Building upon the design and features of its predecessor, the Alesis 3630 Compressor, the new Alesis 3632 Compressor is the company's latest dual-channel compressor, limiter, and gate unit.

The 3632 Compressor succeeds the 3630 with two independent, fully featured compressor and limiter units in one compact rack space. According to Alesis, the new 3632 offers excellent sonic quality for any application, from studio recording to live sound or broadcast.

With the push of a button, the 3632’s attack and release times can be set to engage automatically depending on the source signal; in this mode, Alesis says, the 3632 applies a fair amount of compression with no extremes. If full manual control is what you're after, just push another button and you will have full control over the 3632’s entire group of parameters. The 3632 can function as either two separate processors, or be stereo linked to provide true stereo compression.

The 3632’s Expander / Gate keeps unwanted noise out of your sound. When your signal falls below the threshold you’ve chosen, the Expander / Gate pushes low-level noise down or simply closes the gate, depending on the parameters you’ve dialed in, denying the noise access to your audience or your mix.

What drives the 3632 is its voltage-controlled amplifier, which is said to offer pro-grade performance in terms of distortion, noise, and temperature stability.

The unit's sidechain function on each channel allows you to use it in external effects loops or in other common compressor applications, such as ducking; use the sidechain function to trigger compression on a signal when you want it. A second, internal sidechain employs a switchable low-cut filter to help control pumping due to heavy low-frequency content. The 3632 Compressor sports bright LED meters on each channel that display gain reduction and input / output levels, providing constant visual feedback.

Alesis 3632 Compressor features at a glance:

• Stereo compressor / expander / limiter / gate
• Minimized signal path for optimal sound quality
• Intelligent Knee for musical performance with soft- and hard-knee envelopes
• Intelligent Ratio adjusts expansion based on input signal
• Intelligent Gain auto-adjusts output
• Adjustable attack and release time
• Couple switch for true stereo operation
• Auto attack and release times based on signal analysis, plus full manual control
• Couple Switch engages enables Channel One controls to affect both channels
• Sidechain send and return for use in an external effects loop
• Switchable low-cut filter minimizes audio-program pumping triggered by kick drum
• Gain-reduction LEDs
• Switchable input / output-level LED meters
• Bypass switches on both channels

Alesis plans on shipping the 3632 Compressor in the third quarter of 2011. For more information, visit alesis.com.