IN/BYPASS Switch: With the switch in the 'IN'
position, the peak limiter activated, and the LED near the switch
is illuminated. When in 'BYPASS', the PL-2 is entirely out of
the signal path.
INPUT: The INPUT control is an 11 position stepped
switch that increases the gain of the input stage in 1dB increments
from 0 (unity) to +10dB.
OUTPUT: The OUTPUT control is an 11 position stepped
switch that increases the gain from 0 (unity) to +10dB, or decreases
the gain from 0 (unity) to -10dB in 2 dB increments.
CEILING: The CEILING control determines the signal
level at which the peak limiter is activated. It can be set from
+22dBu to +10dBu. This encompasses the range of 'digital zero'
most often encountered with typical A/D converters, as well as
having additional margin for using the peak limiter creatively
at lower levels. When the OUPTUT is set at unity gain, the CEILING
control indicates the maximum output level.
JFET/MOSFET: The JFET/MOSFET switch determines which
type of device is doing the peak limiting. The JFET gives a stiffer
form of limiting, while the MOSFET is more forgiving. Due to
the differing nature of the JFET and MOSFET devices, slight re-adjustment
of the CEILING control may be necessary when switching between
the two modes.
LINK: This switch links the two channels for stereo
operation. The IN/BYPASS, CEILING and JFET/MOSFET controls are
linked and controlled by Channel 1. The INPUT and OUTPUT controls
are not linked and must be set individually.
I/O GAIN: With the switch in the 'IN' position, the Input
and Output Gain switches for both channels are active. When the
switch is OUT, the PL-2 is in unity gain mode and the INPUT and
OUTPUT gain stages are completely bypassed. This shortens the
signal path (desirable for mastering applications) and calibrates
the maximum output level to the value set by the CEILING control.
LED Display: The 13 segment LED display gives a true
indication of the amount of peak limiting applied to the signal.
It displays the amount of peak reduction in 0.5 dB increments
from 0 to -4dB, and 1 dB increments from 4 to greater than -8
dB. The LED ladder uses a 3 color scheme to indicate how audible
the peak limiting might be on transient source material.
Multi-Unit Link: The MASTER OUT and SLAVE IN jacks permit
linking several units for multi-channel applications. Connect
the MASTER OUT from one unit to the SLAVE IN(s) of all linked
units. When all units switched to 'Link', the CEILING control
of Channel 1 of the master unit sets the ceiling of all slave
units.
