learning about compressors

[thesisdrs]

I think side chain is one of the greatest tools for mixing. Not just for kick and bass, but for any conflicting sound within the frequency band. If I were to record my vocals and I have a trumpet that is within the same range, i'll make the trumpet duck every time my voice kicks in.

[zindan]

Dont clip. Turn all your shit to -6.
This shit is basic. Read a book or something.

nah, clipping is good on tape if you know what you're doing

[zindan]

I rarely compress though , it’s fucks up the dynamics like zen said . I don’t like everything sounding squashed together

it's just not good to over-compress shit. if you know what you're doing you can finesse compression in a very subtle way (btw with 404 and 404sx mfx12 you CANNOT finesse it lmfao, always crushed sound, it sucks )

sometimes natural compression like tape compression or digital sampling compression can be enough for a beat though! sounds raw

[Sharris]

Yea totally thesisdrs, i just recently started playin with it, i got to do that more.......i've always been a microwave beat maker, while slowly uping the sound quality of my beats... I just recently started focusing more on it.

Just curious zendan, do you turn the limiter on when using the sx compressor?

[thesisdrs]

nah, clipping is good on tape if you know what you're doing

Yeah, people love to record "hot" into tape for that saturation/compression

[thesisdrs]

sometimes natural compression like tape compression or digital sampling compression can be enough for a beat though! sounds raw

Precisely! You don't want to put TOO much effects on your tracks. You want just enough to give it a little umph.

[zindan]

Yea, I'll admit I just recently heard about gain staging, but have always been doin it..
I go from turntables/synths/samplers to mixer to bigger mixer to analog heat to kp3+ to sampler. It feels like I have more control over levels as well, I can get pretty much anything to a good level w/o clippin (or a little clip sometimes, but thats just me)

That's one thing that irritates me with the SX. whenever i want to record the sample and i check my level, no matter how low i turn it down, the flipping red light keeps blinking at times. I learned to ignore it and watch if the blue screen in the middle turns orange.

I also watch the levels on my audio I/O

All these things are just technical terms... i'm sure we have an innate idea of how to do what we're doing... terms are good but sometimes its like some type of garbage post secondary teachers overcharge for.

your peak light always lights up no matter what level your input is dude??? that doesn't make sense. use [FUNC] -> [pad11] input gain and adjust it to -10. even though, your source shouldn't be running so hot that if you turn it all the way down it peaks? and no the center lighting up red isn't always the only thing you need to watch out for. the peak meter is literally the peaking of the sound going into the sp. the middle screen is how loud the level is you're recording it, but it's still getting played into the machine too loud!! gotta watch out for that shit brother

[Sharris]

Yea, it shouldn't always be red / blinkin red a lot......i get mine to where it barely blinks......if at all......

[thesisdrs]

AHH

Thanks man. That shit was bugging me. I was trying to compensate by turning things down elsewhere.

[zindan]

Yea totally thesisdrs, i just recently started playin with it, i got to do that more.......i've always been a microwave beat maker, while slowly uping the sound quality of my beats... I just recently started focusing more on it.

Just curious zendan, do you turn the limiter on when using the sx compressor?

i never use it anymore because it squashes sound, kind of like the brick wall limiting sisdrs was talking about, but when i did, yeah i turned the limiter on (the only effect that is useful with the limiter on besides in live performance application) because you can adjust the release time and i feel that the level knob value works more clean with the limiter on.

after getting an analog compressor i never used the SX compressor again, then when i got a 303 i got addicted to vinyl sim comp, and haven't really made ANYTHING without it!!!! god damn, do i love that compression algorithm man. it literally defies logic!!! never heard anything like it before.

[zindan]

Yea, it shouldn't always be red / blinkin red a lot......i get mine to where it barely blinks......if at all......

sometimes, because i am obsessed with having a hi-fidelity quality of beats, i check where it peaks then turn it down just a hair before that, to have no clipping whatsoever but have a SOLID level recorded into the machine, to eliminate white noise/noise floor noise

you don't want to record too loud or too quietly

[zindan]

AHH

Thanks man. That shit was bugging me. I was trying to compensate by turning things down elsewhere.

no problem

[Sharris]

I dont use the sx compressor either, but when messin with it, yea, I liked jt better with the limiter on.

Im thinkin about gettin a 303 or 505........havent decided which one yet......do you think payin around $300 for the 303 would be worth it?

[zindan]

I dont use the sx compressor either, but when messin with it, yea, I liked jt better with the limiter on.

Im thinkin about gettin a 303 or 505........havent decided which one yet......do you think payin around $300 for the 303 would be worth it?

if you're even thinking about it, you need to get one now!!! a 303. they are the most poorly made sp (durability wise) so they are getting rarer and rarer while the shitty ones break! they are going to be very valuable soon.

but that's just me, because i go for a certain sound in my beats. i love the limitations of the lesser capable vintage samplers. it inspires me to make beats in a different way. i actually don't know anything about the sp505!!!! so i couldn't tell you which to get care to enlighten me???

[thesisdrs]

How does the Vinyl Sim compare between the 303 and the 404SX?