Need Some Compression Help.

[Tusin]

Ok well I have a Joe Meek Mq3 Pre amp that has a compresion part on it, and I also have a Presonus Bluemax Compressor too. Ok I dont really know anything about compresion I know more or less what it does (Compresses loud signals and boost low signals so everything more or less sounds at the same level). I dont know what settings to use At All. I dont know what Threshold Means, or Attack, or Release, or Ratio. The Blue Max has your "Normal" compresion settings (At least what I have seen on other compressors). But the JoeMeek is weired, it only has a Dial called "Compression" and then "Release" and "Attack". If anyone can maybe give me a run down like a Compression 101, or send me to a website that explains stuff in plain English, also if anyone knows any good settings for Vocals, and Acoustic Guitar, and Electric Guitar, and Bass Guitar etc.... Or at least Setting Starting points.

 

[VotaIdiota]

The Meek is very different from most compressors in that it uses a light cell inside the unit to reduce gain. While VCA-style compressors (such as the bluetube) have a defined threshold level (anywhere from -40 to +15) where the compression kicks in, the meek slowly compresses all the way through (a non-linear fashion, I think..... although I always get the terms mixed up). As such, there is no threshold control on the meek. The "compressor" knob acts as a pseudo-threshold level, adding more gain into the sidechain of the compressor so that it compresses more. Attack is how fast the compressor reacts to transients.. meek units don't really have that much of a slow attack, so set this around the highest it can go (6-11 ms, I think). Release is how long it takes for the volume of the piece to return to normal. Keep this around its lowest, 250 ms. On the blue tube, the same rules apply on attack and release, although if the attack goes higher, you could set a medium amount and see what that does. If you can, feed a drum loop or something into either unit, and mess around with the knobs while it's playing to see the effect all the knobs have on the sound. Hope this helped.