Pre-amp Select (Continued)
To change to a new mic pre-amp emulation, press the
Pre-amp Select
button
(it flashes green); the lower part of the Channel LCD updates to show a brief
description of the current emulation.
Turn the rotary encoder clockwise to scroll through the available mic pre
emulations. In each case you will see the name and description of the emulation
– in our example, we have selected
BIG TUBE A
which will operate as a
US
BOUTIQUE TUBE 2
Low Impedance mic-pre. Note that you will not hear your
selection until it is loaded.
When the desired pre-amp is found, press the encoder to load the emulation;
the
Pre-amp
Select button stops flashing and you can now listen to your new
mic-pre.
Note that when you load a new pre-amp emulation to a Mic input channel, then this may also change the input
impedance, as the emulations store and recall impedance settings. Note that impedance does not affect Digital inputs.
Also note that no other settings will be changed. For example, if you change the mic pre emulation, then your input gain,
harmonics, etc. will remain as you last left them.
Harmonics
Adding desirable harmonic distortion to the signal is often perceived as adding ‘warmth’. The Harmonics control allows
you to add this type of distortion and emulate the subtle variations between analogue devices - sometimes two units of
the same type can have different amounts of harmonic distortion. This allows you to create an ‘overdriven’ sound without
having to overdrive the pre-amp. Careful use of the Harmonics control allows you to ‘tune in’ The Liquid 4PRE™
emulations to your own vintage unit.
The exact amount of second-, third- and fifth- order harmonics depends both on the type of pre-amp chosen and
the amount of mic pre gain. This is because the amount of each harmonic, with respect to each other, is different for
pre-amps with valves compared to those with transistors; and also because the balance of harmonics changes with level.
The result is that a higher gain at the mic pre stage will produce a greater, and hence more noticeable, effect as the
harmonics setting is increased. Special ‘hot’ pre-amp emulations, which can be downloaded from www.focusrite.com,
provide greater levels of harmonics application, for those wanting to achieve a seriously overdriven sound.
Note that harmonics can only be added to Mic or Digital input channels; this feature is not available for Line inputs.
To adjust the harmonic distortion, press the
Harmonics
button
(it flashes green).
Turn the rotary encoder to increase or decrease the amount of harmonic
distortion. The amount is indicated by the LEDs surrounding the encoder, and
the exact value, from
0
to
15
, is shown in the
hmncs
area of the Channel LCD.
The exact amount of harmonic distortion depends on the pre-amp emulation.
However, in general, the lower range (
1
-
8
) adds increasing amounts of second-
order harmonic distortion while the upper range (
9
-
15
) adds increasing
amounts of odd harmonics (mainly third- and fifth- order).
When you have finished, remember to deselect the
Harmonics
button
(it goes out) so that the rotary encoder returns to input gain control.
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