Electro Harmonix Deluxe Big Muff Pi Distorter/Compressor

Hi all, I have been playing around with a pedal I found only recently(about 3 weeks ago), and have been baffled by some of the knobs on them. I really don't understand what the Threshold does exactly, I have played around with it but don't understand if it is supposed to be used in unison with the Fuzz or the Compressor. I have no clue as to what it does. please help!

Heres a pic of it, http://www.basicidea.be/gear/EH_bigmuffdeluxe.JPG

usually with compressors the threshold, or ceiling, is a form of noise reduction. you set the threshold to a certain frequency and it will cut any frequency which goes above it.

sweet, thanks man. Off to the experimenting room!

Yeah, like jcb said, threshold is used in compressors. It's the most important control of the compressor. it define the decibel level that the signal must be that the compressor start working, in guitar signal that have your compressor's threshold is to set at -25dB, the guitar must be louder than -25dB in order for the compressor to process it.

If your guitar signal comes in at -26dB, nothing happens. If the signal is -24dB or higher the compressor starts to work by reducing the gain of the signal.

In this pedal, im not exactly sure how things work, because I have no experience of using that. Usually compressors have also ratio knob, which set the amount of compression of the input signal once the threshold has been exceeded, but I didnt find it on the picture.

Hope this helps
Empirism

Thanks Emp. and jcb, this is a huge help.