Members ryank Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 hi all Looking for some recommendations for a stereo compressor to strap across my mixer which I am using for a live show. I'm doing a live show where all the FOH mixing is done by the artist since we have a kinda electronic thing going on which would be to complex for the main engineer to mix together. So I want to send a compressed signal of all the tracks straight out to the PA. So looking for something that is decent quality but not uber expensive. I'm thinking something like a DBX 166XL? Are there any alternatives I should consider? cheersRyan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Coaster Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 why do you want to do this? i cant see how it would be a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ryank Posted January 23, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 why do you want to do this? i cant see how it would be a good idea. im playing backing drum/bass tracks in ableton live and we are playing live keys and vox over the top. Wanted something over the mix bus to help it gel together a bit more than the sound I am currently getting with out a compressor.* * this is my theory anyway. Do you think it would not be a good idea? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Special J Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 I think it would not be a good idea. Instead of squashing your entire mix into a non-dynamic, pulsating little lump of electronic noise and vocals, why wouldn't you just feed the FOH guy computer l/r, keys and vocals and let him apply compression as needed? Pretty simple if you ask me. You should, if anything, only need comps on the vocals. I would imagine that Ableton has compression already? And if your keys need compression, what you really need is to spend some time volume leveling patches. So, by asking this question, you're telling me that the music is actually too complex for YOU to mix and you should be letting someone else handle it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NUSound Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 * this is my theory anyway. Do you think it would not be a good idea? Compressing an entire mix never is, it reduces gain before feedback and leads to other problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 I don't like doing this in general because the loudest parts of the mix dominate the gain reduction of the comp causing them to stand out even more rather than blending and "gelling". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Chinese Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 What's not gelling? 'll venture a guess - The vocals are either not loud enough or too loud, and you can't ind the right balance... Am I close? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jwlussow Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 Compressing the whole mix will probably "ungel" the sound rather then gel it. I've never heard a live compressed mix that sounded good. Compressors do work well on individual channels that need it. Maybe consider something like a multi channel compressor/limiter. Klark-Teknik Square One Dynamics is a great system. Look for a used one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members witesol Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 Compressing the whole mix will probably "ungel" the sound rather then gel it. I've never heard a live compressed mix that sounded good. considering the OP and question, I'd have to agree in this case. but, it can be done with nice results. It can "gel" the mix, but the mix and performers would have to be pretty on and be able to control their dynamic range. I've seen, heard and used a few different comps on an entire mix with great results., aphex compellors, FMR audio RNC inserted in the mix buss and barely hitting it can work quite well. but, in this case a good 4 channel comp inserted on the individual channels needed after learning how to use one , would be my advice. the tracks within the computer shouldn't need any help with all that is available in the tracking, software and seeing that they'll probably be virtual instruments anyhow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted January 23, 2010 Members Share Posted January 23, 2010 Depending on the application, compressing across subgroups, or compressing the mix using the vocal subgroup as a sidechain input can achieve some nice creative effects but only for those who really know what they are doing. I do not think this is the case here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ryank Posted January 25, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 25, 2010 Hmm so maybe I should reset the levels on the mix and start over to see if I can get it closer to the sound I am envisioning. Perhaps I was jumping too quickly into 'solution mode' rather than looking more closely at what my problem with the mix was in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members monthlymixcd Posted January 25, 2010 Members Share Posted January 25, 2010 Look at how you're EQ'ing every signal in the FOH mix. Try to use the EQ as subtractive and "carve" out space in the overall mix for everything that's going on. Signals that fight for sonic real estate will result in mud... or at best an overall mix that sounds too heavy in some freqs and weak in others... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted January 25, 2010 CMS Author Share Posted January 25, 2010 Hmm so maybe I should reset the levels on the mix and start over to see if I can get it closer to the sound I am envisioning. Perhaps I was jumping too quickly into 'solution mode' rather than looking more closely at what my problem with the mix was in the first place. Yes, now you're on the right track. If the issue is with the artist having several sources and he/she is changing levels throughout the show, you need to have a sit-down about this. Dynamics are a key element of live music, so you don't want them squashed in order to "control" the mix. As long as nothing is clipping the PA system, there really shouldn't be a problem. If something is clipping the system, talk with the artist to have levels set before the show such that nothing is too hot and clips the system. If the artist doesn't want all of these level/dynamic changes, then you need to discuss why they are changing. If it's a part of the show, you really shouldn't be stepping on that aspect of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted January 25, 2010 Members Share Posted January 25, 2010 Look at how you're EQ'ing every signal in the FOH mix. Try to use the EQ as subtractive and "carve" out space in the overall mix for everything that's going on. Signals that fight for sonic real estate will result in mud... or at best an overall mix that sounds too heavy in some freqs and weak in others... Be careful with eq, a little can go a long way... and make things worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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