How do I know when to use compression?

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BBlack

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I've been curious about compression lately - what it does, mostly, (I've come up with a pretty decent understanding..) but I'm not sure when to use it. What will something sound like when it needs compression, etc.

Thanks
 
when the high frequencies in your music prevent the lows and mids of your music being loud enough in the mix or track....then its time to compress it...basically :)
 
BBlack said:
I've been curious about compression lately - what it does, mostly, (I've come up with a pretty decent understanding..) but I'm not sure when to use it. What will something sound like when it needs compression, etc.

Thanks
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I'll have a lash...let's say you have a lead vocal where the singer was a bit uneven in volume...sometimes he's really really loud when he should have just been really loud. Well I suppose you could set a compressor to reduce the vol for the really really loud bits.

I've read that an entire mix can benefit from light compression as it helps to gel the tracks. Not sure about that one though.

Bass guitar is a really dynamic instrument they say...hard to keep notes from really booming sometimes. Most songs, I've read, want the bass even and steady...not so crazily dynamic...so you can use compression there to intercept the loud notes.

Also, compression on drums can be used as a sound shaping effect, I have read. You can use attack and release times to almost tune the snare, for example. Same for bass actually. Same for a lot of instruments I suppose.

Basically, something that needs compression could sound too dynamic to your ears. There'll be parts too loud that need bringing back.
 
^^Ok, that all makes sense. But how do I use all the controls on a compressor? What does each control do? Attack, threshold, etc.
 
kcearl said:
when the high frequencies in your music prevent the lows and mids of your music being loud enough in the mix or track....then its time to compress it...basically :)
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Wow! That is wrong in so many ways. High frequencies? Low frequencies? We talking about compression or EQ here?

when the high frequencies in your music prevent the lows and mids of your music being loud enough in the mix or track.........
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Then it's time to re-EQ or re-track. Compression will not help.
 
RAMI said:
Wow! That is wrong in so many ways. High frequencies? Low frequencies? We talking about compression or EQ here?

Then it's time to re-EQ or re-track. Compression will not help.
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well I tell you what rather than correct what I was trying to put very simply, explain it to the chap...there's a good fellow :)
 
There aren't any rules about compression use. It's as much an art as a science. While it has a practical use in controlling dynamics, just as often it's used simply for the sound that it makes.

Your best bet is to use a compressor on lots of different sources and really play with some extreme settings. You'll learn a lot about what you love and what you hate, what works and what doesn't work. And that's really the important thing. It isn't anything like having a formula to follow or a table to consult. You have to decide whether you're trying to recreate something or re-envision it. Asking us won't help you do that.
 
kcearl said:
well I tell you what rather than correct what I was trying to put very simply, explain it to the chap...there's a good fellow :)
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Well, actually you explain it perfectly in the link you provided. That's why I'm surprised at your response here.
 
RAMI said:
Well, actually you explain it perfectly in the link you provided. That's why I'm surprised at your response here.
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wait till you read what Im saying about cymbals in another thread...geez im fucked :spank:
 
Supercreep said:
There aren't any rules about compression use. It's as much an art as a science. While it has a practical use in controlling dynamics, just as often it's used simply for the sound that it makes.
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When you first discover compression, everything 'needs' it, and lots of it! :p Then you realize you have squeezed the life out of your recordings and you will apply it more tastefully. Now I rarely use a ratio higher than 1:1.3 and/or gain reduction of greater than -2db on the loudest parts of a track.
 
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clivus said:
When you first discover compression, everything 'needs' it, and lots of it! :p Then you realize you have squeezed the life out of your recordings
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then you move on to reverb on everything, then EQ, then delay, then this free effect you got on a DVD on the front of a magazine....:)
 
kcearl said:
wait till you read what Im saying about cymbals in another thread...geez im fucked :spank:
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I noticed that. :laughings: It's almost like trying to teach someone a new language. Almost frustrating.
You could tell that oboist had not played in a rock band before.



:cool:
 
I am having the same issues bro....


Compression.. when where how....Etc.

Play with it. thats all i can say.

I have asked this queston many times and every answeri get just kinda makes me scratch my head.


So.


In retrospect.


Play withit.

alot. (thats what she said)

Even if you think something doesn't need it. Put it on it and see whats its doing to that. You can always undo it, but more importantly you'll notice differences in sounds and possibly say to yourself 'wow, that may come in handy later'

thats pretty much all i have been doing.

i've made little progress with the mix on the whole but i am making small steps into when and where not to use it.


I find its done miracles for my bass tracks so far. Its a good place to start. I +1 the chap who mentioned that.

Best of luck.
 
BBlack said:
I've been curious about compression lately - what it does, mostly, (I've come up with a pretty decent understanding..) but I'm not sure when to use it. What will something sound like when it needs compression, etc.

Thanks
Click to expand...

When one instrument or voice pops out over the mix then drops down under it you might want to consider compression. Basically, compress the more dynamic tracks to fit with the less dynamic tracks. That's not to say make the dynamics all the same, just make them sound "right" together.

Sometimes you might want to be more "conceptual" about it. I will often really compress backing vocals to sit down under the lead.

Another thing to try is parallel compression, though this is a bit more advanced. With a really dynamic slap bass track I tried just straight compression but couldn't get the body of the notes to come out without losing the impact of the slaps. So I copied the track and limited the heck out of it, then mixed it back in with the original.
 
Atom Bomb said:
I am having the same issues bro....


Compression.. when where how....Etc.

Play with it. thats all i can say.

I have asked this queston many times and every answeri get just kinda makes me scratch my head.


So.


In retrospect.


Play withit.

alot. (thats what she said)

Even if you think something doesn't need it. Put it on it and see whats its doing to that. You can always undo it, but more importantly you'll notice differences in sounds and possibly say to yourself 'wow, that may come in handy later'

thats pretty much all i have been doing.

i've made little progress with the mix on the whole but i am making small steps into when and where not to use it.


I find its done miracles for my bass tracks so far. Its a good place to start. I +1 the chap who mentioned that.

Best of luck.
Click to expand...

Good points all the way around AB



:cool:
 
grimtraveller said:
I just guess !
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Sorry, I was just being facetious. Little bit by little bit, my understanding grows of all things compressed. I like to use it on the snare, mixed in with the original signal and reverbed, for no other reason than I like the sound. I don't like it on the bass and I can't tell the difference on vocals so fat lot of good my words will be.

However, if you like pictures.......

http://www.home-recording-studio-forum.com/unrelated_files/comp_vid/index.html

This is by Raw Depth and should prove helpful though in the end you're going to have to experiment. Best way to learn it, even if someone gives you the ABC of it all.
 
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