 24 bit dbx Type IV Conversion System 114 dB typical A weighted 22 kHz bandwidth 112 dB typical unweighted 22 kHz bandwidth Up to 127 dB with transient material A weighted 22 kHz bandwidth Up to 125 dB with transient material unweighted 22 kHz bandwidth Typically 119 dB with program material A weighted 22 kHz bandwidth Typically 117 dB with program material unweighted 22 kHz bandwidth 0 00296 typical at 4 dBu 1 kHz input gain at 0 dB 20 Hz to 20 kHz 0 0 5 dB lt 85 dB at 1 kHz input gain at 0 dB 24 bit 115 dB typical A weighted 22 kHz bandwidth 112 dB typical unweighted 22 kHz bandwidth 0 00296 typical at 4 dBu 1 kHz output gain at 0 dB 20 Hz to 20 kHz 0 0 5 dB 85 dB at 1 kHz output gain at 0 dB 80 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS TPDF Dither Audio Precision FFT SPECTRUM ANALYSIS DIGITAL 05 05 99 23 33 14 E A T A E aa o Rr A R natus O a domos AS om s ei Na A E See FD apar tm ma 4 R3 Ac ores a en cina aas iru aca nu ml hene ue rum mpl inm Te T e Mtas ir FON ULT CN SRL
22. a df bs 180 g 2k Ak Gk ok 10k 12k 14k 16k 18k 20k 22 Fig Hel Hz TPDF Dither a 24 Bit word output b 20 Bit word output c 16 Bit word output d 8 Bit word output Parameters Input 60dBFS 1 kHz FFT Length 2048 Sample Rate 48 Khz Averages 32 Graph Steps 1024 d b X ProressiowaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 81 Noise Shaping Audio Precision FFT SPECTRUM ANALYSIS DIGITAL 05 05 99 23 20 36 EN Ap 100 ec 110 y b nn D i j i j a4 20 Aa heey pl ups Pr ia iia Tia AS e Aer 4 gc i IS inn A AENA a f tea 1301 140 150 160 D 2k ak Bk Bk 10k 12k 14k 1Bk 18k 20k 22k Fig H 2 Hz 16 Bit TPDF dither a Shape off b with shape set to S1 c with shape set to S2 Parameters Input 60dBFS 1 kHz FFT Length 2048 Sample Rate 48 Khz Averages 32 Graph Steps 1024 82 QUANTUM User Manual d b x PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS Truncation Audio Precision FFT SPECTRUM ANALYSIS DIGITAL 05 05 99 23 35 36 60 70 _ fe Sh Ap 80 90 i 110 1201 1 l 4 l peN 1 4h i H I r Yt Tt tt O O SO Tp ay TL IJ 140 H H h 1 hi H 1 n I IEI 1 L H r E H Wd it mt 2 ae lust Ime FUR aid las Panic a ial y sl amm eves Hiren ety arte APES aay SW vary obeyed A intel Pavey val bli sae MA el My vail bar at ar e b one ou 160 l 170 ta 180 o 2k Ak Bk Hk 1 k 12k 14k 16k 18k rk wok Fig H 3 Hz a 24 Bit word b 16 Bit trunc
23. an than create a signal that sounds much louder than it was Attack 0 1 m Sec to 200 m Sec Attack is how fast the compressor starts to compress the signal after it passes the threshold Fast attack is useful when dealing with lots of fast transients The attack control is not active when in auto mode Hold O to 500 m Sec Hold is the time the QUANTUM remains in compression after the signal has dropped below the threshold A longer hold time is useful in smoothing out the sound when compressing several fast peaks that are fairly close together in time In general some hold time helps to make the compression sound more natural but too much can over compress your signal making for an unwanted drop in level The hold control is not active while in auto mode Release 360 dB Sec to 5 dB Sec Release is how fast the QUANTUM comes out of compression The release is in dB per second For example if release is set to 5 dB sec signal at 10dB of gain reduction release time is 2 seconds Too fast a release time can result in an audible volume jump while too slow a release time can result in the compression of signal that is not above the threshold This can cause vol ume drops in your signal that may not be desired The release control is not active while in auto mode 4 3 Multiband Gate A gate is a simple device It is either open or closed When a gate is open signal is allowed to pass When the gate is closed signal is not allowed to pass Th
24. ated output no dither Parameters Input 60dBFS 1 kHz FFT Length 2048 Sample Rate 48 Khz Averages 32 Graph Steps 1024 d b X ProressiowaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 83 dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS H A Harman International Company 8760 South Sandy Parkway Sandy Utah 84070 Phone 801 568 7660 Fax 801 568 7662 Int Fax 219 462 4596 Questions or comments E mail us at customer dbxpro com or visit our World Wide Web home page at www dbxpro com 18 5385 D
25. cut Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps SEQ5 FC 20 0 Hz to 20 0 kHz This controls the corner frequency for the high frequency shelving EQ band d b X eroressioNaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 39 Slope 3 to 12 dB Octave Sets the slope of the shelf Level 12 to 12 dB Amount of boost or cut Adjustable in 1 2 dB steps 4 10 Type IV The QUANTUM uses dbx Type IV 96 kHz converters Type IV gives you more A to D head room and the ability to add Tape Saturation Emulation For more information on Type IV and TSE see the White Paper on page 65 of Appendix B Type IV On Off This tums Type IV on and off When tumed off the QUANTUM s A to D converters work as standard 24 bit 96 kHz converters Note that this can be controlled independently in dual mono programs Color This sets the color or tone of the Type IV conversion system The following options are avail able Bright Very bright and airy up top Light Not as much sizzle in the top but less aggressive on harsh mixes None No coloration Warm For that warm and friendly feel Dark Enhances low frequencies good for an bright mix Level 4 to 0 Sets the signal level at which the Type IV conversion system starts to work 4 11 Stereo Adjust The Stereo Adjust control lets you change the width of the stereo mix Within the Other menu the following parameters are user adjustable St Adj
26. dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM Introduction 1 1 What is QUANTUM eee ii 1 2 Service Contact Info eee iii 1 3 Warranty aas eterne erede AA iii Section 1 Getting Started 1 1 Rear Panel Connections sees 2 1 2 Front Panel esee 2 1 3 Quantum Wizard esee 4 LA Signal Path ice terit 4 1 5 Mastering and the Quantum 5 Section 2 Navigation 2 1 Multiband Compressor eeeeeeee 8 2 2 Broadband Compressor sss 9 2 3 Multiband Gate 10 2 4 Broadband Gate sse 11 2 5 Multiband Limiter eee 12 2 6 Broadband Limiter sss 13 2 1 EO XOVER iia ierit 14 2 8 BOJ SEQ iei ect drerit etes 15 2 9 Norm OQ utpuL ett n i rete nhe 16 DADO Mie 17 PALME ilatina 18 Section 3 Software O perations IL PX Chasis 20 3 2 Programs Setups eene 23 3 3 Saving a Setup renaire iaiia a a 24 3 4 Saving a Program sese 25 3 5 The Bypass Function 26 3 0 Meter Jeep eoe e eite rade 26 3 7 Monitor Outputs seen 28 Section 4 Detailed Parameters 4 1 Multiband Compression 30 4 2 Broadband Compression 32 4 3 Multiband Gate sse 33 4 4 Broadband Gate sese 34 4 5 Multiband Limiting
27. ds 36 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 6 Broadband Limiting cont Hold O to 500 m Sec per band or global Hold is the time the limiter stays in gain reduction after the signal level has dropped below threshold Hold is useful when you want the limiter to function for a period of time after it has been triggered Be careful not to set the hold time too long as it will not release in time Release 360 to 5 dB Sec per band or global Just like the release time on the compressor the limiter s release time controls how fast the lim iter releases from gain reduction after the signal drops below the threshold Setthe release times longer for lower frequency bands and shorter for higher frequency bands There are 5 bands of EQ on the QUANTUM that can be used for something as subtle as sweet ening a mix to drastic changes Bands 1 and 5 are shelves while 2 through 4 are fully para metric Within the EQ menu the following parameters are user adjustable EQ On Off This control turns all 5 bands on and off POS Pre Post This sets the position of the EQs in the chain The EQ can be Pre or Post dynamic processors This is a global control as all bands must be either pre or post as a group Type Const Q Adapt Q This controls effects all 5 bands Const Q operates similar to an analog graphic EQ where the Q is constant regardless of cut or boost Whereas Adaptive Q operates similar to the EQ that is found on a mixing
28. ection The QUANTUM provides S PDIF digital input and output through the RCA connectors on the rear panel The analog outputs still operate regardless of the selection of the digital output for mat AES EBU Digital Connectors XLR connectors provide AES EBU input and output IEC Power Cord Receptacle The QUANTUM comes with an International power supply that will accept voltages ranging from 100V 240V at frequencies from 50Hz 60Hz An IEC cord is included 1 2 Front Panel Analog Input and Output Level Controls These controls adjust the analog audio levels of the QUANTUM at the input and output stages Note that the analog output level controls do not affect any digital processing or digital output levels The QUANTUM is designed to interface as easily as possible to your system The QUANTUM uses wide ranging analog input and output gain controls These controls allow the connection of nominal levels of either 10dBV or 4dBu 2 QUANTUM User Manual d b X Proressiowal PRODUCTS 1 2 Front Panel cont Analog Level Meters These meters monitor analog input and output For more on meters refer to Section 3 TSE Audio Level Meters These meters monitor the level of Tape Saturation Emulation Refer to Type IV in Section 3 LCD Display The large LCD display shows the program curve digital meters parameters and modules selected by the function buttons and the DATA WHEEL m Channel numbers Digita
29. ely until arriving at the desired band Band 1 On Off Threshold Attack OverEasy amp Ratio Hold Gain Release Threshold Attack Ratio Hold Gain Release Threshold Attack Ratio Hold Gain Release BEEBEN Band 4 On Off Threshold Attack OverEasy amp Ratio Hold Auto Gain Release Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 8 QUANTUM User Manual 2 2 Broadband Compressor Navigating the Broadband Compressor Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt a PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE gt gt Page 1 Page 2 Compr On Loc Off Threshold OverEasy Ratio Auto Loc On Off Gain COMPRESSOR pap s Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 9 2 3 Multiband Gate Navigating the Multiband Gate Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page 4 PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE P SA Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Navigate through Gate On Loc Off the bands by Threshold depressing the Ratio p 9 GATE Gate button successively until arriving at the desired band A Band 1 On Off Threshold Ratio Band 2 On Of
30. er see Section 4 The third segment of the compressor meter is the plus sign It is blackened when the signal is being fully compressed at the ratio set by the Ratio Parameter d b X ProressioNAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 27 3 6 Meters cont Limiter molt The limiter s threshold meter works on the same principle When the signal is under the thresh old setting the signal is not being processed by the limiter section The next part of the thresh old meter is the o It represents the OverEasy 8 range of compression When the signal exceeds the threshold set in the limiter section the plus sign will darken and gain reduc tion will begin to occur as a result of the signal exceeding the limiter s threshold Gate Expander 5i E3 When the signal is under the threshold set in the gate section the gate is closed or signal is being attenuated When the signal is under the threshold the minus sign is darkened and when the signal passes over the threshold the plus sign is darkened De Esser it The De esser also has a threshold meter The threshold meter for this element is also dis played in the upper left corner When the plus sign is darkened the threshold has been exceeded and De Essing is being applied to the signal 3 7 Monitor Outputs Monitoring separate bands is a useful and easily accomplished function in the QUANTUM By pressing the METER MO NITOR button twice you are able to access the monito
31. erative process that takes time to perfect By using the multiband compressor along with the other tools available in QUANTUM you will be able to create much larger sounding mixes and masters QUANTUM User Manual d b x PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS NAVIGATION a NTUM QUAS ens E p nace Lt dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS Control of each of the bands within the QUANTUM s multiband dynamic modules is made possible in two different ways You may either use the All page or individual band adjust ments The All page is signified by a large All seen where the program number would nor mally be Adjusting settings in this page will adjust the settings in all four bands as a group To control individual bands within the All page press the EDIT ALI BAND button to cycle through each band Pressing the dynamic module s button again will cycle you through the separate bands and the dynamic controls of those bands e g compressor or limiter Refer to the Navigation illustrations for a complete view of the parameters available in each Multiband Dynamic Module Navigating the Multiband Compressor Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt d PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE B COMPRESSOR Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Navigate through AII ela dd PLN Pied vertasy atio o the bands by Bands Auto Loc On Off Gain Release depressing the Compressor button successiv
32. f Threshold Ratio Band 3 On Off Threshold Ratio Band 4 On Off Threshold Ratio GATE O GATE A GATE O Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter 10 QUANTUM User Manual d b x PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 2 4 Broadband Gate Navigating the Broadband Gate Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt d PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE B GATE a p Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Gate On Loc Off Max Att Bands Threshold Ratio Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter d b X ProressionaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 11 2 5 Multiband Limiter Navigating the Multiband Limiter Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt a PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE B LIMITER a y Limiter On Loc Off OverEasy Navigate through Threshold Auto On Off the bands by depressing the Limiter button ana UMS ivelv until an n verEasy success ely unt Threshold Auto On Off arriving at the Band 2 On oft OverEasy Threshold Auto On Off Band 3 On Off OverEasy Threshold Auto On Off Band 4 on off OverEasy Threshold Auto On Off desired band ajajaja Navigate through
33. igital sample rates 96 88 2 48 or 44 1kHz The QUANTUM will dither down to 24 20 16 or 8 bits See the Appendix for all the possible conversions 1 2 Service Contact Info If you require technical support contact dbx Customer Service Be prepared to accurately describe the problem Know the serial numberof your unit this is printed on a sticker attached to the rear panel If you have not already taken the time to fill out your warranty registration card and send it in please do so now Before you return a product to the factory for service we recommend you refer to the manu al Make sure you have correctly followed installation steps and operation procedures If you are still unable to solve a problem contact our Customer Service Department at 801 568 7660 for consultation If you need to retur a product to the factory for service you MUST contact Customer Service to obtain a Return Authorization Number No returned products will be accepted at the factory without a Retum Authorization Number Please refer to the Warranty below which extends to the first end user After expiration of the warranty a reasonable charge will be made for parts labor and packing if you choose to use the factory service facility In all cases you are responsible for transportation charges to the fac tory dbx will pay return shipping if the unit is still under warranty Use the original packing material if it is available Mark the package with the
34. ime setting up channel two If at any time you decide you want to quit without the Wizard setting up a program for you you may press the PROGRAM button to exit the Wizard Once all of the questions have been answered the QUANTUM will display WORKING and then a custom setup will appear tailored to your application If you are working in a stereo setup the QUANTUM will allow you to optimize your output gain To optimize the output gain push the EDIT ALI BAND button while the loudest part of the program material is passing through the Quantum Press the button again when the peak has passed The Wizard will opti mize the output level so that the highest peak is set to 0 dBFS The Wizard will then return you to the Program mode Ifthe PROGRAM button is pressed while gain optimizing the Wizard will exit without changing the output level This setup can be further adapted to your taste and saved for later use 1 4 Signal Path 4 E ES 3 amp 30 The following illustration shows how audio signals flow through the QUANTUM digital input control DSP Software Based Operations dg ou TS digital gain meter input reduction analo analog meter meter Output O input meter meter Jn O Dynamics Sample Rate D A analo analog Processor Converter Convertor output s analo analog C A uA outpu et Onvertor Clone Bypass push and hold Bypass for 2 seconds control Fig 12 QUANTUM
35. is lets you gate out background noise between tracks cut the ring out of a drum etc Downward expansion works on much the same concept Anything over a certain level is let by while any signal under that level is dropped in volume expanded downward The multiband gate on the QUANTUM lets you con trol the amount of gating downward expansion separately in each frequency band range Within the Expander Gate menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable Gate LOC On Off Local per band control or global on and off Band 1 to 4 On Off Turns on or off each independent band Threshold 75 to O dB per band or global The threshold is the signal level at which the gate opens Anything above the threshold pass es while signal that is lowerthan the threshold is attenuated Beware setting the threshold too high can cut off the tail end of signals as they fade out the sustain of a guitar note a held piano chord a reverb tail etc d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 33 4 3 Multiband Gate cont Ratio 1 1 0 to 1 15 per band or global This is where you decide how much downward expansion you want This ratio works back wards from that of the compressor or limiter If a ratio of 1 4 is selected a signal that is 1dB below the threshold will be reduced in level so that it becomes 4dB below the threshold Attack 0 1 to 200 m Sec per band or global As the signal reaches the threshold area the Attack con
36. l input Program within program Chain element Threshold put meters LIP DUE E e peak and average number stereo link indicator identifier Meters o E 2 E 5 Multi Band Compressor in m Gate De esser H Limiter S Chain EQ alls ama E 12345678010 Type IV Parameter 1 Threshold 6E semis Dynamics curve graph Parameter 2 I4 o y n kHz dB Rabid kn L muSec Parameter 3 B8S852zaroconon lt o kHz dB emuSec 90 105 90 75 60 45 30 15 0 15 3 parameters per page Parameter Gain Reduction meter i measurement arameter Type IV page number conversion Fig 1 1 indicator DataW heel Selector The DATA WHEEL changes selected parameters programs etc Pushing the DATA WHEEL moves the cursor from parameter to parameter Function Buttons The function buttons allow access to the programs modules utilities and parameters of the QUANTUM Power Switch Turns the QUANTUM on and off The Curve Window After you have chosen a program you may want to change some of the parameters to meet your specific needs One of the most useful tools available on the QUANTUM for setting up a proper compression curve is the curve window In the curve window you can see the com bined effects of dynamics related parameters expressed in a graphical format The figure below shows the different parts of the curve window you will see as you edit the gate compressor and limiter functions of the QUANTUM 90 105
37. ld low enough so that almost the entire signal content is over the threshold For most signals the most natural compression is achieved when most of the signal content remains just below the threshold and only the peaks cross the threshold Ratio 0 75 to Inf 1 per band or global Ratio is the amount the QUANTUM reduces the signal level of the sound that is above the threshold A 2 1 ratio means that if the incoming signal is 2dB over the threshold the QUAN TUM will compress the signal and outputs a signal that only goes 1dB over the threshold For light compression choose a lower ratio For heavy compression a higher ratio is used By set ting the ratio at less than 1 1 the signal will be expanded rather than compressed The QUAN TUM will actually output a signal larger then the input At a ratio of 0 75 1 if a signal goes over the threshold by 0 75dB the unit will output a signal that is 1 dB over the threshold Gain 20 to 20 dB per band or global This is used to compensate for the gain lost during compression By using heavy compression on a signal and then boosting the signal with the output gain we can than create a signal that sounds much louder than it was Attack 0 1 m Sec to 200 m Sec per band or global Attack is how fast the compressor starts to compress the signal after it passes the threshold Fast attack is useful when dealing with lots of fast transients The attack control is not active when in auto mode Hold O to 50
38. ll be active BYPASS with DIGITAL INPUT digital input levels the high pass and the dither will still be active CLONE BYPASS with ANALOG INPUT TYPE IV will still be active but uneditable CLONE BYPASS with DIGITAL INPUT is an exact output of the input nothing will be active Analog Meters The QUANTUM s analog input meters show the signal after the input controls These analog meters are referenced in dBu The meter will accurately represent the input level only when the input controls are set to zero 12 4 PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS I WA cw dB CH 1 INPUT GAIN TSE Level Meters These meters show that the program material has entered into Tape Saturation Emulation They will only operate if TYPE IV is ON The 0 will light when the program material has entered into TSE Increments of 4dB steps show the increasing entry into TSE A general usage of TSE is 0 4dB vocals 4 8dB guitar 8 12dB drums highly transient material Of course the use of TSE is highly subjective 26 QUANTUM User Manual d b x PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 3 6 Meters cont Digital Meters The middle portion of the meter represents the peak level of the signal The sides of the meter represent the average peak level Since the digital output meter is located after dither changes made to dither will be seen at this meter Digital clipping is represented by a large C at the top of the meter Peak Input Shoulder The
39. miter If a ratio of 1 4 is selected a signal that is 1dB below the threshold will be reduced in gain so that it becomes 4dB below the threshold Attack 0 1 to 200 m Sec As the signal reaches the threshold area the Attack control sets the speed at which the gate opens Use very fast attack times to catch the fronts of transient signals 34 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 4 Broadband Gate cont Hold O to 500 m Sec The Hold control sets the amount of time the gate is held open after the signal passes below the threshold point Release 360 to 5 dB Release sets the speed at which the gate closes when the end of the Hold time is reached Max ATT O to Inf dB This sets the maximum amount of attenuation for the gate 4 5 Multiband Limiting A Limiter works very much like a compressor The only difference is that on a limiter the ratio is set at infinity to one Whenever a signal crosses the threshold the limiter compresses it back down By using the multiband Limiter you can set each limiter differently for different frequency ranges The multi band limiter is an RMS limiter short transients may exceed the threshold With in the limiter menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable on all setups Changes made to factory setups can be saved as user setups Limiter LOC On Off Local per band control or global on or off Bands 1 to 4 On Off Lets you turn each band on or off independently
40. mpressor gate and limiter while in both multiband and broadband modes To keep the multiband dynamic elements phase coherent there is only one TCM time for all bands of the gate compressor and limiter TCM On Off This is a global control and turns the TCM on or off for all compressors limiters and gates Time O to 85 m Sec This sets the amount of the TCM delay The longer the time the more time the unit has to react to fast transient peaks Care must be used however as a long TCM time coupled with a fast release on the compressor or limiter can cause them to release before the peak even hits 4 14 De Esser The De Esser is only available in non multiband chains e g Stereo Broadband or Dual Mono A De Esser is primarily used to remove the S or sibilant sounds in a vocal track Within the De Esser menu the following parameters are user adjustable De Esser On Off You guessed it Turns the De Esser on or off Freq 800 Hz to 8 00 kHz This is the center frequency the De Esser uses when in Band Pass mode orthe comer frequency used when in High Pass mode d b X proressionaL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 41 4 14 De Esser cont Amount 0 to 100 This controls the amount of De Essing The amount control is very much like a combination threshold ratio control A higher amount applies more De Essing to the signal Type HP or BP Selects the type of filter used by the De Esser Width Sets the Q of the Band
41. name of the ship per and with these words in red DELICATE INSTRUMENT FRAGILE Insure the package prop erly Ship prepaid not collect Do not ship parcel post 1 3Warranty This warranty is valid only for the original purchaser and only in the United States 1 The warranty registration card that accompanies this product must be mailed within 30 days after purchase date to validate this warranty Proof of purchase is considered to be the burden of the consumer 2 dbx warrants this product when bought and used solely within the U S to be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use and service 3 dbx liability under this warranty is limited to repairing or at our discretion replacing defec tive materials that show evidence of defect provided the product is returned to dbx WITH RETURN AUTHORIZATION from the factory where all parts and labor will be covered up to a period of two years A Retum Authorization number must be obtained from dbx by telephone The company shall not be liable for any consequential damage as a result of the product s use in any circuit or assembly d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual iii 1 3 Warranty cont 4 dbx reserves the right to make changes in design or make additions to or improvements upon this product without incurring any obligation to install the same additions orimprovements on products previously manufactured 5 The foregoing is in lieu of all other warran
42. o reduce the level of a signal abruptly right as it passes over the threshold this is called hard knee compression OverEasy0 soft knee as it is sometimes called is when the volume of the sound is compressed gradually OverFasy amp compression starts to compress before the level of the signal reaches the threshold and reaches full compression after the level has gone above the threshold This OverEasy compression by its very nature sounds much smoother and more natural and will be used for most applications When it is gentle natural sounding or light compression that you are looking for the QUANTUM has what we call VariKnee VariKnee gives you ten levels of OverEasy 8 compression to choose from 1 being almost hard knee and 10 being the most OverEasy0 This lets you choose the exact knee that is needed for the dynamic effect you are looking for see Fig 4 1 Auto On Off When Auto Mode is on the QUANTUM automatically sets the Attack Hold and Release times for the signal The auto mode constantly adjusts these parameters in real time for optimum per formance from the unit You will find that for most applications not only is using the auto mode faster and easier but by letting the unit constantly tweak these parameters for you will result in a better end result try and hit a snare exactly the same for three minutes Threshold 60 to 0 dB Threshold is the signal level at which the QUANTUM starts to compress the signal If the le
43. ontrol over a particular band d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 5 1 5 Mastering and the Q uantum cont 6 Now that your bands are set up for your application you monitor them and you hear how the sub band band one is the ultra low frequencies of the kick and bass as well as some of the guitar The low band band two includes the electric and acoustic guitars the bass and some of the low vocal frequencies The Mid band band three contains the majority of the vocals as well as the mid range frequencies of the Mid band guitar The high band band four con tains the cymbals the click of the guitar pick on the acoustic guitar and the higher vocal fre quencies You are now ready to go to the compressor and start compressing your mix Setting up your compressor is similar to setting up your crossover in that you can go and lis ten to how the compression is affecting the individual bands by monitoring them both pre and post processing The Compressor page gives the engineer control over all the parameters that are needed to adjust the multiband compressor The Multiband compressor can be adjusted either as a unit orthe individual bands can be adjusted separately By pushing the DATA WHEEL the different parameters on a page can be adjusted and by pushing the NEXT PAGE and PREV PAGE buttons all the compressor parameters can be accessed for a complete list of com pressor parameters see Section 3 Software Operation
44. oose the first option by simply pressing the STORE button As you do this the screen goes to the next Store Page asking you to name the new pro gram The curve window shows instructions Using the DATA WHEEL as a selector and the Page Up Page Down buttons as the cursor create the name you want to use then press the store button to save the name 4 When you have named the new program press STORE again then select a new location 1 50 the screen bumps to the next save screen asking you to select a program for the QUAN TUM to erase and write the new program over Note that you can only access programs 1 50 ow d b X proressional PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 25 3 5T he Bypass Function BYPASS To bypass the QUANTUM press the BYPASS button once All digital dynamic modules are ren dered inactive The QUANTUM also has a CLONE BYPASS mode passes the digital audio through the QUAN TUM to the digital output directly as it came in a digital clone To use the CLONE BYPASS mode simply press and hold the BYPASS button for 2 seconds All other function buttons can not be accessed until the BYPASS button is pressed again The TYPE IV Conversion is still active in some bypass modes to protect against digital clip If TYPE IV were shut off with bypass then a signal that enters TSE would cause audible clipping The following list may help clarify BYPASS with ANALOG INPUT the dither and TYPE IV will sti
45. or over 25 years dbx has been the industry leaderin dynamics processing With the introduction of the QUANTUM we apply our superior dynamics processing technology to the digital mastering process This manual will be your guide to understanding the full functionality of the powerful QUAN TUM read it carefully After you have become familiar with the unit we encourage you to experiment and find creative ways that the QUANTUM can help you make a better sounding mix L1WhatisQUANTUM The dbx QUANTUM is the first mastering processor that offers a sampling rate of up to 96kHz a true 48 bit digital signal path with up to 24 bit digital output Below are some of QUANTUM s features 4 Band Stereo Gating Compression and limiting 5 Band Parametric EQ with either an adaptive Q or a constant Q response Hi and Low shelves w switchable slopes 3 4 5 6 9 and 12 dB octave e EQ can be positioned pre dynamics or post dynamics 5 Band Parametric Side Chain FQ with either an adaptive Q or a constant Q response e Dual Mono or True Stereo Operation with True RMS Power Summing TYPE IV Conversion System with TSE Tape Saturation Emulation Normalizer flexible gain optimization Stereo adjust increased control of stereo imaging Dither outputs to 8 16 20 or 24 bits and noise shaping Sample rate conversion e Sync input output using dbx s own proprietary clock chips for extremely low jitter sync With the dbx TYPE IV
46. ose Store New from the Store menu you may then choose the position of your setup within your library To do this simply spin the DATA WHEEL to re order your setup library This allows you to keep your setups organized how you want them For example you can keep all of your Hard Rock or Jazz setups together for quick recall and editing See the Setup Selection illustrations 3 4 and 3 5 Stereo Setup Library Program 1 Pop Master 1 L Pop Master1 Fig 3 4 d b X ProressioNAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 23 3 2 Programs Setups cont Mono Setup Library Program 3 Mono Def Pop Master 1 Studio Voc Studio Voc Acoustic Gt Acoustic Gt 3 3 Saving a Setup Saving a setup can be done by following these steps 1 After you have edited your setups to your liking press the STORE button The screen will look like the figure below Pressing the DATA WHEEL move the cursor down to either CH 1 Setup or CH 2 Setup if you have been editing a dual mono program If you have been working with a linked program your second choice will be Link Setup Make your selection by pressing the STORE button again Remember that there is room in the QUANTUM to store 50 linked setups and 50 mono setups in addition to the fac tory setups Parameter a a ma Chi 5etur Paremeter s i Che 5etur 24 QUANTUM User Manual d b X ProressionaL PRODUCTS 3 3 Saving a Setup cont 2 To name your setup
47. per band or global This is the speed at which the QUANTUM limiter starts to compress the signal once it has crossed the threshold Set the attack time longer for lower frequency bands and shorter for higher frequency bands Hold O to 500 m Sec per band or global Hold is the time the limiter stays in gain reduction after the signal level has dropped below threshold Hold is useful when you want the limiter to function for a period of time after it has been triggered Be careful not to set the hold time too long as it will not release in time Release 360 to 5 dB Sec per band or global Just like the release time on the compressor the limiter s release time controls how fast the lim iter releases from gain reduction after the signal drops below the threshold Setthe release times longer for lower frequency bands and shorter for higher frequency bands 4 6 Broadband Limiting The broadband limiter works very much like the multiband limiter The main difference being that it is a single limiter for the entire frequency range Within the limiter menu on the QUANTUM when in non multiband stereo mode the following parameters are user adjustable on all setups Limiter On Off Turns limiter on and off Threshold 60 to 0 dB As in the multiband limiter this is at what level the limiter kicks in and says NO LOUDER It is recommended that the limiter s threshold be set to slightly below the point of no return so that there is a sligh
48. r selection page Use the DATA WHEEL to select at which point you would like to monitor The headphone graphic and arrow change to show the point in the signal chain you are monitoring The text under Monitor Out shows which band and position you are currently selecting This is a very important option As you are adjusting dynamic processing within individual bands it helps to monitor the changes made to those bands Band 1 pre monitor position is located just after the crossover before the gate compressor and limiter Band 1 post is located after the gate compressor and limiter before the Normalizer and output The other bands 2 4 oper ate in the same fashion 28 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS PARAM ETERS a NTUM QUAS ens E p nace Lt dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 1 Multiband Compression Within the multiband compressor menu on the QUANTUM the following parameters are user adjustable on all setups Compressor LOC O n Off Local per band control or global on and off Band 1 to 4 On Off Turns on or off each independent band OverEasy 1 10 per band or global The point when the QUANTUM or any compressor starts to compress is the knee When the QUANTUM starts to reduce the level of a signal abruptly right as it passes over the threshold this is called hard knee compression OverEasy soft knee as it is sometimes called is when the level of the signal is compressed gradually OverEas
49. ront Panel Lockout sss 62 A A Hash Downloads eene 62 TypelV White Paper 63 C T Clock Modes 5 eee ee 68 C 2 QUANTUM Sync Input 69 SY SEX Definitions 71 E 1 MIDI CC MultiBand Chains 74 E 2 MIDI CC Stereo Non MultiBand 75 E 3 MIDI CC Dual Mono Chains 76 E1 Factory Programs eee 78 F 2 Factory Setups esee 79 Specifications seneni iieii airian 80 Figure Index Fig 1 1 LCD Display mnn 3 Hig 1 2 Signal Path adios 4 Fig 3 1 Stereo MultiBand Chain 20 Fig 3 2 Stereo Broadband Chain 21 Fig 3 3 Mono Chain Type 22 Fig 3 4 Stereo Setup Selection 23 Fig 3 5 Stereo Setup Selection 24 Fig 4 1 Vari Knees ssa cessere ern enin 30 Fig 4 2 Parametric EQ Types esss 37 Fig 4 3 Sidechain Signal Flow 39 Fig C 1 Sync Termination Jumper 69 Fig C 2 Studio Sync Connections 70 Fig H 1 TPDF Dither eto esee 81 Fig H 2 Noise Shaping sse 82 Fig H 3 Truncation eet ree 83 dbx uico Table of Contents INTRODUCTION a TUM QUAS ens E p nace Lt dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS Congratulations on your purchase of the dbx QUANTUM Digital Mastering Processor F
50. s The different bands of the multi band compressor can be accessed by either using the EDIT AU BAND button or by pushing the compressor button Each additional push of the compressor button allows access to the next band Setting up your compressor you decide to compress bands one and two with a ratio of 3 1 You set the threshold for band one at 22 dBFS and the threshold for band two you set to 20 dBFS Remember that in multiband compression the individual bands have less energy than the over all mix so the compression threshold must be lower These settings seems to work well for bands one and two if the gain is set to 4 5 dB for band one and 3 5 dB for band two Band three requires less compression to control it so you set the ratio to 1 5 1 with the threshold set to 26 dBFS and the gain to 2 0 dB The high frequencies require a little compression to keep them in line with the rest of the mix so you set band four s ratio to 2 1 with the threshold set to 30 dBFS and the gain set to 1 0 dB As you listen to your mix you realize that the vocals could use a little more compression so you change the ratio of band three to 1 8 1 Itisimpor tant to listen to both the individual bands and the mix as a whole to hear how the compres sion is affecting the entire mix This type of procedure should be duplicated on the multiband gate and the multiband limiter to achieve the best results As you have seen setting up the multiband compressor is an it
51. t margin of safety Of course be careful not to set the threshold too low Finding the right limiter threshold for your equipment will take some experimentation In a recording application most people will set the limiter up to prevent the signal from distorting the tape Analog tape will saturate slowly and a higher threshold will let you take advantage of this if you choose to Digital recording is far less forgiving and a correctly set limiter threshold will prevent any ugly digital overs from ruining a take For sound reinforcement uses the QUANTUM s limiter is perfect for keeping your amplifiers from clipping When an amplifier clips it sends square waves through to the speakers and this can damage a speaker very quick ly The limiter can also sometimes be used as an effect Setting the threshold low will effectively take all the dynamics out of a signal and is used as a form of extra heavy compression Type PkStop RMS This lets you select the type of limiter used An RMS limiter limits the signal based on the aver age signal level While this is a much more musical sounding limiter some fast transients may go beyond the limiter threshold The PeakStop will keep all peaks below the set threshold Attack 01 to 200 m Sec per band or global This is the speed at which the QUANTUM limiter starts to compress the signal once it has crossed the threshold Set the attack time longer for lower frequency bands and shorter for higher frequency ban
52. the desired Page lt A PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE P MM Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 EQ EQ On Off Pos Pre Post EQ XOVER The EQ SEQ button toggles between EQ and SEQ Depress once to access EQ and a second time for SEQ EQ XOVER SEQ Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter d b X ProressioNAL PRODUCTS QUANTUM User Manual 15 2 9 Norm O utput Navigating Norm Output Navigate through the Pages by depressing Next Page or Prev Page successively until arriving at the desired Page lt a PREV PAGE NEXT PAGE B AA Page 1 Page 2 Dither Out NORM OUTPUT Navigate through Normalize us Ono the bands by Type depressing the Norm Output NORM OUTPUT button Output successively until arriving at the desired band Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter 16 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 2 10 Other Navigating Other Navigate through the bands by depressing the Other button successively until arriving at the desired band Navigate through the Parameters on each Page by depressing the data wheel Rotating the data wheel changes the value of the Parameter OTHER Type IV On Off Color Level Stereo Adj On Off Balance M
53. ties expressed or implied and dbx neither assumes nor authorizes any person to assume on its behalf any obligation or liability in con nection with the sale of this product In no event shall dbx or its dealers be liable for special or consequential damages or from any delay in the performance of this warranty due to caus es beyond their control iv QUANTUM User Manual d b X proressional PRODUCTS Getting Started a NTUM QUAS ens E p nace Lt dbx PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 1 1 Rear Panel Connections Analog Input O utput Connectors Each analog channel features both XLR and 1 4 TRS electronically balanced connections They may be used in a balanced or unbalanced configuration MIDI In and Out Thru Connectors These connectors provide full MIDI functionality to the QUANTUM The Out Thru jack allows you to use the QUANTUM at any point in the MIDI chain For a complete guide to all the MIDI and SYSEX functionality of the QUANTUM see Section 3 Software Operations Sync In and Out Connectors BNC connectors are provided for both clock in and out functions The QUANTUM s clock chips are dbx custom VCXO chips designed for low jitter performance You may use the QUANTUM as a master clock source having other equipment slave to the QUANTUM or you may slave the QUANTUMSs clock to any other source device For more information on the QUANTUM s sync functions see Sync in the Utilities section S PDIF Digital Connectors see Utility S
54. trol sets the speed at which the gate opens Use very fast attack times to catch the fronts of transient signals Hold O to 500 m Sec per band or global The Hold control sets the amount of time the gate is held open after the signal passes below the threshold point Release 360 to 5 dB Sec per band or global Release sets the speed at which the gate closes when the end of the Hold time is reached Max ATT 0 to Inf dB per band or global This sets the maximum amount of attenuation for the gate 4 4 Broadband Gate The QUANTUM s broadband gate is available in the non multiband chain types It works just like the multiband gate with the exception ofthe fact that it functions on the entire signal band Within the Expander Gate menu on the QUANTUM when in non multiband chains the follow ing parameters are user adjustable Gate On Off Local per band control or global on and off Band 1 to 4 On Off Turns on or off each independent band Threshold 75 to 0 dB The threshold is the volume level at which the gate opens Anything above the threshold pass es while signal that is lower than the threshold is attenuated Beware setting the threshold to high can cut off the tail end of signals as they fade out the sustain of a guitar note a held piano chord a reverb tail etc Ratio 1 1 0 to 1 15 This is where you decide how much downward expansion you want This ratio works back wards from that of the compressor or li
55. vel is set to 10 dBFS than any signal larger than 10 dBFS is compressed while any signal that has a level that is lower than 10dBFS is left at the same signal level Light compression is where only the loudest parts of the signal go over the threshold Very heavy compression can be achieved by setting the threshold low enough that almost the entire signal content is over the threshold For most signals the most natural compression is achieved when most of the signal content remains just below the threshold and only the peaks cross the threshold Ratio 0 75 to Inf 1 Ratio is the amount the QUANTUM reduces the signal level of the sound that is above the threshold A 2 1 ratio means that if the incoming signal is 2dB over the threshold the QUAN TUM will compress the signal and outputs a signal that only goes 1dB over the threshold For light compression choose a lower ratio while for heavy compression a higher ratio is used By setting the ratio at less than 1 1 the signal will be expanded The QUANTUM will actually out put a signal larger then the input At a ratio of 0 75 1 if a signal goes over the threshold by 0 75dB the unit will output a signal that is 1 dB over the threshold 32 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 2 Broadband Compression cont Gain 20 to 20 dB This is used to compensate for the gain lost during compression By using heavy compression on a signal and than boosting the signal with the output gain we c
56. y compression starts to compress before the level of the signal reaches the threshold and reaches full compression after the vol ume has gone above the threshold This OverFasy amp compression by its very nature sounds much smoother and more natural and will be used for most applications When it is gentle nat ural sounding or light compression that you are looking for the QUANTUM has what we call VariKnee VariKnee gives you ten levels of OverEasy 8 compression to choose from 1 being almost hard knee and 10 being the most OverEasy This lets you choose the exact knee that is needed for the dynamic effect you are looking for Fig 4 1 Auto LOC On Off and Auto On Off Auto can be turned on off per band or globally When Auto mode is on the QUANTUM auto matically sets the Attack Hold and Release times for the signal The auto mode constantly adjusts these parameters in real time for optimum performance from the unit 30 QUANTUM User Manual d b X PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS 4 1 Multiband Compression cont Threshold 60 to O dB per band or global Threshold is the signal level at which the QUANTUM starts to compress If the threshold is set to 10 dBFS then any signal larger than 10 dBFS is compressed while any signal that has a level lower than 10dBFS is left at the same level Light compression is where only the largest parts of the signal go over the threshold Very heavy compression can be achieved by setting the thresho
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