Hi all and happy new year, In response to Jurgen's mail, I've been using my 3 compressors for a few months now (Alesis 3630, Alesis Nanocompressor and a Behringer Ultrafex Multiband) and a couple of things have become apparent. This stuff mainly applies to the 3630 as it is a generic type and its my most useful tool for mashing breaks and basslines into shape whereas I find the other 2 are still very good but better for ironing out the main mix (Behringer) or pads and noises (Nano) etc.
1) Always try to use mono bass, breaks, hits and hats etc - it sounds far better and for smaller, basic studios it allows you to use individual channels on a compressor for the beats and bass (see below) - nice and cheap for budgets 2) Combining the beats and the bass on the same compressor channel(s) will make the beats pump in and out as the bass drags the volume of the beats down everytime it activates the compressor(this might possibly sound good to some ears but doesn't make for a very solid, constant sound and this is what the whole point of compression is - ie most people would avoid this on the main elements of a track, but it could possibly be used creatively on less critical sounds). 3) Even if you only have one compressor on 2 channel inserts to your mixer - use it in dual mono mode and have the beats on one side (channel) and the main bass in your tune on the other one and compress them separately (just play round with the controls - if it sounds good - do it). I guess most people know this, but if you are new to this area - please do this and then try telling me it doesn't make your tune 100% more solid, controllable and driving than before. Plus each sound (bass and beats) is entirely separate from the other intrusive influence so they sit better in the mix. Job done for �70. Just one basic compressor (Alesis, dbx or Behringer etc )used like this will make a world of difference to a basic setup. The problem of conflicting low frequencies between the bass and the drums will never be eliminated by separate compression (whole different ballgame) but it will allow you enough control to the extent you dont have to worry about it so much. Use the mixer eq to sort it out - cut the bass on the breaks. Drums usually have lighter compression round about 2:1 whereas the bass might need to be squashed down with a 4:1 ratio and try a lower output volume for that subtle sub damage - or try this with both sides set up with the same. Both sounds generally need fast attack and fast release settings so the sounds stay punchy and the comp keeps up with each new sound. For beats and bass, use Peak mode not RMS as it then responds to each new sound in turn not the overall level (more responsive) and just try soft or hard knee compression for personal taste (might not be that much audible difference) For the threshold settings, first try at 0dB or just under so that all the sounds are affected and then experiment... With the volumes, use max volume on all your synth modules/samplers main controls, then put all the faders at 0dB on the mixer and use the trim until your loudest sounds are just about peaking red. This sets the mixer up so that all dynamics processing (comp and EQ) inserted into the mixer is working at full efficiency. When this is done, have a listen to the set up at a normal volume with nothing playing - you shouldn't hear any hiss as this sometimes comes from trim levels set too high on a mixer channel. I could go on, but i'll leave it till next time and besides, i have to get back to trying to learn AutoCad. Hope the stuff above makes a difference (unless you have already tried it). Still it might be useful to others... Laters Dan Jeez, I can;t believe i just had 10 days off work - its like i never left....bah -----Original Message----- From: Jurgen Baute [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: 21 December 2001 06:11 To: Drum & Bass Arena Discussion List Subject: [dnb-prod] More volume issues Thanx for all the tips on my previous bassline volume problem, after reading a detailed article on intermusic.com I'm sort of beginning to grasp what compression is all about, now I've got another volume related question for y'all, I got that bass in check with a compressor, and I'm doing the same for some a simple break I put on top to get a feel. Both don't clip when played seperatly, but when I play tjem together I see my metres go red, meaning nasty clipping. I understand why this happens, cause both drums and bass have overlapping parts in the spectrum, but I'm wondering what's the best way of solving this. I tried putting compression on the whole thing, but that seems to push the drums to the background. Generaly I'd like to know how you guys deal with volume settings while you're developing a track. I like to play my stuff out loud when I'm making it, which means I tend to put the volume of each channel up as high as possible, which might not be such a good thing to do. I'm thinking it might be better of turning my speakers up, or my pulling my wav-channel to the max on my soundcard, and make sure the metres don't go over 2/3's in FL itself. Ideas, reflections, hard earned experience? Let me know :) --- ICQ #: 3362938 "progress doesn't come from early risers, progress is made by lazy men looking for easier ways to do things" --- --- Drum&Bass Arena Producers Discussion List http://www.breakbeat.co.uk You are currently subscribed to dnb-prod as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] DISCLAIMER: The Information in this message is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this message by anyone else is unauthorised. If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, or distribution of the message, or any action or ommision taken by you in reliance on it, is prohibited and may be unlawful. Please immediately contact the sender if you have received this message in error. 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