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MCAudioLab LUNA Vari-Amb is a fully analog ambient processor and Vari-Amb is for Variable Ambience. You can manipulate a stereo sound landscape by two mono audio channel: the Mid and the Side.

The stereo technique is the first and the most popular you came in mind but, inside LUNA, the audio path is converted into two independent channels called Mid and Side. The Mid-Side technique is often used by engineers because of it’s own flexibility on keeping separately two main information concerning a stereo image: the sound source and its early reflections the ambience generates.

Three main sections: INPUT, ENHANCE and CONTROL. On the left side are located some toggle switch that basically change the signal path inside the processor.
The INPUT section shows up four controls as in a standard Mid/Side matrix. Each Mid and Side are furtherly splitted into two controls: the Input (coarse) and the Trim (fine). This topology allows you exactly reproduce the L/R scenario in M/S technique.
The ENHANCE section features three knobs labeled MONO, DEPTH and SWAP. Mono and Depth are the processor’s core.
The Mono enhances the monophonic information. Actually the Mono control puts into the foreground the monophonic message of the stereo track.
The Depth control gives the 3th dimension to the stereo track we are processing.

For a more flexibility, two simple 3-band EQ act on each Mono and Depth control. Left sided on each EQ you find a switch that invert the phase of Mono and Depth. One each control. The SWAP (achronim for Share With Analog Processor) knob allows you to set the Mono and Depth level and feed it with the analog processor.

You may find useful the pdf  ‘the LUNA enhancer – an easy guide’ for a very first approach to the Vari-Amb processing.

The CONTROL section counts two knobs: BALANCE and MASTER OUTPUT.
If the two output channels have different level, after your knob setup, you may want to balance them acting on the knob: BALANCE.
The MASTER OUTPUT is an active main output control providing gain when hard clockwise (MAX).

The unit features two independent insert points: one for the Mid and one for the Side channels. Two toggle switch lte the unit working in insert mode. Two LED – between the two insert switches – labeled H and L blink at the same time when the return level matches the send one. The unit allows two different input mode: Stereo (L-R) or Mis/Side (M-S) just acting on the switch inside the “input” square.
An (hard) BYPASS switch forces the unit (when on) to be cutted away from the signal path.