The Logic Multipressor thread

[westernsynthetics]

Hi

I have noticed that many of you lot use the Multipressor in Logic for mastering tunes to play out.

Most of the time I cant afford to get my stuff mastered, so i use the multipressor & the adaptive limiter in logic.
I have found that after using them a while I can now get a decent sound out of these tools.

Please share your tips and tricks here in relation to the Logic Multipressor!

WS

[3rdeye]

when did ya start using Logic mate? Nice!

i've been really getting into using this plug since the L8 update... much prefer it to the old version. until that had been using Waves C4 for multiband comp.

will have to muster some tips to share. cant think of any of the top 'o me head!

[Sharmaji]

multiband comp has got be one of the most overused techniques these days.

in general, at a mastering level I get the most milage out of the multipressor when it's used to solve a particular problem-- in an ideal mix, you don't need to deal w/ multiband compression. if you've got a mix where something is out of whack in a particular frequency-- say, the sub's level jumps around alot, or it's eating up the kick and you can't hear it-- then multiband comp can help w/o the more obvious effects of compression.

SUBTLETY is the key. it should take you a few flips of the bypass switch to tell if it's doing what you want it to. DON'T use the auto-gain feature, your gain structure will go haywire. I can't think of time i've found a use for the gate/expand feature at the bottom of the dynamic range.

all told, the controls on the multipressor, per-band, are the most detailed of any of the dynamics plugs in logic. being able to dial in where peak compression blends into RMS compression is a godsend--why isn't this on the main compressor plug? play with then when you're balancing something consistent (bass) w/ something rhythmic (kick).

play around w/ the boundaries of the bands. if all you're trying to deal with is 200-600hz, define that. don't just go w/ the stock frequency breakdown.

once you're knocking level down in a band, see what boosting it back up does. you might get some fun push-and-pull, or it might suck.

...

overall, if you're using the multipressor as part of a chain to master your own stuff, chances are you'll get a better solution if you go back in at the track level and better-define spaces for instruments. it basically works as a big sword, when you can probably make more effective changes w/ a scalpel (ie, track-level eq and comp).

i think it's a fun tool, especially for a turning a sort-of awesome synth sound into a big, whomping, mess of fun... but i've seen some pretty heinous uses of it where just an eq, comp, or both, would have sounded way more natural and/or edgy. I think of multiband stuff as a weapon of last resort..when all else fails, if eq cuts out too much body or if compression changes the vibe too much, then... sure, hell, we could TRY multibanding it. if we have to...

[macc]

Thank goodness you posted in here TeReKeTe

My answer was going to be slightly more blunt... 'Turn that shit off'




(BTW - sorry for missing your AIM, snowed under with mastering. I'll get you soon man )

[3rdeye]

good post TeReKeTe. definitely a process to be careful with...

i believe as you say that use of a multiband compressor on the 2-buss should in no way become a substitute for good frequency balancing and dynamic control within the mixdown stage. nor can it magically "fix" a bad mix...

but it can, when used carefully, make a good mix even better

i dont think ive ever seen anyone say a positive thing about multiband compression on a production forum ever, so i had to, lol

pretty much a necessity when mixing down metal guitars, which is where i learned how to use one without killing anything

[westernsynthetics]

Thank goodness you posted in here TeReKeTe

My answer was going to be slightly more blunt... 'Turn that shit off'

Without having the luxury of a mastering studio what would you suggest as an alternative?

As 3rd Eye said you can make your tune sound a little better with the multipress and as TeReKeTe said when used sparingly in the right situations it can be useful. The point of this thread is to try and get the best out of this tool for the hacks who don't have thousands of dollars worth of gear.

I'm presuming you are a mastering engineer, I would very much like you to elaborate your thoughts on this. Do you really think we should just ignore this tool all together? Or can it be useful when used correctly in the right context?

[cixxxj]

im following this! Lately I've been going single band way + eq to balance it off if i hear (then see) strange things happening in the spectrum

[decklyn]

multiband comp has got be one of the most overused techniques these days.

Definately!! I used to compress the master channel.
I never use a compressor on the master anymore. If something is triggering the compressor on the master, go back to the channel that is triggering the compressor and deal with it there.

[macc]

Without having the luxury of a mastering studio what would you suggest as an alternative?

As 3rd Eye said you can make your tune sound a little better with the multipress and as TeReKeTe said when used sparingly in the right situations it can be useful. The point of this thread is to try and get the best out of this tool for the hacks who don't have thousands of dollars worth of gear.

I'm presuming you are a mastering engineer, I would very much like you to elaborate your thoughts on this. Do you really think we should just ignore this tool all together? Or can it be useful when used correctly in the right context?

This is a fair post, and a fair point. I apologise for my flippant comment and will try to explain where I am coming from.

First, it's nothing to do with gear, be it plugins or analogue or whatever. Nothing to do with that at all

It's about what will bring the best out of the tune in the least destructive/invasive manner. Somewhere high up the list of destructive things would be 'breaking up the audio into different chunks, processing them differently and then putting them all back together' - unless it is absolutely justified and done in the most correct and careful of manners. Unfortunately - and I do hear it a lot - people who are new to production read on a forum about it and think it is a magic bullet. It's not. I mean, it must be better, right? It's got more bands! Well.... no. What you get is usually a flat sounding mess with that fuzzy, phasy indistinctness that lacks in coherency and power as a result.

Sincerely, if you are working on your own tune and you find you NEED to use multiband compression, go back and do it in the mix. You don't get any more transparent than that. Note: I am talking about mastering here, not what you might call 'creative mix buss processing'

In 99.9% of cases, correct eq, correct compression (and whatever level processing sounds best) give you a better master, easier, truer to the source material and more coherent, than MB compression. I did 1000+ masters last year, and bar a bit of split-band de-essing to control wild hi-hats, I can think of 3 occasions where I had to use MB compression.

Trust me, I went down this road many many moons ago. It sounds great, you can gt the balls to the wall thing happening, and it's amazing. Then you'll start to hear that something's up. Things sound a bit 'smooshy'. Then you'll clock what's wrong with it, then you'll start to use it less, and less, and less... until suddenly you realise you can't stand to use it any more.

I am only trying to save people the bother. I suppose everyone has to find out for themselves though, and so I genuinely apologise for the patronisation

[cixxxj]

well put ^^^^^^ thanks!

[setspeed]

yeah come on, lets have some tips. i have hardly ever managed to use this thing without it making everything sounds like balls, master out or no

[flateric]

Can anyone post some screenshots of the multipressor? All of the logic plugins I've seen look amazing.

[Sharmaji]

yeah come on, lets have some tips. i have hardly ever managed to use this thing without it making everything sounds like balls, master out or no

we posted tips. #1, don't use it, #2, use it sparingly.

[macc]

You're getting as bad as me mate Nevertheless...



#3 - ask yourself specifically WHY you need multiband before considering using it

[setspeed]

Can anyone post some screenshots of the multipressor? All of the logic plugins I've seen look amazing.

the multipressor looks like this:





the way it works is this:

you put it on a channel, and the default setting makes your channel sound marginally worse, although you can't quite put your finger on why. you check the level meter and it also seems to have made your channel half a dB quieter. then you start dicking around with the various settings, and the make up gain, and it that makes things sound definitely worse, albeit a bit louder. then you move those lines in the top boxes up and down - no, that doesn't help - and then you turn everything down until it's pretty much not doing anything, and spend 10 minutes listening to a 2 bar loop trying to convince yourself that it sounds ok. finally you decide that basically it sounds best when it's bypassed and fuck it off.

[westernsynthetics]

Without having the luxury of a mastering studio what would you suggest as an alternative?

As 3rd Eye said you can make your tune sound a little better with the multipress and as TeReKeTe said when used sparingly in the right situations it can be useful. The point of this thread is to try and get the best out of this tool for the hacks who don't have thousands of dollars worth of gear.

I'm presuming you are a mastering engineer, I would very much like you to elaborate your thoughts on this. Do you really think we should just ignore this tool all together? Or can it be useful when used correctly in the right context?

This is a fair post, and a fair point. I apologise for my flippant comment and will try to explain where I am coming from.

First, it's nothing to do with gear, be it plugins or analogue or whatever. Nothing to do with that at all

It's about what will bring the best out of the tune in the least destructive/invasive manner. Somewhere high up the list of destructive things would be 'breaking up the audio into different chunks, processing them differently and then putting them all back together' - unless it is absolutely justified and done in the most correct and careful of manners. Unfortunately - and I do hear it a lot - people who are new to production read on a forum about it and think it is a magic bullet. It's not. I mean, it must be better, right? It's got more bands! Well.... no. What you get is usually a flat sounding mess with that fuzzy, phasy indistinctness that lacks in coherency and power as a result.

Sincerely, if you are working on your own tune and you find you NEED to use multiband compression, go back and do it in the mix. You don't get any more transparent than that. Note: I am talking about mastering here, not what you might call 'creative mix buss processing'

In 99.9% of cases, correct eq, correct compression (and whatever level processing sounds best) give you a better master, easier, truer to the source material and more coherent, than MB compression. I did 1000+ masters last year, and bar a bit of split-band de-essing to control wild hi-hats, I can think of 3 occasions where I had to use MB compression.

Trust me, I went down this road many many moons ago. It sounds great, you can gt the balls to the wall thing happening, and it's amazing. Then you'll start to hear that something's up. Things sound a bit 'smooshy'. Then you'll clock what's wrong with it, then you'll start to use it less, and less, and less... until suddenly you realise you can't stand to use it any more.

I am only trying to save people the bother. I suppose everyone has to find out for themselves though, and so I genuinely apologise for the patronisation

didnt think you were patronising mate, Just wanted to tease out some details This is a very useful post thanks for taking the time to explain this.

It makes sense really...get it right in the mixdown! simple.

[spencertron]

Please share your tips and tricks here in relation to the Logic Multipressor!

WS

no tips or tricks to share, but, i no longer bother with it, (multiband/multipressor) in logic, all i was doing was ironing out problems that could be fixed if i went back though every part of the mixdown and meticulously looked for issues.

Now i try to be meticulous from the start and start tunes and do mix downs at lower meter levels in logic. Blasting the f*ck out of everything caused problems. Tunes just worked out better for my tastes and there was no need to fix things with the aid of a multipressor as a result of lowering volume levels.

[skeletor]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm too in total agreeance with you and think it can be really frustrating when people just think that multiband compression is the answer. Is it almost never the answer and I think most people just need to really dig deeper into how compression, EQ and even simple level balances before getting into something like MB Compression.

[paradigm_x]

i think i played with mbc once or twice, couldnt get anything to sound anything other than shit, and gave up completely!

[studioking]

what is that silky sheen of what sounds like sterospread in most of the "profrsional"mastering.. i am having a hard time achieving that sound. i find my self applying less and less multicomp and going back to mixing to get that dynamic range back.i was thinking of doing all my triks (without killing it) in the mixing stage,then just adding the ad limit with...just maybe, no eq although i understand the headroom thing with pulling out subs 30 or so and under(although i'm sucked in,i'm not too shure what side of the noise war i stand on).but that wide,soft,silky,sheen of musical mist that covers "mastered music"...where does it come from ? lol...what's it calllled ? does it have a name either than "proffesionally mastered" ? will they not play my music or the artists music on the radio if they dont hear that silky sheen ? how can i go about faking it.lol.sorry to joke around but i think i'm going insane.i need a break from the studio...