Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Software version 2.3

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Contents

Introduction 3
Features 3
Compatibility 3
User Interface Elements 5
Delay 5
Phase 5
Output 6
Correlometer 7
Introduction 7
Parameters 7
Credits 9
Beta-Testers 9
Questions and Answers 10

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Introduction

PHA-979 is a professional audio plug-in which allows you to apply an arbitrary phase
shift to sound material. What is meant by the phase shift here is simultaneous
shifting of all frequencies across the active frequency range of the signal by the given
value in degrees. This is achieved by linear-phase design.
PHA-979 is useful during mixing sessions, especially when working with the sound
material recorded through an array of microphones. In many cases this allows you to
solve various phasing problems arising from the microphone placement chosen
during the tracking session. In other cases this process may help you to align drums
and other instruments to each other bringing punch and time coherence not
attainable by the ordinary time-aligning alone.
Beside the phase shifting, PHA-979 features positive and negative time delaying that
eliminates the need to move in-track events in the sequencer when doing time
alignment over any set of recorded tracks. PHA-979 also provides mid/side channel
balance and panning controls that permit you to record stereo microphone pairs into
a single stereo track without resorting to dual mono recording (on separate tracks)
which usually becomes time-consuming in a further editing.
PHA-979 features multi-band analog-style correlation meter that greatly simplifies
phase- and time-aligning process. Moreover, you can use functionality PHA-979
provides to setup headphone monitoring so that it closer resembles sound stage
produced by stereo speaker monitoring.

Features

 Arbitrary signal phase control

 Linear-phase design
 Multi-band correlation meter
 Positive/negative time delaying
 Delay time calculator
 Mid/side channel balance control
 Stereo output panning
 Stereo and mono processing
 64-bit floating point processing
 Preset manager
 Undo/redo history
 A/B comparisons
 Contextual hint messages
 All sample rates support
 48 ms compensated processing latency

Compatibility
This audio plug-in can be loaded into any audio host application that conforms to the
AudioUnit or VST plug-in specification.
This plug-in is compatible with Windows (32- and 64-bit Windows 7, Vista, XP) and
Mac OS X (10.5 and later versions, 32- and 64-bit, Intel processor-based) computers

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(2 GHz dual-core or faster processor with at least 1 GB of system RAM required). A

separate binary distribution file is available for each target computer platform for
each audio plug-in specification.

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

User Interface Elements

Note: Most interface elements (buttons, labels) located on the top of the user
interface and on the bottom are standard among all Voxengo plug-ins and do not
require much learning effort. For an in-depth description of these and other
standard user interface elements and features please refer to the “Voxengo Primary
User Guide”. Learned once it will allow you to feel comfortable with all pro audio
plug-ins from Voxengo.

Delay
The “Enable” switch enables delay line processing. When you do not need to use
delaying you may leave the module disabled to conserve CPU resources.
The “Left” and “Right” knobs control the delay time (in milliseconds) independently
applied to the left and right channels, respectively. The plug-in is able to apply
negative time delay (shift the channels “back in time”) due to constant technical
processing latency the delay module introduces in the first place.
To setup delay times easier you may use the “Delay Time Calculator” provided with
the plug-in. In this calculator you need to enter sample positions of any two sound
events (transients) you would like to time-align to each other.
Sample position can be usually seen in the audio host application’s cursor time
position readout by switching it to sample offset display mode. Note that you usually
need to use host’s track waveform magnifying functions to be able to acquire event’s
sample position precisely.
After entering sample positions of both events you will see the delay you should apply
to event that is lagging relative to the “earlier” event. If this “later” event is present in
the left channel, you should use the “Copy Delay to L” button to assign this delay
value to the left channel. The “Copy Delay to R” button is used to assign the delay
value to the right channel.
To make time alignment easier and precise it is suggested to record a sharp sound
(clap or stick stroke) that can then be used to locate relative sample offsets of the
microphones within the multi-microphone setup. If you are working with drum
recording you do not need any special sound since each drum hit produces a clear
transient. It is not suggested to perform time-aligning by cymbal hits or any other
sounds that naturally do not have popping transients.

Phase
The “Enable” switch enables arbitrary phase shift processing. When you do not need
to use arbitrary phase shifting you may leave the module disabled to considerably
conserve CPU resources.
This set of controls allows you to perform phase alignment of mono or stereo audio
material. Phase alignment is a second step after time alignment on the way to
achieving a clear sound.
The “Left” and “Right” knobs specify the phase shift value (in degrees) for the left and
right audio channels, respectively.

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Phase shifting process of this plug-in does not skew the phase relationship within the
signal being processed. For example, with this process you can shift the phase of the
signal twice: at first, by 90 degrees and then by 180+90 degrees (totaling 360
degrees), to get the original signal as a result.
The “L 180” and “R 180” switches enable 180 degree phase inversion (flip) of the left
and right channel, respectively.
The “Corr” button opens the “Correlometer” pop-up window.

Output
This block controls output stage parameters.
The “Side Mix” knob adjusts the amount of side channel signal present in the output
signal (in percent). When the knob is at 100% (no mid channel present) the resulting
full side channel output will be 6 dB louder in comparison to 50% position to account
for a usually quieter side channel signal.
The “Pan” knob controls output signal panning (in percent L-R). The plug-in uses “0
dB” pan law for stereo panning.
The “Out Gain” knob adjusts the overall output signal gain (in decibel).
The “Force Mono” switch enables processing of the left audio channel only. This
switch is designed to be used on mono tracks (for example, during multi-microphone
drum kit mixing) since in such cases this will save some CPU resources. When this
switch is enabled it dims the right channel knobs on the user interface making it clear
that the plug-in is working on a mono source. Input right channel signal will be
discarded completely when this mode is engaged.
The “L/R Swap” switch enables left and right channel swapping before the “Side
Mix” and “Pan” adjustments are applied.
The “Mono Mix” switch enables mixing of left and right channels to mono on output.
The “L/R Diff” readout shows signal loudness difference between the left and right
channels in decibel (3-second integration). This readout shows negative values if the
left channel is louder than the right channel. Note that this readout does not have
means to display channel phase difference which may make a given channel sound
louder even if its loudness level is equal to an opposite channel.
The “RMS” readout shows output RMS signal level (3-second integration) of the left
and right channels (in decibel).

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Correlometer

Introduction
PHA-979 features a flexible multi-band correlation meter which you can routinely use
to configure delay and phase parameters with a highest level of precision possible.
You may adjust plug-in’s delay and phase parameters while examining the
information the correlation meter is displaying. Correlation meter is placed before
the “Mono Mix” switch in the plug-in’s signal chain.

PHA-979’s correlation meter works by splitting the incoming signal into bands that
are close to ISO frequencies. Band-splitting is performed by means of an array of
band-pass filters (the Q factor of the filters depends on the number of bands). This
correlation meter can be called an “analog-style” correlation meter.
Please read the topic named the “Knowledge Bit – Correlation” in the “Voxengo
Primary User Guide” for specific information about correlation values and their
possible meaning.
As a general rule, when phase-aligning a track to another track it is desirable to
achieve correlation values near 1.0 for frequencies below 1 kHz while allowing the
correlation for the higher frequencies to be between 1.0 and 0.0.

Parameters
PHA-979’s correlation meter (correlometer) features the following user-selectable
parameters:
The “Pri” parameter selects primary signal source.
The “Sec” parameter selects secondary signal source. You may select side-chain
inputs here.
If either “Pri” or “Sec” parameter refers to a non-existent or equal channel the
correlation meter will display 1.0 constant for all bands.
The “Bandwidth” selector is used to select single band’s width (expressed in octaves)
used in the band-splitting.
The “Scale” selector chooses vertical (correlation value) scale range. The “Full”
option displays full correlation range (-1.0 to 1.0), the “Pos” option focuses on
positive correlation values (0.5 to 1.0), the “Neg” option focuses on negative

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correlation values (-1.0 to -0.5), the “Null” option focuses on null-correlation values (-
0.25 to 0.25).
The “Avg Time” knob controls correlation meter’s averaging time (in milliseconds).
This value is used in each band.

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Credits

This plug-in was produced by Aleksey Vaneev in Syktyvkar, Komi Republic, Russia.
DSP algorithms and internal signal routing code were created by Aleksey Vaneev.
Graphics user interface code and the “standard” graphics design were created by
Vladimir Stolypko.
Plug-in is implemented in multi-platform C++ code form and uses “zlib” compression
library (written by Jean-loup Gailly and Mark Adler), FFT code by Takuya Ooura,
VST plug-in technology by Steinberg, AudioUnit plug-in SDK by Apple, Inc. (used
under the corresponding licenses granted by these parties).
Voxengo PHA-979 Copyright © 2004-2011 Aleksey Vaneev.
VST is a trademark and software of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH.

Beta-Testers
Michael Anthony
Murray McDowall
Niklas Silen
Steffen Bluemm

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Voxengo PHA-979 User Guide

Questions and Answers

Q. I am wondering if there is a set latency amount in milliseconds or

samples that this plug-in introduces to a track so I can compensate for it?
A. PHA-979’s latency in samples depends on the project’s sample rate. The latency at
44100 Hz is equal to 48 milliseconds. It becomes a bit lower at higher sample rates
(46 ms at 96000 Hz).

Q. I don't like latency! Can you please get it to zero?

A. This is simply impossible, in the case of PHA-979, since it uses linear-phase
design.

Q. I was wondering is the technology of this plug-in is the same as in the

Little Labs IBP? http://www.littlelabs.com/ibp.html
A. PHA-979 is probably very close to IBP in the idea. However, since IBP is an
analog box, it is not linear-phase and thus it may add some additional “analog”
coloration, it may also shift some range of frequencies more than the rest (it has a
lo/hi switch for this). This may or may not be good in a particular situation. PHA-
979 is neutral in this respect. When applying PHA-979 you can be sure nothing
sonically-important is being destroyed in the process.

Q. How PHA-979 is different from a simple delay plug-in?

A. PHA-979’s phase shifting halves the time shift of the signal when frequency
doubles. For some it might be interesting to know that at 90 degree phase shift,
PHA-979 works as a Hilbert transformer. This makes this plug-in totally different to
a delay plug-in. You may look at PHA-979 as a frequency-dependent delaying plug-
in. PHA-979 won't cure every possible problem, but in a way it works, it covers more
bases than normal time shifting (time aligning). I.e. with the latter you may still get
some “problem spots” while with PHA-979 you can minimize this number to one or
none.
More in-depth information:
Phase alignment should never be analyzed without a time anchor. There should
always be a time anchor. Then, all frequency-dependent phase/time changes should
be compared to this anchor. You may perceive the anchor as a sound wave with all
frequencies at unity loudness level at once. This anchor stays untouched while you
are adjusting another signal.
What a simple time shifting does to the signal relative to the anchor? For example,
we are at the sample rate of 96000 samples per second, and shifting the audio signal
forward by 500 samples (5 milliseconds). What does that mean to the audio
frequencies relative to the anchor sound? Let's introduce “phase shift per sample”
value for each audio frequency. This will be:
 48kHz: 2*pi*48000/96000 = pi (means if we shift audio forward by 1 sample
we get this “pi” value shift for this “48kHz” audio frequency, relative to the
anchor).
 24kHz: 2*pi*24000/96000 = pi/2
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 12kHz: 2*pi*12000/96000 = pi/4

 6kHz: 2*pi*6000/96000 = pi/8
 etc.
So, in our case, when you are time shifting the audio signal forward by 500 samples,
audio frequencies in it are shifted relative to the anchor by:
 48kHz: 500*pi
 24kHz: 250*pi
 12kHz: 125*pi
 6kHz: 62.5*pi
 3kHz: 31.25*pi
 1.5kHz: 15.63*pi
 750Hz: 7.81*pi
 375Hz: 3.8*pi
 187.5Hz: 1.95*pi
 etc.
Hopefully, you get the idea. Nobody knows what you'll get when you sum this shifted
signal with the anchor sound: comb filtering at the least. While process like PHA-979
rotates ALL frequencies for the same phase amount, and it never exceeds “pi” (unlike
the ordinary time shift outlined above). Acoustically speaking, PHA-979 does
nothing to the signal since it preserves phase linearity and basically a flat frequency
response. Its effect can be heard only compared to the anchor sound, when summed
with that anchor sound. And the result is simple: out of phase frequencies get
reduced, in-phase frequencies get amplified, all in a very precise manner. This is the
same as getting an optimal balance between two sounds without equalization or
frequency-dependent phase-shifting.

Q. Would PHA-979 be used more for individual instruments tracks, or

more for whole mixes?
A. PHA-979 is not usable for the whole stereo mixes unless you want to mix these
stereo mixes with each other. PHA-979 is meant to be used during mixing, for
aligning instruments to each other: overhead mics to drum mics, drums to bass,
acoustic guitars to each other, overdriven guitars to each other, and so on.
When used over the whole stereo mix, PHA-979 can be used to imitate room speaker
monitoring with headphones.

Q. If PHA-979 is just used on single sounds/instruments, would it only be

used on stereo sources?
A. It can be used on individual stereo sources like double-mic stereo recordings. But
probably you will use it on mono sources the most: vocals, guitars, bass, drums.
PHA-979 helps things to mix together better. When PHA-979 is being used on a
mono source, there is a special “Force Mono” switch available which you can enable
to save CPU resources.

Q. Should PHA-979 be used first or last in the effect chain?

A. It depends on your taste mainly. In either case, when you apply additional
processing on the signal, in most instances you will have to re-adjust phase

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adjustment after every change you make to the processing chain since the processes
you have on the track may produce different phase shifting at their different settings.

Q. Would the PHA-979 be the best tool for aligning the microphone bleed
that occurs when I record acoustic guitar and vocals at the same time?
A. Sure thing, PHA-979 can be used for such task, but since microphone bleed has
“distance” component (distance between two mics and two sound sources), you may
also need to use PHA-979’s time-shifting feature.

Q. I'm slightly frustrated. I am trying the plug-in on one mic track from a
spaced stereo pair. I'm hearing no change at all.
A. When evaluating PHA-979 changes makes to the signal, you should always use two
tracks – one unchanged and the other affected by PHA-979. When applying PHA-
979 on a single track its effect cannot be heard, at all. The effect can be heard only
when you mix (or listen) the affected and unaffected tracks together.

Q. I would like to reproduce a sound coming “out” of the stereo field, like
sometimes when watching TV we feel that sound coming “extra wide”.
The source is mono. Is this relative to phase?
A. I guess what you are describing as “extra wide” can be created using differing
phase shift on every channel. So, it is possible to get such effect with PHA-979, but
the closer your approach to the 180 degrees phase shift between the channels, the less
“mono-compatible” your sound will be. Phase-shifting of channels of a stereo signal
may produce phase cancellation when stereo signal is mixed to mono, and it generally
sounds too “surround”. Getting mono-compatible “extra wide” sound usually
requires use of some additional processing like delaying, chorusing, etc.

Q. I'm assuming that the correlation meter monitors the effect of phase
adjustments across two or more tracks simultaneously. Is this
assumption correct?
A. By default, the correlation meter measures correlation of Left and Right channels
of the same stereo track. But in certain hosts like Ableton Live, Logic Pro, Cakewalk
Sonar and others you may route a side-chain signal to it – in that case you can
measure correlation across tracks. In no way PHA-979 measures correlation across
several tracks “automatically” – you have to configure it first.

Q. Is the stereo correlation meter the same plug instance as the one that
manipulates phase?
A. Yes, it is the same plug-in. The meter is shown in a separate window, though.

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Q. Is there any real difference between using PHA-979’s delay, or

manually time advancing or setting back the track in the DAW?
A. PHA-979 performs usual positive or negative time delaying via its “Delay” control
– it is not different from e.g. Cubase’s built-in track delay. But not all audio host
applications have such feature: that is why PHA-979 implements it.

Q. PHA-979's description says it can be used “to setup headphone

monitoring so that it closer resembles sound stage produced by stereo
speaker monitoring”. That sounds interesting but I don't see how this
functionality is implemented?
A. A corresponding preset is available. PHA-979 only models speaker phase
positioning – 60 degrees phase difference between speakers. It is not about time
difference – the speakers are located at equal distances from the listener, so there is
no delay between arrival of signal from both speakers. At the same time phase
difference between speakers is constant for all frequencies, it is equal to 60 degrees
and it changes perception of the stereo field greatly.

Q. I'm trying to figure out exactly how PHA-979 is properly used for
phase aligning drum mixes. I'm routing overhead signal to the left
channel and snare signal to the right channel of PHA-979. Is this correct?
A. PHA-979 should not be used that way, that is, with one track panned left, and the
other track panned right. PHA-979 should be used on separate tracks. Optionally,
you may route external side-chain signal to PHA-979 to perform correlation analysis.
Stereo processing capability of PHA-979 was mainly designed for adjusting stereo
field information of stereo microphone pairs, and for speaker placement simulation
during headphone monitoring.

Happy Mixing!

Copyright © 2004-2011 Aleksey Vaneev 13