Recording - March 2013 - 47

I asked Steven what exactly the Limit function does computationally; he explained
that with the Limit switch engaged the CT5’s
ratio takes a big swing upwards into the
realm of 20:1 or so (vs. something like 5:1,
on average, in its non-Limiter mode).
These are approximate numbers based
on listening; the actual ratio values aren’t
published. The attack and release switches’ absolute time values aren’t published
either. Steven’s philosophy is to offer a
product that doesn’t require a lot of thinking or theory to use. He’s committed to
offering products that are easy to use and
best set by using your ears.... you start to
play around with various settings and
stop when you hear something that
sounds great. I have no problem with this
approach—your ears are definitely your
best friend in the studio!
In use
In use the compressor has a fairly neutral
characteristic, especially in lower settings.
The sound doesn’t take on a huge amount
of color from the virtual circuit. The word
“transparent” is sometimes overused in
reviews of audio equipment, but it’s appropriate in the case of the CT5. That said, as
you push the compression level up you’ll
notice some subtle yet distinct changes in
the sound you’re processing. Rather than a
specific shift in frequency response there
seems to be an overall polishing of the
sound. Detail pops out almost magically.
I used the CT5 on a piece of theme music
I was asked to create for a radio program.
The theme had a mixture of live and sampled instruments, and I tried the CT5 on virtually every track. I was most impressed
with the results on the acoustic guitar and
electric bass tracks. The acoustic guitar has
both a melodic and rhythmic role in the
theme; by carefully adjusting the compression level I was able to find a perfect balance for the two roles of the instrument. The
level was beautifully controlled and a harmonic richness was added to the track. The
differences between the various attack and
release combos are subtle, but my ears
eventually settled on setting the attack time
to Slow and release to Medium.
The bass didn’t require a ton of compression to get it to sit well in the track. I
was able to make use of the Blend control
that is one of the differentiators of the CT5
from the CT4. The Blend control allows
you to fold back as much or as little of the
compressed signal to the dry signal as
you prefer. I love parallel compression on
bass tracks; you can dial up a fairly radical compression setting and add just a bit
of that to the uncompressed track to really
good effect. You effectively preserve the
dynamics of the performance while gaining a measure of gain control and added
sustain. Again the bonus of a little more
definition to the bass sound imparted by
the algorithm was very effective. The CT5
RECORDING March 2013

47

offers a sidechain input as well, another
very useful feature.
I also found the CT5 to be an excellent
bus compressor, again due to this combination of effective gain control and subtle sonic
shift that adds clarity. Many compressors
working on a submix have a tendency to
bunch up frequencies, creating a muddy
effect. The CT5 does exactly the opposite. In
this way it reminds me a lot of the sound of
the dbx 160 compressor I used to use a lot
in my more analog past; that compressor
had a reputation for being neutral, and the
CT5 provides a similarly clear experience.
On top of all these sterling sonic qualities,
the CT5 is not a resource hog, and it won’t
put a lot of stress on your wallet either. As is
pretty much always the case with Massey,

the CT5 is a very reasonably priced plug-in
that offers very good value for the money.
All in all, the CT5 is a first-rate compressor plug-in ideal for managing gain change
subtly yet effectively. This isn’t a “character”
compressor, so if you are looking for more
of an effect (and sometimes pumping and
wheezing is exactly what you want from a
compressor), this wouldn’t be my first call. If
you are looking for a tool to add punch
and clarity to tracks and submixes, however, you won’t be disappointed.
Bill Stunt (stunt@recordingmag.com) is
a recording engineer and producer who
travels all over Canada doing daring derring-do for the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation.


http://www.mil-media.com/HV-37.html http://www.mil-media.com

Recording - March 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2013

Recording - March 2013
Fade In
Table of Contents
Talkback
Fast Forward
Behringer X32
MXL CR30 Large-Diaphragm Condenser Microphone
Plug-in Performance on Windows-based DAWs
Steinberg CMC Series USB Controllers For Cubase
Recording’s Showcase of Sounds: Rob Papen Punch
Plug-in Outlet: 2C Audio B2
Universal Audio Precision K-Stereo and Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor
Big Money Drums—Part 2
Reviewed & Revisited: Acoustica Mixcraft 6
Plug-in Outlet: Massey Plugins CT5 Compressor
The Mixing Workshop: Better Mixes Through Creative Editing—Part 2 (The Band)
Readers' Tapes
Kush Audio Clariphonic Parallel Equalizer and Clariphonic DSP Plug-in
Plug-in Outlet: Eventide H3000 Factory
Reviewed & Revisited: iZotope Alloy 2
Recording Fundamentals. Chapter 15: Sweet Spot Conundrums—Part 2
Plug-in Outlet: PSP Audioware PSP BussPressor
Advertiser Index
Fade Out
Recording - March 2013 - Recording - March 2013
Recording - March 2013 - Cover2
Recording - March 2013 - 1
Recording - March 2013 - 2
Recording - March 2013 - 3
Recording - March 2013 - Fade In
Recording - March 2013 - 5
Recording - March 2013 - Table of Contents
Recording - March 2013 - 7
Recording - March 2013 - Talkback
Recording - March 2013 - 9
Recording - March 2013 - Fast Forward
Recording - March 2013 - 11
Recording - March 2013 - 12
Recording - March 2013 - 13
Recording - March 2013 - Behringer X32
Recording - March 2013 - 15
Recording - March 2013 - 16
Recording - March 2013 - 17
Recording - March 2013 - 18
Recording - March 2013 - 19
Recording - March 2013 - MXL CR30 Large-Diaphragm Condenser Microphone
Recording - March 2013 - 21
Recording - March 2013 - Plug-in Performance on Windows-based DAWs
Recording - March 2013 - 23
Recording - March 2013 - 24
Recording - March 2013 - 25
Recording - March 2013 - 26
Recording - March 2013 - 27
Recording - March 2013 - Steinberg CMC Series USB Controllers For Cubase
Recording - March 2013 - 29
Recording - March 2013 - Recording’s Showcase of Sounds: Rob Papen Punch
Recording - March 2013 - 31
Recording - March 2013 - 32
Recording - March 2013 - 33
Recording - March 2013 - Plug-in Outlet: 2C Audio B2
Recording - March 2013 - 35
Recording - March 2013 - Universal Audio Precision K-Stereo and Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor
Recording - March 2013 - 37
Recording - March 2013 - 38
Recording - March 2013 - 39
Recording - March 2013 - Big Money Drums—Part 2
Recording - March 2013 - 41
Recording - March 2013 - 42
Recording - March 2013 - 43
Recording - March 2013 - Reviewed & Revisited: Acoustica Mixcraft 6
Recording - March 2013 - 45
Recording - March 2013 - Plug-in Outlet: Massey Plugins CT5 Compressor
Recording - March 2013 - 47
Recording - March 2013 - The Mixing Workshop: Better Mixes Through Creative Editing—Part 2 (The Band)
Recording - March 2013 - 49
Recording - March 2013 - Readers' Tapes
Recording - March 2013 - 51
Recording - March 2013 - 52
Recording - March 2013 - 53
Recording - March 2013 - 54
Recording - March 2013 - 55
Recording - March 2013 - Kush Audio Clariphonic Parallel Equalizer and Clariphonic DSP Plug-in
Recording - March 2013 - 57
Recording - March 2013 - Plug-in Outlet: Eventide H3000 Factory
Recording - March 2013 - 59
Recording - March 2013 - Reviewed & Revisited: iZotope Alloy 2
Recording - March 2013 - 61
Recording - March 2013 - Recording Fundamentals. Chapter 15: Sweet Spot Conundrums—Part 2
Recording - March 2013 - 63
Recording - March 2013 - Plug-in Outlet: PSP Audioware PSP BussPressor
Recording - March 2013 - Advertiser Index
Recording - March 2013 - 66
Recording - March 2013 - 67
Recording - March 2013 - 68
Recording - March 2013 - 69
Recording - March 2013 - 70
Recording - March 2013 - 71
Recording - March 2013 - Fade Out
Recording - March 2013 - Cover3
Recording - March 2013 - Cover4
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