Devil-Loc

Devil-Loc isolates the two central processes of Soundtoys' Level-Loc-inspired design: driving a gain-reduction circuit and overdriving the amplifier after it. It is intentionally a character effect, not a transparent compressor with precise threshold, ratio, attack, and release controls.

Crush pushes the limiter into increasingly pronounced reduction and, at strong settings, saturation of the gain-reduction behavior itself. Crunch then adds post-limiter gain and output-stage distortion. Their interaction can turn short percussive events into long, breathing textures or make a loop sound much denser and rougher.

The small interface does not contain the Deluxe version's Mix, Darkness, or release switch. If dry transients need to remain intact, use a separate parallel route in the host and blend the effect there. Begin with both controls restrained, listen through the pauses as well as the hits, and adjust downstream level before comparing. Its long, program-dependent recovery is an important part of the effect rather than an error to correct.

Manual, About Devil-Loc, p. 4; The Devil-Loc Control Panel, pp. 5–6.

Crush

Crush determines how much signal enters the gain-reduction circuit. Turning it up increases compression; pushing farther saturates that circuit and produces pronounced pumping. Judge the result over several hits and the spaces between them, not just the loudest transient. A setting that adds desirable sustain to an isolated snare can also pull down following notes in a busy loop.

Crunch

Crunch applies gain after limiting and determines how hard the output amplifier is driven. It adds distortion in a different place from Crush. Use more Crush when the envelope and recovery are the main goal, and more Crunch when the post-limiter texture needs additional grit. Since both processes interact, revisit the first control after making a large change to the second.

Timing and routing

There are no user-adjustable attack or release knobs in this version. The manual specifies an approximately 1.3 ms attack, with release around 1.7 seconds normally and approximately 22 seconds when saturated. These are behavior specifications, not selectable timing settings.

There is also no internal wet/dry control. For parallel treatment, route a copy to an auxiliary channel, shape it with Crush and Crunch, and blend it underneath the dry track using the host. Use host gain after the plug-in for level compensation. The dedicated Darkness, Mix, and Fast/Slow Release controls belong to Devil-Loc Deluxe, not this two-control edition.

Manual, Crush and Crunch, p. 5; Specifications, p. 6.