How to Compress EVERYTHING: A FREE Comprehensive Guide
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2024
- What's the best way to compress vocals? How about compressing drums? Compression on bass? Pianos? ...Compressing the mix bus?? Justin Colletti reveals all in this new free episode on how to compress EVERYTHING.
Want to go even deeper? Check out the new full length course Compression Breakthroughs at compressionbreakthroughs.com
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0:00 Introduction
1:54 Drum Compression
9:22 Bass Compression
17:19 Vocal Compression
24:53 Guitar Compression
28:44 Piano/Keyboard Compression
29:57 Mix Bus and Master Compression
![[柴犬ASMR]曼玉Manyu&小白Bai 毛发护理Spa asmr](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/0TsXQ7z2Dh4/mqdefault.jpg)
Do you have any other compression tips you want to share? Do you have any favorites from these tips? Let us know!!
Want to learn more? Check out Justin's full-length course. "Compression Breakthroughs" at compressionbreakthroughs.com
The way I learned to hear compression settings is from setting each parameter overly high, dialing the settings back to where I can hear the character change to become subtle, then bypass to see if the sound is 'better.' A few thousand times of that, and now comp is easier for me to recognize
Thanks for the great info!
That is a very good approach!
I go through a maybe even more detailed way of doing a similar thing in the course, so you can completely isolate each variable and really get to know what it does.
But yes, this a great general idea for how to start hearing the differences of every parameter. Thanks for the comment.
-Justin
I love how you talked about attack times moving things further back or forward in the speakers. My mentor taught me this the first day he was teaching me compression and it immediately made sense and I could identify it is quickly and easily as identifying a perfect fifth. It just clicked for me and hopefully it'll do the same for people just trying to learn compression who find this video. You have the hands down best topical engineering videos. There's more on compression in this vid than a friend of mine learned in 4 years of university.
You are using your own concept of giving something for free and also having something behind a paywall. I respect it.
Only way to do it!
To be honest, if I could afford to give away a 10 hour course for free just so that more people could take advantage of it, I'd probably be inclined to.
But if there was no way to make an income from making it, I'd probably never get around to doing it and really giving it my all!
And there's another interesting thing that happens too: When people pay for a product, they tend to value it more than if they get it for free, and are more likely to actually use it and reap its benefits.
So in many ways I think it's a win for everyone. This way, 1. I get to give some very useful free stuff, 2. I have the incentives to actually make the really hard-to-make stuff, 3. people get to take advantage of that even higher value stuff because it now exists, AND 4. by investing in it, they end up valuing it even more, and therefore getting even more from it. I like that kind of synergy :-)
Hope that makes sense!
-Justin
One thing I think is worth discussing is the role of volume automation. Often, it's simpler and more effective to automate individual notes or passages that are too loud or quiet instead of trying to find the perfect compression settings. This gets you a very consistent source, and then you can just use the compression for tone and transient shaping.
This is especially relevant if you're like me and grew up listening to '90s indie, grunge, and punk. I want a certain "naturalness" to my music. A lot of contemporary rock is unlistenably "squashed" to my ear. Using liberal amounts of volume automation allows me to be subtle with compression and still have the performances sound reasonably polished.
Granted, I've been experimenting with heavier compression lately. But it's been hard to make myself really enjoy it.
Absolutely. Something I talk about in the course a lot is not relying on compression to do everything, but instead having it play a role in a larger dynamic control strategy.
And yes: How hard you lean into it depends a lot on genre, style and context.
Very good observations, and I’d need a lot more time than this episode to do them justice… That’s why I did the complete course :-)
Thanks for the great comment,
Justin
Yes first do all that, then start the compression etc. I always pretend at first I have no tools other than (clip) volume. Isolating S'es etc, turning them down with clip volume or volume automation. This way the compressor reacts more nicely and thanks me for not feeding it a bunch of fluctuating rubbish 😆
@@olibarahosasa1137 Great Point.
Thanks Justin Colletti for always killing it.
Not sure if anyone gives you the breakdown of how any particular ad campaign is working...but your compression course ad is popping up everywhere on my end, so whatever you did worked sir. Just letting ya know ✌
Haha, yes the new course is selling like gangbusters. :-) It’s our most popular course ever. For good reason I think! I put a LOT into that one.
-Justin
@@SonicScoop I'm not sure Justin knows what he's talking about, surely he knows you just throw everything into a brick wall limiter 😉.
this felt like... Gospel! You thoughts on Bass and Vocal compression really made an impression on me, and I have never heard it before; Especially parallel compressing vocals. Great podcast.
Just wanna say a big thank you Justin - not just for this video, but for all the in-depth expert knowledge you share via your courses and UA-cam...
Never regret stopping in, Justin. I am learning!
Excellent explanations of mixing and mastering techniques in this series!
You and this podcast have signifigantly helped me figure out how to navigate my way around mixing. Not just figuring out how to use the tools but also great for understanding the "why". Thank you!
So awesome to hear Brian! Thanks for listening :-)
-Justin
The exact video I’ve been waiting for. Thanks Justin!
Another good one Justin, thanks!
Great Pod Cast Holler at your boy
Super informative vid, thanks for sharing it with us
Great Compression Seminar! Best I have seen. Thanks.
Very informative and simplified. Way to go! 👌😀
Hey you seriously rock. You and a hand full of engineers have helped me get good at something I’m passionate about. And my appreciation for that is immeasurable.
thx for the lesson. best explanation so far...
Yet another brilliant video - thanks so much.
This is so helpful.
Great tips!
Grateful for these Video's 🎼💯
Really great video
Very interesting, thank you!
Fantastic like always :) Thanks a lot! Best regards
I love the ideas in the video. Excellent content!
This is gold, Justin! Looking forward to the whole course
Awesome to hear! Hope you enjoy it.
-Justin
Thank you for giving us some of your knowledge ❤
Your videos are so amazing, thank you for your effort and free give aways! I mostly know about these techniques but i love listening how you speak about it and always come back to your videos now and then to put my self back into balanced simple thinking :)
Hello! As soon as I can afford it I will purchase it!! That is for sure! Greetings from Argentina!
Thank you for sharing
Thank you for visiting :-)
-Justin
Thanks Man!
All this videos are crazy , when the next mixing masterclas that are my favorite 🤘🏿🤘🏿
We have a whole bunch of smaller masterclasses coming soon, but the really big free ones from MixCon 2022 will be in the Fall. Stay tuned!
-Justin
@@SonicScoop Could you tell me if one of the mixes is with the youngboy nba engineer . Thanks i sray tuned 🤘🏿🤘🏿🤘🏿
@@SonicScoop when is the next bomb
Great Vid, I like how you always mention the differences as per genre etc....from minimalist to Modern Pop..
Your wisdom is amazing, God bless You, and thank You ❤
Thank you kindly. Best wishes to you and yours.
-Justin
Thanks for these, some tips I knew but you went a little further on why and that helped to see things from another way (like the mid heavy parallel vocal track to give tone and contour).
Tip for REAPER users: Update it because they added an FX Delta mode a few versions ago (alt + click on fx wet/dry knob in every plugin window) that let's you hear what the FX is doing to the sound, compressors in this case. That helped me a lot to hear how fast the compressor is working, how much of it and how slow it let's go, it also lets you hear how much saturation or distortion is added. It helped me out immensely.
💎 💎 💎 💎
And what you said at the end about the conceptual factor, hearing and understanding is EXACTLY what it is. I started producing and mixing in 2009 and I'm finally able to mix songs to commercial standards confidently now in 2022. It took me 13 years to get it. During those years i bought for thousands of dollars of plugins thinking that was why my sound wasn't great.
I surprised myself understanding and hearing/seeing in my head what you talked about throughout this pod.
You're take on EQing parallel compression will give me much more tools, control and ability to get the sounds I want when I want it.
Great video and advices! 10/10
💎 💎 💎 💎
Thank you especially for 21:34
Thank you.
Best course I have taken, ahahah I'm about to do my 3rd round up of the course and go through it again can't wait for the time-based effect breakthrough ahahaha
So awesome to hear Nathan! Might do time based effects next. :-) Stay tuned!
-Justin
@@SonicScoop nice I can't wait for it
I'd love to see more techniques foe electronic music in your videos.
Currently working on a piece with a troublesome bottom end. I got so excited when you mentioned splitting the bass into a high channel and a low channel, that I immediately stopped the video and spent the next several hours unable to get the sound I wanted. Had I just waited a few seconds, I would have heard you discuss using a multiband compressor. I was using one on each of the bass channels, but was not getting the results I wanted. I'm going to try that next on the single bass channel next. Thanks for all the great advise you provide.
really fast attack for parallel compression? so like .1 ?
Hey Justin, nice video as always. One question: is compression necessary with vst drums? In my opinion there's no need to do it in many cases, because you're triggering the same sample at the same volume most of the time, so I think you're talking about mic recorded drum tracks, right?
- okay, never mind, you talked about drum samples later and basically said what I wrote (or at least meant) haha
Bass is kinda easy imo. You just gotta know your compressors character. I like to use 3-5 stages of light comp on bass. Also, pro tip: use a multiband and squash the low end before doing any other form of compression. Another thing I like to do is comp eq, comp eq, etc. allows you to shape each stage of the tone without multiple tracks or letting parts of the tone just kinda vanish
got a question for ya.. time stamp is about 15:20 , and i was curious how you mean using this effect in parallel.. do you mean running both split bands in parallel? as in, having a dry signal blended in with both the low sub end, AND the mid/high frequencies? or just running the high end as the secondary parallel signal blending with the *low end*, and NO dry signal is blended in? hopefully this question makes sense..
Heavily distorted guitars can swing wildly when palm mute is used on and off, you will need some multiband compressor or dynamic eq if you dont want them to feel castrated when the palm mute is off.
Oh for sure! If a distorted guitar changes wildly in tone you may need to do something about it if it’s not sitting right.
Compression is definitely an option, especially multiband. So is simple automation of volume and EQ, depending on the part.
It depends a bit on whether the part is going back and forth somewhat rapidly or just changing section by section.
In the former case, with many rapid and short lived changes in tone, multiband or frequency dependent EQ could be a great way to go.
Thanks for the great comment,
Justin
Andy Sneap C4 approach for the win!
Compress EVERYTHING!!….(in parallel)
Teaching Mixing Using Taking. Crazy
The craziest thing is that it actually works, right?
The reality is that the best way to learn mixing is for YOU to mix. When you watch someone else mix, you often feel like you've mixed, when you haven't. You feel like you've done something for your own skills, when you haven't.
But when you dive into your OWN mixes with the conceptual frameworks you need to make them work properly.... a crazy thing happens.... you actually get BETTER AT MIXING! :-)
That said, I also have countless demonstration videos on this and other channels, and in the courses as well. I just can't do those kinds of videos every week like I can with the podcast. They take more time.
Making the courses allows me to justify that time, which is nice. But I still make sure to pack them full of concepts as well as demonstration, because that's where the biggest wins are often had.
Hope that makes sense!
-Justin
16:42 couldn’t you just high pass the send to get the effects on the upper bass? I feel like splitting the bass signal into 2 EQ’ed tracks often makes the bass sound fake
On the dual compression on bass, which frequency would you recommend the split happens? This is a new concept for me.
Generally speaking, between 100 and 250 Hz is a good place to start. Hope that helps!
-Justin
@@SonicScoop thanks Justin! Always appreciate the knowledge bombs you're dropping 👌
Justin is today's evangelically voiced audio guru.
As always great stuff with Sonic Scoop ~ Thx guys n gals
I bought Commpression Breakthrough but how do I access it please Justin 🙏🏾
Awesome to hear Charles!
You should have an email with your unique access code. If you have trouble finding it, there’s a chance there could have been a typo in your email.
If you can’t find it, please just email support@theproaudiofiles.com and they’ll take care of you right away!
Hope you enjoy,
Justin
Is a Tilt EQ (like Boz's T bone) viable for parallel compression on Vocals (to cut the lows and reboots the highs)?
Sure! Definitley an option. But if you get too much "air" you may want to use another EQ to reduce the extreme highs-if that's needed.
Sometimes that upward tilting slope will be just what you need, sometimes it will emphasize the extreme highs too much. Really depends on context and taste.
Hope that helps!
-Justin
I was wondering for vocals is it a good idea to use a combination of the 1176 with a Fairchild?
You can use anything you want as long as it sounds good!
That said, both the Fairchild and 1176 have relatively fast attack settings only.
The Fairchild has a pretty soft knee, so the attack doesn’t feel quite as fast as it is on paper, so this is probably better than two 1176s in a row, from the perspective I’m talking about.
But I’d suggest that coupling a faster attack compressor with a slower attack compressor will minimize tradeoffs more and potentially let you get away with more compression than using 2 fast attack or 2 slow attack compressors.
Hope that helps!
-Justin
@@SonicScoop never thought I’d see the say you’d write my up & coming ass up… ima thank you in my Grammy speech. You the 🐐 🏁
Why would a steep slope cause phasing issues? (...if I heard that comment correctly)
I'm 100% sold on Compression Breakthroughs - however, I'm also sold on your other courses and want to buy them all, but that's a lot of information to be purchasing at once.
The negotiator in me though is leaving me conflicted - I want one course per month (compression first, then EQ, then Mixing & Mastering breakthroughs but at the price of buying them simultaneously - is that doable?
Email me at justin at SonicScoop and I’ll see what we can do!
-Justin
@@SonicScoop Appreciated, but getting undergoing maintenance massage when i send to it - can you let me know if you've received anything regarding that
I’ve got it!
Hello, do you have a Chinese translation? My English is not very good
I'd never heard of pushing guitars back in the mix with a fast compressor before.
It’s a thing! Try it. Reducing transients, making a sound darker, adding ambience, all of them can make a sound feel further away. Doing the opposite can make them feeler closer.
Got a whole episode about that here: ua-cam.com/video/KxlvUNrrTpc/v-deo.html
Hope that helps!
-Justin
This is "the shit"
You don't really mention exactly what "a lot" or "significant" or "heavy" compression means in this video. It IS a great video though! Thank you. Enjoy your channel. :)
I can't speak for Justin, but most engineers I know consider gentle compression sort of in that 1 to 4DB range. Some beginners hear this and get it in their mind that you should rarely or never get more than 4DB of gain reduction and 5 if you really need to crush something. I would encourage you not to think this way. If I'm getting in that sort of 7 to 10DB range, I feel I'm compressing it pretty good. My kick and snare would get on the heavy side of gentle to the lighter side of smacking them around. My bass is usually going to get smacked around pretty good, maybe in that 10DB range a lot of times. I don't know for sure, I'm blind and mix analog, so I can't see the meters.
You start getting up in to that 12, 15, 20DB or more, you're smashing the crap out of it... Which a lot of times is awesome. This is where my drum crush lives, where my bad bass players without good right hand technique lives, and in a dense, loud, Rock track, my vocal probably gets pinned in here more often than not. Maybe not in the 20 plus range, but that 10 to 15 range is home. The vocalist I record most has a bright tone with very heavy attack. I just set my 1176 to the CLA setting, 4:1, input 30, output 18, attack 3, release 7 and gain in to it from the console until that vocal stops moving. He still sounds bright with diction to spare.
I guess maybe think of those ranges. 1 to 4 or 5, pretty light, 6 or 7 to about 10 or 11, compressing pretty hard, and anything in that kinda plus 10 range you are really changing a lot. You'd be hard pressed to have something that sounds organic with 15DB of reduction, however, it can sound super cool.
I stopped using iZotope plugins after upgrading my setup to a 4K monitor and realised that iZotope modules are not HiDPI compatible, which makes them look tiny or blurry.
This was so insightful!!! Thanks @sonicscoop