If the guitar peaks at -2dB, the audio signal will be compressed on a ratio of 2:1 so that it will only reach -6dB. Let’s say you have set the compressor threshold at -10dB and are using a 2:1 ratio for a guitar track. Basically, the higher the ratio settings are, the more you are compressing your track. Think of this feature as a bouncer at a nightclub, in charge of how many partygoers (or in this case, dBs) get through. Controlling the ratio determines how much compression is applied to the audio signal, once over the threshold level. The second thing to look at after setting the threshold is the ratio. In other words, it acts as an administrator over all the other controls and dictates when to compress. If you leave the threshold level to -0dB, then your audio signal won’t be compressed at all – regardless of any other control settings you tweak on the compressor. For example, if you were to set a threshold level of -10dB, any audio signal that peaks above -10dB will be compressed. This refers to the level in decibels (dB) at which compression will be applied to the audio signal. Let’s go over the controls that you commonly see on a compressor plugin and explain what each of them does. Stock audio compressor plugin that comes with Presonus Studio One Normally, you would use that if you need some quick compression during a live tracking session, otherwise it’s worth learning what each setting do. However, don’t just hit that and pray for a good sounding track. You may find modern audio compressors to include an ‘auto‘ button.

If you are familiar with the loudness war, which basically refers to the trend of every producer trying to crank up their music to its loudest – you may be tempted to just compress about every darn track in your arrangement.īut in order to get the best out of the compressor effect, it’s worth understanding what each control contributes towards the dynamics of your track’s sound. To consolidate the above, take a look at the screenshots below to see the difference between an uncompressed vs compressed audio signal.Ĭompressed Audio (Image credits to AudioShapers)Īt this point, audio compression seems simple enough. Let’s take the example of an audio track consisting of both a whisper and a scream Now imagine how distracting that would be to a listener, should the difference in loudness between the two sounds remain as if they were. reducing) the louder parts of an audio signal. This is done by increasing the quieter i.e lower signals to make them more apparent, and attenuating ( a.k.a. Dynamic range refers to the difference between an audio signal’s loudest and quietest parts. Put simply, a compressor reduces the dynamic range of an audio signal, to create a natural-sounding recording. The Keilwerth multiband compressor plugin.īut before delving into that, let’s begin by understanding what an audio compressor is. Today, most audio compressor effects you find in your DAW have been emulated from their hardware counterparts (image above) into an audio plugin (VST, AU, RTAS, among others) like the one below. With these hardware versions being limited in their features, audio engineers had to prioritize inserting the compressor to tracks that actually needed compression. However, back in the days before digital DAWs, compressors were actual hardware module boxes. Today, in most major DAWs, you have the ability to easily insert a compressor plugin to each and every track in your track arrangement. The audio compressor effect is usually the most misunderstood effect in audio production. So wait, what is an audio compressor and how does it even work in the first place? Let’s find out. Part of why you placed in a compressor was because you read in a magazine before, that compressor helps to balance vocal tracks. So you insert an equalizer plugin, add some reverb to the tracks and just as if on cue, you add an audio compressor effect and decide to play around with some settings. Your track now sounds a little louder, which is great – but you have no clue what an audio compressor actually does. You even decide to record a vocal track and suddenly its time to do some mixing. The weekend has finally arrived, and you hurry to your DAW with the excitement of a schoolboy to start arranging some tracks. What is an Audio Compressor And How Does It Work?

Studio audio compressor