Specifications

Focusrite D2 and D3 Plug-ins Guide24
To bypass the limiter:
■ Click the icon a second time. When the lim-
iter is bypassed, the icon is grey.
If you are using the Compressor/Limiter plug-in,
which allows you to use either the compressor
or the limiter (but not both simultaneously),
you must disable one module by Start key-click-
ing the icon (Windows) or Control-clicking it
(Mac) before you can enable the other.
Limit LED
When lit, the Limit LED indicates that limiting
is being applied. When unlit, limiting is not be-
ing applied.
Threshold
This sets the threshold level. Signals that exceed
this level will be limited. Signals that are below
it will be unaffected. A setting of 0 dB is equiva-
lent to no limiting. The range of this control is
from –24 dB to 0 dB.
Using the Side-Chain Input in
Focusrite D3
The side-chain is the split-off signal used by a
plug-in's detector to trigger dynamics process-
ing, and is generally drawn internally from the
input signal. However, some plug-ins (such as
the Focusrite D3) let you switch between inter-
nal and external side-chain processing.
With external side-chain processing, a plug-in's
detector is triggered by an external signal (such
as a separate reference track or audio source)
known as the key input.
A typical use for this feature is to use a kick drum
track to gate and tighten up a bass track, or a
rhythm guitar track to gate another instrument.
External Key
External Key toggles external side-chain process-
ing on or off. When this button is enabled, the
plug-in uses the amplitude of an external signal
(the key input) to trigger compression or limit-
ing. When this button is disabled, the plug-in
uses the amplitude of the input signal to trigger
dynamics processing.
Key Listen
Key Listen enables and disables auditioning of
the key input controlling the external side-
chain. This is useful for fine-tuning the com-
pressor’s settings to the key input.
Limit LED
Threshold
External Key
Key Listen