Episode 46 - Compression
Show Notes: Compression
Live with Matt Rad - Episode 46
Mar 30, 2021
w/ Jon Castelli - Week 43
Show notes by: Bradley Will
Dynamic range compression, as a concept, is not the same thing as a compressor tool.
People wants to compress the dynamic range for three main reasons:
To even out the dynamics of a sound.
The sound character that compression imparts.
To make apparent loudness.
We will be ignoring this aspect today because we’ve already done two hours discussing loudness on other episodes.
Reason #1: To Even-Out the Dynamics of a Sound
The traditional way to do this is by using a compressor, but with DAWs you can now get this same effect by using clip gain.
Good mic technique is another way to achieve this, when recording vocals.
These last two techniques will solve a lot of issues to get unwanted dynamic range out of your instrument performances.
Jon:
Jon doesn’t know the last time, as a mixer, that he received a sound that wasn’t already compressed.
For this reason there is very little cause for him or other mixers to ever use a compressor for compression.
Loops, sampled instruments, synth parts, are already compressed by design.
Therefore, why start by compressing them again?
At this point it’s not a necessary tool.
The dynamic range has already been contained in the sessions that he’s receiving from clients.
Most times it does more harm than good to diminish the dynamic range on already compressed sounds.
There is a nuance that we need back in music
An expander is the opposite of compression.
Matt:
Because so many sounds that people use today come pre-compressed or pre-leveled or generally have a narrow dynamic range. To then put a compressor on top of this is often to the detriment of the sound if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Clip gain is magical in it’s effect, but it takes more time to do.
The more techniques that you can do to manage or even out dynamics before using a compressor will give you a better sound down the line.
Jon:
Jon is striving to give his clients the maximum amount of dynamic range
Reason #2: The Sound of Compression
There are two main reasons people like the sound of compressors:
1. The sound of the human ear naturally compresses loud sounds. Chiefly as a protection mechanism. When you use a compressor it makes a sound appear louder than they actually are.
2. People are used to the sound of compressed voices and instruments from broadcast performances over the last century.
Jon Disagrees:
People love the sound of uncompressed 808 snares these days. The more you turn them up the more they “crack”.
Radio’s over-compressed mixes sound static and unpleasing.
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Transients can be accentuated with a compressor. This makes it sound more exciting.
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is one of Matt’s fav records
Drum buss pumping effect on Love Like A Sunset is an example of a pleasing effect that you would want to get through a compressor.
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Where some people would use compressors to get transients and harmonic distortion, Jon prefers saturators and transient shapers to get the same effect.
If something is already recorded evenly and balanced enough. Or if it is clip-gained beforehand Jon gets more satisfying results if he applies his saturation/dynamics then.
Jon finds that he gets more satisfying results if he applies his saturation to specific frequency ranges after he’s “designed” the dynamic range through clip-gaining or other techniques that get the levels where he wants them.
Clip-gaining into the saturator is more compelling, like when Aretha belts.
It’s very rare that Jon would use a compressor on any instrument besides a vocal.
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Regarding natural compression/saturation in the ear:
What people are doing now is doing just the compression effect, but not adding the saturation from tubes or tape machines that was a big part of those old records we enjoy the sound of.
When you turn something up into a saturator you’re compressing the dynamic range, but you’re adding dynamic content. You’re adding tone. The sound is getting richer. There is more information in the waveform.
Sometimes only doing little bits at a time is a better approach.
————
You can do more harm than good with a compressor if you don’t know what you’re doing.
We should lean into other ways of achieving the same results through different techniques.
Matt:
Try using techniques that are more band-focused, like a dynamic EQ.
Jon:
Jon likes the Spectral Shaper in Ozone.
It doesn’t introduce unwanted phasing.
He would be nervous to use it in the low-end, though.
“I don’t understand why we need to use broadband processors that affect the entire sound of an audio signal”
Matt:
Compressors are an old-school tool and today there are better alternatives.
Q: How Specific Do You Get With Clip Gain?
Very specific. As granular as is needed to get a specific sound.
Jon will take a “k” sound from someone singing “kiss” and put it at the front of a “catch” in order to get the harder consonant sound that he wants.
He’ll change out “esses” in a performance and move them around to get a specific sound.
Clip-gaining is really powerful, but most people don’t want to spend the time to get it sounding great.
Jon has spent years of his life working on this task.
That’s what makes the difference. You need to spend the time.
Music takes time.
Q: Can Compression Affect Phase?
Certainly yes. Not across an individual sound, but between the phase relationships of multiple sounds, like individual channels or a drum kit.
This is definitely an issue with parallel compression. Phasing issues on parallel compression are far more dangerous than non-parallel compression.
You’ll hear this phase-cancellation most apparently in the low-end components of sounds.
As soon as you start doing delay compensation in a DAW you’re opening yourself up to timing-phase issues. Most DAWs don’t do it perfectly, so you need to be careful.
Goodhertz plugins don’t react well at all in parallel.
They’re very high-energy, fun-sounding plugins, but they’ve got some heavy shit going on and doing a dry/wet blend can open you up to some phase issues.
When you’re using an audio plugin or effect, understand why you’re doing it, but also understand what the trade-offs may be.
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Jon:
Try OTT’ing reverbs, delays, and choruses. To see what you get.
TAL Juno Chorus plugin. Add some OTT to see what crazy width you can get.
Print your reverbs, because you’re more likely to treat them with effects.
