Can anyone please explain what the tolerance switch is/does?

Thanks...
Keni

Hi Keni

Tolerance just adds variation to the emulation. As you probably know real console electrical components all have slightly different tolerances from channel to channel and hence slightly different sound the tolerance switch emulates that. Have it off on some tracks and off on others.

HTH

Yeah, in the bad old days when standard components like resistors were bought with a tolerance of +/- 5%, even +/- 10% were common. I remember one circuit we built which called for 2% Metal Oxide resistors which had to be ordered especially!

I believe 1% is pretty much standard these days, though I've not built anything for a while.

Thanks Karl and Jonesey...

Great idea... but it seems to me it could use a variable knob instead of a switch so that you can have subtle variations...?

Keni

Gee...

Here I thought tolerance was how much I was willing to put up with...

Flip the switch - That's it! That's all I can stands I can't stands no more!

I like the concept of the tolerance switch, but I'm not so sure in practice..
 
It will add a randomness to your tracks over which you have no control.
 
It is true that resistors, transformers etc in a real console would vary, but an engineer would know the sound of each channel, and they would stay relatively constant.  I've been in studios where the engineer always put vocals, drums, whatever, through a particular strip (e.g. vocals channel 5, bass through 9, whatever) because of the way he had learned that that strip affected that particular sound. (A lot of thats there then).  We are just randomly altering them.
 
I'm not saying "don't use them" - I'm still experimenting.