Original subtitles

mastering compression settings overview

in this video the chapters are in no

particular order but we're going to be

discussing various forms of compression

and depth as well as introduce some

useful techniques that you could use

when mastering we'll cover how to glue a

mix together with compression as well as

how to vary transparently compressed to

get a cohesive and colorful sound or

solely control Dynamics respectively

then we'll cover how compression can

alter the frequency response and how we

could use a multi-band compressor to

mimic how our ears compress in order to

create natural sounding compression next

we'll discuss New York style parallel

compression and how it could be used

creatively to affect the master in a way

that most regular processors can't

before we discuss the benefits of

simultaneous expansion and compression

and how compressors could be used to

alter a master stereo width next we'll

cover how to bring quieter details of a

master to the Forefront without the need

for aggressive Peak down compression

lastly we'll cover how to de-ess during

a mastering session to attenuate

sibilance but avoid compressing

unrelated frequencies then how to reduce

resonances with a couple of different

processors and finally how to use

Dynamic EQ to attenuate out of key

frequencies now I'm guessing that you

won't want to use all of these types of

compression but at least one will

definitely be helpful for your style of

mastering so stick around to learn about

each type and technique Master

compression the glue mix one of the most

popular ways to introduce compression

when you're mastering is as a way to

glue together the sound glue compression

is created by setting a longer release

time so that multiple transients are

compressed collectively the benefit is

that the master sounds cohesive but we

need to be careful since affecting

multiple transients can affect the

perceived timing of the track now to do

this the right way we need to time our

compression with the BPM of the track so

if our BPM is 140 we could divide 60 000

by 140 the result is one quarter note in

milliseconds in this example 429

milliseconds is one quarter note then I

can multiply this number by 4 to get one

whole note and subtract the value of our

attack time and use this value as the

release time now for the sake of

understanding this better let's say that

we use a release time that is not in

time with our track say one second then

whenever the signal returns to Unity

it's going to sound Amplified Rel

relative to what was just attenuated in

other words it'll serve a somewhat

similar purpose to a transient if this

return to Unity is out of time with the

track we can severely mess up the

perceived Dynamics and subsequent timing

of a master in addition to timing or

release we could use a compressor that

imparts a specific tone to the signal

that this means a compressor that

introduces harmonics and maybe some

subtle Equalization for this reason many

Engineers like to use variable

compressors more commonly called very mu

compressors I'll use this Pulsar very

new plugin to demonstrate the idea but

klinghum offers a great free option if

you're interested let's take a listen to

glue compression being introduced with a

very mute type compressor and with the

release set to be in time with the track

[Music]

creating transparent mastering

compression now sometimes when you're

introducing compression you don't want

to create a colorful sound or even be

able to tell that the compressor is

there at all now when this is the case

we'll want to use clean transparent

compressors and within time settings

that return the signal to Unity quickly

but in a way that doesn't result in

Distortion now let's use this free

plugin Tokyo Don labs catalnikov to

introduce transparent compression notice

that with it we could introduce both

Peak down and RMS detection RMS or root

mean Square detection will average the

incoming signal to measure an average

loudness it's going to result in more

transparent compression however it may

lead to loud Peaks getting through so we

may want to find a good balance between

Peak and RMS detection and pay attention

to when the signal is being attenuated

we'll want to set an attack time that's

no quicker than 10 milliseconds and a

release No quicker than 50 milliseconds

the reason being if we set quicker times

we could cut into the transient in turn

causing harmonic Distortion this is

great to have the transient stick out

but it's not too useful for clean sound

and compression additionally I'll set

the release to be in time with the track

similar to the last chapter but instead

of a whole note I'll use the 16th note

to find this I'll take 60 000 and divide

it by the BPM and then divide that

number by four lastly we'll want to set

the stereo sensitivity toward the center

or the mid image this way we're

detecting and affecting where the

majority of the Master's energy is now

be sure to carefully set your threshold

and use a low ratio to ensure that we

don't compress more than 1.5 DB let's

take a listen to this compressor being

used and notice how it cleanly

attenuates the master

something I can dance

[Music]

using multiband compression as EQ

multiband compression is super useful if

you want to control a specific bandwidth

of frequencies it could be also less

noticeable than regular stereo

compression for the same reason now all

of the concepts that we've discussed in

the last two chapters still apply like

timing the release to be in time with

our BPM and avoiding super quick attack

and release times to avoid Distortion

the main difference is that we could use

very fast attack and release times on

the highest frequencies since the

Distortion typically caused by these

settings only occurs to low frequencies

the main idea that I want to introduce

though is that compressing specific

frequencies both controls Dynamics and

causes Equalization so let's say the

track is sounding muddy and I'm having

trouble hearing the vocals I could

center the compression on 250 Hertz and

attenuate by 1 to 2 DB this is going to

attenuate the frequency range like an EQ

but do so dynamically instead of

statically now this is a great way to

alter the frequency response of a master

but only when a particular range becomes

too loud or let's say that the Reverb is

covering up the vocal too much I could

dynamically attenuate two to five

kilohertz on the side image so that the

mid image vocal cuts through whenever

it's present also I'll be using this

fabfilter multiband but a good free

alternative is TDR Nova let's take a

listen to multiband compression being

used in this way and notice how it

shapes the frequency response

[Music]

recreating how our ears compress sound

while we're on the topic of frequency

specific compression let's cover how we

could use multiband compression to mimic

how our ears naturally compress sounds

that are too loud now I covered this in

our last video on vocals but let's take

a look at it one more time in short our

ears compress frequencies below a

thousand Hertz whenever the sound gets

too loud this attenuation is between 1

to 20 DB depending on how loud the sound

is also the two structures that cause

this can't move instantly to attenuate

the sound it takes about 40 milliseconds

for them to tense up or contract and

they stay contracted for about 150

milliseconds with that in mind we could

use a multi-band compressor and

attenuate frequencies below a thousand

Hertz by a couple of DB we'll set the

attack time to 40 milliseconds and the

release to 150 milliseconds to mimic the

response of the two ear structures and

if it's available use a softer knee to

cause gradual compression now be sure to

avoid look ahead and any other unrelated

settings let's take a listen and like

the last chapter you could use the TDR

Nova as a free alternative to this

plugin

give me something something

New York style mastering compression New

York style compression is a combination

of parallel compression and EQ to create

it we'll need to set up Ascend and

corresponding auxiliary track from our

Channel track on it we'll insert a

compressor and an EQ we could use

compression that glues the signal

together or transparent settings but

with a great amount of attenuation since

we'll be blending this effect in with

the auxiliary tracks Channel fader we

could be more aggressive with our

settings then we'll insert our EQ we

could use a fully parametric one to

really control what part of the

compressed signal gets Amplified or we

could use something more stylistic like

a Pull Tech EQ to shape the sound if

it's available be sure to use linear

phase settings for the EQ to avoid phase

cancellation between this track and the

original Channel with the EQ we could

amplify the kick in the vocal range and

maybe sub in the highs to accentuate

important ranges but what you amplify is

up to you now if you want to get even

more of the sound of the compression we

could insert an EQ before it and drive

the frequencies into it this way the

compressor is having to work harder on

those ranges in turn causing compression

on those freak frequencies to be more

apparent this method both controls

Dynamics gives you the option to

equalize the compression and makes it

easier to automate this compression by

altering the aux Trax Channel fader I've

been using this fabfilter Pro C2 but

let's use this free SSL emulation by

analog Obsession and create parallel

compression with a lot of character I'll

equalize both before and after

compression to emphasize important

ranges and then blend in the effect

let's take a listen and notice how the

master sounds Fuller and how the

Amplified frequencies stick out a bit

more

[Music]

yes you

I'm the presser expansion and

compression the omnipressor is a unique

compressor it allows you to set levels

for compression and expansion

simultaneously resulting in Signal

attenuation whenever the signal goes

above the threshold and it an expansion

whenever the signal Falls below the

threshold as a result the signal stays

within a dynamic range resulting in

louder Parts becoming quieter and

quieter Parts becoming louder although

this effect is typically used for mixing

it could be used to great effect when

you're mastering if we limit the

expansion then the compression ranges to

1 DB set the function or ratio near the

middle and very carefully set our

threshold we could achieve a dynamically

controlled and surprisingly loud Master

without any unwanted artifacts now I

find that this effect works great right

before limiting if I want to get the

signal louder but I don't want to resort

to heavy amounts of attenuation to

achieve it although you could use two

instances of a free compressor like M

compressor by Melda audio to achieve

compression and then expansion the

routing is going to be different from

this plugin so unfortunately I don't

know of a free alternative that matches

this plugin exactly let's take a listen

to this plugin being used with subtle

settings and notice how it makes the

track louder dynamically controlled and

makes quieter details easier to hear

thank you

[Applause]

cause I don't wanna miss you

mastering compression for stereo

expansion let me touched on this concept

in chapter 4 when we use multiband

compression on our side image but let's

go into more detail about affecting a

master stereo width with compression now

if we use a compressor that's capable of

mid-side compression we could introduce

more compression to the mid image to

cause stereo expansion whenever the mid

image is attenuated the side image will

sound louder relative to the mid or the

centered image usually I want to

attenuate the mid image by 0.5 to 1.5 DB

and avoid things like makeup gain since

this would negate the stereo expansion

aspect now some plugins that work well

for this include press work by yuhi

Weiss maximization if you select the

wide algorithm and the more

comprehensive DS1 compressor by Weiss

and the fabfilter pro MB if you want the

attenuation to be frequency specific a

great free option though is the m

compressor by Melda audio if we open the

toolbar section we could change the

routing from stereo to Mid inside or in

this case just the mid image ultimately

this is one of my favorite ways to

compress a master since it controls

Dynamics and results in a very natural

sounding stereo expansion let's take a

listen with more aggressive settings

than usual and notice how the master

sounds wider whenever the mid image is

attenuated

[Music]

why upward compression is so useful not

so far off the compression types that

we've covered causes attenuation from

the Peaks down or from an average

loudness down as is the case with RMS

compression but one of the most useful

forms of compression in my opinion is

upward compression in the case of the

Waves mv2 it can measure quieter parts

of the signal control the Dynamics of

that quieter section and then amplify it

this results in a controlled dynamic

range without the need for attenuating

Peaks more importantly it amplifies

quieter details and makes the overall

Master sound Fuller and more forward

another option is the sonics Oxford

inflator it works a little differently

by prioritizing aspects of the digital

signal with more zeros and ones or at

least that's how it's described in the

manual and then it amplifies these parts

of the signal and adds harmonics to fill

out the sound alternatively you could

use the free m compressor and use a

custom shape setting to amplify the

quieter signal when whenever it falls

below the threshold now this concept is

similar but the final sound is going to

be a little different one more free

option is Ott by expert records which

offers frequency specific maximization

but you'll need to use incredibly subtle

settings with this one since it's a

really aggressive effect let's take a

listen to the effect with my personal

favorite option the sonics limiters

enhanced function and notice how we're

not attenuating the Peaks however the

details of the master are greatly

increased as is the overall loudness

[Music]

upward compression on Mid frequencies

now that we understand upward

compression let's see how it can be used

creatively now if we use upward

compression in a form of New York style

parallel compression we can greatly

emphasize a particular range of

frequencies to do this I'll set up a

send from the channel track and on the

corresponding auxiliary track first

insert a linear phase EQ with it I'll

isolate the signal to the mid

frequencies by using a high pass and low

pass filter where you could center these

filters is up to you but I set mine to

400 Hertz and 4 kilohertz respectively

then I'll insert an upward compressor or

maximizer in this case I'll use the

Sonic's inflator but you could use any

of the options that we discussed in the

last chapter now with the inflator I'll

set its effect to 100 and then blend in

the upward process mid frequencies with

my original signal now with this setup

we reduce the dynamic of the mid

frequency range greatly increased

aspects that would have otherwise been

masked and then dialed in the effect

until the overall sound is balanced like

chapter 6 we have the option to

emphasize frequencies into the processor

if we want them to be more apparent so

I'll create a bell around my vocals

Clarity range round to kilohertz and

also amplify the side image around 500

Hertz now this is just what I thought

sounded best for this particular track

but you could of course use your ears

and emphasize the frequencies that you

want more of let's take a listen and

notice how the mid frequencies are

present and how the overall Master

sounds Fuller and more impressive

[Music]

you

de-essing during mastering although

de-essing isn't always needed when

you're mastering it does serve an

important role when it is needed now

finding the right settings can be

challenging so let's take a look into it

we'll need to isolate the compression to

the range of sibling frequencies usually

between 5 to 8 kilohertz but you'll need

to take a listen to find these or listen

and observe the frequency spectrum after

we've isolated the attenuation to the

correct range we'll need to ensure that

the attenuation only occurs whenever a

sibilant occurs now if you don't set the

threshold correctly it's really easy to

attenuate unrelated aspects of the

signal like the symbols or other high

frequencies doing this correctly comes

down to listening carefully and

observing the attenuation and seeing if

it pairs up whenever a sibling occurs or

if it's attenuating any unrelated part

of the signal I like to use a Swiss

de-esser but you could also use a

multi-band compressor if you want a free

option tdsr is a good alternative and I

would also recommend siblings 4 by Tone

boosters which offers a lot of control

and it's really affordable let's take a

listen and pay attention to how

attenuation only occurs whenever

siblings is press

[Music]

resonance reduction with multi-band

compression although resonance reduction

is usually thought of as a form of

Equalization it's really a multi-band

compressor with a preset threshold that

determines when to attenuate various

frequencies it's an incredibly useful

tool when you're trying to create a

balance master so let's take a look at

some of the settings I'll use the sooth

2 plugin and to make it easy I'll select

the bounce to the Grammy Awards setting

which measures the mid and the side

image separately to apply compression

when needed from there we could adjust

the pre-emphasis EQ bands as needed to

attenuate aspects of the master that are

too prevalent now the Lomas is usually a

treble area and the same could be said

about the sibilance range but of course

use your ears to find what's best lastly

if you use this plugin be sure to use

higher quality settings to reduce phase

cancellation and to dial in the effect

with the mix dial although I don't know

of a free alternative Smooth Operator by

baby audio is a good affordable option

let's take a listen and notice how the

master sounds a lot more balanced

thank you every Sunday

out of key subtractive Dynamic EQ in

chapter 4 we discussed how multiband

compression can change the frequency

response and in a way be used as

Equalization if we have a dynamic EQ we

can pinpoint which frequencies we

compress in this case we'll attenuate

out of key frequencies this results in a

more musical sound since desirable

in-key frequencies become louder

relative to out of key frequencies to

find these frequencies we could use a

free online tuned analyzer and once we

know the key look up which frequencies

are in and out of key from there we

could use this Pro q3's piano roll to

snap the band's Center frequency to

exact notes but if you don't have this

EQ you could always look up the exact

frequencies of the notes and Center

bands on those lastly we'll enable

Dynamics for each band and set the

threshold as needed we're aiming for

between 0.5 to 1 DB of attenuation and

it's best to set a narrow Q value so

that the majority of the attenuation

occurs on the out of keynote let's take

a listen and notice how the track sounds

slightly more balanced and a little more

Musical

thanks for watching and be sure to check

out the link in the description for a

free mastered sample of your mix