Does sidechain compression actually compress???

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outbound
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by outbound » Fri Aug 10, 2012 7:41 am

JTMMusicuk wrote:yes but does flange really flange?
:lol:

I'm thinking we need a philosophy of production sub-forum!
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by AxeD » Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:44 am

nowaysj wrote:
AxeD wrote:This is as far as we can take this topic basically :)

Compression reduces overall dynamic range, thus lowering the volume. Sidechain compression is the same, but an
external input triggers the compressor.
Well not necessarily. Compression as has been discussed in this thread is very oversimplified. Yes a compressor can reduce output based on input etc, but how comps do this is far more nuanced, resulting in a more nuanced sound than simply lowering (or raising, depending) the volume.
My classes on controlling dynamic range weren't that complicated at all really.
I agree it's not lowering the volume, but it is reducing the dynamic range. So peaks that are over the treshold will activate
the compressor. This creates 'room' so you can turn up the gain, for your mad wubbles.

Pretty sure you know all of this :) But it's just for the sake of argument.
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Augment » Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:52 am

outbound wrote:
JTMMusicuk wrote:yes but does flange really flange?
:lol:

I'm thinking we need a philosophy of production sub-forum!
duz the wubwub-bass really wubwub?
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by dublerium » Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:19 am

JTMMusicuk wrote:yes but does flange really flange?
:lol:

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by wub » Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:26 am

blinkesko wrote:
outbound wrote:
JTMMusicuk wrote:yes but does flange really flange?
:lol:

I'm thinking we need a philosophy of production sub-forum!
duz the wubwub-bass really wubwub?
Don't bring me into this.

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by nowaysj » Sat Aug 11, 2012 12:27 pm

AxeD wrote:
nowaysj wrote:
AxeD wrote:This is as far as we can take this topic basically :)

Compression reduces overall dynamic range, thus lowering the volume. Sidechain compression is the same, but an
external input triggers the compressor.
Well not necessarily. Compression as has been discussed in this thread is very oversimplified. Yes a compressor can reduce output based on input etc, but how comps do this is far more nuanced, resulting in a more nuanced sound than simply lowering (or raising, depending) the volume.
My classes on controlling dynamic range weren't that complicated at all really.
I agree it's not lowering the volume, but it is reducing the dynamic range. So peaks that are over the treshold will activate
the compressor. This creates 'room' so you can turn up the gain, for your mad wubbles.

Pretty sure you know all of this :) But it's just for the sake of argument.
Really appreciate your posts man, but I think this is a major over simplification. Straight up forget the classes and listen to the way different types of compression circuits sound, even within types, how different designs will affect the sound. NEWAYS man, I really don't even remember what we were talking about in this thread, something about compression, sidechain compression.
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Brian Oblivion » Sat Aug 11, 2012 5:53 pm

AxeD wrote:
nowaysj wrote:
AxeD wrote:This is as far as we can take this topic basically :)

Compression reduces overall dynamic range, thus lowering the volume. Sidechain compression is the same, but an
external input triggers the compressor.
Well not necessarily. Compression as has been discussed in this thread is very oversimplified. Yes a compressor can reduce output based on input etc, but how comps do this is far more nuanced, resulting in a more nuanced sound than simply lowering (or raising, depending) the volume.
My classes on controlling dynamic range weren't that complicated at all really.
I agree it's not lowering the volume, but it is reducing the dynamic range. So peaks that are over the treshold will activate
the compressor. This creates 'room' so you can turn up the gain, for your mad wubbles.

Pretty sure you know all of this :) But it's just for the sake of argument.
reducing the dynamic range... by lowering the volume. You can get different sounds by lowering the volume in different ways, adjusting the knee to start lowering the volume of a spike before it hits threshold or not, attack/release, gaining into the threshold, essentially all the options either raise the volume or shape how it lowers the volume, that is what its doing. What do you think dynamic range actually is? What is reducing the dynamic range to make room if not lowering the volume of the louder peaks?

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by bassbum » Sat Aug 11, 2012 6:47 pm

SpookySpaceKook wrote:compression is nothing more then automated volume change, so yes it compresses it, but using a different signal for input.

but it doesn't "compress" the signal in a way you meant.
Wrong
dididub wrote:Sidechain compression is a hand lowering the fader whenever the external input gets above a certain level.

Regular compression is a hand lowering the fader whenever the channel input gets above a certain level.

No offence but I suspect that you don't fully understand what compression is.
Wrong
chillpenguin wrote:So a compressor, whether it is sidechained or not, lowers the volume completely? Because i thought it lowered the loudest frequencies and kept the more quiet ones the same (depending on the threshold). So what you are saying is if i had perfect volume automations, i wouldn't need a compressor?
Right!!!

A compressor Reduces the volume of the frequencys above the threshold by the ratio amount.
If you reduce the volume of the louder sound then the overall volume will be reduced, that why most compressors have make up gain.
Instep wrote:isn't the sidechain the input for another signal that acts as the input signal

the detector looks at one signal and applies the compression (gain reduction-->volume reduction) to another track..

bam
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by AxeD » Sat Aug 11, 2012 7:45 pm

Right

Although it's not frequency dependent.
The initial thread is already way done anyway :)
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Brian Oblivion » Sat Aug 11, 2012 7:49 pm

bassbum wrote: A compressor Reduces the volume of the frequencys above the threshold by the ratio amount.
If you reduce the volume of the louder sound then the overall volume will be reduced, that why most compressors have make up gain.
a standard compressor doesnt effect one frequency and not another, it reduces the volume of all frequencies when the volume goes over the threshold, so you are wrong, and the first 2 people you quoted are right.

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by ehbes » Sat Aug 11, 2012 7:50 pm

someone just needs to make a sticky of what exactly compression is....i swear it would solve half of the prod section's problems
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Augment » Sat Aug 11, 2012 8:02 pm

Brian Oblivion wrote:
bassbum wrote: A compressor Reduces the volume of the frequencys above the threshold by the ratio amount.
If you reduce the volume of the louder sound then the overall volume will be reduced, that why most compressors have make up gain.
a standard compressor doesnt effect one frequency and not another, it reduces the volume of all frequencies when the volume goes over the threshold, so you are wrong, and the first 2 people you quoted are right.
Compressors reduces peaks that go over the threshold, as much as the ratio tells it to. /thread?
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Brian Oblivion » Sat Aug 11, 2012 8:20 pm

blinkesko wrote:Compressors reduces peaks that go over the threshold, as much as the ratio tells it to. /thread?
/thread.

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by bassbum » Sat Aug 11, 2012 9:29 pm

Brian Oblivion wrote:
bassbum wrote: A compressor Reduces the volume of the frequencys above the threshold by the ratio amount.
If you reduce the volume of the louder sound then the overall volume will be reduced, that why most compressors have make up gain.
a standard compressor doesnt effect one frequency and not another, it reduces the volume of all frequencies when the volume goes over the threshold, so you are wrong, and the first 2 people you quoted are right.
Ah I see how im wrong.
It looks like im saying that if there is a loud 10hz and a quiet 10hz in one sound, if the loud one goes over the threshold the the quiet one will be reduced as well. My bad I used the words. :6:

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by bassbum » Sat Aug 11, 2012 9:35 pm

bassbum wrote:
Brian Oblivion wrote:
bassbum wrote: A compressor Reduces the volume of the frequencys above the threshold by the ratio amount.
If you reduce the volume of the louder sound then the overall volume will be reduced, that why most compressors have make up gain.
a standard compressor doesnt effect one frequency and not another, it reduces the volume of all frequencies when the volume goes over the threshold, so you are wrong, and the first 2 people you quoted are right.
Ah I see how im wrong.
It looks like im saying that if there is a loud 10hz and a quiet 10hz in one sound, if the loud one goes over the threshold the the quiet one will be reduced as well. My bad I used the words. :6:
Nope im wrong agen. lol.. I answered like 10 threads of stupid question in the last 2 days, got to get it wrong at some point.

For some reason I had that in my head even know I know its wrong.

Fuck it I dont care.

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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by nowaysj » Sat Aug 11, 2012 9:36 pm

Brian Oblivion wrote:
blinkesko wrote:Compressors reduces peaks that go over the threshold, as much as the ratio tells it to. /thread?
/thread.
:a:

Peaks invariably get past compressors unless at extreme limiting type settings, which pretty much actually results in an effective increase in the actual but not perceived dynamic range.
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Re: Does sidechain compression actually compress???

Post by Brian Oblivion » Sun Aug 12, 2012 12:20 am

nowaysj wrote:
Brian Oblivion wrote:
blinkesko wrote:Compressors reduces peaks that go over the threshold, as much as the ratio tells it to. /thread?
/thread.
:a:

Peaks invariably get past compressors unless at extreme limiting type settings, which pretty much actually results in an effective increase in the actual but not perceived dynamic range.
thats true, but blinkeskos statement is still true though, if you used a look ahead compressor with 0 attack youll catch almost anything, itll sound like crap but youll catch it, you adjust the attack to make it sound more musical and there in is a tradeoff with fast rising peaks. The fact that with normal settings peaks do get past, and you can intentionally use a compressor like a transient shaper with longer attacks doesnt really contradict what he said as a general statement of the basic workings in the context of how they effect frequency ranges. Invariably peaks that get past compressors are limited off in the end, and a limiter is a compressor. Maybe a more accurate statement is that peaks that approach and/or exceed the threshold trigger a volume envelope.
bassbum wrote:For some reason I had that in my head even know I know its wrong.

Fuck it I dont care.
:lol: its all good mate, everyone does it, brain on autopilot, Ive posted enough bollocks on the internet to fill a telephone directory. Personally I don't really care either way, but some poor buggers actually believe what they read in production forums so I thought Id chirp in for their sake, no harm intended.

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