billbates Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 When recording with Logic Pro X I have used Automation volume to fine adjust the individual tracks volume which is fine .... but to reduce the overall volume of the individual track I have used the compression gain …. bringing it down to a minus figure. Is it OK to do this? Or does it mess up the compression of the individual track? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
des99 Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 Yes, it;s ok, that's just lowering the output volume of the compressor plugin after it's done all it's processing - ie, it's just an output gain control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
recordplay Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 I usually just use the utility gain plug in if I want to lower the overall volume of a track with volume automation on without changing any of the automation curves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StudioQ1 Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 I mean I think its besides the point of dynamics/compression. I would just use utility gain plug in as I would imagine its processing is a lot more efficient, regardless of possible dynamics in which your compressor may or may not be changing. thats my two cents Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Nahmani Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Is it OK to do this? Yes, it's perfectly ok. Or does it mess up the compression of the individual track? No, it doesn't mess up anything: the output gain of the compressor is placed after the compression. It's the equivalent of placing a gain plug-in after the compressor. I would just use utility gain plug in as I would imagine its processing is a lot more efficient As far as CPU resources, it should be pretty much the same, if not exactly the same, to use the compressor's output gain or the gain plug-in. I would consider one or the other only for workflow purposes: with a gain plug-in, you have the possibility to turn on/off gain and compression independently, whereas when using the compression's output gain parameter, you have the ease of turning on/off both simultaneously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Cardenas Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 When recording with Logic Pro X I have used Automation volume to fine adjust the individual tracks volume which is fine .... but to reduce the overall volume of the individual track I have used the compression gain …. bringing it down to a minus figure. Is it OK to do this? Or does it mess up the compression of the individual track? It will not alter the compression as long was you use Output Gain or Makeup Gain, like David stated, but it could alter the sound of a more complex signal chain. One good example would be some kind of distortion effect after the compressor. Other than that it's more than fine. It's a pity that it only offers adjustments in 1/2 dB steps. Have you tried the new trim options in Logic Pro X 10.1? Those are pretty neat and will help you alter volume automation post all inserted plug-ins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon.a.billington Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Many people do this kind of thing with their main volume slider on their channel, and there certainly isn't anything wrong with that. Personally, however, I think its a bit counter intuitive because as you have found out, it locks out your main volume controls so you can't adjust any overall balance. Yes you can use the output of you compressor or the Gain plugin. I like to leave it free for just such occasions and automate it right at the end for any final volume tweaks and fades before rendering. Where I put my actual surgical automation is in the plugin automation. I have Gain plugin right at the top of my effects chain as apart of my template for doing just such thing going INTO my effects chain, and a gain plugin for after the effects chain, this is where I do my main volume automation work. The plugin I use for this commonly is the FreeG from Sonalksis. It's simple, effective and allows for one degrees of manipulation. The company seems to be quite dormant though. I haven't seen anything new from them for years, besides the upgrade to 64 bit. It frees up my channel strip sliders so I can do whatever I'm like with them. Generally though, the sit at -3.0, so I have a bit more push and pull leeway. I compensate for this by setting a +3.0 gain on my submixes. By the time my mix is in full swing however, I usually drop the level on the input so the sum of my instruments don't clip the buss inputs. Sounds more complicated than it is. http://www.waves.com/1lib/images/products/plugins/full/vocal-rider-live.jpg There are times, however, I swap out the Gain plugin at the top for Bass Rider or Vocal Rider. They are extremely useful I find to level out my audio before it hits my main processes. Their automation can even be written out to track for even more fine manipulation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billbates Posted March 26, 2015 Author Share Posted March 26, 2015 Thanks for the brilliant feedback everyone - excellent stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Cardenas Posted March 26, 2015 Share Posted March 26, 2015 You're welcome Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon.a.billington Posted March 26, 2015 Share Posted March 26, 2015 Hope it was helpful. Forgot about the addition of Trim already!! I can see how it could be quite useful though. Must get around to playing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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