Effects Reference

Chapter 11 Convolution Reverb: Space Designer 123
Setting the Sample Rate
The Sample Rate slider is used to determine the sample rate of an impulse response.
You can choose between the following settings:
 Orig: Space Designer uses the current project sample rate. When loading an impulse
response, Space Designer automatically converts the sample rate of the impulse
response to match the current project sample rate—should it be necessary. For
example, this allows you to load a 44.1 kHz impulse response into a project running
at 96 kHz, and vice versa.
 /2, /4, /8: These settings are half-divisions of the preceding value—one-half, one-quarter,
one-eighth. For example:
 If the project sample rate is 96 kHz, the options will be 48 kHz, 24 kHz, and 12 kHz.
 If 44.1 kHz is the project sample rate, the options will be 22.05 kHz, 11.025 kHz,
and 5512 Hz.
Changing the sample rate increases or reduces the frequency response and length of
the impulse response and, to a degree, the overall sound quality of the reverb. That said,
don’t worry too much if the maximum bandwidth of the reverb tail is reduced to
11.025 kHz when you select a sample rate of 22.05 kHz (half of 44.1 kHz). Natural room
surfaces (concrete and tiles excluded) barely reflect such high frequencies.
By selecting half the sample rate, the impulse response becomes twice as long. The
highest frequency that can be reverberated will be halved. This results in a behavior
that is much like doubling every dimension of a virtual room (multiplying a room’s
volume by eight).
Another benefit of reducing the sample rate is that processing requires significantly less
CPU power, making half sample rate settings the ideal solution for large, open spaces.