New to parallel compression

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c64954

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Hello. I just recently started working with parallel compression. I have heard it used before and I liked the way it sounded so I figured I would give it a try. I am having a ton of phase problems and I have no idea how to fix it. I am using Sonar 6. There isn't a phase invert on the aux send so I don't know exactly what to do. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
It is a plugin. I have used the SSL LMC plugin and the Waves C4 plugin. Both had the same problems.
 
c64954 said:
Hello. I just recently started working with parallel compression. I have heard it used before and I liked the way it sounded so I figured I would give it a try. I am having a ton of phase problems and I have no idea how to fix it. I am using Sonar 6. There isn't a phase invert on the aux send so I don't know exactly what to do. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Are your phase problems only when you fold the compressed tracks in with the originals, or is there a phase problem between the compressed tracks themselves? It's possible in the latter that the compression is exaggerating the bleed between a couple of the tracks, uncovering the phase problems in the bleed.

If this is the case, you might want to ID just where the bleed/phase conflicts are, and then go back to the original tracks and flip the polarity there, where needed.

Alternately, you could consider leaving a track or two out of the parallel chain. There's nothing chiseled in stone that says you have to parallel compress the entire kit map.

G.
 
It only happens when the compressed track is mixed with the regular track. I went through the tracks and tried to see if anything else wasn't phase coherent and they were all fine.
 
Could it be a delay created by the compression plug? Assuming you're working with duplicated tracks, turn off the plug-in on the compression group. Does the phase issue go away? If so, the plug is likely adding a bit of processing delay.

You can mix down the compressed group (but now the compression is "printed" so make sure you're happy with it), or you can try nudging either the dry or compressed tracks till the phase disappears.
 
This could be caused by wrong use of plugins by the Sonar, does it hapen with other plugins too?
The delay of the plugin may not be used to shift the effected part, so it can cause phase issues.
 
I haven't really duplicated any tracks. I have a bus with all the drum tracks that outputs to the master bus and sends to another bus which is where all the compression is which then outputs to the master. I am pretty sure it is delay from the plugin, I just don't know how to fix it. The phase does stop when you bypass the plugin.
 
either the plug is latent or the PDC of the host isnt working correctly. This is a common problem, but its also often used (unintentionally or not) as an effect

Use a compressor with a mix control and youll not have to worry about this problem

Heres a free one made specifically for this purpose http://www.cockos.com/reaper/reaplugs/
 
carlosguardia said:
I don't see how a compressor would affect the phase. Your problem might be elsewhere.
Click to expand...

it could actually... plugins can introduce varying degrees of latency.

My suggestion is to see if there are any function called something like "plug-in delay compensation" I'm sure sonar has it (it's a pretty standard function in DAW software these days) I think that's what's causing the problems.
 
c64954 said:
It is a plugin. I have used the SSL LMC plugin and the Waves C4 plugin. Both had the same problems.
Click to expand...

Not sure about the SSL but I'm 100% sure that C4 introduces somewhere around 100 samples of latency in Pro Tools. Unless your DAW has got automatic delay compensation, you'll have to print the parallel and nudge it back 100 samples.
 
c64954 said:
There isn't a phase invert on the aux send
Click to expand...
You want the Sonitus:fx Phase plugin in that case.

c64954 said:
I can't find PDC anywhere or have any idea where to find it. Anyone know?
Click to expand...

Options | Global

Then hit the VST Plug-ins tab

Select the folder that contains the plugin in question, and hit the "Folder Defaults" button.

The last checkbox on that dialog is "Enable delay compensation"

It works on a folder-by-folder basis, though you can set it for individual plugins through the plugin manager if you need.
 
I just wanted to clear up something - phase inverting probably won't get rid of the phasing. The problem can't be solved by polarity inverting (phase is actually a misnomer in this case!) one side of the signal - it is not a polarity issue but a time-based issue.


The problem IS phase - however the confusing thing is that a "phase" invert button won't help as it will change the polarity, not the phase.
 
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