● Compressor:
One of the common parameters in a compressor is that the point where it turns down
can be determined by you, the user of the compressor. That point is called the
"threshold point."
Now how much it will turn down is called the "ratio."
(Most engineers use a mild ratio of either about 3 to 1 or 4 to 1.)
Examples:
● And if you have a 2 to 1 ratio, then for every two dB of input you'll get one dB of output.
● If you have a 3 to 1 ratio, every three dB of input you'll get one dB of output, so forth and so
on.
Gain reduction = how much the signal will actually be reduced.
(Recommended: minus 3 to minus 6 dB of gain reduction.)
Attack = how soon the compression will actually kick in.
The release is: Once I squeeze the signal, how long will it take for the signal to rise
back up?
Some compression units have what's called "automatic gain."
So the fact that compression turns a signal down, and the highest part is getting
closer to the lowest part of the signal, can actually have a gain functionality that
works automatically. So the more it compresses, the more it turns up. All
compressors don't have the automatic gain.So literally you would have to turn the
gain up manually on this compressor in order to get the signal that is now a little
lower, a little more compact, but louder in your mix. You'd have to actually turn it up a
little bit. Some compressors have automatic gain and that's something that you want
to be aware of. Because if you have one compressor that has automatic gain
and then maybe process another signal with something that doesn't have automatic
gain, you just need to be aware that the one without automatic gain will make the
vocals seem lower in the mix.