Ingram Engineering MPA575 Quick Start Manual

5/2014 1 QUICK START GUIDE The MPA575 features a lightly colored transformer coupled discrete microphone pre-amplifier, program dependent soft knee compressor with auto make-up gain, a see-saw EQ with combined low and high frequency control that allows broad tone adjustments with a single control knob, and a High Pass (Low Cut) filter with variable cutoff frequency. Together, they form a mini channel strip that performs all essential analog signal processing functions needed before committing audio to a recording medium. Optimizing the MPA575 settings involves five easy steps: 1. Disengage the EQ and HPF. 2. Increase the Gain stepped switch until the red O/L LED lights infrequently, then reduce the stepped switch by one step. 3. If the compressor is used, first adjust the Sidechain (SC) EQ to position 0 for flat frequency response. 4. Adjust the compressor Threshold for infrequent lighting of the yellow activity LED. 5. Adjust the Output Level pot until the signal level being provided to subsequent equipment is appropriate. Once these basic steps have been taken, the audio timbre may be tweaked by experimenting with the Mic Load setting, the main EQ, High Pass Filter, the Compressor threshold, and the compressor Sidechain (SC) EQ. The Compressor Sidechain EQ can have a surprising effect on the audio tones. The Sidechain EQ uses the same design as the Main EQ, but the Sidechain EQ is used only to trigger the Compressor gain reduction, not equalize the Main audio path. As such, the Sidechain EQ can be set to emphasize certain frequencies, and those frequencies will be compressed more than the others. For example, a sibilant voice or instrument with excessive high frequency content can be selectively compressed by turning the Sidechain EQ clockwise past the center position. High frequencies will be compressed, and low frequencies will be allowed to pass with little compression. The amount of compression can be set by adjusting the Threshold level. Another useful feature to experiment with is the Compressor Pre- Post-EQ button. This button allows you to choose whether to place the Main EQ before the Compressor or after the Compressor. This way, the Main EQ can be used as a tool to only alter the tones of the audio (Compressor Pre-EQ), or can be used as a tool to affect to which tones compression is applied, and to change the tonal balance of the Main audio path (Compressor Post-EQ).

5/2014 2 FRONT PANEL FEATURES Impedance Presented to Mic Overload LED Lights at 1% THD Signal LED Lights at -30 VU Input High Pass Filter Variable from 30 Hz to 400 Hz High Pass Filter In / Out Switch Internal Compressor Sidechain EQ. Rotate CCW to Trigger Comp on LF; Rotate CW to Trigger Comp on HF External Compressor Sidechain EQ loopthru Button In = External EQ VU Meter Phase Invert Gain in dB EQ In / Out Switch Main Audio Path EQ Rotate CCW for LF Emphasis; Rotate CW for HF Emphasis Compressor In / Out Switch Comp Threshold in dBu Place the Compressor Pre-EQ (In) or Post-EQ (Out) Output Level Phantom Power Toggle Switch Comp Activity LEDs Yellow = 1 dB Gain Reduction

5/2014 3 MPA575 MICROPHONE SIGNAL PROCESSOR RECALL SHEET Notes: _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

5/2014 4 NOTES: IMPORTANT NOTICE © 2014 Ingram Engineering. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced without the prior written consent of Ingram Engineering. Ingram Engineering makes no warranty of any kind with respect to the material in this document and shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages related to the use of the material. Ingram Engineering reserves the right to make changes to its products and/or documents or to discontinue any product at any time without notice. The product specifications contained herein are subject to change. Ingram Engineering assumes no responsibility for inaccuracies, and urges customers to verify that the information they are using is current. WARNING Ingram Engineering products are not intended for use in life support appliances, devices or systems. Use of an Ingram Engineering product in any such application without written consent is prohibited. Ingram Engineering PO Box 5870 Atlanta, Georgia 31107, U.S.A. Tel: +1 (678) 685-9838 URL: http://ingramengineering.net Email: [email protected] Quick Start Guide 1.0 May 2014