![]() Here’s one: if you’ve seen VCA groups in Pro Tools and Logic, these get their name from the same technological concept that powers VCA compressors. VCA stands for “Voltage Controlled Amplifier,” a type of mechanism found in many musical applications. It tends to sport all the controls you’re used to seeing (attack, release, threshold, ratio, and sometimes knee). This is arguably the most commonly used compressor phenotype in the corporeal universe. We might not have the space, bandwidth, or frankly, the attention span to go into the details of circuitry, but we’re going to leave you with what this writer believes are the essential takeaways in so doing, we shall aim to transmute this history lesson into a simple goal: to make your next compression decision a more informed one. Specifically, four kinds of analog compressors. I maintain it’s important to understand these differences, even here, in our digital world, for understanding them helps us make quicker, more efficient, and ultimately better choices. I know I certainly did, so I aimed to educate myself on their differences. ![]() If you’re new to the game, you’ve probably stumbled around these kinds of compressors, played with some knobs, and hoped for the best. How about the stock compressor plug-in in a DAW like Logic Pro? It emulates all sorts of compressors! FET? VCA? Opto? Some of them aren’t even technically compressors they’re limiters-or even leveling amplifiers! You’ve no doubt noticed that these fancy compressors react differently heck, some of them don’t even have attack and release controls like the earliest compressors. Many modern GUIs, often displaying the signal as it hits the threshold in a sort of easy-to-read graph, help solidify this perception.īut what about those fancy compressors we come across sometimes? Those emulations of 1176s, LA2As, Fairchilds, DBX 160s, and the like? What about iZotope’s vintage compressor, which seems to behave differently? If you've only operated compressors in plug-in formats, you'd be forgiven for thinking their operation is a matter of simple math-a bunch of binary acting in computerized concert. It’s more of a history lesson, with some applicable takeaways to help you in your modern mixing practice. The independent gain staging is the key here to get the levels of the two channels blended as you want.Īll in all, Logic's Compressor has an impressive array of useful 2-Bus processing functions that will enhance any mix.Yes, another article on compression! But this one’s a little different. The ability to have Logic's Compressor act upon the Mid and Side channels independently offers a fantastic tool to open up the mix's width. The detection controls in Logic's Compressor also include a choice between Max (where the Compressor compresses both channels if either stereo channel exceeds or falls below the threshold) and Sum (the combined level of both channels must exceed the threshold before compression occurs.) This adds further control to the Compressor's response to the incoming signal. In addition, filtering the detection circuit further refines how and what is being triggered by the Compressor.įor example, a high pass filter set somewhere in the 300 - 500 Hz range, where there is typically a lot of energy present from the bass drum and bass, reduces the Compressor from being triggered by these elements. Independent detection is critical for sensitive 2-Bus processing where you don't want the summed signal triggering both sides equally. The Compressor's Dual Mono mode allows for independent detection and parameter values for left and right sides or mid and side channels. ![]() There is a lot more to this plug-in than initially meets the eye, especially when it comes to "glue" style bus processing. In this video, I take some of his ideas and develop them using Logic's powerful and flexible built-in compressor plug-in. He describes various practical compression techniques and approaches when applying compression to a full mix on the stereo bus. ![]() My colleague Steve DeMott did an article on 2-Buss compression recently. ![]()
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