Becos COMPIQ TWAIN PRO COMPRESSOR User manual

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CIQT‐1COMPIQTWAINPROCOMPRESSORPEDAL
MANUAL
lastmodified:February12,2020
TECHNICALSPECIFICATIONS
Inputimpedance:>1MΩ
OutputImpedance:~100Ω
0dBinputreferencelevel:‐20dBu(0.0775Vrms)
Outputnoise:‐95dBV@0dBVgain
THD:0.05%for‐5dBVinputsignallevel@1kHz
Outputfrequencyresponse:‐2dB@40Hz;0dB@100Hz‐22KHz
OptimalPowerVoltage:9‐12VDC±10%,CenterNegativeBarrel
DCPowerPlugBarrel:Ø5.1/2.1mm,12‐15mmlong
PowerConsumption:<49mAh
ProductSize:Length:105mm,Depth:120mm,Height:54mm
ProductWeight:387gr.
PackedWeight:455gr.
PackedShippingWeight(oneunit):550gr.
INTRODUCTION&EFFECTCONTROLS
ThankyouforchoosingtheCIQT‐1CompIQTWAINProCompressor
asaudiodynamicprocessingtoolforyourinstrument.TheTwainis
an all analog studio‐grade dual band / stackable compressor
featuring full manual controls for all parameters excluding timing –
which have two switchable presets for an easier operation. The
CompIQTwainisastate‐of‐the‐arteffectpedaldesignedaroundtwo
independent high‐performance 4320 THAT Analog Engines® which
ensure very transparent and high‐quality audio processing, without
alteringinstrument'stone.The Twain canworkin twomodes: asa
Dual‐Band compressor with variable Crossover point, or as a fully
Stackedcompressor,wherecompressorenginesareroutedinseries.
Thecontrolsarelaidoutinasymmetricalfashion,mirroredinthe
middle–Lowscompressioncontrolsontheleft,Highscompression
controlsontheright.
DUAL‐BAND/STACKED–Aside‐mountedswitchsetstheoperation
mode of the pedal. In Dual‐Band mode, the signal passes through
thevariable‐point Crossoverandeachfrequencyband issenttoits
processing engine. In Stacked mode, the Crossover’s re‐combined
signal is routed in series through each compression engine. Each
operationmoderendersadifferenttoneprintflavor,whereStacking
compressors feels like an optical compressor, while Dual‐Band
processingfeels more likea precisedynamicstoolfor the pro‐user;
thisalsobehaveslikeatone‐enhancer.
CROSSOVER–MarkedX‐OVER, the control ranges from 70Hz to 1
KHz,witharound150Hzinthemiddle.Inputsignalalwayspassesthe
Crossover,fromwhereitissplittedfor compressionprocessingand
cleanfortheDry/Wetmixer.Thisensurescorrectphasealignmentof
theinputandoutputsignalsinbothoperationmodes.InDual‐Band
mode, what is below the Crossover’s set point is sent to the Lows
engineandwhatisaboveissenttotheHighsengine.InStacked
mode,theCrossoverisactivefortheDryLineonly.
 
PREAMP – Theinputsignalcanbetrimmedontheinputstageto
accommodate different processing level needs. Ranging from ‐9dB
ofattenuationto+6dBofgain,itcanactasacompressiondriveror
as a one‐knob balancer for the overall audio effect of the pedal. A
PEAKlevelindicator will start to light faintly in Yellow once the
signallevelpasses+6dBu(1.54Vrms)andmorebrightandconsistent
onceitreaches+10dBu(2.54Vrms).Thepeaklevelindicator
respondstopositivegaintrimmingsandattenuatingthesignalturns
theLEDoff.ThereisnothingwrongifyouseethisLEDturnedon,yet
isadvisabletotrimdownthesignalifitstayslit.
RATIO ‐ This control is available for each engine. Itsets how much
the audio signal is compressed after it passes above the set
threshold. It has a continuous range starting from 1:1 up to
Infinite:1. At 9'clock, the control corresponds to 2:1 ratio‐amild,
musical and useful compression, which delicately evens out signal
hikes.At12'clockitsets4:1ratio.At3'clock itcorresponds to 10:1
ratio‐aratheraggressivesetting,whichmaybedesirableonlywhen
note sustain is needed. Inf:1 ratio means over 20dB amount of
compressionisapplied. This correspondsto a Limitingeffect.TIP –
The more compression is dialed in, the more make‐up gain is
required,whichresultsinadditionalamplificationnoise.
THRESHOLD‐Availableforeachengine,thiscontrolsetsthesignal
levelafterwhichcompressionisapplied.Compressionisonlyapplied
totheportionofthesignalthatgoesabovethethreshold.Setvery
lowintherange,itmakescompressionkickinquickly,evenforshort
amplitudeinputsignals.Sethigherintherange,itletsagoodportion
ofthesignaluntouched.TIP – With higher Threshold set, only
strokesare compressed, while leaving the audio’smeatand bone
intact.Thistranslatesintogreatersoundtransparencyandarisein
output level, requiring less make‐up gain. With 50dB of threshold
range,CompIQTwaincanaccommodateawideassortmentofaudio
signals from many electric instruments, not only guitar or bass.
CompIQTwaincanalsobeusedwithline‐levelsignals. 
TIMING SWITCH – Available for each engine, the Auto Dynamic
TimingadjustsAttack&Releaseinrealtime,respondingtoplaying
dynamics.Twopresetsareavailable.Auto Fast (F)is5‐7msfor
Attack,70msforRelease.AutoSlower(S)is10‐15msforAttackand
100‐220ms for Release. Both settings respond gracefully to any
playingstyle.TIP–Fasttimingsettingaccentuatesthecompression
feelandmaysometimerenderpops,especiallywithhigherratios.
Slowertimingsettingbreathsmoreairintocompression,makingit
feelmorenatural,evenwithhigherratios.
MAKE‐UPGAIN–Thiscontrolisavailableforeachengine.Themore
compression is employed the more recovery gain has to be turned
backintocompensate.InStackedcompression,thesecontrolsmust
be dialed in carefully because they may rapidly increase the
amplificationnoise.TIP–RaisetheThresholdbeforeaddingMake‐
up Gain. Set moderate compression Ratios and additionally use
SoftKneeandSlower timing, to keepnoisein place.Conclusively,
youmayblendin someDrysignal.TIP–InDual‐Bandmode,these
independentlevelcontrolsbehavelikeaTilt‐EQwithvariablepivot
pointsetbytheCrossover.
SOFT/HARDCOMPRESSIONKNEE–Availableforbothengines.With
HardKnee,compressionkicksinwithasharpcornermakingitvery
audible.Withhighercompressionratios,itmakesthelimitingeffect
veryclear.Withlowerratioshowever,itprovidesagoodandmusical
compressioneffect.TheSoftKneeismoresubtleandcompressionis
applied progressively once signal passes above the Threshold. The
effectisgentleanddesirablewhencompressiondoesn'thavetobe
explicitorusedasanaudioeffect.TIP – When used with higher
thresholds, Soft Knee adds more transparency to the sound,
dilutingcompressionfeel.Thinkofitasamasteringtoolforvoicing
audiocontent.

SCF SWITCH‐Side Chain Filter switch is only available for Lows
processingengineandhasthreepositions:Normal(N),Low(L)and
Deep (D). In Normal position, the Side Chain Filter is set to
accommodate a large range of audio signals and instruments. By
design, the side‐chain’s signal is progressively compensated from
highstolowstobalancethetriggeringpotentialofdifferentsignal
amplitudes at different frequencies. This setting renders a natural
responsethatissuitable for most instances. In Low(L)position,an
additional ‐12dB@90Hz is freed up to prevent triggering the
compressor too early. This is an intermediary position, and it lets
moreofthelowendpassthroughattheoutput,whilealsolowering
theamountofcompression.TIP–Thisisapropersettingforbassor
guitar,whenafullersoundisneeded.IntheDeep(D)position,even
moreofthelowerfrequencyspectrumisfreedwith‐12dB@200Hz.
TIP – This setting is proper to prevent 5‐stringed basses from
triggeringcompressiontooearly.
DRY/WETMIX–Thiscontrolactslikeanaudiomixer,whereyoucan
blend the clean signal with the compressed signal (a.k.a. the New
York compression style). This helps restore transients or squished
frequencieswhicharelessperceivedbyearwhentheyarereduced
by compression. In the middle, the mix is 50‐50. TIP – The
independentCutfiltersandboostLevelsfromSaturationcircuitact
likeaTilt‐EQontheDryLine.Thatmeansyoucanmixmoreorless
DryLowsorDryHighsovertheWetsignal.
TAPESATURATION–Availableinbothengines,theSATindependent
controls(includingtheauxiliary CUTandLEVELcontrols)actonDry
Line only and emulate vintage studio tape saturation compression
effectofthe'60s.Thisisamusicalsortofdistortionhappeningwhen
high amplitude audio signals are recorded on magnetic tape.
Independent controls mean you can introduce different levels of
saturationoneachband,asseparatedbytheCrossover.Theintent
ofthisanalogcircuitistosaturatetheDryLineandthenmixitwith
the Compressed Line, to fatten up the compressed sound with
harmonic distortions, which will complement very well guitar and
basssound.TheLowsSaturationismoreappliedtoharmonicsand
less to the fundamental frequencies, to prevent chocking or
fuzziness with bass instruments. For a more prominent effect, the
Crossovermustbesethigherintherange,around3’clock,somore
of the Lows saturation is heard. The Highs Saturationismore
obvious in its effect. Saturation controls act from clean (fully
counterclockwise) up to a mild overdrive (fully clockwise). In
between, a palette of colorful and musical warming distortions is
available. TIP – Increase the overall Dry Line Saturation (Lows &
Highs), subtly mix it with the Wet Line and then add asplash of
chorus effect at the output; enjoy! On each band of the Dry Line
thereareLow&HighCUTfiltersandLow&HighLEVELcontrols,to
perfectly trim the Saturationeffect.TheCUTfilters(‐6dB)are
passive first‐order filters, for a very gentle contribution, and the
boostLEVELSareactive(+9dB),again,withaverygentleslope.With
saturationincreasedoneachband,adropinvolumewillhappenfor
theDryLine.UseLevelcontrolsoneachbandtocompensate.TIP–
Leaving out the Saturation (knobs fully counterclockwise on both
bands),theCUTfiltersandLEVELboostsofeachbandactlikeaTilt‐
EQontheDryLine,meaningyoucanmixmoreorlessDryLowsor
DryHighswiththeWetLine!Thisisaverypowerfulfeaturewhich
canmorepreciselyrestoretheenergyandclarityoftheoriginal
signal,byblendinginonlywhatismissingasaresultofcompression.
With balanced levels, a flat Dry signal can be mixed over the Wet
Line as well. TIP ‐ The CUT filter on the Dry Lows alone is very
helpfulfortighteningupthebassbyremovingverylowfrequency
thatusuallyaddboominestothesound.Thisfilterismoreeffective
when the Crossover is set towards 3’clock at around 500Hz, or
above.Byitsnature,eachoftheCrossover’sbandsisalsofilteredat
the intersecting (and overlapping) point, and that also affects
saturation,sotheCrossoverandSaturationcontrolsareinteractive.
COMPRESSION DISPLAY – Available on each band, the 5‐LED Gain
ReductiondisplaytakesaccurateinformationfromtheLows&Highs
RMS‐level sensors and compiles visual feedback over compression.
Separatedisplayshelpvisualizethecompressioneffectvery
precisely, especially in the Dual‐Band mode, where different
compressioncanbeappliedtonotesondifferentstringsonthe
instrument. The displays are calibrated for ‐20dBu (77.5mVrms)
referenceinputlevelandtheirresponseisdynamicbynature.Even
atlowtomidratiosandwithhigherinputlevelsorlowerthresholds,
theycanpeakYelloworRedcolorquiteoften.That doesn’t mean
anything is wrong. Use only your ear to achieve your desired
compressioneffect!
FOOTSWITCH ‐ When engaged, the audio signal is routed through
the active circuitry and the power LED marked COMPislitGreen.
Whenpushedagain,thesignalisroutedTrueBypassfromInputto
Output, leaving the audio intact, even when the pedal is not
powered.
INPUT ‐ Here you will connect either an instrument directly or the
outputofanotherpedal,orasignaltakenfromtheamplifier'sSEND
FX‐loop. 
OUTPUT‐Fromhereyouwillsendthecompressedsignaltothenext
effectpedal,ortoanamplifier'sinput,ortotheRETURNFX‐loopof
anamplifier.Theoutputsignalcanalsoberecordeddirectlyinto a
Hi‐Zinterfaceinput. 
DC POWER CONNECTOR‐Useonlygoodfilteredpowersupplies,
withavoltageof9‐12VDC,centernegative.UseaDCPowerPlug
Ø5.1/2.1mm, with a barrel longer than 12mm (15mm
recommended).

CIQT‐1COMPIQTWAINPROCOMPRESSORPEDAL
FORBASS&GUITAR
MANUAL
lastmodified:February12,2020
Pleasecheckanddownloadthelatestmanual!
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ThankyouforusingtheBECOSproducts!
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Designed&HandMadeinRomania/EU
www.becosfx.com