LA2A - is EQ'ing after it normal practice?

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abecedarian

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Joined
Jul 17, 2005
Messages
129
After getting familiar with the D-LA2A, I have been impressed and enlightened. Critical listening is an endless degree in itself.  The more carefully I listen, I notice more and more of what is and isn't happening. 
Anyway, I believe I'm hearing a softening of the recorded material passing through it. Not softening in terms of dynamics, albeit that's normal of course but in frequencies.  Is it common practice to e.q. after using compressors like the LA2A, 1176 and their DIY variants? There appears to be a dip in airy-ness a little or a darkening.
I especially find it interesting what it does to transients. I wish there were operating tips/techniques/instructions to get better at operating this thing. 
 
that is like asking long is a piece of string. If the sound you hear requires correction aka eq then use it. I find that I usually run a compressor first most of the time before an eq la2a or other type compressor. 

as for tips and tricks there may be some in la2a manual found on the universal audio website. Other then that I have to ask what eq setting you do afterwords and such...


As always remember sound is so dependent on what the musical style is.
 
It was common for passive eq's to be used after an LA2A...back in the day.

Whoops...that wouldn't makes sense to to gen-x'ers. Or wait, the peter pan generation!!!?

edit: Wait, i'm a gen-xer?  :eek:
 
abecedarian said:
  Is it common practice to e.q. after using compressors like the LA2A, 1176 and their DIY variants?
It's common practice using EQ on a compressed signal. The ultimate being EQ on both input and output. The pre-comp EQ shapes the way the compressor acts. As compression always changes the spectral distribution, it is necessary to compensate it with post-comp EQ.
I wish there were operating tips/techniques/instructions to get better at operating this thing.
Some of us have spent a lifetime or two understanding and mastering these beasts. Consider yourself lucky that you can learn from the ancients with just a few mouse clicks. Some kids actually pay a lot of money to go to school and learn it.
 
what transformers are you using in your D-LA2A? I have had my unit side by side with another build and they sounded dramatically different! Eventually you will find out what the unit does to signals passing through it and you will have a gut feeling on which sources to use it on and on which not to use it on. A lot of things will end up being eq'ed anyways so if you like the compression characteristic use it with an EQ. My particular unit is not flat, it has a little bump in the upper mids and a little dip in the lower mids which helps to clear things up. I find you can really get away with loads of compression, just don't listen in solo mode :)
 
abecedarian said:
I especially find it interesting what it does to transients. I wish there were operating tips/techniques/instructions to get better at operating this thing.

I found Urei's 1176 manual helpful in learning how to use my clone. You might find the LA2A manual useful too.
 
When i used them in the past it was usually third in the chain.  Eq, compression (something with good attack release...1176) then the LA2 to squeeze it.  As you said about what it does to transients.  I'm not keen in that and a bit of control with another comp before hand works well. 

I mainly used them on vocals and bass in this fashion and it has a wonderful way of bringing things into the foreground.  They're good at tickling strings as well.
 
abecedarian said:
After getting familiar with the D-LA2A, I have been impressed and enlightened. Critical listening is an endless degree in itself.  The more carefully I listen, I notice more and more of what is and isn't happening. 
Anyway, I believe I'm hearing a softening of the recorded material passing through it. Not softening in terms of dynamics, albeit that's normal of course but in frequencies.  Is it common practice to e.q. after using compressors like the LA2A, 1176 and their DIY variants? There appears to be a dip in airy-ness a little or a darkening.
I especially find it interesting what it does to transients. I wish there were operating tips/techniques/instructions to get better at operating this thing.



if you eq before it tames what you eqed provided you didnt boost some annoying frequencies in which case it will only make that stand out more. Plus whatever you eq into the compressor your also adding noise from the gain of the eq unless its a passive eq.
so look at it this way, if you eq pre compression you tame your settings if you eq post compression its to make up for what the compressor took.
 

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