What is Audio Compression?

Choose the correct form of the verb:

Audio compression is the process of reducing a signals dynamic range. Dynamic

range is the difference between the loudest and quietest parts of an audio signal. You need to
reduce the dynamic range of most signals for them to sound natural on recording.

Imagine a whisper and a scream on the same audio track if they were the same
difference in loudness as they are in real life it would be pretty distracting. Compressors work
by attenuating the loudest parts of your signal and boosting the result. After compression
the quieter parts of the signal are more apparent since the dynamic range has been reduced.

To understand compression we have to talk about transients and dynamics.

Transients are the initial high-energy bursts at the beginning of a sound they give our brains a
lot of information about a sound’s quality. Dynamic signals are a mix of transients and their
decay. Compression should be used to strike a balance so that both the louder and quieter
parts of your sound can be heard clearly.

When you're dialing in a compressor you have to listen for the signals dynamics not
its timbre, as you adjust your settings, ask yourself: What parts of my signal are becoming
more apparently loud, what's happening to my transients and dynamic range? Is it obvious
where the gain production is occuring, am I making things worse? Most common settings on
a compressor are threshold: ratio attack and release.