Compressing Vocals
Here’s a quick look at some techniques in using compression on vocals
There are a number of reasons to use a compressor when recording or mixing vocals. More often than not, it is to sort of level-out the singers dynamic range and basically keep the low volume areas up and the higher volume areas down - a vocal leveler. Other times compression can be used to “gel” multiple parts together into a more cohesive whole. This can be done using varying levels of compression to squash down or bring out certain vocal tracks based on the songs needs. Another use of compression is to keep effects-processing tamed and consistent - i.e. using a compressor after a vocal exciter to keep the brighter frequencies under control after being boosted. There’s not necessarily a “right” or “wrong” way to use compression, but my suggestion would be to not use too much. The end result can be a washy, squashed vocal mix that “pumps” and has no dynamic range… yuck! Try slowing the attack time with a softer knee for a more transparent compression and if you want more compression, try staging it instead of over-compressing on one unit. Try a soft compression first, and then more of a brick wall limiter after that.
I hope this gets you going and if you have any questions or comments, be sure to leave a “comment posting” and I will get back to you.
Posted: October 17th, 2008 under Recording Tips.
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