You have a great talent for making complex matters easy to understand! I`ve watched, and read, mind you!, a vast numbers of videos and articles about how compression works and sounds, and here you are explaining it in just over 13 minutes so even a 5 year old could understand! Thanks😀
“None shall pass” -black knight in Monty Python and the holy grail...... “you shall not pass” -Gandalf in the movie....... “you cannot pass” -Gandalf in the book
OMG hahaha I was watching the video seriously, I have been studying production for days, very motivated and concentrated, following your 5-step guide, until Gandalf arrived and ordered it to stop :D you are definitely the best! I stopped the video to laugh a lot and then concentrate again
I've watched and read a lot about compression, but this is easily the best piece I have seen. Your visual approach clicked with me. This is very helpful. Thanks!
Nice way of describing how compression works. Nowadays I feel like folks don't really learn how to use the "attack", "release" and "compression ratio" controls on a compressor. It's easier to just slap a plug-in on a track and choose a preset - not that those presets aren't often good "ball park" starting points. But in the old days, we had a finite number of hardware compressors and they didn't come with "presets" - you actually had to adjust the compressor to attenuate/compress the signal the way you wanted it to. It's kinda like photography. Anyone can their a "point-and-shoot" camera (or their phone) these days and take a picture. But once you had to actually set all the settings on your camera (f-stop, shutter speed, etc...) based on what you were shooting. You had to KNOW what those things did! Anyway, I don't mean to harp on like and old guy, but my point is that the audio world could use more engineers who really know their fundamentals. This is a very helpful video in that regard. What might be helpful is actual audio examples. Maybe something you'd incorporate in a future video?
Hey Joe, more of these visual videos please. They are great teaching aids for my students. Being able to put it in simple terms with visual aids, like you do, is so helpful. Keep em coming
I believe the attack time is the time from the compressor being engaged (treshold) til it is at full ratio, so it doesn't wait to engage until the set attack time, but it gradually engages during that time.
Freaking love your Gandalf drawing! I went to school for audio production and this is so much better of an explanation then any of my profs gave, especially for people just starting out! I have followed you since early days of home studio corner. In fact your first videos on Pro Tools way back when were so helpful to me years ago as a young home recording musician starting out! YOU ROCK MAN!!
This is awesome- I’m such a visual learner and I can’t believe you’re the only person who teaches this so well... I’m very tired of people saying “use your ears not your eyes” but i don’t how to learn especially as a beginner if I don’t know what I’m doing 😂😅
Attack/release doesn't work quite like that. Neither of them are 'wait' or 'pause' times. They both begin immediately when the threshold is crossed in either direction. I'm ignoring a hold-function here. The attack time is how long the compressor takes to go from 1:1 to X:1. The release time is how long it takes to go from X:1 to 1:1. You can consider compressors to always be either attacking or releasing; they're never not doing one of those things. Unless they're turned off ofc.
Chris, have you considered that there are newbies and kids getting into recording who just want a basic concept of what is happening with compression and limiting and this video illustrates core principles perfectly, or was it a case that you wanted to showboat your technical know how in public? No offence intended in my response bro... STAY SAFE ✊️😊
hehehehe had this on pause and right at the beginning I thought.. hmm.. Joe doesn't smoke does he??!! Then the cigarette turned into a pencil! hahaha Thanks Joe, I'm up to Step 3 in Mixing Course..and learning loads.. I'm using your stems to learn - but also went back to my recent production (which was very much a case of death by pluggins) and started from scatch to get a great static mix thanks to what I've learned so far- so grateful. Thanks
These explanations are the best. Now I understand what compression does. The question becomes when does 1 need to apply the compressor. If the kick sound.fine and not clipping do.i need to compress?
Joe, great stuff... Brings me back to my1993 Audio 1 classes. Never hurts to reinforce the basics no matter how long you've been in the game. Many thanks. Keep up the excellent work, my friend.
Music production could be so technically complex and overwhelming but you Joe, you're such an excellent teacher and the best to "de-complexify" very technical topics, and in a very pleasant way. (but hey, you maybe need some help to remove this thick stain inside your mug 😁)
Your compression course a good few years back was my first starting point really helped. Side note I have that Gandalf T-Shirt None shall pass standing over the graph :)
I like to think of attack and release times like opening and closing a door to let signal past theshhold. Attack time is how fast slow the door opens and release time is how the closes. Joe, I did like how you talked about what is happening with the sound that we hear.
Hey Joe, it's me again. Been practicing what I've learned from your videos, and man, you are awesome. Just had to say that. For compression, I just want to make sure I'm understanding the math. If I set a threshold at -12, ratio at 3:1, and my peak is playing at -9 dB, that peak will be reduced to -11 dB correct? If the peak is playing at -6 dB, then it would be reduced to play at -10 dB. Is this right? This is hurting my brain.
So in the "old days" with a live band and female singer, she use to put her mink coat over the face of the kick drum to tone it down - compression or eq?
I like this shot. But I wandering why it's come shaky when you move. It's okay though, I'm just messing up. 😋 Thank you for the great teaching from Indonesia.
Here's a cool tool to show what happens with wav forms when you mess with the parameters of a compressor. It's really neat! codepen.io/animalsnacks/full/VRweeb
So I'm so confuse im trying set up my mic re20 qith revelator io24 but it seem like to low even with clouds lifters at 38 of gain any solution maby the eq is the problem?
Thanks Joe. How does a compressor work differently to shape tones of rhythm guitar (strumming maybe), picking, and electric lead guitar (smooth sustain)?
Just be careful that comporession is a tool to fix problems. If you don't have the problem, not use the tool. Lots of engineers just slap compression on everything because like Joe says; it makes things audible that are normally difficult to hear. the thing is; lots of sounds from instruments are just difficult to hear, that's just how it is. You don't need to make things audible that are not naturally audible in the instrument. Oh and be carefull with compression on voices,dynamic range is a good thing, not something you have to stomp out with endless buckets of compression. And go listen to your mix on a high quality audio set before you declare it finished.
I'm confused too, but I think differently. He said the dBs decrease by a factor of 2:1. So you start with 4, and reduce 4 by a factor of 2:1, which is 2/1, which = 2, so 4dB should be decreased by 2, but in his diagram it is reduced to about 3.
I get it now. He actually said "This section of the audio, the part that crossed the threshold, has now been turned down by a factor of 2:1". The part of audio that crossed the threshold was equal to 2dB (4dB at the top minus 2dB at the level of the threshold). Hence, dividing 2 by a factor of 2:1 (2) = 2 divided by 2 = 1. So "the section of the audio that crossed the threshold" has now been reduced by 1. Equals an overall level of 3dB.
But now when 2 is divided by a factor of 3:1 (3) you get 2/3 = 0.666, so the section of the audio should now have been turned down by 0.666, which is less than one, so that part of the audio that crossed the threshold should actually be higher on the graph, not lower, so I'm stumped!
Hello from Greece.. congrats for your job.. I want to ask if we re recording at 44100 24bit we must export at the exactly the same???.. at the wav format of course.. Thanks a lot
Thanks for the Great explanation joe this was very insightful. I have a question regarding tempo. Does studio have a function to follow songs recorded with out a click so that I can play midi parts to it and it will read and follow the tempo? I saw something like that on a video how to add drums to any song in logic part 2 but I use studio one it would be nice to find a video doing something like that . Blessings . Enough with my blabbing
Hey Joe Gilder! Amazing video. I just have a question which might not be in the ballpark of this video but has to do with compression in studio one. Do you think using the fat channel as a de-esser is a good move? Does it work to remove that harshness from the lead vocal?
You have a great talent for making complex matters easy to understand! I`ve watched, and read, mind you!, a vast numbers of videos and articles about how compression works and sounds, and here you are explaining it in just over 13 minutes so even a 5 year old could understand! Thanks😀
“None shall pass” -black knight in Monty Python and the holy grail...... “you shall not pass” -Gandalf in the movie....... “you cannot pass” -Gandalf in the book
Nerd😂❤️
There's always one, isn't there? ;-)
As my man Luke Gallows would say...
NEEEEEERRRRRDDDDDDDDDD!!!!! ❤️✌🏻✌🏻
OMG hahaha I was watching the video seriously, I have been studying production for days, very motivated and concentrated, following your 5-step guide, until Gandalf arrived and ordered it to stop :D you are definitely the best! I stopped the video to laugh a lot and then concentrate again
As always, an incredible explanation. You really are a gifted teacher, a natural!
Whoa I’ve been searching all these years and finally found my hand twin, right down to the finger nails. ✋🏻🤟🏻👍🏻
Together at last. 😊
oh lord
Yikes!
Joey 🤪
I've watched and read a lot about compression, but this is easily the best piece I have seen. Your visual approach clicked with me. This is very helpful. Thanks!
Nice way of describing how compression works. Nowadays I feel like folks don't really learn how to use the "attack", "release" and "compression ratio" controls on a compressor. It's easier to just slap a plug-in on a track and choose a preset - not that those presets aren't often good "ball park" starting points. But in the old days, we had a finite number of hardware compressors and they didn't come with "presets" - you actually had to adjust the compressor to attenuate/compress the signal the way you wanted it to. It's kinda like photography. Anyone can their a "point-and-shoot" camera (or their phone) these days and take a picture. But once you had to actually set all the settings on your camera (f-stop, shutter speed, etc...) based on what you were shooting. You had to KNOW what those things did! Anyway, I don't mean to harp on like and old guy, but my point is that the audio world could use more engineers who really know their fundamentals. This is a very helpful video in that regard.
What might be helpful is actual audio examples. Maybe something you'd incorporate in a future video?
Sehr anschauliche und hilfreiche Erläuterungen in einem schwierigen Feld!👍👏
Hey Joe, more of these visual videos please. They are great teaching aids for my students. Being able to put it in simple terms with visual aids, like you do, is so helpful. Keep em coming
fabulous! Gandalf in a Compressor tutorial????? you are a star !
I believe the attack time is the time from the compressor being engaged (treshold) til it is at full ratio, so it doesn't wait to engage until the set attack time, but it gradually engages during that time.
Freaking love your Gandalf drawing! I went to school for audio production and this is so much better of an explanation then any of my profs gave, especially for people just starting out! I have followed you since early days of home studio corner. In fact your first videos on Pro Tools way back when were so helpful to me years ago as a young home recording musician starting out! YOU ROCK MAN!!
This is awesome- I’m such a visual learner and I can’t believe you’re the only person who teaches this so well... I’m very tired of people saying “use your ears not your eyes” but i don’t how to learn especially as a beginner if I don’t know what I’m doing 😂😅
These type of illustrative videos are great. Easier to grasp those concepts. Great work man!
you are literally my savior thank you joe!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Attack/release doesn't work quite like that. Neither of them are 'wait' or 'pause' times.
They both begin immediately when the threshold is crossed in either direction.
I'm ignoring a hold-function here.
The attack time is how long the compressor takes to go from 1:1 to X:1.
The release time is how long it takes to go from X:1 to 1:1.
You can consider compressors to always be either attacking or releasing; they're never not doing one of those things. Unless they're turned off ofc.
You're probably right, but this is a big-picture concept video.
@@HomeStudioCorner Love the humility in your response Joe! You are awesome! Keep up the great work!
Chris, have you considered that there are newbies and kids getting into recording who just want a basic concept of what is happening with compression and limiting and this video illustrates core principles perfectly, or was it a case that you wanted to showboat your technical know how in public? No offence intended in my response bro... STAY SAFE ✊️😊
Agreed Chris! Valid points and I think that it’s important to understand this to be able to optimally achieve the sounds folks are looking for.
@@vicesquadpunk but it is not that difficult to understand anyway....
You are a gifted teacher! Thank you! LUCID
You´ve got the best basic sound engineering concept tutorials in the game right now, thank you very much
Simple, clear.. since I started mixing some months ago I couldn’t understand what compression is exactly and what it does, now i know! Thanks!
This is the best and simplest explanation ever! Makes so much sense with the visuals.
Thank you so much
Tremendous. Thank you. eo, r
This is one of the best explanations of compression I've ever seen. Great job!
Dude your kind of videos are really helpful for me, thanks
Dude, you just simplified this for me! Appreciate this man
No problem!
OMG thank you for finally explaining this to me I a way I can understand! 👍🏽🌹🌹🌹
I really like the graphs. No fancy computer graphics, just what you need. Thanks.
thanks for ur both eq and compressor videos which help me a lot, btw i haven' got the "5 step mix" guide since last week though...
great teaching --- well done
THANK YOU! You´re now my new teacher and the best i ever had
This was super helpful. Thanks
hehehehe had this on pause and right at the beginning I thought.. hmm.. Joe doesn't smoke does he??!! Then the cigarette turned into a pencil! hahaha Thanks Joe, I'm up to Step 3 in Mixing Course..and learning loads.. I'm using your stems to learn - but also went back to my recent production (which was very much a case of death by pluggins) and started from scatch to get a great static mix thanks to what I've learned so far- so grateful. Thanks
You have my fav videos on youtube man!
super helpful thank you so much for the visuals!!
wow thank you sir
What an amazing lesson!!
Thank you!!
These explanations are the best. Now I understand what compression does. The question becomes when does 1 need to apply the compressor. If the kick sound.fine and not clipping do.i need to compress?
Joe, great stuff... Brings me back to my1993 Audio 1 classes. Never hurts to reinforce the basics no matter how long you've been in the game. Many thanks. Keep up the excellent work, my friend.
Music production could be so technically complex and overwhelming but you Joe, you're such an excellent teacher and the best to "de-complexify" very technical topics, and in a very pleasant way. (but hey, you maybe need some help to remove this thick stain inside your mug 😁)
Your compression course a good few years back was my first starting point really helped. Side note I have that Gandalf T-Shirt None shall pass standing over the graph :)
6 years ago from wickiemedia, it was the best. till this, new bar
Thanks, that was one of the best internet video about compression !
love all your videos man! So cool!
I really like these types of visuals. Makes it easier for me to comprehend this kind of thing. Thx! And thx to Gandalf, too. So funny!
Love your pencil sharpener
Thankyou for releasing these lessons☝️
clear as mud ... ninety nine more explanations please
I love the way you describe this stuff, thank you.
Great stuff!
Hey thank you for this, I always loose my kick drum and never really understood why, but this really helped me understand.
Thank you so much! So well explained. It made Boom in my head ;-)
Such a great help for this beginner ... thanks so much Joe!
Awesome explanation Joe, as per your standard
Love that deep six peeping in the background
Real talk, your videos are very helpful. Easy to understand too. Good stuff.
Great stuff 🤘🏾
now i think i get it, this is an excelent idea to learn!! thank !!
This is so helpful thank you so much!
Very informative! You're a great teacher, sir.
Keep these vids comin'!!!
I like to think of attack and release times like opening and closing a door to let signal past theshhold. Attack time is how fast slow the door opens and release time is how the closes.
Joe, I did like how you talked about what is happening with the sound that we hear.
Brilliant explanation my friend
Can't touch this !!!!
Woow best brother
Great and simple explanation 👌 phenomenal as always Joe
great video. the drawings REALLY help.
The legend is back.
What is the difference between compression and normalization? Thanks Joe. These videos are amazing.
I got you. Will answer in an upcoming video.
@@HomeStudioCorner you're the best. Really appreciate it!
Hey Joe, it's me again. Been practicing what I've learned from your videos, and man, you are awesome. Just had to say that. For compression, I just want to make sure I'm understanding the math. If I set a threshold at -12, ratio at 3:1, and my peak is playing at -9 dB, that peak will be reduced to -11 dB correct? If the peak is playing at -6 dB, then it would be reduced to play at -10 dB. Is this right? This is hurting my brain.
Joe - thank you. Just recently subbed to your channel and I am loving this. Great explanations!
Gandalf shall always watch over me with sound from this day forth.
Another great video, Joe! Good stuff!
What pencil is that tho hahaha so pleasing. Great lesson too, thanks.
Great Video man! love the Illustrations you should do a illustrated series. :)
То что нужно, мужик! Продолжай эту задумку
Agreed 😁
я сделаю это
Now I’m going to think about Gandalf every time I use a limiter... thanks Joe!
what about the knee? : )
very helpful info! thanks
getting a lot out of your content. Thanks for posting
Shouldn't the whole sound have less dB when applying attack, which means you don't use the compressor as expected, meaning making everything louder?
Hi Joe. Love the top down vibe you have going on! Great visual! I think it’s time to wash your coffee cup... lol
Have you done a video on explaining gating? I hear that term a lot but haven't really used it 🤔
After watching this video I realised that I have been compressing without having any idea of whats going on
So in the "old days" with a live band and female singer, she use to put her mink coat over the face of the kick drum to tone it down - compression or eq?
👍
I like this shot. But I wandering why it's come shaky when you move. It's okay though, I'm just messing up. 😋 Thank you for the great teaching from Indonesia.
Thanks for the tutorial. Is it possible to set a Compressor\Limiter as a volume rider?
Very Casey Neistat, very cool!
Here's a cool tool to show what happens with wav forms when you mess with the parameters of a compressor. It's really neat! codepen.io/animalsnacks/full/VRweeb
Subscribed as my mixes suck
So I'm so confuse im trying set up my mic re20 qith revelator io24 but it seem like to low even with clouds lifters at 38 of gain any solution maby the eq is the problem?
I have a request man please make these videos with practicals ....side by side.
like you did in your guitar eq video
Thanks Joe. How does a compressor work differently to shape tones of rhythm guitar (strumming maybe), picking, and electric lead guitar (smooth sustain)?
Hey @Joe Gilder,,
Your mic is super awesome, would mind telling me the kind of mic u are using?
Roswell MiniK47
Just be careful that comporession is a tool to fix problems. If you don't have the problem, not use the tool. Lots of engineers just slap compression on everything because like Joe says; it makes things audible that are normally difficult to hear. the thing is; lots of sounds from instruments are just difficult to hear, that's just how it is. You don't need to make things audible that are not naturally audible in the instrument.
Oh and be carefull with compression on voices,dynamic range is a good thing, not something you have to stomp out with endless buckets of compression.
And go listen to your mix on a high quality audio set before you declare it finished.
Somedays i go i was thinking: i havent see Joe for a while...
A ratio of 2:1 would be like saying that there's 2dB of compression for every 1dB over threshold? I am still just a bit confused on that part.
I'm confused too, but I think differently. He said the dBs decrease by a factor of 2:1. So you start with 4, and reduce 4 by a factor of 2:1, which is 2/1, which = 2, so 4dB should be decreased by 2, but in his diagram it is reduced to about 3.
I get it now. He actually said "This section of the audio, the part that crossed the threshold, has now been turned down by a factor of 2:1". The part of audio that crossed the threshold was equal to 2dB (4dB at the top minus 2dB at the level of the threshold). Hence, dividing 2 by a factor of 2:1 (2) = 2 divided by 2 = 1. So "the section of the audio that crossed the threshold" has now been reduced by 1. Equals an overall level of 3dB.
But now when 2 is divided by a factor of 3:1 (3) you get 2/3 = 0.666, so the section of the audio should now have been turned down by 0.666, which is less than one, so that part of the audio that crossed the threshold should actually be higher on the graph, not lower, so I'm stumped!
Hello from Greece.. congrats for your job.. I want to ask if we re recording at 44100 24bit we must export at the exactly the same???..
at the wav format of course..
Thanks a lot
Thanks for the Great explanation joe this was very insightful. I have a question regarding tempo. Does studio have a function to follow songs recorded with out a click so that I can play midi parts to it and it will read and follow the tempo? I saw something like that on a video how to add drums to any song in logic part 2 but I use studio one it would be nice to find a video doing something like that . Blessings . Enough with my blabbing
Hey Joe Gilder! Amazing video. I just have a question which might not be in the ballpark of this video but has to do with compression in studio one.
Do you think using the fat channel as a de-esser is a good move? Does it work to remove that harshness from the lead vocal?
Can't touch this
“None shall pass” - Dumbledore
It's not very accurate (attack is the time before compressor reaches maximum set ratio), but it works for the beginners i guess, and that's good.
Yeah. This is how it sounds.