ABSTRACT
Dynamic range compression is the practice of reducing the disparity between the quietest and loudest parts of an audio signal. Compression attenuates a signal’s peaks, bringing them closer to its troughs. Compression can also modify the amplitude envelope of musical sounds. The cumulative approach to compression is vital. Whenever single compressors are worked hard, the processing tends to become increasingly unnatural and increasingly obvious. The mix implications of down-tuned distorted guitars and similarly down-tuned bass are vast. At an appropriate mix level, but without compression, kick, snare, and tom, sounds often fail to punch through the dense textures—especially when the performance signals rather than samples are providing the majority of the sound. To more clearly demonstrate the impact of the processing, the post-compression images feature exaggerated gain reduction. A high threshold and medium-to-long attack setting are suitable compression starting points, preferably with a soft-knee characteristic.
