To compress or not to compress....

  • Thread starter Thread starter Gargamel
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Gargamel

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A few years ago when I began the never ending journey into audio recording arts someone gave me some good advice:

"If you are laying tracks with a drum machine or sampled drums there is no need to compress those particular tracks. The sounds are compressed already." ---
 
Quite true.... but doesn't mean you can't experiment.........

Bruce
 
I think a lot of those samples were compressed when they were sampled. Drum machines need dynamic variation to sound realistic, and if you compress heavily you will kill those dynamics.

I do compress individual drum samples, especially snares and toms. It makes them fatter and have more impact, maybe in a rock song where you want them to stand out in a mix that has loud, distorted guitars.

Compression can make cymbal sounds really strange. I never compress cymbals.
 
MISTERQCUE said:
Like the new title Cuzz Brucie!
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What new title? (my caper failed... I need to plan something more sinister until I finally get my custom title "Smarter Than The Average Bear")

Bruce
 
you may not need to compress what comes out of the drum machine by using an actual compressor or virtual actual compressor but you should limit the dynamic range of your drum tracks by keeping the midi velocity in range.

having said that, a lot of hip-hop producers still compress the drum machine stuff even further.
 
Wide Awake said:
I think a lot of those samples were compressed when they were sampled. Drum machines need dynamic variation to sound realistic, and if you compress heavily you will kill those dynamics.

I do compress individual drum samples, especially snares and toms. It makes them fatter and have more impact, maybe in a rock song where you want them to stand out in a mix that has loud, distorted guitars.

Compression can make cymbal sounds really strange. I never compress cymbals.
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I love copmressing cymbals (well, overheads anyway).
 
Well, I always hated "overly" compressed drums or anything else for that matter. I never could listen to a Boston or Van Halen album for very long before ear fatigue set in. That's especially true of VH's compressed cymbals which sound horrid to me.

I guess a lot depends on how carried away you get with things though. I mean there are a lot of rock albums from the 80's that have compressed drums and cymbals that don't sound nearly as bad as VH albums did. A little compression goes a long way. To each his own though; variety makes the world go round. Personally, I think the best recorded albums are jazz and classical things from the early 60's like Dave Brubeck and Miles Davis recordings for instance. No compression at all on most of those old records. Just two big overheads on the drums in a nice big room. They have room to breathe and really sparkle like that. Give a listen to Brubeck's "Time Out" sometime. Great sounding drums there. (Around 1959 I think.)

Really, I'm not condemning the idea though. Do what makes you happy.
 
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