BT EQ Magazine Question #2

[instantpop]

Not to pilfer material from Michael who posted the other thread, but his question prompted my read of the full article. The article is here: http://www.eqmag.com/story.asp?sectioncode=36&storycode=9903

 

After reading it, I was really intrigued by the "side band compression" part. What exactly is this technique? Is this essentially the same thing as the parallel compression used in the NYC technique or is this something different? How do you "side band compress" something to the kick drum?

 

Just curious cuz I'd like to give it a shot.

 

Thanks!

[David Nahmani]

Sounds to me like he's talking about side-chain compression, where you put a compressor on the bass, and send the kick to the side chain, so every time the kick hits, the bass is pulled down.

[instantpop]

Ah, gotcha. Similar to what you do when you gate a pad with an audio rhythm loop a la some trance?

 

Can you maybe post a quick rundown, David? Sorry, it's late and my brain isn't operating at full capacity! LOL.

[instantpop]

Kind bump.

[Colinc]

there used to be this great .pdf from either soundonsound or futuremusic floating around on the internet that explained sidechain compression in good detail, but I can't seem to find it... I did find this tho:

 

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul01/articles/logicnotes.htm

[instantpop]

Hey Colin,

 

Thanks for that. Good read. I guess I understand the principles of sidechain compression (i.e., mixing uncompressed with slightly compressed of the same signal). What I really want to get a grasp on is doing it with the virtual instruments in Logic and understanding how to chain it together so that the drum track, for example, triggers the compression on the synth line.

 

I'm somewhat familar with sidechaining that way in Logic by sidechaining a gate so that an audio track triggers the opening and closing of a gate on a pad to get that nice trance effect. Would using the compressor instead function in the same manner? I'm assuming that's the case, but would just like some sort of clarification from someone who really knows what the heck is going on!

 

Thanks again for that article. That's the kind of reassurance I like!

[marcel72]

It sounds like it is kind of the opposite of the gating you are describing in the trance style...

 

The idea with this is about pulling the sound down when the beat hits, in order to give space for the rhythm to work, and to give some 'backbeat' feel to the processed sound. Principle is the same, using one sound to create a rhythm in the other, but with the reverse effect.

 

You know when you're listening to a radio announcer speaking over background music or the end of a record, and every time he or she speaks the music comes down in level to make room for the voice? Same technique. Called ducking.

[gsilbers]

its one of the oldest trick for techno.

 

 

on the bass track that has offbeat notes u add a compressor and the side chain be the kick drum (4 on the floor) so every time the kick hits the bass gets sucked out (volume lowered and depending on the atak and release u get diferent sounds.

 

u can go further and do the same with every instrument on the track. greater threshold values for off beat intruments like bass and open hats and lesser values for loops and on beat instruments.

 

 

one trick i use is to lower the kick but not mute. and add compressor too all tracks (usually bass and leads) add the kik as the side chain and really squash the s#!+ out of it and add an add limiter to the master so u will get a heavy lead and bass sound that distorts really nice, bounce it and import it then nrmalize everything and add the bounced squashed track to your song and edit the audio of it to create diferent rythmsn.

 

u can also do the same by just adding a compressor on the master buss and let me triggered byt the kick (lowering the kik and muting stuff u dont want to be sidecain compressed).

 

oh, u can also add side chain compression after a reverb on a send or insert and also be triggered by the kik. gives whatever you are adding it a more powerfull sound, works great for hiphop also.

 

so to make techno and most electrnic music sound more "glued" using side chain compression if one of the key factors. specially if it has lots of delays or is too wet from synth, reverb and such.

[instantpop]

Thanks for that, gsilbers. For my benefit and any others that may stumble upon this thread, would you be willing to explain how to set up the sidechain using VI's in Logic? Compressor settings? Etc.?

[gsilbers]

sure.

 

 

you start with having a 4 on the floor kick drum in audio form not midi. you can bounce 4- 8 bars and create an appple loop out of it to have it there always.

you add that kick drum audio region to track one and loop through out the whole song and lower the volume to zero. (your not supopose to hear it)

 

then open up an ES1 and select the juno bass preset. on that channel add a compressor. and select track one in the sidechain drop downmenu.

leave the threshold and all other setting as they are which are pretty good (with fast atack and med release.

 

then open up an ES2 and add a more "bity" bass or lead preset. and do the same thing with a compressor inserted on thAT track.

 

select record on both track so you play both at the same time and hit play.

play a groove where u use more off beat 8th notes or you just can leave playing one sustain note.

 

 

u will see the kick drum pumping in both the compressors of the synths channels.

and u want to have fast atak so when the kick hits, the bass lowers and med to fast release so the bass pumps up in volume.

 

 

to get more of an impact, try adding a reverb BEFORE the compressor and set the wet/dry mix to 30%/70% (more dry)

[instantpop]

Thanks for that, gsilbers. I will investigate when I am back in front of my rig. I'll post any questions/quandries here

[Tranquil010]

Can you do this in Logic Express?

 

It would be the same process, wouldnt it?

[xs4is]

If this is the instantpop that I think it is, then there is an example of this technique on the bass synth triggered by the drum track in the 'lso' I sent you a couple of days ago.

 

If you're not the instantpop that I'm thinking of, then please disregard. LOL!

 

X

[instantpop]

Ha! Thanks, X. I've actually used the technique many times before to create rhythmic pad sounds. It was the terminology that was confusing me (being referred to as side band vs. sidechain) as well as reading somewhere that it could be done with Audio Instruments, which is not entirely true.

 

Thanks for the heads up!