The basics

Compression basically explained: the reason people ask about compression more th
an anything is because they find it the hardest concept to understand or hear. A
basic explanation I heard when I first started was thinking of compression like
an automatic volume control, when the audio is loud it gets turned down and whe
n it's soft it gets turned up. This means sharp signals are now curved and fadin
g signals are now picked up and last longer. It also means smoother sounds and f
atter notes. AB
Soft knee, hard knee
Unless you have a software compressor or a really high-end model, you won't be a
ble to choose the setting. You simply have to decide whether to get a soft knee
compressor or a hard knee one. Try to buy a soft knee compressor as it will be u
seful on practically everything without crushing the sound. Mostly used on vocal
s and mixes, it means a larger amount of compression can be applied, while hard
knee compressors, which can be heard working, will be typically used on bass. It
is more of an audible effect than soft knee. AB
Yours is a Urei
Kate Bush was rumoured to have two compressors across her vocals: the infamous s
tudio compressor Urei 1176 one on its flat-out setting (all ratio buttons pushed
in) and another added just in case any peaks got through. It sounds crazy, but
the 1176 is famous because of its super-soft character on vocals, and on this hi
gh a setting she would have had every breath picked up by the mic and every peak
squashed. This gave her a unique sound. AB
Vocals
Vocals are one of the hardest and most dynamic sounds you may come across. My ad
vice would be to try and catch the peaks in the song. Use soft knee, set the rat
io around 2:1 (but maybe as high as 6:1 for voiceovers and spoken word), attack
to 0.09ms, release to 100ms then adjust the threshold to catch the loudest parts
of the song, so you get about 8dB of reduction.
Get what you pay for
Software compressors are fantastic now and the built-in compressor in Emagic's L
ogic has done the job for me on many vocals now. However, I still went out and p
aid for a classic compressor like the hand-wired perfection of the all-valve Chi
swick Reach. This put across the outputs of Pro Tools is amazing. A lot of money
compared to software, but the sound is worth every penny. AB
The beat goes on
Drums can be transformed by compression in a mix. On a snare try a soft knee, us
e a ratio of 4:1, a long attack and a little longer release, then adjust the thr
eshold to just grab the first couple of dB of reduction. Now try adjusting the a
ttack shorter, and the threshold higher to adjust the sound to fit the track, th
e R&B type of snap or the pop type of slap. AB
Stereo low
Old-school engineers often use the trick of sub grouping the drums to a stereo p
air then applying a stereo compressor to achieve a pumping sound. AB
It's for everyone...
Think of compression as just as important a creative tool as reverbs and delays.
It's not just an engineers' tool.
...and for everything
Pretty much everything will sound better with a little compression, the whole so
nic from bass drums to flutes. DH

Take care on tape

Always remember that, if you're committing to tape, then err on the side of caut
ion. Remember you can always add more if you want to, but it's impossible to rem
ove. DH
Try and try again
Don't be afraid to experiment and, as with all things audio, 'use your ears!' If
it sounds good to you, then it must be right, regardless of what the manual say
s. DH
The basic rule
Yes, yes, it's been said before, by many people, but you can never have too many
compressors! DH
Double your money
Instead of putting a whole sound through a compressor, a neat trick is to split
it to two channels, heavily compress one of them and mix that with the uncompres
sed channel. This works particularly well on drum sounds and can be applied to,
say, an individual snare drum or a stereo submix of the whole kit (or some of it
s constituent parts). The compressed version of the sound can be tweaked to make
it pump by setting an appropriately short release time and can then be added to
the uncompressed version to get a more exciting and dynamic rhythm bed. TC
Multiband
When working with a sound source which covers a full (or at least large) frequen
cy spectrum, such as a complete mix, normal compressors tend to introduce a 'pum
ping' effect. This is because the lower frequencies which tend to trigger the co
mpressor will normally be doing something quite different to the higher frequenc
ies, yet the compressor will attenuate the entire output by the same amount. Mul
tiband compression, as the name suggests, uses a crossover to split the full-ban
dwidth input sound into smaller bandwidths which are then compressed separately.
The results are then mixed back together, the result being a much louder,tighte
r mix which doesn't pump or sound squashed.
Sidechain
The sidechain, or key, is the signal within a compressor which is used to contro
l the output level. It is when this signal exceeds the threshold that compressio
n is applied to the main signal running through the unit. A lot of hardware comp
ressors (and some of the better plug-ins) have external sidechain - or key - inp
uts so you can use the characteristics of one sound source to compress another.
In this way you can, for example, use a kick drum track to make a synth pad pump
in time with the music. AC
De-essing
Used mainly on vocals, this is a technique for reducing the level of sibilant so
unds ('s' or 'sh', etc) which are significantly louder than the other sounds ass
ociated with speech. The problem areas of these sibilant sounds tend to be above
7-8kHz,so reducing a microphone's volume when these frequencies are encountered
is the order of the day. Take an auxiliary send from the vocal channel, feed it
through an equaliser and then into your compressor's sidechain input. Insert th
e compressor into the vocal channel. Then use the equaliser on the sidechain to
boost the sibilant frequencies. You'll need to be able to monitor the sidechain
in some way, as, as with all things, using the old shell-likes is the only way t
o go. Listen to the main vocal channel to determine the best settings for the th
reshold and ratio, but use a fast attack and release time to make the effect as
transparent as possible. AC
Guitars
Overdriven and distorted guitar sounds rarely need compression as the process of

overdriving them introduces a fair amount of compression anyway. Clean and acou
stic guitars are a different matter. For that classic, funky, clean sound, use a
fairly low threshold, a ratio of at least 3:1, fast attack and quite a slow rel
ease. Add a touch of chorus or flanging to add the extra icing on the cake. Stru
mmed parts, electric or acoustic, are better with a higher threshold, the aim be
ing to reduce the volume of the transient parts of the sound (the strums themsel
ves) while keeping a steady overall level. As ever, use your ears! AC
Bass
One of the best uses for a compressor is on bass sounds - get a solid, steady fo
undation to your track, and the rest will stand up beautifully. Probably. Optimu
m settings vary here, as much depends on the type of bass sound - synth, electri
c, acoustic, etc - but as a general rule, use fast attack and medium release tim
es, a medium threshold and a ratio of between 3:1 and 5:1.
Have an idea
I realise all those dials and buttons are just calling you over to start fiddlin
g as soon as you plug the compressor in, but have some sort of purpose first. Ar
e you trying to make the sound more punchy, more smooth or just keep it under co
ntrol? Listen and think before you leap. ST
On the attack
I try to have the attack up (ie, not at its quickest setting) a little on most t
hings if possible; guitars, for example, really benefit from extra 'front'. Many
recommended compressor settings for parts such as vocals suggest the quickest a
ttack time, but try it up and see what you think. You can add a little attack on
the most unlikely things to help them stand out more. ST
Using bypass
Having a stereo compressor over the whole mix is generally a good thing, but mon
itoring through it when mixing is hard work. While it can be useful to know what
the final compression will do to the mix, you'll probably just be fighting it t
he whole time. Leave it on bypass until the mix is almost finished. ST
For effects
There's lots of fun to be had compressing effect returns, if you have the free m
ixer channels to set it up. If your delay doesn't quite fade away as you'd like,
then compressing the return may give you the control you're after. ST
Pre- or post-EQ
The difference between having the compressor before the EQ section or after it c
an be drastic. When learning about compression, try both options and hear the wa
y the compressor affects your EQing, and vice versa.
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