zircon Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Not all compressors are created equal. It's not like drawing general automation curves over your track, which is what some of you are equating it to. A good compressor on the master 'glues' your track together, something that is important in nearly every genre of music. This effect is hard to put into words, but if I showed you a track of mine with and without master track compression you'd hear in an instant how big of a difference it makes, even within a quiet passage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidd Cabbage Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Well I've listened to your remixes and it's pretty clear that your drums are awesome and intense, but I have a question (and I'm anticipating an opinionated answer because this is in regards to what I've heard from your music):I honestly don't know too much about using the limiter versus the thresh-hold and all that stuff because I usually just put the Attack and Gain really high so that the initial punches are fattened, but what do you do with your settings [especially for drums] and why? (and anyone can answer this too, I'd just prefer that you state what kind of music you typically apply your compression preferences to). Honestly, I can't give you any numbers because when I mix a track, I do everything from scratch and I don't look at numbers (aside from level meters) - I just use my ears. What I can tell you is that on a limiter/compressor, having a longer attack on a real hard compressor will get you more punch and attack. You might think "less attack on the compressor means that the attack is compressed and louder, too!" But in reality, with the makeup gain on a compressor, if the attack take a couple milliseconds to kick in, then you have a couple milliseconds of attack where the sound source is pushing through without the volume being dampened. It helps shape the transients of instruments like this. And Zirc, I'm curious as to what compressors you like the sound of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 TRacks Compressor 2 is my jam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 I actually use one or more compressors in the process of making drum kits/beats. Not just on everything, but I'd have the kick and snare to one, the amens to another, and then have those route to another one for that consistency of sound. (the "glue" as zircon describes it) In short, my drum production ends up being 10 or more mixer tracks just for percussion. I don't like doing this on the master, but maybe that's because I've just shyed away because I didn't do it right when I was younger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PROTO·DOME Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 I only use a limiter on the masterI was taught not to use a compressor on the master Limiting is a form of compression. :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishy Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Limiting is a form of compression. :/ ^This. Once you get above ratios of 10:1 (with very fast attack), a compressor is basically a limiter for whatever threshold you set. I mean limiters are designed to be a bit more kind in terms of artifacts/leading-edge distortion at that ratio then your average compressor but fundamentally they are the same concept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidd Cabbage Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Limiting is a form of compression. :/ You know, I used to think that, too, until you posted this. Now I'm convinced that limiters are a form of stupid and that's why you use them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 Limiting is a form of compression. :/ I only use a limiter on the master, but I rarely have anything go above the ceiling to get pushed down. Again, I don't compress with FL Limiter. I just use the visuals as a guide to how close I can get to the ceiling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PROTO·DOME Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 You know, I used to think that, too, until you posted this. What's, with, the overuse, of, commas, wat, learn to, punctuation. Also, Neblix, wat? If you're using a limiter on the master you're using a compressor on the master, albeit a specific type of compressor. If you're not using the limiter to limit then you don't need to use one; the dB meters are kinda meant to show levels, and they are EVERYWHERE. Also, loudness wars aside, your track should be at least hitting zero, no questions asked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 What's, with, the overuse, of, commas, wat, learn to, punctuation.Also, Neblix, wat? If you're using a limiter on the master you're using a compressor on the master, albeit a specific type of compressor. If you're not using the limiter to limit then you don't need to use one; the dB meters are kinda meant to show levels, and they are EVERYWHERE. Also, loudness wars aside, your track should be at least hitting zero, no questions asked. The FL Studio dB meters are not precise enough for me. I'll use what I want on the master, however meaningless it may be. As far as hitting zero, it usually goes past (I just raise the ceiling on the limiter so that it doesn't compress). I don't use any compression, but the FL Rendering might, That's probably why my music doesn't clip. Again, I use limiter not to limit, but as a nice widescreen amplitude TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damashii!! Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 What I can tell you is that on a limiter/compressor, having a longer attack on a real hard compressor will get you more punch and attack. You might think "less attack on the compressor means that the attack is compressed and louder, too!" But in reality, with the makeup gain on a compressor, if the attack take a couple milliseconds to kick in, then you have a couple milliseconds of attack where the sound source is pushing through without the volume being dampened. It helps shape the transients of instruments like this. definitely did NOT know that. As I said before I basically just kick the gain and attack sky high, so it looks like I've got a LOT of experimenting to do. thanks though In short, my drum production ends up being 10 or more mixer tracks just for percussion. I don't like doing this on the master, but maybe that's because I've just shyed away because I didn't do it right when I was younger. aaaaaww maaaan... So you're basically very patient? I usually record live percussion with one mic or if it's sequenced then I records kick and snare as one track, cymbals as one track, and toms as one track (shakers and everything else are usually smushed into two tracks); and I usually put most compression on the kick and the snare because I feel like my cymbals cut through enough. the dB meters are kinda meant to show levels, and they are EVERYWHERE. Also, loudness wars aside, your track should be at least hitting zero, no questions asked. Prior to EQ and leveling I'm usually at least at 3.2+ db. So I'd have to say that I've been using compressor as an excuse for volume control and intensity. (but after all this advice i WILL start being more patient instead of just putting a bunch of gain). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonicThHedgog Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 People.......dont keytrack bassline's on synths......please...........dont killme Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 aaaaaww maaaan... So you're basically very patient? I usually record live percussion with one mic or if it's sequenced then I records kick and snare as one track, cymbals as one track, and toms as one track (shakers and everything else are usually smushed into two tracks); and I usually put most compression on the kick and the snare because I feel like my cymbals cut through enough. I make electronic drums. Aka,usually more than one mixer track for everything. I made a DnB kit and posted it an a thread on this very forum that was a LOT of tracks. And only like six drum hits. One per hit, then one that had the kick and snare track to it, another with all the amens routed to it, then all of that to another one, that one went to two that were panned both ways , those two went back into one. I also used about 20 or more effects. This is why I will never switch to another DAW than FL Studio, because this is just about impossible in any other DAW because they don't have (all at the same time) a crazily flexible mixer, playlist and piano roll. Like I keep saying (annoyingly, at that), FL is very good for its flexibility and support for basically any type of workflow you could imagine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eilios Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 In short, my drum production ends up being 10 or more mixer tracks just for percussion.I don't like doing this on the master, but maybe that's because I've just shyed away because I didn't do it right when I was younger. I usually have one mixer track for each element when it comes to beats, then route it only to one mixer track I call "beatmain" for minor touchups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 I usually have one mixer track for each element when it comes to beats, then route it only to one mixer track I call "beatmain" for minor touchups. To each his own. I usually go crazy on the routing because I like to get the nitty gritty details of my hits. xD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackPanther Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 People.......dont keytrack bassline's on synths......please...........dont killme I'm curious, what do you mean by this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonicThHedgog Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 I'm curious, what do you mean by this? it make tones through filter more stable in a wide keybord (usually leads) since with out it higher pitched notes would sound pretty soft. search for more on keytracking i suck at explaning stuff like this. but low notes with keyboard tracking is not fun to EQ............Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackPanther Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 If you don't keytrack though, doesn't that mean the bass will just play the same note no matter how high you go up in octaves? Or do you mean don't keytrack the filter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonicThHedgog Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 If you don't keytrack though, doesn't that mean the bass will just play the same note no matter how high you go up in octaves? Or do you mean don't keytrack the filter? Generally when i keytrack on a moog it would make the keyboard range alot smoother so at high octaves, the notes dont sound quiet, but if you dont key track low octave notes will sound louder and higer octave note will sound quiet. If you have sylenth 1 filter a saw(or any waveform) then play a note around C5-C7 then turn keytracking knob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SenPi Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 ............................................________ ....................................,.-'"...................``~., .............................,.-"..................................."-., .........................,/...............................................":, .....................,?......................................................\, .................../...........................................................,} ................./......................................................,:`^`..} .............../...................................................,:"........./ ..............?.....__.........................................:`.........../ ............./__.(....."~-,_..............................,:`........../ .........../(_...."~,_........"~,_....................,:`........_/ ..........{.._$;_......"=,_......."-,_.......,.-~-,},.~";/....} ...........((.....*~_......."=-._......";,,./`..../"............../ ...,,,___.\`~,......"~.,....................`.....}............../ ............(....`=-,,.......`........................(......;_,,-" ............/.`~,......`-...............................\....../\ .............\`~.*-,.....................................|,./.....\,__ ,,_..........}.>-._\...................................|..............`=~-, .....`=~-,_\_......`\,.................................\ ...................`=~-,,.\,...............................\ ................................`:,,...........................`\..............__ .....................................`=-,...................,%`>--==`` ........................................_\..........._,-%.......`\ ...................................,<`.._|_,-&``................` Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonicThHedgog Posted February 22, 2011 Author Share Posted February 22, 2011 ............................................________ ....................................,.-'"...................``~., .............................,.-"..................................."-., .........................,/...............................................":, .....................,?......................................................\, .................../...........................................................,} ................./......................................................,:`^`..} .............../...................................................,:"........./ ..............?.....__.........................................:`.........../ ............./__.(....."~-,_..............................,:`........../ .........../(_...."~,_........"~,_....................,:`........_/ ..........{.._$;_......"=,_......."-,_.......,.-~-,},.~";/....} ...........((.....*~_......."=-._......";,,./`..../"............../ ...,,,___.\`~,......"~.,....................`.....}............../ ............(....`=-,,.......`........................(......;_,,-" ............/.`~,......`-...............................\....../\ .............\`~.*-,.....................................|,./.....\,__ ,,_..........}.>-._\...................................|..............`=~-, .....`=~-,_\_......`\,.................................\ ...................`=~-,,.\,...............................\ ................................`:,,...........................`\..............__ .....................................`=-,...................,%`>--==`` ........................................_\..........._,-%.......`\ ...................................,<`.._|_,-&``................` did warn you i sucked at explaining this(altho its a half ass responce, did not fully read his question till now lol). I found a link just scroll down http://emusician.com/mag/emusic_passing/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SenPi Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 No see.. the problem here is that you are talking about a specific synth/specific effect but are trying to generalize it. Keyboard tracking doesn't do the same thing on every synth, etc. What keyboard tracking means, is that on some synths, certain effects/envelopes/etc can be keyboard tracked. This means that the higher up on the keyboard you go, the more pronounced these effects/envelopes/etc will be (sometimes its reversed etc). Saying "Don't ever use keyboard tracking on synth bass because it sounds bad" isn't useful advice because its not something that is consistent between synths. You need to isolate what the keyboard tracking is actually doing in the synth you're using as an example and use that as the statement. Again just to stress. - Keyboard Tracking DOES apply a different amount of certain effects/envelopes depending on what keys you are pressing on the keyboard. - Keyboard Tracking does NOT control the same effects/envelops on different synths. Each synth is different. While some might control the same effects/envelopes, it is not general enough to specify as a general statement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonicThHedgog Posted February 22, 2011 Author Share Posted February 22, 2011 No see.. the problem here is that you are talking about a specific synth/specific effect but are trying to generalize it. Keyboard tracking doesn't do the same thing on every synth, etc. What keyboard tracking means, is that on some synths, certain effects/envelopes/etc can be keyboard tracked. This means that the higher up on the keyboard you go, the more pronounced these effects/envelopes/etc will be (sometimes its reversed etc). Saying "Don't ever use keyboard tracking on synth bass because it sounds bad" isn't useful advice because its not something that is consistent between synths. You need to isolate what the keyboard tracking is actually doing in the synth you're using as an example and use that as the statement. Again just to stress. - Keyboard Tracking DOES apply a different amount of certain effects/envelopes depending on what keys you are pressing on the keyboard. - Keyboard Tracking does NOT control the same effects/envelops on different synths. Each synth is different. While some might control the same effects/envelopes, it is not general enough to specify as a general statement good point shoulda been more specific but im to lazy to be specific about anything XD. also anyone know if you can freeze/bounce a track in fl like you can in ableton? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabeel Ansari Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 shoulda been more specific but im to lazy to be specific about anything XD. Don't post advice if you know you're not being clear and you don't feel like explaining.You're going to end up hurting people's mixing process rather than help it, which I hope wasn't the intent of your thread. also anyone know if you can freeze/bounce a track in fl like you can in ableton? Step 1. Mute everything other than the track/instrument you want. Step 2. File > Export > Wav. Or you can do the recording to disk thing in the mixer. IT'S LIKE MAGIC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SenPi Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Thats all you have to say? Seriously. For the guy who started this thread, would you be happy with people giving you half assed vague comments with no explanations? All you're doing is confusing people and steering them down the wrong path and its becoming a problem. Either start explaining more and writing well thought out comments or stop giving bad advice. I really don't mean to sound like an ass, but you keep doing this and it's not cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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