Atomisonic Dyno ray thing

joel hamilton · Post by **joel hamilton** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 4:40 am

Whats the story?
This looks like it would be something I am interested in.
More info, please...
I would be very interested in possibly getting a couple of these. (I have two studios to feed these days).

I checked out the website, and it is pretty good, but I wanna know more about the actual use of this thing.

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 6:27 am

Man... whatever it's doing to the ring on the snare in that second compressed sample (actually the 4th mp3 on the page) is wicked.

Wish it had a good, built in power supply, though.

bigatomicmonster · Post by **bigatomicmonster** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 8:39 am

Greetings Mr. Hamilton,

Information regarding the N4CR is highly confidential, currently classified HHTSN2NB: Hush Hush Top Secret Need-to-Know Basis.

But please feel free to read all about it and tell all of your friends.

The Atomisonic Dynoray N4CR also goes by the name of the Dynamic Death Ray, because it's a killer compressor, the ultimate weapon of sonic destruction. And because we've been promised things like flying cars and death rays for decades, Atomisonic decided it was finally time everyone could have a death ray (or two), and not just those elite evil geniuses in underground caves on remote small islands.

Application-wise, the Dynoray's "Stun" (compression) and "Disintegrate" (distortion) settings are great on a number of things. Putting its compression on drum room mics and drum bus are at the top of the list, closely followed by acoustic and electric guitar tracks and pianos. Even vocals can sound swell through this thing, if you're looking for that compressed Steve Miller singing The Joker sort of sound. In fact, in bypass mode, it makes for a colorful mic preamp. The Disintegrate mode can add some crunch to drums and put some hair or all out buzz saw fuzz on a bass guitar. We've got some drum tracks on our site, atomisonic.com. And we'll be uploading more samples very soon.

The Dynoray is based on the Shure Level-Loc compressor, as pictured below.

The Level-Loc was released back in 1968, primarily as a podium compressor. It hasn't been manufactured for decades. In the early 1990s, a very creative producer/engineer, Tchad Blake recorded Tom Wait's Grammy award winning Bone Machine. He used the Level-Loc on various drum tracks. And a legend was born. Or at least, people heard what a really funky compressor can do.

The Level-Loc used rail wiring instead of a circuit board. You can see from the photo above, that it has wires and parts running everywhere, much like Dick Cheney's heart. They still show up from time to time on ebay, but they're usually not working. So then you end up needing to find and wait for a tech guru to fix it. As part of our build-it-like-a-battleship approach with the Dynoray, we opted for a printed circuit board approach. There is no impact on the sound other than that signal interference and noise level is reduced. And the product is of course much sturdier.

The Dynoray is based on the unusual circuit of the Level-Loc. Tech speak: The non-linear FET input gain stage is a very unique design. It serves as both the preamp and the variable gain stage of the compressor. The input stage can quickly reduce gain to prevent clipping. This gives the compressor a signal with a very large dynamic range to shape in creative ways. It also means it's a little noisier than the average compressor, but not enough to spoil the party. The discrete FET attenuator and Class A transistor amplifier stages generate levels of musically pleasing second order harmonic distortion that increase with signal amplitude and attenuation. Translation: Boy oh boy does this thing sound cool. Cymbals blossom and can sound like they're going in reverse. A drum room mic ran through this thing is compressor heaven.

We started with the same circuit, but enhanced it to give artists more control, more features, and to bring out even more of its unique character. It's a "Level-Loc on steroids". You can get the sounds of the old box, but also get brand new ones out of the Dynoray.

Features of the Dynoray:

? Discrete class A dynamic FET compressor

High gain FET/Field Effect Transistor configuration provides incredibly fast acting, non-linear dynamic compression of up to 45db.

Discrete FET attenuator and class A transistor amplifier stages generate levels of musically pleasing second order harmonic distortion that increase with signal amplitude and attenuation.

? Accepts mic, instrument, & line level input

? Unique variable gain staging FET mic preamp
The non-linear FET input gain stage is very unique design, serving as both the preamp and the variable gain stage of the compressor. This provides an audio signal with a very large dynamic range that can shaped by compression in creative ways.

The unusually low mic input impedance of 600 ohms, provides improved transient and frequency response for dynamic mics like the Shure SM57. Like the Level-Loc, such dynamic mics were originally designed back when 600 ohm inputs were standard.

? Variable "Decay" control
Enables the compressor's release time to be dialed in anywhere from twice as fast to 1.5 times slower than the original Level-Loc. This enables fine tuning of the release time to match the tempo of songs and to create unique effects.

? "Disintegrate" setting
Turns the Dynoray into a radical distortion device, capable of overdriving every one of its class A transistor amplifier stages. Artists can dial in the level of distortion with the main Amplitude control, from just a touch, to a level reminiscent of a symphony of buzz saws.

? Both balanced and unbalanced inputs and outputs

? Transformer-coupled inputs and outputs

Nickel input transformer with mu metal shield
"Vintage style" steel output transformer with mu metal shield

? Low impedance line level outputs

? Phase reverse switch with red LED indicator

? Bypass switch with red LED indicator

Adheres to the original bypass modification recommended by Shure. More fun than your average bypass switch, it enables the Dynoray to function as a colorful mic preamp.

? Power switch with red LED indicator

? Large green LED "Dynoray" indicator

Lights when the Dynoray is engaged, brightening with increased compression and distortion. It shuts off when in Bypass mode.

You can read more about the Dynoray at http://www.atomisonic.com. You can email us at info@atomisonic.com, email me directly at dale@atomisonic.com, or give us a call at 512-873-8501.

In the meantime, I'll shut up and let you guys ask questions and post comments. Thanks for your time and interest!

bigatomicmonster · Post by **bigatomicmonster** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 9:11 am

Hi Subatomic Pieces,

Thanks for the compliment on the sound of the samples. In my book, "wicked" is an adjective of the highest praise.

I agree completely. An internal power supply would've been the bee's knees. But the dreaded external "wall wart" proved to be a very good idea for the Dynoray.

Instead of an internal supply, we opted to for a very high quality external linear power supply and included power regulation and filtering circuits inside the Dynoray, things the Level-Loc never had. A key benefit of an external power supply is that they're almost always less susceptible to interference that causes noise than an internal supply. And with the unique gain staging of the Level-Loc styled circuit increasing the dynamic range and adding a little more noise than the average compressor, the reduction of noise was helpful.

Summary:

High Quality External Linear Power Supply :ar15: Unwanted Noise

Bean counter-wise, it kept the price down on the unit so more folks could pick up a Dynoray. Getting UL approval of an internal supply can take 6 or more months and adds thousands of bucks to the cost of development.

Eventually, I believe any product calls itself a Dynamic Death Ray should be harnessed by the pure power of evil. Our testing of this naturally abundant, but unclean source of power is currently underway in Atomisonic's laboratories. So far, we've only been able to generate that "wicked" snare sample and use some uttered profanities to light a small appliance bulb. But the quest will continue!

Thanks again for your interest. I'll get more samples up asap. We sure do appreciate the feedback from you guys.

Scodiddly · Post by **Scodiddly** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 10:09 am

On one hand it's neat to get somebody from the manufacturer to talk about it (and show funny pictures), on the other it seems, well, advertistingish.

bigatomicmonster · Post by **bigatomicmonster** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 11:20 am

I'm not sure I follow you when you say advertisingish, Scodiddley.

Jon Nolan · Post by **Jon Nolan** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 3:58 pm

Scodiddly wrote:On one hand it's neat to get somebody from the manufacturer to talk about it (and show funny pictures), on the other it seems, well, advertistingish.

i actually totally dig his writing style. funny stuff bigatomic'!

maybe i'm just a sucker for good "commercials."

cgarges · Post by **cgarges** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 4:56 pm

Speaking of "avertisingish:"

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=28552

I saw the thread about it earlier and my interest peaked.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

joel hamilton · Post by **joel hamilton** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 6:38 pm

cgarges wrote:Speaking of "avertisingish:"

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=28552

I saw the thread about it earlier and my interest peaked.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

True, but I invited this barrage of answers and information about this unit.
I dont know anyone that has one yet, so I am interested to at least hear about it from someone, and I guess right now that is the manufacturer. I am totally psyched to check one out! I have an original level-loc, but I would love something that goes crazy and is a little easier to integrate in a mix, with balanced line level operation...

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 6:54 pm

in the interest of equal time, in the world of Level-Loc derived products there's also the Standard Audio Level-Or:

http://standard-audio.com/home.html

joel hamilton · Post by **joel hamilton** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 6:55 pm

RefD wrote:in the interest of equal time, in the world of Level-Loc clones there's also the Standard Audio Level-Or:

http://standard-audio.com/home.html

We have one at Strangeweather. Its a cool little beast, for sure.

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 6:58 pm

joel hamilton wrote:
RefD wrote:in the interest of equal time, in the world of Level-Loc clones there's also the Standard Audio Level-Or:

http://standard-audio.com/home.html

We have one at Strangeweather. Its a cool little beast, for sure.

it's been on my studio wish list since i first laid ears on one.

only tangentially related (not the same sound at all), have you heard/tried an Anamod AM-660?

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:08 pm

I appreciate the info. But, as a new company marketing to the tapeop crowd, it would be wise to consider advertising in the mag. It's bound to generate enough sales to cover the cost. And, as a free subscriber, I know I'd totally appreciate it.

cgarges · Post by **cgarges** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:12 pm

joel hamilton wrote:True, but I invited this barrage of answers and information about this unit.

Oh, I know. I just wanted to be sure that they were aware of the importance of supporting this community through advertisements in the mag.

joel hamilton wrote:I dont know anyone that has one yet, so I am interested to at least hear about it from someone, and I guess right now that is the manufacturer. I am totally psyched to check one out! I have an original level-loc, but I would love something that goes crazy and is a little easier to integrate in a mix, with balanced line level operation...

I'm curious about it, too and I'd love to hear about it from someone who knows the Level Loc well. As someone who's owned like three or four different Level Locs and helped with the initial development of the infamous Sherlock (and named it), there's a lot for me to like about what this box claims. I'd be happy to have a release knob on my Level Loc. Of course, I paid far less than $600 for it, but this box does have cool potential.

Maybe one of us will get the Tape Op review unit. Hmmmmmm. I've been a little behind in my review writing lately.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

bigatomicmonster · Post by **bigatomicmonster** » Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:35 pm

Howdy TapeOp Folks,

Yep, Subatomic Pieces, we'll be looking into advertising in TapeOp's magazine this week. I'm not sure who to contact yet, but I'm the guy who needs to call and talk to somebody. Is there anybody you recommend who might be consistently drunk and forget to bill?

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