Ducking Operation

Ducking lowers the level of microphones and program material (based on a source signal from another microphone) for the duration of the signal that is present at the source microphone. It restores the original level after the source signal ceases and after the hold and release times are met. This is useful when:

• Program material needs to attenuate in order to accentuate the voice of a narrator.

• One microphone is used by a chairman or master of ceremonies and needs to have priority over other microphones and program material.

• A paging microphone must attenuate all other signals.

Inserting a Ducker Block

DUCK (ducking) processor blocks are inserted individually from a context menu. However, you can set up ducking globally from a single configuration window, which opens when you double-click any of the active Ducking processor blocks. When you insert a ducking processor block, the Enable Source Mic/Line check box is automatically selected. All inactive Ducking processor blocks have the Enable Source Mic/Line check box cleared by default.

To insert a ducking processor block:

1. Open the context menu using one of the following methods:

2. Double-click the DUCK (ducking) block in the DSP Configurator workspace.

3. Right-click the DUCK block to open the context menu.

4. Click the DUCK block to select it (or use the arrow keys to navigate to the DUCK block) and press the <Enter> key on your keyboard.

2. From the drop-down menu, select Ducking. Alternatively, if you right-clicked the block, select Insert Ducking. The DUCK block color changes to a shade of yellow.

You can also insert a ducking processor block from an open Ducker Configuration dialog box. To do so:

1. In the Priority tree, select the desired input channel.

2. Select the Enable Source Mic/Line check box located under the current source indicator.

Ducker Configuration Dialog Components

To open the Ducker Configuration dialog box, double-click the DUCK block. The dialog contains the following components:

• Current Source Indicator - Ducking settings affect the input channel that is displayed here. When you open a Ducker Configuration dialog from the DSP for a particular channel, the current source defaults to that channel. You can also select the source for which to configure the ducking settings via the priority tree (Priority Readout and Source Selector).

• Enable Source Mic/Line - When this check box is selected, ducking is enabled and a ducker is inserted for the current source. When the check box is cleared, ducking is disabled and the ducker is removed.

• Duck Target Selection - Select the check box associated with a target in order to assign the target to be ducked by the current source. The current source is not available as a target (a source cannot duck itself). Also, if the current source is designated as a target of another input channel, that input channel is not available (a target cannot be the source).

• Source Settings - This group of settings are for the current source. When a ducking block is copied and pasted, only these settings are transferred.

• Priority Readout and Source Selector - This tree provides a readout of the source to target hierarchy and it can be used to select the current source.

• Target Gain Reduction Amount - Click the Up and Down Arrows or manually enter a value into the by: field associated with the target to be ducked by the current source. This value is the amount by which  the target will be ducked by the current source.

• Mix Status - Displays the mute status of the mix matrix. The indicator is shaded teal when an input is mixed (unmuted). This section is for reference only and does not dictate how routing should occur.