If you use a compressor to even out a vocal performance, you don’t want to hear the compressor working. Compression is a great way to bring a vocal forward in a mix but it can also cause unappealing sonic artifacts. Many bloggers will tell you what the “perfect” vocal compression settings are. Proper Compression Settings for Vocals – Recording and Mixing Getting the right compression setting for vocals will go a long way in how well your music will sound. Noise Floor = -40db. Other Useful Articles. Some recording engineers think compression is a must for vocals. You don’t need much added gain. Dynamic Music Compression Settings for Vocals, Popular Home Music Recording Software Programs, The Right Computer Setup for Home Recording. Parallel Compression. For the moment I'd like to focus on a visual explanation of basic compression, since I strongly believe that those who use compressors to mess … Typically, fast attack times are good for thick and heavy vocals while a slower attack time is good for aggressive vocals that punch through the mix. Click on Effects: Compressor, and keep the settings on about: Threshold = -18db. By taking a copy of your drums (or vocals, guitars, keys) and compressing it aggressively, you can blend it back in with the original track for the perfect sound. Getting vocals to sit in a mix in an upfront yet natural way can be difficult when first learning how to mix vocals. Typical settings may look like this: Threshold: –8dB. And I don’t want to mislead you. 6. How do some people get their drums to hit really hard in the mix and yet still sound natural? Well, here are compression settings and tips which I use to compress vocals. How you use vocal compression really depends on the song, genre and recording quality and so it makes it impossible to give you settings that will be perfect every time. Compressor Settings? Ratio: 1.5:1–2:1 The number game starts now… Assuming your compressor plugin doesn’t have any rap vocal preset hare we will create our own preset by changing the parameters of the compressor. You can use compression on vocals to just even out the performance and to create an effect. However, compressing is an art and there is no hard and fast rule to apply the same settings on your vocals. If you want to use a compressor that pumps and breathes — that is, one that you can really hear working — or if you want to bring the vocals way up front in the mix, try using the following settings. Instead, you just want to catch the occasional extremely loud transient that would cause clipping. Such a setting brings your background vocals forward slightly. I wish I could do that too. Release Time = 11.1 secs. i would say a 5:1 ratio is too high. There is no one-size-fits-all formula to vocal compression. But the truth is, it’s not that easy. A good compression setting has a fast attack to catch the stray transient, a quick release so that the compression doesn’t color the sound of the singer, and a low ratio so that when the compressor does go on, it smoothes out the vocals without squashing them. IF you have any setting or technique for finding the perfect vocal compression, add your comment and share that trick to other music producers. Heck, it’d certainly save me a few keystrokes. Because music compressors are used and abused so frequently in home recording, it might be helpful for you to have some basic settings for vocals to get you started. Try a setting that’s midway between the invisible compressions and the pumping and breathing compressions. This will hopefully save you the headache of ruining a few tracks before you get the hang of this powerful tool. As you can see, the two parameters that you adjust the most are the threshold and ratio. One Concept, Many Uses depending on the emcee, 2-3 db of compression at 2:1 or 3:1 should be good. Like I said at the start, compression is probably the thing in that takes the most time to master when learning how to mix music. Attack Time = 1.81 secs. Ratio = 2.5:1. The reason I almost always use Parallel Compression on my lead vocals is to add weight to them, to make them sound bigger than they really are, and to essentially make the vocals really pop in the context of the mix. The answer is parallel compression. There are no magic settings that work 100% of the time. Mixing Tip: How To Use Glue Compressor FX Chain; 50 Free VST Plugins For Vocals An incorrectly compressed lead vocalist, or overly compressed backing vocals, can seriously hurt an otherwise excellent creative masterpiece. Experiment with these settings and check the effects of them by toggling between the affected and unaffected sound (use the Bypass switch on your compressor). It evens out the often-erratic levels that a singer can produce and tames transients that can cause digital distortion. What does compressing the audio do? Rap Vocal Compression Settings. These settings put the vocals “in your face,” as recording engineers say: Gain: Adjust so that the output level matches the input level. if the rapper takes a lot of loud breathes, then i would use no compression. Your settings may look like this: Gain: Adjust so that the output level matches the input level. You need to add a fair amount of gain at this setting. What about compressor settings for backup vocals, you may ask? With tonal compression, the most important part is the attack time. The solution to this problem that many professional mixing engineers use on vocals is a process known as parallel compression. A good compression setting has a fast attack to catch the stray transient, a quick release so that the compression doesn’t color the sound of the singer, and a low ratio so that when the compressor does go on, it smoothes out the vocals without squashing them. There are all kinds of settings on a compressor that are better discussed in other articles. For a good idea of what those are, see my article and video - Vocal Compression Using Reaper’s ReaComp Effect Plugin. You don’t need to add too much gain. even in the final mix i dont think ive ever seen more than 4:1 ratio on vocals (unless its for an effect). Typical settings may look like this: Gain: Adjust so that the output level matches the input level.