Overview
Pressure organizes its controls into three tiers, following the signal from input to output. The most important controls are the largest and most accessible; precision controls are tucked below for when you need fine-grained adjustment.
Interface Layout
Hero Section
The top row holds the primary controls you'll use on every session: Input, PRESSURE, Output, TONE, MIX, the AUTO toggle, and the Mode selector. The PRESSURE knob is the largest element — it's the single most important control.
Core Section
The center area shows metering (GR history, true-peak, LUFS, spectrum) and provides access to precision controls: Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release, Makeup, Knee, Hold, and Range. These let you override the PRESSURE knob's automatic mapping when you need manual control.
Precision Section
The bottom section holds Flavor controls (Image, Round, Air, LF Anchor, Auto Gain) and Advanced settings (Lookahead, Delta Listen, Detector Mode, External Sidechain, Mid/Side, Oversampling).
Signal Flow
Audio flows through Pressure in this order:
Input Gain adjusts the signal level before it hits the compressor. Use this to drive the detector harder (more compression) or back off for lighter touch.
Compression Engine is selected by the Mode control. Each engine (VCA, FET, Opto, Dynamics, VariMu) has its own character and responds differently to the PRESSURE knob.
Flavor adds tonal character after compression — stereo image widening, transient rounding, air boost, and low-frequency anchoring.
Mix blends the compressed signal with the dry input for parallel compression. At 100% you hear only the compressed signal; at 50% you get equal parts dry and wet.
Output Gain sets the final level after all processing.
Engine Modes at a Glance
Pressure includes five analog-modeled compression engines. Each one responds differently to the PRESSURE and TONE knobs.
| Mode | Engine | Character |
|---|---|---|
| MIX | VCA | SSL G-Bus — clean, punchy, versatile |
| INST | FET | 1176 “Dr. Pepper” — fast, aggressive, colorful |
| VOCALS | Opto | LA-2A — smooth, natural, program-dependent |
| DRUMS | Dynamics | dbx 160 — transparent, precise, hard knee |
| MASTER | VariMu | Fairchild 670 — warm, wide knee, tube character |
For detailed breakdowns of each engine, see Engine Modes.