Compression: why fixed threshold settings?

cordura21

cordura21

New member
Hey guys. I was wondering why on many articles and tutorias, many people give fixed threshold settings (-6 dBFS for example), along with more reasonable fixed settings like attack, ratio and decay.

Why is this such common, if nobody knows what the peak signal is on any random waveform? Is it because many people track as close to zero as they can? If this is so, then why don't they take into account that since people is using 24 bits that's not the only way to do it?

Andrés
 
those aren't "fixed" settings. they aren't settings that you HAVE to set your compressor at in order to get a perfect compressed vocal track. they're a lot like presets on a plugin. just because you use a preset, doesn't mean that you're not allowed to change it to fit your specific song or instrument. the tempo of a song and style of the song can make a huge difference in the settings you choose for compression or EQ. the settings you see people recommend are just a starting point for you to use if you want. of course the threshold can change depending on the level you're recording your track at, how dynamic the player is playing, etc.
 
What I mean is that many times they say something like: "for compressing a bass you can start by x ratio, x attack, x release and x threshold"

All the first numbers make sense, since you're talking about a known kind of envelope. But why a fixed threshold, since you don't know how much of the actual dynamic range was used when recording, or how far is the wave from absolute zero?
 
The threshold isn't fixed per se in your example, the recommendation is to adjust the threshold according to the program material until you get that amount of gain reduction.
 
cordura21 said:
What I mean is that many times they say something like: "for compressing a bass you can start by x ratio, x attack, x release and x threshold"
Click to expand...
The key words in that quote are "you can start by". Probably meaning that those settings will get you in the general ballpark more times than not; tweak from there as needed.

It's a lot more substantial than saying "you can start with everything set at zero and work your way up from there." ;)

G.
 
yeah, its better to say "achieve x db of gain redution". but obviously something that sayas threshold -6 is for a little bit of compression, -10 is for more, and -20 is for something like bass. it might not be perfect but should be close for any decent signal.
 
once you get good at compression (and man it takes years), throw it all out the window, because you will hear how much of a difference any little tweak can make. Anybody who says to start at a certain threshold..well Idon't know if I'd read past that beause threshold is different each time. I always start at zero and move it around to taste. that is all that needs to be said for threshold

now starting points for ratios i can see..like drums 2:1 with an attack of 3 or so..stuff like that...but you will still want to learn your comp in and out..my favorite plugin comp is the waves renaissance.
 
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