WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.

COM PRESENTS

COMPRESSION
CHEAT SHEET
WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
 INTRODUCTION
WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM

First of all, a huge thank you to you for downloading this free guide.
If you haven’t already, be sure to join the free mixinglessons.com
mailing list by clicking here. That way, you’ll get notified every time
a new lesson hits the site.

A compressor is a plugin or a piece of hardware that reduces the

dynamic range of an audio signal. In most applications, it does this
by turning down the loud parts of a signal.

This cheat sheet is designed to teach you how to use a compressor

in your mixes. We'll cover each of the main settings on a
compressor, including Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release, Knee &
Make-Up Gain. We'll also look at how to approach each of these
parameters on your compressor to get different results, such as
balancing out the dynamic range, adding fatness, adding energy, or
adding punch to a signal.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

THRESHOLD
The first parameter that we’ll get to grips with is the threshold.
Simply put, a compressor’s threshold allows you to set the point at
which the compressor starts compressing your audio signal. Any
parts of your audio signal which are louder than the threshold will be
turned down by the compressor. Any parts of your signal which are
quieter than the threshold will remain uncompressed.

Some compressors offer you a dedicated threshold control. With

this, you can set the compressor’s threshold at any level you desire.
Others have their threshold fixed at a certain level, and you use the
compressor’s ‘input’ parameter to control how much of the signal
overshoots the fixed threshold.

RATIO

Closely related to the threshold is the ratio. The ratio setting allows
you to determine how much compression is applied to a signal once
it has crossed the compressor's threshold. So when an audio signal
overshoots the threshold, the compressor will turn the overshoot
down by the ratio amount.

The ratio will look something like this: 1:1, or 3:1, or 6:1, etc. A ratio
of 2:1 means that any part of the signal which overshoots the
compressor’s threshold will be turned down to half the level of the
overshoot amount. So if the signal going into the compressor
overshoots the threshold by 4dB, then the signal will come out of
the compressor only 2db louder than the threshold.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

A ratio of 4:1 means that any part of the signal which overshoots the
threshold will be turned down to a fourth of the level of the
overshoot. So if the incoming signal overshoots the threshold by
4dB, then the signal would be output from the compressor only 1dB
louder than the threshold.

An 8:1 ratio means that any part of the signal which overshoots the
threshold will be output from the compressor at one-eighth the level
of the overshoot. So a 4dB overshoot would be output from the
compressor just 0.5dB louder than the threshold.

As you can see, the higher the ratio, the greater the amount of gain
reduction applied by the compressor.

ATTACK

The next parameter that we’ll look at is attack. The compressor

attack setting lets you control how quickly the compressor turns a
signal down when it overshoots the threshold.

The attack time is defined in milliseconds. Typical attack times are

0.010 ms to 250 ms. The lower the number of milliseconds, the
faster the attack time. Around 10 microseconds to 1 millisecond can
be thought of as a fast attack time. Around 10 milliseconds to 100
milliseconds can be thought of as a slow attack time.

As soon as a signal overshoots the compressor’s threshold, the

attack phase begins and the compressor starts to turn the signal
down. With faster attack times, the compressor will turn the signal
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

down more quickly. With slower attack times, the compressor will
turn the signal down more gradually.

How you set the attack time is often dependent on what it is you are
compressing and how you want the compression to affect the
signal. Fast attack turns the signal down very quickly, which is
useful when you want to tame an audio signal’s transients. But this
can cause some signals to lose their impact. This is particularly
noticeable with percussive instruments like drums.

With a slower attack time, however, it takes longer for the

compressor to turn the signal down, and so the signal’s transient
undergoes very little gain reduction. This is great if retaining some
of a signal’s natural attack is desired.

Of course, if the attack is too slow, then the part of the signal that
you want to compress may be over, and the signal may have fallen
back below the threshold before any noticeable gain reduction has
been reached.

RELEASE

Closely related to the attack setting is the release setting. The

compressor release setting allows you to control how quickly or
slowly a signal rises back up to its original level after the
compressor has applied gain reduction to turn the signal down.
The release phase begins as soon as the provisional amount of
gain reduction (which is determined by the ratio) drops below the
applied amount of gain reduction. As soon as this happens, the
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

compressor stops turning the signal down and allows the signal to
rise back up to its original level.

Typically, the compressor release setting can be set between 5 ms

and 4000 ms (4 seconds). The shorter the release time, the faster
the compressor will recover, meaning that the gain reduction will
cease more quickly. In contrast, a longer release time will see the
gain reduction subside more gradually. In general, 50-100
milliseconds can be thought of as a fast release time. Whereas,
around 2 – 5 seconds can be thought of as a slow-release time.

What you set your compressor’s release time to is dependent on

what you are compressing and how you want the compression to
affect the signal. Fast release times are great when you want the
compressor to stop applying gain reduction and return your signal to
its original level quickly. That said, if the compressor release setting
is too fast, then it may cause the compression to sound unnatural or
may result in ‘pumping‘.

KNEE

Many compressors offer you a knee setting. We tend to think of the

knee as being either hard or soft. A hard knee setting on a
compressor means that any parts of your audio signal which cross
the threshold will be compressed to the compressor’s full ratio
value. The compressor does not apply any compression until the
audio signal overshoots the threshold.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

A soft knee setting, however, applies compression gradually until

the full ratio amount is reached. This makes the transition from
uncompressed to compressed smoother and more transparent. In
this instance, the compressor will actually start applying
compression to the audio signal gradually as it approaches the
threshold, and will not reach the full ratio amount until a point past
the threshold.

Some compressors allow you to toggle between hard and soft knee
settings. Others allow you to dial in the hardness or softness of the
knee by specifying a decibel value. This allows you to define the
decibel range over which the compressor builds from no
compression to the full ratio amount. The threshold usually sits at
the centre of this transition zone. In this case, the lower the decibel
amount, the harder the knee will be. The higher the decibel amount,
the softer the knee will be.

A hard knee setting on a compressor is great for instruments that

have fast peaks, such as drums. Meanwhile, a soft knee setting can
work well for things like vocals, which benefit from a more gradual
transition.

MAKE UP GAIN

The last parameter that we need to be aware of is the make-up gain

control. This will usually be called ‘gain’, ‘output’, ‘output gain’ or
some variation of these. Make up gain is used to manage the level
of the output signal of your compressor.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

The level of the signal coming out of your compressor often won’t
sound as loud as it was when it went in. That's because the
compressor has turned parts of your signal down. So make-up gain
is used to turn the output level of the compressed signal up to
compensate.

The make-up gain parameter has no effect on your threshold, ratio,

attack, release, or knee settings. It simply boosts the level of the
entire compressed signal. If your compressor doesn’t make this
type of control available to you, then it probably applies ‘automatic
make-up gain’.

USING COMPRESSION TO BALANCE SIGNAL

LEVELS

So, now that you understand what each of these compression

parameters does, let’s look at how we can use compression in a
mix. One of the most common uses of a compressor is simply to
balance out the level of a signal and make its dynamic range more
consistent. This is useful because, if a signal’s dynamic range is too
great, it can be difficult to set the fader to one position for the whole
song. Take for example a vocalist who performs a take with varying
dynamics. If you set the fader to the correct spot for the quiet parts
of the performance, then the vocals will be too loud during the
louder parts. If you set the fader for the louder parts, then the vocals
will be too quiet during the quieter parts. This is true of any
instrument that exhibits a fair amount of dynamic range.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

You can approach the balancing of levels using compression in

different ways. You could set the compressor’s threshold so that
compression is only applied to the signal’s loudest parts. You could
use this method to attenuate only the loudest parts of a vocal or to
turn down a loud snare drum in the overhead recording of a drum
kit, whilst leaving the rest of the signal uncompressed.

Alternatively, you could set the threshold lower so that more of the
signal is compressed. This is a great approach for reducing the
overall dynamic range of a track and achieving more balanced
levels. Keep in mind also that applying a smaller amount of
compression using a lower ratio, to more of the signal using a lower
threshold, can often be more transparent than applying a larger
amount of compression using a higher ratio, to a smaller portion of
the signal using a higher threshold.

When balancing signals, fast attack and release times are generally
preferred. This ensures that the compressor reacts quickly to level
changes to keep the signal balanced.

USING COMPRESSION TO ADD PUNCH,

ENERGY, AND EXCITEMENT


In addition to balancing levels with a compressor, you can also use

a compressor to add punch, energy, and excitement to your tracks.
To achieve this, the process is a little different. Rather than turning
down entire notes in the way that you do when balancing signals,
you use the compressor to alter the dynamics within individual
notes. This is achieved by altering the relationship between a note’s
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

attack and decay. This is known as ‘reshaping’ the note’s

‘envelope’.

In order to give a track more punch, energy, or excitement, you

need to emphasize the note’s attack. This is achieved by setting
your compressor so that it retains the note’s natural attack, but
attenuates its decay. To do this, you need to set the compressor’s
attack slow enough to allow the note’s natural attack through largely
uncompressed.

You should then set the release slow enough to ensure that the
compressor attenuates the level of the note’s decay, but fast
enough to ensure that the compressor resets before the next note
comes along. That’s because you will want to let the next note’s
natural attack through largely uncompressed as well. This process
enables you to make drums more punchy or to give guitars and
basses more energy and excitement.

USING COMPRESSION TO FATTEN

SOUNDS


Using compression can also be a way of making signals in your mix

sound fatter and fuller. Just like the previous example, you achieve
this by reshaping the notes. This time, you alter the note by
emphasizing its decay. To do this, you need to use a fast attack to
attenuate the natural attack of an instrument’s notes. You also use
a fast release. That way, the attenuation ceases quickly enough to
allow the note’s decay to be unaffected.
 WWW.MIXINGLESSONS.COM
COMPRESSION CHEAT SHEET

You can then use make-up gain to turn the level of the signal back
up to match the input level. So now, the decay of the instrument’s
notes is much closer in level to the attack. This is a great way to
fatten up kick drums, snare drums, and toms. You can also use this
method to make guitars sound fatter and fuller by accentuating their
sustain.

Of course, you must keep in mind that very fast attack and release
times on a compressor can cause low-frequency distortion. So
listen closely when using this technique.

CONCLUSION

These are 3 ways that you can use compression in your mixes to
really take control of your audio signals and achieve your desired
sounds. I hope that you’ve found all of this information really useful!
If you’re interested in learning more about recording, mixing, and
mastering your own music, then there are tons of free articles
available online now at www.mixinglessons.com. Be sure to join the
mailing list here so that you get notified every time a new lesson hits
the site.