Recording Handbook - Hol.gr

Q2.2 What is reverb?
benl@mojo.europe.dg.com (Ben Last) writes:
The technical explanation would be something like: "a composite of
echoes from many sources, including early reflections from nearby
surfaces and remote echoes of longer duration from distant surfaces."
Ben's Patent Simple Explanation is: think about standing on the stage
of an empty theatre (theater for Americans :-). Shout. Imagine how
your voice would sound; sort of echoed back from lots of different
places. Consider how your voice would sound if you were inside a
wardrobe (closet). No echoes at all. The one with the echoes has
more reverb.
Q2.3 What is compression?
Adapted from stabnste@phoenix.phoenix.net (Erik Karlson):
A compressor reduces by a preset ratio the level of any incoming
signal which exceeds its preset level. For example, if your
compressor is set for 10 db and has a compression ratio of 2 to 1, any
signal that comes in over 10 db would be reduced by a factor of 2. For
every 2 db of input signal over 10 db, the output level would only be
increased by 1 db. This is very useful when recording vocals because
they tend to have varying levels. As with all things, too much of a
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