Manual

6
This method had an advantage in early analogue compressors because the complex and
largely unpredictable laws of early gain reduction elements could be somewhat decoupled
from the total level transfer characteristic of the application (because the design made use of
level feedback). With the introduction of better solid state VCAs and accurate logarithmic
sidechain processes, this method has largely been abandoned in favour of the feed forward
model since it has a much greater degree of control parameter separation and intrinsic
accuracy.
The Oxford Dynamics section is a feed forward type processor. By this we mean that the gain
controlling sidechain element of the processor works by evaluating the programme level at
the input, and calculating the required output gain by dead reckoning:
This widely conforms to the architecture of most popular modern analogue dynamics sections
employing voltage-controlled amplifiers. In a digital design the feed-forward model has
additional advantages, which include the possibility of extremely well controlled and variable
time constant laws and sonically accurate gain control elements. Also look-ahead processing
(using delay) allows gain control to be initiated in advance of the signal, without losing signal
quality.
Level Detect
and Sidechain
X