Compression

Definition
Dynamic Range Compression! Not to be confused with data compression i.e. using digital
methods to make audio files smaller (e.g. M!s".
Parameters:
#hreshold
Ratio (infinity $ limiter"
%ttack and Release (usually counted in ms and referring to time for &'d( change"
)ard * soft knee
eak * RM+ (important distinction for loudness wars"
Make,up gain
History of how executed
Done using electronic circuit (originally *acuum tube- then transistors- now most often digital
signal processing (D+"".
Most common design is .feedforward/0
Why use?
1oudness is e2citing!
to change dynamic range of sound source
to bring up 3uiet detail
to link instruments together (sidechaining"
to reduce dynamic range of o*erall track (thereby increasing *olume"
to change overall sound.
(eatles Got o Get !ou "nto #y $ife &455
Motown,style horns (we will be looking at the specific techni3ue of Motown compression later".
#he brass was close,miked in the bells of the instruments then put through a limiter.
6u,#ang Clan Protect !a %ec& &447
Clan producer R8% e2plains that he used a different digital compressor for each of the 4 rappers in
the 6u,#ang Clan. Protect !a %ec& features 9 rappers Masta :illa was in ;ail when it was
recorded". R8% uses each rapper<s *oice as an instrument. )is arrangement of their *erses in the
particular order used is guided by the sound- rather than by lyrical content.
Particular techni'ues:
Motown Compression
aka New =ork Compression > arallel Compression.
Motown was one of the most influential independent record labels in %merican recording history.
?ounded in Detroit in &4@4 by (erry Aordy.
:ey acts0
+mokey Robinson and the Miracles
#he +upremes
Backson @
+te*ie 6onder
#he 7 #ops
Mar*in Aaye
#he Motown +ound #M!
.?actory,style/ system0 CC hours a day! 6eekly 3uality control meetings
Dn,house musicians0 #he ?unk (rothers
Dn,house songwriters0 )olland,DoEier,)olland (also +mokey Robinson- %shford F
+impson- +te*ie 6onder"
Musical elements0 tambourine on back beat- prominent bass- strings- horns- doubled parts
(e.g. often two drummers"
#he :D++ principle.
Motown compression was in*ented by 1awrence )orn (born &47'" who was chief recording
engineer at Motown. )orn was notable for pioneering many mi2ing techni3ues while at Motown-
and for directly super*ising most of the mi2es for Motown singles during the label<s success period
from &457 to &45G.
(1awrence )orn is now in ;ail for hiring a hitman to kill his wife- son- and his son<s nurse! )is son
was paralysed following a medical procedure that went wrong- and )orn stood to inherit his
compensation of H&.Gm."
#he purpose of Motown Compression is to keep details of a *ocal performance while increasing
*olume of backing music. Dn the &4@'s- *ocal was mi2ed far louder than music e.g. ?rank +inatra
but also .rock F roll/ records like Il*is. Motown changed this- as Robert Dennis e2plains0
.Motown was selling Je2citement.J #he thinking was that the rhythm of the music is what made the
record e2citing and what the kids danced to. #here actually was a lot of melody and important lyrics
in these old records , but rhythm was the key.
.6ith the Motown mi2 approach there were problems. Df you wanted the lyrics to be heard you had
to use a lot of compression on the *ocal so that the the softer words could still be heard o*er the
higher,le*el music. Dn addition you boosted the Jpresence rangeJ (around @ k)E" with an e3ualiEer.
#he only problem with this is that it took the life F natural dynamics out of the *ocal.
.1awrence )orn came up with a brilliant idea. )e took the *ocal and split the signal so that it went
to C console channels. (efore the *ocal signal went to the second channel- it went through a
compressor. Now he had two channels of the *ocal , one compressed and one uncompressed. Kn the
uncompressed *ocal he added *ery little with the e3ualiEer and he added the re*erb. Kn the
compressed channel- he compressed the hell out of it and added a ton of high,fre3uency
e3ualiEation. 6hat he would do is bring up the JnaturalJ channel to full le*el to get the basic natural
sound on the *ocal. Kn the other compressed and e3ualiEed channel- he brought this up ;ust enough
to add e2citement and presence to the *ocal sound.
#he result was nothing less than amaEing. Dn the mi2 the *ocal sounded *ery natural and bright.
None of the music e*er Jstepped onJ the *ocal and you could hear each and e*ery syllable in the
lyrics. #he *ocal ne*er got lost./
I2ample0
#he ?our #ops0 "t(s he )ame *ld )ong (&45@" notable for being made in C7 hours!
#he ?our #ops0 +each *ut ,"(ll -e here. (&455" (produced by )olland>DoEier".
How to:
Make C copies of source signal. ?eed one through hea*y compression (and IL if you like"- and
lea*e other uncompressed. Mi2ed together- you get the ad*antages of not losing detail on 3uieter
sections- but keeping impact of fast transients.
New =ork compression is application of this techni3ue to other instruments- particularly drums >
percussion- not necessarily using IL. 1eading e2ponent is #ony Maserati- a *ery successful mi2
engineer who has worked with many leading %merican pop>RF(>hip,hop artists including 1ady
Aaga- (eyonce- Bohn 1egend- Mariah Carey- uff Daddy- Bason MraE etc etc.
+tyle has been described as .outhouse on the bottom- penthouse on the top/! Dnfluenced by (ruce
+wedien>Michael Backson>Luincy Bones- but with more low,end.
#echni3ues0
split tracks and IL hea*ily
use plug,ins > effects for their particular sound (esp. Compressors"
mi2 on multiple speakers including computer speakers and listening in the car
(eyonce0 Cra/y "n $ove (C''!"
Ricky Martin $ivin $a 0ida $oca &444 *ery hea*ily compressed and loud and also the first
%merican no.& made entirely with ro #ools.
http0>>mi2online.com>mag>audioMrecordinMlaM*ida>
roduced by Desmond Child ((on Bo*i .+lippery 6hen 6et/ album".
)idechain
Common application ducking for DBs.
Kften used for bass.
Creates a .pumping/ > .sucking/ sound.
Daft unk *ne #ore ime C''&
6ashed Kut 1mor 2ati C'&&
demo in class using %AC.
Compression in 3roadcasting
Compression is used e2tensi*ely in broadcasting to boost the percei*ed *olume of sound while
reducing the dynamic range of source audio to a range that can be accommodated by the narrower,
range broadcast signal.
#he use of compressors to boost percei*ed *olume is a fa*orite trick of broadcasters who want their
station to sound JlouderJ at the same *olume than comparable stations on the dial. #he effect is to
make the more hea*ily compressed station J;ump outJ at the listener at a gi*en *olume setting.
Dn general e*ery commercial radio station has its own distincti*e compression sound. )ere in
Dublin- +DN is probably the least subtle e2ample! #his gi*es music played on +DN a distincti*e
sound and helps it stand out on the airwa*es.
%n important influence on Daft Pun&(s music is ?M radio compression. #he sound of compressed
music o*er the airwa*es has beguiled the duo since their early years- particularly the sonic attack in
a powerful car stereo system- that .big sound and enormous *oice./ De )omem,Christo obser*es
that .on some other pro;ects- we noticed that what we liked the best was the compression- so we
began to learn how to use the compression and got into compressors and how to use them. +ome
people like the really good sound of a guitar- and we really like the sound of compression in
general. #hat<s one of the biggest lo*es we ha*e in music,making- especially the N.+. ?M radio
sounds where the compression is making e*erything. +ometimes you like it so much that you<re
really disappointed when you buy the CD./
Kften heard on0
ads (especially #O ads"
pop radio o*erall sound of the station e.g. +pin"
pop F rock music , .$oudness wars/.
$oudness Wars
6ikipedia has an interesting animated gif showing how *ersions of )omething by the (eatles-
released in &49!- &49G- &44! and C'''- got progressi*ely louder and louder.
roducers ha*e been trying to make their music loud for years! Motown was infamous for cutting
the hottest 7@s in the business. #he (eatles lobbied arlophone to bring their records out on thicker
*inyl. (ut two particular technological ad*ances ha*e made *ery loud records possible0
&. CD > digital format. #here is a physical limit to how loud *inyl can be cut- but none with CD
C. Digital audio processing- especially brick,wall limiting.
Draw graph with ' d( at top. Note difference between analogue distortion which can sound nice-
and digital distortion > clipping which sounds horrible!!
Auns<N<Roses 1ppetite for Destruction &49G gets to Eero *ery occasionally a*erage loudness is
,&@ d(.
Metallica -lac& 1l3um &44& hits Eero often- nearly e*ery loud beat is at or near ' d(.
Kasis What(s he )tory #orning Glory &44@ a*erage loudness is ,9 d(.
Metallica Death #agnetic C''9
(youtube".
#ony Maserati says0
.+omething that<s become a real problem recently is the ma2imising thing and the degree of
distortion that comes with it. Dt really pisses me off. D work *ery hard to get the same impact without
the distortion- but D<m finding that D can<t do that any more. #he ears of my clients are trained for
distortion now. Dt<s a really disturbing thing. +ome guys ;ust don<t gi*e a crap and they are crunching
the shit out of rough mi2es. Dt gets in the way of the actual performance- and yet artists often think
these crunched- crappy,assed mi2es are really hot- and it becomes a problem for me to match them
without the distortion./