TDM Audio 32CL-2 v.2 - Manual (Page 16)

© 1996 TDM Design, Inc. Compressor/Limiter Owner’s Manual Page 16
Compressing Musical Instruments
Compressing musical instruments falls into two general categories. There is compressing musical
instruments to manage their dynamic range, and there is compressing musical instruments to
achieve a particular “sound” or effect.
Compressing musical instruments to manage their dynamic range is similar to compressing vocals.
The main difference is that you can generally get away with more severe compression ratios on
instruments without them sounding unnatural. Ratios of up to about 15:1 are common for instru-
ments. It is common to put compressors on brass instruments, acoustic guitars, electric bass
guitars, and many other instruments— even drums! Even though you can get away with more
severe compression ratios with instruments, it is wise to use the lowest ratios and the highest
thresholds unless you are going for a particular “sound.”
Overcompression has an unnatural sound, but for some instruments it can create a pleasing effect.
The most common uses for this kind of compression in modern music are guitars, electric bass’s
and acoustic drums (especially kick drums). The difference between this kind of compression and
“normal” compression is that you use really severe compression ratios (up to about 20:1) and
lower thresholds. When you are compressing to create an effect you want the unit to be in com-
pression the whole time the instrumentalist is playing. This technique often requires that special
precautions are taken to avoid excessive noise and feedback problems. These precautions include
gating and special signal processing.
Compressing Program Material
Compressing program material is similar to compressing speech. In many cases, program material
does not vary drastically in level from moment to moment. That makes it a good candidate for
slow attack and/or release times, a low compression ratio, and a somewhat lower threshold than
many other types of compression. These settings have the effect of evening out the overall level of
the program over a long period of time without sounding too drastic or unnatural.