2ms is standard, and fairly fast i think. i believe 20 is fairly slow, its taking longer for the compressor to kick in. i don't know exactly how slow it is, but its 18 more than 2, and 2 seems to be standard, so.....
and yea, i mix rap too, but i haven't found that level, if you listen to people you'll find that everyone is different. Thats a problem i have when mixing/writing/rapping. i find i listen to other people i think are great, and find how my stuff is not like theirs at alll, so i figure im doing something wrong. but then you'll hear someone else who is completely different from the other guy, who is great as well. And after going through that you just have to understand that not sounding like them is good! keep your originality and mix how you think sounds good and you want! So you really just have to apply effects to taste, and mix to a level you think sounds good, maybe show some friends, or compare to some songs, for a general idea. But if its so quiet you can't hear them, or so loud that it overpowers the mix, then you know your need to adjust.
And just a few notes on the effects. i don't know a lot, but from what i've learned. Compression should be used when you need to "average" out your levels. So say your vocals are jumping around, sometimes really quiet, sometimes really loud, and you can't seem to find a level that suits the mix, beause the volume keeps changing, the compression will bring the lows up, and highs down (assuming you use it correctly). i suggest starting at 2ms attack, and about 40ms release. And move the threshhold all the way down, then move it slowly up until it just stops kicking in, then bring it down a little bit. and for eqing, you just have to do it by ear, depending on what kind of eq your using, just take one frequency, bring it all the way up, then bring it all the way down, and listen for yourself exactly what the frequency is doing to your mix. Then make some small cuts or boosts depending on what it sounded like it needed. Ive been told not to boost frequencies tooo much, like, maybe 3db max. Because you can experience clipping and distortion if you go higher, but hey, if it sounds good... And for cuts, i figure you can cut as much as you want, its not distorting anything, but be careful, you may take some life outa your mix, or make it sound dead. Especially around 900hz, its known to be the area that makes mixes sound muddy, but if you cut tooo much, then it makes your mix sound dead....
anyways, its all so confusing. im just relaying what ive learned from experience, and from what other people have told me on this board.. (what do they call that, knowledge?)
So take what you want and give it a shot, but really i find you to try things for yourself, just load an effect and mes with it, see what it does to your mix/sounds. i guess when you need to add effects is when something sounds off and you think you need to fix it to make it sound better. And if you can't really tell, just try messing with the effects, see what they do, and if what they do make it sound better. i just remembered what someone on this board posted in a different post
"Just because it sounds different, it doesn't mean it sounds better"
so be careful what you change.
