RNC or Behringer Tube compressor

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mark Scheuerman
  • Start date Start date
most "pro" engineers do not use limiters when tracking....

Wrong.

You need to read the following books. Behind the Glass by Howard Massey or The Mixing Engineers Handbook by Bobby Owskinski. Or, hang out at here, http://www.artistpro.com

Limiting is regularly used for tracking by many pro engineers.
 
Tomcat. Part of the confusion around this subject can be helped by better defining the roll the compressor or limiter is doing in a given application. To protect from digital 'overs' you want the highest ratio and as fast as you can get. The 'gotcha' is that as you approach something in that speed range, it can end up sounding only slightly better than 'clipping' anyway if you let it hit much.
As you go back down into the ratio and speed range where it's a desireable effect, it starts not being as good to stop 'overs'. In an analog tape situation, the tape (or an analog citcuit soft clipping) can take some of the 'overs' and let the 'liniter' be an effect.

FWIW (about .02 cents :D ) if the RNC isn't fast enough, just lower you record level. At 24 bit, you have a LOT of dynamic range to play with.
No problem.:D
Wayne
 
Middleman said:
...snip...
...Use the Super nice switch on the RNC by the way, that way you are running it through the 3 internal compressors.
(Not to be picky...:D )
...but not for overs protection right? SuperNice slows everything back down a step.
Wayne
 
FWIW (about .02 cents ) if the RNC isn't fast enough, just lower you record level.

Well said. Turning down the volume is another good, and cheaper alternative.
 
mixsit,

To tell you the truth, I am not sure what is going on with threshold, attack, release etc when it goes into Supernice mode. It just sounds better :D

I am not sure if the unit feeds the external settings through all 3 compressors or if is is setting up fast and slow options etc. I have wondered about that. I saw the diagram about the process on their site but could not find additional info about what exactly is happening.
 
Middleman said:
Wrong.

You need to read the following books. Behind the Glass by Howard Massey or The Mixing Engineers Handbook by Bobby Owskinski. Or, hang out at here, http://www.artistpro.com

Limiting is regularly used for tracking by many pro engineers.


I think there is some confusion of terms, brickwall limiting isn`t often used.
When you say limiter I think 25:1 or more to really kill the "overs", that`s not often done..... 4:1 to 10:1 to have some degree of control is more the norm..
I usually think of that as compression, not limiting, but that`s just me....


Amund
 
Middleman said:
Better yet for slightly more money I would go for a an old 160. I got busted on the other thread for suggesting you can get one of these for around $200, which I have seen, but let's say for around $300-$400 on these.

Middleman, if you can find a 160 in decent condition for sale at these prices, please e-mail me immediately. I haven't seen them go for less than about $600 in a long, long time.
 
Decent condition.... hmmm..... there in lies the rub. You want the sound or pretty knobs. If you don't mind the looks I think I can assist.

I'll ping ya when I come across one.
 
Middleman said:
Decent condition.... hmmm..... there in lies the rub. You want the sound or pretty knobs. If you don't mind the looks I think I can assist.

By "decent condition", I mean functional. I don't care what it looks like. Although if its case is bashed-in and covered in goose shit or something, I'd have to wonder whether there may be some internal problems as well.
 
jslator said:
By "decent condition", I mean functional. I don't care what it looks like. Although if its case is bashed-in and covered in goose shit or something, I'd have to wonder whether there may be some internal problems as well.
...Covered in goose shit - That's freakin' classic. :D

________________
Post indie electronic
Meriphew
www.meriphew.com
 
Jslator, check your Private mail.




Oops never mind, you wanted a 160VU not the 160XT. Ignore that PM.

How about a 161 which is the transformerless version with the same circuit design. There is a guy here in LA that might be able to add the transformer and it would sound like the 160 VU.
 
Tomcat, you're on the right track. Your diction has everything to do with dynamic peaks in singing. If you're clipping a word, go back, track it again, and "soften up" that word. Don't you just hate "L" at the end of a word? Don't be a victim of the belief that poor technique will be saved by electronic hooey. You don't want to clip? Then use your God-given voice to sing so you don't clip. Then you get to be a better singer. People walk into studios, have limited time, and folks do the best they can with the tracks. The advantage of home recording is you can take the time to capture a good performance. If you learn to "work" the mic(s) you choose, you will clip not, and engineers will love you. Best of luck.-Richie
 
meriphew said:
Yeah - I've used both (I own a couple RNC's among my compressor collection), and to my ears (and just about everyone else's who have tried both) the RNC blows the Behringer away. I hope you're not implying that the Behringer is the better compressor.... that would be just plain silly.

________________
Post indie electronic
Meriphew
www.meriphew.com

Couple of things:
1) I just wanted to stress that the RNC isn't FAR superior to the T1952, it's just better...
2)I hope you're not implying MY ears are bad or something
3)The RNC certainly does not blow the T1952 away, when it comes to phattening up drum-computers. I even had run them in series (Boss Dr-670-->T1952-->RNC) and then the RNC just makes things louder and clearer, not 'phatter'.

Yes, I totally agree that for most vocal uses, and acoustic guitar uses, the RNC will fair better than the T1952, but please don't dismiss it so easily, because the faceplate says the B-word and it has a lightbulb behind the 'toobs'.
Look at my pro and con-list (in my first post in this thread). I can make the T1952 pretty noise-free when using the expander, the RNC will still give me a slight amount of hiss.

Also, the T1952 is HARD-BYPASS; turn it off, and the signal still passes through, very convenient.
Oh, not to mention the internal powersupply... I HATE WALWARTS!
 
Middleman, I want to thank you again!

Last night I set the RNC up the way you said (threshhold -3, ratio 25, attack 0.2, release 0.02, and gain 0.0) and it did just exactly what I was looking for. The vocals were clear and punchy in the mix with no overs but still had good dynamics. I would never have stumbled onto that on my own because of my lack of understanding of what I actually needed for my situation (a limiter more than a compressor, per se).

Tom
 
Another satisfied customer!

The RNC is a great little compressor...

and there are many different ways to use it. Like Middleman said, you need to play with it.:)
 
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