SPL DeS Dual-Band De-Esser (500 Series)

DeS. Dual-Band De-Esser Module. Our well known De-Esser as a dual-band version built into a single module for the 500 Series.

On/Bypass. With On/Bypass you switch the module on or off (bypass).

Signal LED. The Sig LED (Sig) indicates whether an audio signal is present at the input and exceeds a level of -20 dB. This LED indicator serves as an aid to quickly recognize whether a signal is arriving at the DeS in a complex studio cabling system.

Hi-S. The Hi-S control adjusts the intensity of the S sound reduction in the upper frequency band. The center frequency for sibilance detection is 11.2 kHz with a bandwidth of 3 kHz.

Lo-S. The Lo-S control adjusts the intensity of the S sound reduction in the lower frequency band.

Male/Female Voicing. The Voice switch is used to adjust the low-band de-esser to the voice characteristics. The switch changes the center frequency for the sibilance identification: Female: 7.6 kHz, Male: 6.4 kHz. The processing bandwidth in the low band is 1.44 kHz.

De-Esser Tech Talk

De-Essing by Phase Cancellation. SPL has developed a circuit technology that combines efficient de-essing with maximum ease of use. De-essing already during recording spares a lot of time in comparison to the subsequent search for the S-sounds in post production. The DeS automatically adjusts itself to the relevant frequencies and hones in on them so that only the range of the S-sound is processed and neighbouring frequencies remain untouched. This range is phase-inverted and mixed back into the original signal, which acoustically deletes the S-sound. The DeS therefore works unobstrusively and sound-neutral.

Auto-Threshold. The DeS features our Auto-Threshold which automatically adjusts the threshold if the input level fluctuates due to varying distance to the microphone which leads to fluctuating input levels. With Auto-Threshold engaged, the de-essing intensity remains constant at the value you set – a great help not only for untrained speakers/singers in the studio and live. With conventional de-essers using compressor technology, the processing intensity decreases as the distance to the microphone increases to which compressors or limiters then react by letting the S sounds reappear. The disadvantage of weaker de-essing – bad enough in itself – therefore also leads to undesired effects in the subsequent processing. Auto-Threshold prevents these disadvantages from occurring in the first place.

Specifications

Input & Output; balanced

• Maximum input & output gain: 21 dBu
• Input impedance: 20 kΩ
• Output impedance: 150 Ω
• Common mode rejection: -82 dB
• Frequency range (-3 dB): 10 Hz – 100 kHz
• THD & N (0 dBu, 10 Hz – 22 kHz): 0,03 %
• Noise (A-weighted): -92.3 dB
• Dynamic range: 113 dB

Dimensions & Weight

• Single-spaced module for 500 Series
• Unit weight: 0.65 kg; 1.43 lbs
• Shipping weight (incl. packaging): 0.7 kg; 1.54 lbs