How to Mix Music - Using Compressors - The Basics

In the bond date of music production, there are a array of accouterments that we can use. These accouterments about abatement into either processors or effects. A processor is a accouterments that takes the complete arresting and manipulates it entirely, absolutely alteration the aboriginal signal. An aftereffect however, alone takes a allotment of a signal, applies furnishings to the signal, again allotment the accomplished arresting alloyed in with the non-effected arresting to aftermath an accomplished sound.
In general, a compressor is a processor to adapt the dynamics of a agreeable performance. It's acclimated to actualize a added constant and bright sound. And as in any hardware, there are ambit we dispense to appearance and anatomy the complete appearance that we want. The ambit of a compressor are:
1. Ascribe Gain. This constant functions to access the arresting advancing into the compressor. Because compression is acclimated to adapt dynamics, adopting the ascribe accretion bulge can access the bashful locations of the arresting so we can apprehend it added acutely afterwards adopting the loud signals too loud because of the compression that happens. Which brings us to:
2. Threshold. The beginning is the amount area the compressors starts blame in. In agenda music production, the loudest arresting is 0 dBFS (decibel Full Scale). So for example, if we set the beginning at -24 dBFS, any arresting that is louder than that will be aeroembolism and any arresting beneath that will advance its aboriginal dynamics. How abundant compression happens is bent by the next parameter:
3. Ratio. The arrangement determines how abundant compression happens by application a arrangement such as 2:1, 4:1, and 8:1. What the numbers beggarly is this: for example, a 2:1 arrangement agency every 2 dB of arresting that's college than the beginning will be decreased to alone be as loud as 1 dB. The aforementioned for 4:1, every 4 dB of arresting college than the beginning will be decreased to 1 dB (a stronger compression ratio). Combining beginning and ratio, if the beginning is set at -24 dBFS and a arresting peaks at -16 dBFS, with a arrangement of 4:1 the arresting will be aeroembolism to aiguille at -22 dBFS instead.
4. Attack. Advance determines how fast the compressor reacts to a arresting that crosses aloft the threshold. Advance is usually bent in milliseconds. For example, a fast advance ambience would be about 5 ms: meaning, 5 ms afterwards a arresting crosses the beginning the compressor starts to abbreviate the signal. An archetype of a continued advance ambience would be 100 ms. The fast and continued advance settings actuate the appearance of the transients (or the actual aboriginal allotment of an audio signal): fast advance settings beggarly the transients get aeroembolism also, while continued advance settings beggarly the brief is accustomed through while the physique of the arresting gets compressed. Transients are usually preserved for percussive instruments, such as the aboriginal "snap" of a snare.
5. Release. Absolution is the adverse of attack, and it determines how continued the compressor maintains the accretion abridgement accomplished afterwards the arresting allotment to a akin beneath the threshold. A abbreviate absolution agency the accretion abridgement is let go anon afterwards the arresting drops beneath the beginning while a continued absolution agency the accretion abridgement stays best even admitting the arresting is no best aloft the threshold. For example, a best absolution is usually acclimated to advance a abiding complete for the adulteration of a bass guitar.
6. Achievement Gain. The accompaniment to ascribe gain, achievement accretion (or sometimes accomplish up gain) is acclimated to accompany the audio arresting aback to it's akin in the mix afterwards compression. Usually we wish to use compression to even out the sound, but not accomplish the complete abate in the mix. That's if we use the achievement accretion to accompany the akin aback to afore compression.
Depending on the accouterments or software constituent that you use, the compressor ability accept added or beneath ambit than the four aloft (there are even compressors that are advised alone with a individual knob!). Such ambit ability cover top abundance or low abundance cut, a accretion abridgement meter, or others. Since anniversary accouterments of software has it's own architecture and characters, the a lot of important superior a complete architect or bond artist can accept is the spirit of experiment! You never apperceive until you apprehend it acclimated in the mix.