User Manual
Empirical Labs Trak Pak
Intro
Input Section
Shape Section
Equalizer Section
Compressor and Drive Section
EMPIRICAL LABS PRODUCTS ARE MODERN CLASSICS. There are very few modern hardware manufacturers that have managed to become a main-stay in every modern studio, but Empirical Labs is one of them. Their products have the unique ability to take what we love from vintage classics, and not only add something modern, but to really make a modern version of it. The Distressor, Lil FrEQ, Mike-E, DerrEsser, Fatso are now modern classics: the easily recognizable white knobs can be seen in just about every studio.
With Trak Pak we have embodied the Empirical Labs ethos and created a channel strip based on the Mike-E compressor and Lil FrEQ equalizer and de-esser. It has the famous sound, but with functionality adapted for the Console 1 workflow. You get a versatile console workhorse with lots of attitude (if you want it) and even more sweet glue. Because that’s one thing that’s amazing with the Empirical Labs gear, they’re designed to make your music sound good. Every detail, every little distortion or EQ curve is made and empirically tested in the empirical labs to make your music sound even better.
The input section consists of the high-pass filter from the Lil FrEQ, and a newly designed low-pass filter. The new low-pass was created from the high-pass circuits and feature that nice “bump” which gives the cuts a nicely defined sound.
This is not a traditional gate or shape section, it’s the de-esser/HF limiter from the Lil FrEQ. In HF Limiter mode it will work as a limiter for all frequencies above the cross-over frequency and is excellent for taming hard transients as well as emulating analog tape.
Emulate analog tape by using the DS section set to HF LIM, frequency at 6KHz. Adjust so that when the frequencies harshly pile up, the DS section kicks in, integrating and smoothing out the high end.
In de-esser mode (HF Limiting = OFF) it works as a level-independent de-esser that can turn down comparatively high or harsh high frequencies in an extremely musical manner.
This is the heart and soul of the Lil FrEQ. A four-band parametric EQ, where the LF and HF has the, now classic, fixed-frequency shelving filters of the Lil FrEQ. In addition to the Lil FrEQ we also added a nonstepped high- and low-cut, based on the circuitry in the Lil FrEQ.
The Mike-E Compressor has that perfect blend between compression and distortion that any bus or modern production need. To make it even more versatile, we have split up the functionality of the Mike-E onto two Console 1 sections: Compressor and Drive. The Compressor handles the pure compression side of it, with continuous attack and release times as well as a classic Threshold control. The Drive features the “Warm/Toasty” distortion from the Mike-E that is famous for adding glue and control to the track.
Use the compressor as a bus compressor. Generally you would use a low ratio (2:1), with the slowest attack (100 ms) on such a mixdown compressor. For the loudest mix, keep the release fast also (.05 seconds). With the slow attack and fast release, the transients will come through without over-compression, and the fast release will keep the music from pumping after an attack. 1 – 3 dB is usually enough gain reduction.
The Drive Character knob has the same type of brighten- or-darken functionality as seen in the SSL SL 4000E strip.
