DRAWMER MX30 DUAL GATED COMPRESSOR OPERATORS MANUAL CONTENTS SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS page 1 INTRODUCTION page 2 INSTALLATION • Audio Connections • Power Connection page 3 page 3 page 5 CONTROL DESCRIPTIONS • Gate / Expander • Compressor • Limiter • Linking page page page page page OPERATION page 9 IF A FAULT DEVELOPS CONTACTING DRAWMER page 10 page 10 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION BLOCK DIAGRAM SESSION RECALL SHEET page 11 page 12 page 13 i 6 6 7 8 8
COPYRIGHT This manual is copyrighted © 2011 by Drawmer Electronics, Ltd. With all rights reserved. Under copyright laws, this manual may not be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of Drawmer. ONE YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY Drawmer Electronics Ltd., warrants the Drawmer MX30 audio processor to conform substantially to the specifications of this manual for a period of one year from the original date of purchase when used in accordance with the specifications detailed in this manual.
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 1 DRAWMER MX30 Dual Gated Compressor SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS CAUTION - MAINS FUSE TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE REPLACE THE MAINS FUSE ONLY WITH THE SAME TYPE, WHICH MUST BE A CLASS 3, 250 VOLT, TIME DELAY TYPE, RATED AT 32mA WHERE THE MAINS INPUT IS SET TO 230 VOLTS AC. AND 63mA WHERE THE MAINS INPUT VOLTAGE IS 115 VOLTS AC. ALL FUSES MUST COMPLY WITH IEC 127-2. THE FUSE BODY SIZE IS 20mm x 5mm. CAUTION - MAINS CABLE DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHANGE OR TAMPER WITH THE SUPPLIED MAINS CABLE.
2 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL INTRODUCTION The MX30 is a dual channel gate and compressor-limiter designed to fulfil the needs of professional studio and live sound applications. It may be used in balanced systems at +4dBu operating levels, or unbalanced at -10dBu. In order to maximise flexibility while simplifying set up and operation, several new design concepts have been incorporated.
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 3 INSTALLATION The MX30 is designed for standard 19" rack mounting and occupies 1U of rack space. Avoid mounting the unit directly above power amplifiers or power supplies that radiate significant amounts of heat. Fibre or plastic washers may be used to prevent the front panel becoming marked by the mounting bolts. AUDIO CONNECTIONS Input and Output connections are provided for use at +4dBu via balanced XLRs or at -10dBu via unbalanced jacks.
4 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL AUDIO CONNECTION DIAGRAM
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 5 POWER CONNECTION If, for some reason, the unit is to be operated at a mains input voltage which is different to that as supplied, the following procedure must be carried out by a qualified technical engineer. 1: Disconnect the unit from the mains. 2: Using a number 1 size pozidrive screwdriver, remove the seven self-tapping screws that retain the top cover. Accessing the internal power switch and fuse 3. Set the voltage rating and replace the fuse. 4. Replace the cover.
6 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL CONTROL DESCRIPTION Both channels of the MX30 are identical and may be used completely independently or linked for stereo operation. In the linked mode, only the left-hand channel controls are functional and serve as master controls, though the channel bypass switches remain independent.
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 7 COM PRESSOR Threshold: This control determines the input level above which gain reduction will be applied and may be set in the range -40 to +20dB. Soft knee compression takes place for signals exceeding the threshold level by up to 10dB above which level, conventional 'ratio' compression is applied. Ratio: Sets the final compression ratio that will be applied once the 10dB 'soft-knee' region is exceeded. The ratio may be continuously adjusted from 1.
8 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL PEAK LIM ITER Level: Sets an absolute limit to the level that the output signal will not be permitted to exceed. This limiter is very fast acting enabling it to control any peaks without audible distortion. If the output signal is so high as to cause the limiter to operate for more than 20mS, the system gain is automatically reduced to bring the signal back within range. The system gain is then returned to normal over a period of approximately one second.
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 9 OPERATION The unit should be connected in line with the signal to be processed via suitable insert points. Ensure that the insert send and return level on your console matches the MX30 input/output sockets that are being used. For single channel use, each channel may be considered as completely independent and set up accordingly.
10 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL Because the Gate is self-adapting to the programme dynamics, it should be possible to obtain far more satisfactory results than are possible with conventional gates. Similarly, do not assume that because the gate threshold LEDs flicker during a piece of quiet but wanted material that it is having a detrimental effect.
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 11 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (Measurements taken using +4dBu balanced XLR input where applicable) INPUT IMPEDANCE 20KOhm (bal), 4KOhm (unbal) MAXIMUM INPUT LEVEL +21dBu OUTPUT IMPEDANCE 50 Ohm (bal), 100 Ohm (unbal) MAXIMUM OUTPUT LEVEL +20dBu BANDWIDTH <10Hz to 36KHz -1dB CROSSTALK !94dB <100dB @ 10KHz @ 1KHz NOISE AT UNITY GAIN with Gate OFF Wideband 22Hz - 22KHz CCIR ARM IEC A Q-Pk CCIR AV !95dB !101dB !100dB !102dB !89dB RMS !95dB !101dB !98dB !100dB
12 MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL BLOCK DIAGRAM
MX30 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 13
