Drawmer MX50 User manual

DRAWMER
MX50
DUAL DE-ESSER
OPERATORS MANUAL
CONTENTS
SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS page 1
INTRODUCTION page 2
INSTALLATION page 3
•Audio Connections page 3
•Power Connection page 5
CONTROL DESCRIPTIONS and OPERATION page 6
•Linking page 7
IF A FAULT DEVELOPS page 8
CONTACTING DRAWMER page 8
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION page 9
BLOCK DIAGRAM page 10
SESSION RECALL page 11
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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 MX50 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. In the case of a valid warranty claim, your sole and exclusive remedy
and Drawmer’s entire liability under any theory of liability will be to, at Drawmer’s
discretion, repair or replace the product without charge, or, if not possible, to refund
the purchase price to you. This warranty is not transferable. It applies only to the
original purchaser of the product.
For warranty service please call your local Drawmer dealer. Alternatively call
Drawmer Electronics Ltd. at [phone]. Then ship the defective product,
with transportation and insurance charges pre-paid, to Drawmer Electronics Ltd.,
Coleman Street, Parkgate, Rotherham, S62 6EL UK. Write the RA number in large
letters in a prominent position on the shipping box. Enclose your name, address,
telephone number, copy of the original sales invoice and a detailed description of the
problem. Drawmer will not accept responsibility for loss or damage during transit.
This warranty is void if the product has been damaged by misuse, modification or
unauthorised repair.
THIS WARRANTY IS IN LIEU OF ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER ORAL OR
WRITTEN, EXPRESSED, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY. DRAWMER MAKES NO
OTHER WARRANTY EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR
A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. PURCHASER’S SOLE AND
EXCLUSIVE REMEDY UNDER THIS WARRANTY SHALL BE REPAIR OR
REPLACEMENT AS SPECIFIED HEREIN.
IN NO EVENT WILL DRAWMER ELECTRONICS LTD. BE LIABLE FOR ANY
DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES
RESULTING FROM ANY DEFECT IN THE PRODUCT, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS,
DAMAGE TO PROPERTY, AND, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DAMAGE
FOR PERSONAL INJURY, EVEN IF DRAWMER HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE
POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
Some states and specific countries do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties
or limitations on how long an implied warranty may last, so the above limitations may
not apply to you. This warranty gives you specific legal rights. You may have
additional rights that vary from state to state, and country to country.
In the interests of product development, Drawmer reserve the right to modify or
improve specifications of this product at any time, without prior notice.
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MX50 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 1
DRAWMER MX50
Dual De-Esser
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, 230 VOLT, TIME DELAY
TYPE, RATED AT 63mA WHERE THE MAINS INPUT VOLTAGE SWITCH IS
SET TO 230 VOLTS AC. AND 125mA 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.
CAUTION - SERVICING
DO NOT PERFORM ANY SERVICING. REFER ALL SERVICING TO
QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL.
WARNING
TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC SHOCK DO NOT EXPOSE
THIS EQUIPMENT TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.

MX50 OPERATORS’ MANUAL2
INTRODUCTION
The MX50 is a flexible, simple to set up dual De-Esser designed to fulfil the needs of
professional studio, theatre and live sound applications. It may be used in balanced
systems at +4dBu operating levels using the XLR connectors, or unbalanced at -10dBu
using the TRS stereo jacks.
Though De-essers are most often used with the human voice, there are other instances
where a De-esser is a valuable asset to an engineer, for example, reducing the level of
overtones or string squeaks from acoustic guitars, or for making dynamic timbral
alterations to cymbal sounds. For example, too harsh crash cymbals could be
'de-middled' by suitably adjusting the frequency control.
The MX50 has two modes of operation, one in which it emulates a conventional full-band
de-esser, and a more sophisticated mode in which only that part of the spectrum
containing sibilant sounds is subjected to gain reduction. At its most basic, a De-esser
is a Limiter with a fast release time which reduces the overall signal level in response
to a precise band of frequencies, then recovers quickly. The upper cutoff frequency of
the sibilance band is generally around 8kHz and in the case of the MX50, the lower
cutoff is variable from 800Hz to 8kHz allowing the process to be optimised to various
voice types.
Even when working in this basic full-band mode, the MX50 provides extra features to
improve ease of control and flexibility. Specifically, the circuitry includes a floating
threshold system that adapts to the dynamics and level of the incoming signal, so no
manual threshold adjustment is necessary. De-essing is set via a single control and is
independent of signal levels over a 60dB range. Very low level signals, however, are not
subjected to de-essing as experimentation has shown that this produces the most
natural sounding result.
For more transparent de-essing, the Split Band mode confines the gain reduction
process to frequencies above those set by the Frequency control. Furthermore, as
sibilance rarely occurs above 10kHz, an additional Air switch has been fitted to add back
any frequencies in excess of 12kHz so as maintain maximum signal transparency at all
times. By using a combination of Split Band mode with the Air switch set to on, the
de-essing process can be made very transparent.

MX50 OPERATORS’ MANUAL 3
INSTALLATION
The MX50 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. Always connect the mains earth to the unit. Use fibre or
plastic washers 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. It is permissible to use both +4dBu and -10dBu outputs
simultaneously. If unbalanced operation at +4dBu is required, simply connect the
unused terminal to Ground inside the XLR cable plugs. This applies to both inputs and
outputs. The wiring convention for XLR being: pin 1 Ground, pin 2 Hot and pin 3 Cold.
For use with unbalanced systems, the Cold pin 3 must be grounded at both input and
output XLRs.
Interference: If the unit is to be used where it maybe exposed to high levels of
disturbance such as found close to a TV or radio transmitter, we
suggest that the unit be operated using the XLR connectors. The
screens of the signal cables should be connected to the chassis
connection on the XLR connector as opposed to connecting to
pin1. The MX50 fully conforms to the EMC standards.
Ground Loops: If ground loop problems are encountered, never disconnect the
mains earth, but instead, try disconnecting the signal screen on
one end of each of the cables connecting the outputs of the MX50
to the patchbay. If such measures are necessary, balanced (XLR)
operation is recommended.
Level Conversion: It is possible to apply an input to the MX50 at only one of the two
possible levels, say !10dB via the jack socket, and utilise both of
the output levels and cable options of !10dB and +4dB
simultaneously.
One useful example of this connection option would be if the unit
was used to process a keyboard - commonly these have an output
level of !10dB, and are terminated with jack sockets. It is feasible
using the MX50s dual output capability to use the !10dB jack input
to feed from the keyboard and the !10dB output onwards to the
amplifier, and the +4dB balanced XLR connector for a direct feed
to the mixing console. This removes the need for any DI box or
cable splitter. In this example, ground loop considerations may be
required.