For most applications, especially with modern mixing, you're going to focus on dynamic compression. This means you're concerned with reducing the dynamic range and making the average volume more consistent. There may still be cases where you're dealing with tonal compression, which will use a lower ratio and focus more on the attack and release. This would be for slower vocal performances like a love ballad, a jazz or classical song, etc.
These are times when the nuances and subtleties of the vocals matter more and there should be more dynamic range used for emotional purposes, especially in sparser arrangements. For most pop, rap, and rock-based genres you're going to squash the vocals a lot more than you expect, especially due to the mixes being denser.
So, for dynamic compression, start with a ratio and explore going higher, even up to an ratio, depending on the threshold. For tonal compression try a or ratio, perhaps with a higher threshold closer to 0 dB. If you increase the ratio, you'll increase the gain reduction, and vice versa.
This is fine but something you should be aware of, because you'll add that average amount of gain back using the make-up gain. As you reduce the volume of the peaks your track will be perceived as being louder in general, but only after you add back the lost gain. Loudness is perceived based on the RMS root mean square value of the vocals, which is a kind of average.
You're increasing this average by compressing, but you're also reducing the overall volume. So loop a representative part of your vocals and look at the gain reduction meter. Gain and volume are not the same learn about gain vs. You should be able to watch an input gain meter and compare it to your output gain meter too, as an alternative to simply adding back the average gain reduction. It doesn't matter either way, you can simply use your ears.
The point is to push the volume back up in the mix to appropriate levels. This basically keeps your fader available for real mixing, rather than forcing you to push it all the way up. You can continue to revisit this make-up gain setting as you change your compression settings to keep your vocal volume in check in the full mix. At this point you want to take a serious listen to determine the main point of all of this - how are the vocals sounding in the mix?
Do they cut through the mix better? Do I have more clarity? Can I better understand what the vocalist is saying? The answer should be yes, thus far. Are they still too dynamic? If some parts are still too loud compared to the quieter parts, you have three options.
You can reduce the threshold a bit more, but more likely you should increase your ratio or a combination of both. If things are too far out of whack, you probably need to return to the initial track and automate a gain plugin track to get a better balance before the compressor kicks in.
My assumption here is that you've already done this. If not, you need to regardless so you feed the compressor a more steady signal.
Are the vocals too squashed? If the vocals sound too compressed you'll know it if you hear it then start slightly reducing the ratio and slightly bumping up the threshold in increments. You'll hear the squished characteristics reduce and then go away.
At that point, make them even less compressed. It's better to have too little than too much. At this point, the vocals are compressed to the right amount and are sitting in the mix at the right volume. Now you want to think about the attack and release. If the vocal track features fast syllables like a rap song might, you'll want to use around the fastest attack you can. I usually choose 1 millisecond here but up to 5 ms to 10 ms can be fine. For slower vocals like a love song, you may want some of the initial transient of the waveform to be maintained before the compressor clamps down.
That means you'll want to gradually make the attack slower until you get the effect you want. This can help the listener grasp on to new phrases and consonants in the vocals as well as let more of the emotion of the performance shine through. Make sure you time it based on the length of the syllables or you'll start compressing in the middle of them and it'll sound horrible. For rap, pop, and rock styles of singing, go with a fast release.
For slower vocals you'll want a slower release so that the compression gradually releases the vocals rather than abruptly. Too fast and it can sound weird on the decay tails of notes being held in time as they dip below the threshold. There's one setting we haven't touched, which is called the knee. You can think of this as a "smoothness" setting.
The higher you set it a maximum of 1. A lower setting a minimum of 0. A higher knee is more "musical" in the sense that the listener won't detect the point where the compressor clamps down. It makes the effect more transparent by gradually increasing the effect instead of making it a binary "on or off. At this point, you're done. Your vocals should sound x better than they did before, especially if you followed all of the other vocal mixing steps mainly equalization first.
Let me state up front that there's no single setting you can use for every vocal track. There are some general starting points you can use, but you will have to tweak them to taste, as we walked through above. Here are some basic settings you can start with:. For example, start with some natural-sounding compression on your vocal channel for some overall evenness.
Then set up a send and instantiate a second compressor with a different character on the aux return channel. The idea is to push this second compressor reasonably hard, and then blend just a little bit of the return channel in with the original. You might use a Fairchild emulation on the parallel path. Pushed hard, it will grab the transients aggressively.
Mixing in just a little of this with the original signal can create a dense, powerful vocal that has enough attack to cut through a pop mix. A VCA with a quick attack is another excellent alternative in this scenario. With parallel processing, you also have the opportunity to process this return channel with some EQ. Boosting the top end to add some air and presence to the parallel signal is an excellent way of brightening the vocal.
Experiment with the order by placing the EQ either before or after the parallel compressor to see which works better. This instrument might take up a lot of space in the arrangement and get in the way of the vocal. Set up a bread and butter VCA compressor on the instrument track with a quick attack and quick release.
Send the vocal signal into the sidechain input on this compressor and adjust the threshold and ratio so it is clamping down with a few dB or gain reduction. Now, whenever the vocal is competing with the instrument, the compressor will duck the instrument level under the vocal. Sidechain compression is an excellent way of carving out a bit of space when elements of your arrangement compete with each other.
If your head is hurting trying to digest all of these options, fear not. There is an easier way. They are simple to understand and simple to use.
RVox from Waves is one such example. The algorithms are optimized for vocals, and it sounds great for most modern pop music! With the vast choice of compressor plug-ins available, you will most certainly be able to get your vocals sounding big and warm, or sharp, aggressive and bright — depending on the needs of your track.
Skip to content. Flexible VCAs V oltage C ontrolled A mplifier type compressors are perhaps the most common and generally the most surgical. This plugin and its controls take after a famous British VCA bus compressor. Volume automation or clip gain is often applied before a vocal hits a compressor. Here, a vocal is run first through a FET compressor to tame the peaks, then an optical compressor to even out the overall level and add some tube character.
Here we have a vocal with one channel the left fader compressed with a Waves RCompressor and the parallel vocal signal the right fader compressed with the T-Racks Tube compressor. Notice that the parallel signal is lower in volume than the original signal. This Waves H-Comp is compressing a rhythm guitar track and the compressor is being controlled by the lead vocal signal in its sidechain see upper right for sidechain input.
The Waves RVox compressor provides one-knob control over vocal compression and has become a favorite for pop music producers. Written by Eli Krantzberg. A good starting point for a rock vocal would be a ratio with a medium-fast attack and a medium release.
Then, set the threshold for around 4 to 6dB of gain reduction. Increase or decrease the attack time until you get the right level of forwardness for the mix. You can use the attack and release times to set the vocal or instrument further back in the mix or bring it more upfront. Taking the edge off the consonants by speeding up the attack will give the impression of the vocal being set back into the mix but still being able to hear all the words.
Ask yourself, what am I hearing in this vocal performance that needs correcting or enhancing? Set a medium-fast attack around 15ms and a medium release of around ms. Speed up the release if you want more aggressiveness or energy, slow it down if you want a more natural sound to the vocal. Spend plenty of time adjusting the attack and release time until you are happy with the vocal tone. Use a fast attack time for thick, heavy vocals and a slow attack time for punchy, aggressive vocals and do this whilst listening to the whole track, not just the soloed vocal.
Like I said at the start, compression is probably the thing in that takes the most time to master when learning how to mix music. How you use vocal compression really depends on the song, genre and recording quality and so it makes it impossible to give you settings that will be perfect every time.
This article only touches the surface of vocal compression and there are loads of brilliant videos and blog tutorials that go into much more depth, however, I wanted to give you a basic starting point from which to grow your knowledge. You can learn more about compression and how to use it by checking out my video HERE.
If you are interested in having me mix your music and are wondering how to prepare your mix then check out my blog post: How To Prepare Your Track For Professional Mixing.
If you want to know more about my online mixing service, then you can go to my mixing page or contact me here. Simply Mixing is my educational website dedicated to help you become a better mix engineer, with free mixing tutorials, guidebooks and advice updated every week.
Subscribe to my weekly Simply Mixing tips, exclusive subscriber tutorials and updates for more mixing tips and tutorials to help you produce professional sounding mixes from your very own home studio. Thank you Sara for the very useful information.
Please continue with your work. I like you approach, its simple and easy to understand, both your written work as well as your videos. Neeraj Beharie. I have viewed one million four hundred and seventy six point four videos on this subject of compression and not once have I ever heard the information you gave regarding consonants are the transients.
When I read that , I immediately related it to a snare drum. Next time I mix vocals that thinking will be in the back of my head. Thanks for the revelation. Blessings to you!
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