Renaissance Axx: An In-Depth Look

Published Nov 01, 2009

Engineered especially for guitar and other high gain instruments, Renaissance Axx is the ideal compressor for when you need to dial in your dynamic levels quickly and easily. With a fixed ratio curve, automatic release values, and L2-style level maximization and limiting, Renaissance Axx adds attitude and a unique sound that accentuates the midrange, without using dedicated filters or adding analog-style harmonics.

Production Notes

Here are some settings that give you an "in-your-face" electric guitar sound that won’t overpower the rest of your mix:

  • Insert Renaissance Axx.
  • Set your channel input gain as usual
  • Set the Threshold to -12 dB
  • Set the Attack time to 8 ms
  • Set your Output Gain to -10 dB

Direct from the Desk

Renaissance Axx is a streamlined, easy-to- use compressor, which uses 3 basic parameters to shape your sound:

  • Threshold - 60 to 0 dB
  • Attack Time - 0 to 50 ms
  • Output Gain - 30 to 0 dB

“But wait. There’s more!”

Renaissance Axx also has 3 invisible parameters which do their magic “under the hood”:

  • Automatic Makeup Gain
  • Ratio
  • Release Time

The Automatic Makeup Gain and Release Time unctions are directly related to your Threshold and Attack Time settings. As you set the Threshold, you’re actually affecting multiple variables inside the compression algorithm. The more you pull the Threshold down, the harder the Knee becomes. Simultaneously, the Ratio increases. Keep in mind that the Knee is relatively sensitive, and its maximum Ratio is 1:inf and is reached once the Threshold is pulled down 18 dB. Accordingly, the amount of Automatic Makeup Gain increases as the Threshold is lowered.

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