To Compress Or Not To Compress.

  • Thread starter Thread starter daltyboy
  • Start date Start date
D

daltyboy

New member
hi,
I already know basically what a compressor does.
but I was wondering if i should invest in one for my demos.

My styles deftones - radiohead.....so for that type of music do you think a compressor would make a big difference?

Im also using a ROLAND VS1680 to record. If a compressors only gonna make a lil bit of difference than I dont want to spend money I dont have on one. BUT if you guys think it will make a big difference could you reccomend a couple?
 
depends on your budget, but when you say you use a VS machine: it has build in compressors.

They are not that great as stand alone ones, but if you're talking about a demo, I think you could spend your money better on decent mics than an outboard compressor
 
Yeah, the 1680 has a built in compressor. It's not the greatest but it will get the job done...

There are also a few multi effects that have a compressor in the effects chain, like the vocal multi.
 
Yeah, but if you're signal is over the top there's nothing an internal compressor can do about it after the a/d conversion. Go with an external compressor.
 
Here's my wild ass guess.
Use what you have in the box, on the vocals, maybe the bass, drums, whatever is too dynamic to set in the mix. If you've explored all they can do and still can't get what you need...then it's upgrade time! :D Certainly a lot of compression is on most pop mixes, so it can be a big part of the sound.

I'll have to differ with Philboyd on tracking. You can get plenty good levels without comp. If you know ahead of time the sound your after, compressing on the way in is fine, and it does give you some cushion, but that's not a setting that is optimized for peak protection gererally. Depends on your approach.
By by.
Wayne
 
If you go from a whisper to a scream you may need a compressor. I have been known to use a Levelar from art on the way in to control the dynamics if they are that wide.
 
I might catch some flak for this, but I personally try to avoid compression if at all possible. If you watch your levels closely, you can keep from redlining which you MUST do with digital. Going in the red is almost always a very bad thing with digital. But I don't care for compressed sound and a lot of the audiophile type engineers that try to replicate acoustic sounds as real as possible don't use any compression unless they absolutely have to.
So no, you don't have to have a compressor, but you do have to stay out of the red. If you have problems with that, you'll need a compressor, otherwise you can get along without it.
 
You're correct in that the Roland on-board compressors are rumored to be sub-par. Some of the other effects are pretty awesome. If you do get an external compressor, get the RNC.

tool said:
how do I go about useing the roland vs 1680 compressor?
Click to expand...

Use it as an insert on an individual track. I don't have the manual on hand, otherwise I'd get more in depth.


Matt
 
Hi - A couple of things I'd like to bring to this discussion. It seems we're throwing around the word compression too loosely here, and ignoring other forms of dynamic processing.
Compression is not something you use to stay out of the red, that would be limiting. I agree that compression should not be used during recording, with the possible exception of going through a vintage piece of analog gear when you know what you want, and don't want to have to go through additional D/A and A/D to get it. I do however think that a limiter is a good thing to have in the chain as a safety, with mics being placed, and gains being adjusted so as to be able to set the limiter's threshold to just below 0 db, and hopefully have it do nothing. Sometimes though there's no way to get an empassioned performance and keep the dynamic range from jumping between too cold (not enough bits/low resolution, and too hot (digital overs). If you have to choose between telling the artist to cool it, or turning the pre gain so low that most of the take is barely tickling half the bits, then it's time to use a limiter.
For mixing, compression isn't always what's called for either, and sometimes just the opposite, expansion is the trick. This is especially true for drums. But there are plenty of cases where compression is the right tool to get a track to sit in the mix properly, as long as it's not overused.
My 2c, RD
 
I find recording without compression is good if possible as it gives you more options later. The Vocals can sound quite different when placed in the context of everything else going on in the track. I agree that Limiters are the way to go with digital recording in the first instance. What you are trying to achieve is the most natural performance from your vocalist, they should be thinking about singing and not the mechanics of recording. Recently used an Aux out into the compressor and then resent in back to a spare track on mix down where I could seperatly adjust the EQ (I'm not sure if this can be achieved in a fully digital environment?). This worked well as it seemed to retain the dynamic quality withpresence on the quieter sections. I used a Behringer Tube Composer which is now ~£150 in the UK and is a great unit for the money
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top