How many compressor channels in your rack?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Cazzbar
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16 channels (of miscellaneous dynamics processing) ready to go. Not that I'd ever use that many at once...
 
Minion said:
You Might Try Hooking up your Compressor to your Mixers FX Send/Return and then you will be able to add Compression useing the FX Mix Dial on the Mixer, The Problem with that is you would be useing the Same Type of Compression on all Channels that you use Compression on.....

Cheers

If you used your FX send/return inputs, wouldn't you be getting the sound coming out of your main outputs? Currently I'm using my sub outs, and those are four channels that are leading out to my soundcard. Any other suggestions?
 
Massive Master said:
16 channels (of miscellaneous dynamics processing) ready to go. Not that I'd ever use that many at once...

Hmm, that'd be an interesting contest . . . who can produce the best master using at least 8 stereo channels of compression with at least 1 dB gain reduction each :D
 
mshilarious said:
Hmm, that'd be an interesting contest . . . who can produce the best master using at least 8 stereo channels of compression with at least 1 dB gain reduction each :D

Easy, whoever has 4 3630's and 4 composer's:D
 
Minion said:
You Might Try Hooking up your Compressor to your Mixers FX Send/Return and then you will be able to add Compression useing the FX Mix Dial on the Mixer, The Problem with that is you would be useing the Same Type of Compression on all Channels that you use Compression on.....

Cheers

sorry mate, but that wont work, compression, by definition needs to be set 100% wet
 
Studio and live are very different. Live in small clubs is usually about choosing the best compromises.

One common way of mixing live is gating on channels and comping on groups. 4 gates (kick, and the three lowest toms), and 4 comps (drum shells, bass, vox, backup vox) usually does the trick. If you like fx, two units will usually do the job.. one reverb, and a digital delay. In larger clubs, get a second reverb unit.

Some engineers are vehemently against comping on groups and even live they don't see it as a suitable sacrifice. One engineer I know typically compresses far fewer instruments, but comps only on individual channels: bass, l-voc, c-voc, r-voc. Everybody else just better know how to control their instruments, and that includes the drummer. If you can't play, you get buried.

If you are mixing black metal, you may want to comp your snare channel directly.. these guys tend to play ultra fast-ultra quiet.. and then suddenly POP a loud hit right at the end of a phrase. You've gotta compress the CRAP out of the big hits in order to make the quiet ones audible.

If your club is 1500 people or bigger, get 12+ comps and 8+ combo comps/gates, or 4 gates, and 4 combo comp/gates. You will need channels to spare for guest engineers who bring you multi-page channel lists.

Your FOH graph may have a primitive limiter in it, but your system should have enough power to spare that it's not an issue. Ultra-loud mixes don't really satisfy audiences, and eliminate the natural advantage that live rooms have.. live sound coming off the stage.

Typically, 4 comp/gates, and 4 dedicated gates are enough. If you wanna really punch up the mix, get one very nice dedicated stereo comp and set it at an extremely low ratio just to gel the mix a bit. Excessive compression or limiting on the top of your mix makes it sound like poo. You lose the sensation of "live".

edit: I should mention, the smallest room I mix (capacity 75) has 4 comps. We use one for FOH, and get some really good mixes with only 3 combo comp/gate units.
 
got like 10 channels or something,
used to have dual channel compressors but replaced all of them by mono compressors without the gate/expander/enhancer 'junk',
i dig compressors that only do compression and nothing else,
takes up ALOT of space in my rack,
but every unit has a totally different sound :D

so about ten, including two channel strips


PS, i want to add: last night i went to hardcore gigs in a little café,
the sound was EXTREMELY ROTTEN, i spent all night with toilet paper in my ears (caused lots of laugs but goddamned a PA man can RUIN live gigs and ur ears!!!!!!!!)

if you got screamers, please put a compressor on the insert of that channel,
you get distortion ALL over the place otherwise,
even if you strap a limiter on your L+R then u get the distortion from the voice-channel itsself,
some people said that its cool to hear some distortion on screaming voices,
but last night NO ONE could understand the singers when they talked or didnt scream, and when they did scream there was nothing but noise,

BOO
 
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