There is another thread on compression in the Producer forum but I thought I would like to offer some tips on how to set compressors up here in the Techniques forum. I know many people have issues with them and do not fully understand them.

One of the big problems people have with compressors is you have to set the parameters of a compressor in the right order otherwise you will never get it right. Not many know this. Even the YouTube movie that Jose refers to on the other thread fails to mention this.

If you do this you will get much better sounding compression on your tracks or mix busses. Think ARRT. Attack first, then release then ratio then threshold last. Here is how you do it. This works equally well on individual sources as well as busses and final mixes.

Lets set Attack first.

Start by setting the ratio very high, release as fast as it will go. Now feed audio in and lower the threshold until the compressor starts kicking in and you can hear it. Listen to the attack part of the music. The leading edge or attack transient. While the Attack setting is fast the compressor will jump all over the music and literally destroy the front edge of the sound. Slow the attack down slowly so the desired attack transient is achieved. Listen to how even as you start to apply small amounts of attack the music or the transients all come back and start to sound good again.

(Note: People often have the attack setting too fast and the compressor is destroying the attack part of the music. No matter what you do with other parameters the music will always be screwed) Setting the attack is very important for final mixes as well. Too fast and once again the music is destroyed. The ultra fast release lets you hear far more individual attacks than a slower setting.

Now we set Release

Release controls the speed at which the sound glides back after you have punched it away. The idea is to get that speed to become a musical component of the sound. Think how slow can I get it while maintaing some control. The power in a groove is in a slower moving wave. Listen to Release and feel the way it bounces back at you and at some point it will be like a swing.  This time does not necessarily have to relate to quarter notes or the groove in the music so much but an overall release groove.


Next we set Ratio

The idea is to lower the threshold as much as you can without loosing the effects you have created with Attack and Release. The higher the ratio, the smaller the sound is, although it is more controlled. The lower the ratio as in 2:1 it feels like a larger image. The idea is to find a ratio that sounds big but is controlled. Listen to the size and firmness of the sound.

Last we set Threshold

It is desirable to set the threshold so that the compressor is not compressing all the time (Unless that is the effect you want of course) The correct setting will see the dynamic movement coming to rest at special moments. Too low a threshold creates a flat lifeless sound. Permitting the dynamic movement of the sound to come to rest in some quieter moments allows that moment to attain a momentry bigger 1:1 presence and prevents it from rushing towards the listener with unwanted noise. It is bad enough that quiet moments are small without being squashed smaller still due to higher compression ratios. Each time a sound comes up for air it attains a sense of reality a 1:1 ratio.

Makeup gain or output level

Compressors by their very nature are attenuating the signal so the output needs to be put back to where the input signal level was originally. Use the gain reduction indicator to give you some idea. ie if a compressor is providing mainly - 3db of gain reduction for half the time then set the Makeup gain to +3db to get the signal level back up to where it was.

Compressors are not black art or require rocket science. They are simply one of those processors you need to be careful with and have an approach to setting. Using this method above will give you great transperant sounding results. Even cheaper compressors will sound better after doing it this way. And even if you adjust them differently to this method, try it and see how it sounds after. You might be surprised. One of the problems is that you cannot setup a compressor fast and move on like you can with other effects. The compressor takes time to get it sounding right. The moment you insert one you have to be prepared to put the time in to get it right. Don't rush it!

Presets are OUT. They do not factor anything in at all. When you think of the procedure I have proposed here how could a preset know what to do?

Good luck.

I have compiled this from my own experiences and also from the great tips provided by Mike Stavrou. Mike has got one of the best books out on sound engineering you will ever get your hands on. It is called 'Mixing with your Mind' and is available here from this website:

http://www.mixingwithyourmind.com/

good stuff there... basic but the basics are a fine place to start.... or just review.

Thanks Herb.  The important thing here is the order of the adjustment. I wonder how many people do it that way. Any other order and one could argue you are wasting your time or going around in circles. That is why people have problems adjusting them properly. eg if you have your attack setting too fast then no matter what you do you will get a bad sound because the attack part of the music is destroyed, simple as that.

I have found one of the best times for very fast attack times is when you have them set for limiting and have a fairly high threshold and you want the limiter to jump on any silly volume surges quickly so they don't clip any inputs etc.. This works better on individual sounds as well.  And you don't hear it because as soon as the source is under the threshold again the compressor/limiter has let it go and you dont really hear it.

I have two LA-610 hardware units... I'm stuck on step one.

I work differently....I think in terms of dealing with the energy level first ....then transient and envelope control . I never feel I waste a minute of time either.

    In effect  how can you know to set attack / release times in relation to control...if you aren't crossing the threshold... that seems like a time waster to me. I always set ratio last.

Really, it's an iterative process in any real world situation. You keep turning knobs until it sounds right. That's vague but it's the only real answer that works. Everything else is a formula that will fail in one situation or another.

Firstly this approach does apply to compressors that offer the full range of parameter adjustment. With the ones that are much simpler in their operation (and afterall that is not a bad thing) then you obviously don't have the options I have suggested. I am sure you can still get a great sound and I don't blame you for wanting that type of compressor. It just seems to work.

Rbh You simply lower the threshold during step 1 so the compressor is doing its thing. Try it my way and see what comes out. Transients first. They are vital and important. The reason why compressors overcompress is because the transients are being smashed. They are not set right from the start.

droddey You will never get it right. You will just go around in circles and never really obtain the maximum performance your compressor is capable. It certainly is vague. You will never set a compressor correctly during a mastering session that way either. What I am suggesting is a way to avoid that approach. It does not work.

droddey You will never get it right. You will just go around in circles and never really obtain the maximum performance your compressor is capable. It certainly is vague. You will never set a compressor correctly during a mastering session that way either. What I am suggesting is a way to avoid that approach. It does not work.

 
Sorry, dude. That's just incorrect. Other people don't do it your way, and they get excellent results. Therefore, your argument is known to be incorrect based on facts on the ground, long existing for decades.
 

Thanks, Jeff. I'll give your methodology some careful attention.

I agree with droddey that it's not the only way to get the best results, but for beginners (and pros if they like it), it's really very handy. I use this method myself as I'm not a pro and it works for me. I started getting much better results the instant I used it. I HIGHLY recommend the technique, ESPECIALLY for beginners, bit it ain't the only way. There's more than one way to tune a compressor.