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Post by Johnkenn on Jun 17, 2014 13:04:35 GMT -6
I could totally be talking out of my ass here, as I am but a duum songrighter...but are transformers - and the shaving/smoothing of transients - be considered a form of compression? Or limiting I guess. More trannies in the end, less overall compression? freedcomedy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/tranny.jpeg |
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Post by Ward on Jun 17, 2014 14:16:47 GMT -6
MY EYES!!! BE MERCIFUL! THAT WHICH HAS BEEN SEEN CAN NOT BE UNSEEN!!
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Post by sinasoid on Jun 17, 2014 14:32:29 GMT -6
Hmm, I think it would more under the line of technically being a filter. Smoothing of highs comes from the winding resistance, essentially functioning as a filter. You also have to take into account impedance mismatches, which will act as a secondary LPF of sorts.
I think what's cool about transformers are the gnarly tones you can get when intentionally misfeeding voltage to them. Limit the current for some nasty (sometimes good) cross over distortion,
over pump the current and you get saturation from the secondary winding not being able to keep up. Transformer clipping I found is a lot more harmonically complex and "spongy" compared to diode or discrete component clipping, albeit it often sounds terrible. Still interesting though.
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Post by sinasoid on Jun 17, 2014 14:32:50 GMT -6
And that picture... I wish to go blind now.
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Post by wiz on Jun 17, 2014 16:34:01 GMT -6
I never figured you for a blonde...
@johnkenn
8)
cheers
Wiz
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Post by svart on Jun 17, 2014 20:01:15 GMT -6
Transformers are essentially two series inductors in parallel, sharing a flux field.. So that makes them LPFs.. So since fast transients are effectively high frequency harmonics, they'll get filtered out.
In electronics language, "compression" means to run out of voltage headroom. This is largely an RF term, and the result of RF compression is actually squaring the sinewave, so creating harmonics.
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Post by hadaja on Jun 18, 2014 21:22:33 GMT -6
Here's a transformer question.
If want to impart some Xformer mojo on a track after the tracking comressor but all I have is a clean Aphex comp can I use line output transformer inserted(rigged up) on the end of the output of the clean compressor to give me that option?
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Post by svart on Jun 18, 2014 21:50:46 GMT -6
Yep, that's pretty much it. The more power going through the transformer, the more it'll impart it's sound on the signal. Just be aware that not all transformers have a good sound and not all have a lot of "transformer sound". There was a time where people used transformers when they had nothing else to do matching and balancing. They didn't use them for their sound, and in fact, they tried very hard design them without "sound".
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Post by hadaja on Jun 18, 2014 22:02:44 GMT -6
SO in regards to current trends, what are the current trends in transformer sounds?
I like the sound of my Daking FET II, I do not want something heavy coloured, I enjoy the colour of my Neve output transformers.
Does it have to be a matching ohm like does it have be 10K:10K on the output?
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Post by svart on Jun 19, 2014 8:12:02 GMT -6
If you don't want level changes it needs to be matching. Most transformers don't have a specific native impedance, but they are wound so that they work best in certain impedance ranges. For instance, a 600:600 should work best around 600 source and 600 load impedances, but will probably work anywhere from 150 to 5k ohms pretty easily with some changes in the signal.
I'd say give 600:600 a try and see if it sounds OK to you.
As far as coloration, the old style gapped neve output transformers have DC running through them which helps with that "sound".
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Post by Ward on Jun 19, 2014 9:36:59 GMT -6
Excellent posts on this svart ! |
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Post by jimwilliams on Jun 19, 2014 10:07:48 GMT -6
Transformers create a low pass filter function. Depending on the windings and impedance terminations, they can also cause ringing and they can add a bit of THD, mostly in the low end. I call that effect "aural excitement", or plain old THD.
If you want to observe what they do to transients, feed them a square wave and observe the changes on a scope.
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Post by Johnkenn on Jun 19, 2014 12:06:31 GMT -6
So, I can go out to my two VP28's in line mode, and then use the fader to gain stage into the Burl? I would imagine maybe just going quietly into both might be favorable and then mastering the track and bouncing down, right?
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Post by svart on Jun 19, 2014 12:16:08 GMT -6
So, I can go out to my two VP28's in line mode, and then use the fader to gain stage into the Burl? I would imagine maybe just going quietly into both might be favorable and then mastering the track and bouncing down, right? With the VP25/26/312, there is a variable pad on the output and in order to get more transformer and opamp sound, you'd jack up the gain but turn the attenuator up(more attenuation) and it'd give you more color. In the VP28 there is no output attenuator, but another fader/gain stage. I'd probably go into it with a hotter signal, or use more gain from the module and then turn the output down. it will probably result in the same thing from the output transformer of the first stage, just watch your levels and listen for clipping that second stage though. |
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