I wanted to ask you since there are many experienced people here, which of these two types of compressors do they use to give glue to their mixes, what would be the pros and cons or rather in what situation would they use it more

 

I do not believe that it is advisable to still think in those characteristics, because today every one of those characteristics can be recreated in one single unit. It's essentially still attack, release, ratio and knee. Vari mu is slow with lots of distortion as well as optical, fet is fast with lots of distortion and VCA can be everything with way less distortion.

The SSL Bus+ for example probably is the most flexible hardware comp right now along with the crane song stc-8.
They basically can recreate everything relevant as a hardware device.

 

I really don´t know how do you perceive that "glue" in your mixes, how does it sound to you but, forget hyped SSL and others and go try Kush Audio compressors. There are 3 waiting at sister´s.

 

Last edited: May 27, 2022

thank you very much for answering, when you talk about this kind of thing it is impossible to make short texts so I appreciate everything you wrote

 

more than perceiving it is the term when you apply a compressor to a bus or in the master you can make the mix have more cohesion, vari mu or ssl are usually used, now you recommend that line of compressors why? what result can i get? or what is your experience of the compressors of that firm against an ssl (of the different companies that recreate it), if you do not tell me something else it is difficult for someone to try them

 

My experience could be a very different beast than yours, same as the music I make. If I tell you where to find the compressors I use is for you to try them and see if they work for you. I can´t see the difficult in download them and see for yourself. By the way you can find some patches in them called SSL Modern Glue, Growling FET or API something. For me Kush comps just sound better and fuller.

 

Last edited: May 27, 2022

Always depends on material you work on/with.. First, watch any processor does with simple signals, sines... Learn aliasing, timing, frequency response, phase, harmonics, thd, imd, noise, behaviour with various sample rates, and so on... Tweak knobs, minimum settings, maximum settings... Etc.
Then work on different material, rock, pop, edm, classical, acoustic music, ambient, hiphop, trap, dubstep, futuristic, retro, jazz, live instruments, synths..... listen carefully, tweak, more testing... Learn, compare...
Imagine in your head what you want to achieve, what you want to sound it like etc...
Try PSP, Pulsar audio, Arturia fx, Sly-fi, arousor, Kush, Voxengo, fircomp, DMG (trackcomp2, compassion, multiplicity etc), plugin alliance stuuuffff, slate digital, UAD, Waves, IK T-racks, SSL, cytomic, klanghelm, u-he, overloud gem, DDMF MDE, Pro-C2, tone projects, NI, Softube, Meldaproduction, URS, TDR, fuse audio labs, black rooster, sknote, kazrog, VoS, toneboosters, cakewalk oldies, sonoris, airwindows, aom, analog obsession and maaany more... Tons of stuff. Too much excellent stuff, I can't even name 'em all

 

Last edited: May 28, 2022

Ssl bus comp native settings/theory:

Attack 30 release auto

First max threshold, max ratio
(to hear sc properly)

Then set sc from 20 to the 30hz listen carefully the punchiest most musical (rhythmically in time). Listen carefully
Set ratio to either 3 or 4 - 3 is more transparent
Bring threshold all the way up, then pull it down and stop as soon as you hear it getting squashed.
Then bring it up again till its a perfect wall of music and nothing is poking out

This is glue

 

+1 for Kush.

Just get Novatron. It's an amazing compressor overall.

 

I really love Brainworx bx_townhouse!! .

 

The issue is that I don't ask which compressor company to use, the ssl are more transparent than the vari mu, the vari mu add more distortion and are slower.
Just as it is not my same experience, I ask that of others, both ssl and vari mu are excellent, but each individual has a different approach and whether to install and test a compressor, yes, because it is the classic syndrome of having 2000 plugins for nothing. there has to be a meaning

 

a compressor is not absolutely necessary. you can also use tape to glue the mix together.

 

Try Shadows Hills Class A. You have both in one

 

i use MagicDeathEyeStereo_64 for master channel duties

 

I always take out my chikahwahwah from lingling audio. It really adds up that shiny crinkle crinkle magic blue sky I always love.
Try out pls, cause I really know ma stuff as all the pros do.

 

I use the "Brainworx - Vertigo VSC-2" because it doesn't color and compresses very subtly.

Right behind it I use the "SSL - Stereo Bus Compressor", so I always use 2 compressors. The SSL was built into the
consoles in the studios back then. Many recording engineers said they turn it on and everything sounds better.

I set everything up in the mixer plugins that I like and save the presets as FXP. I also save the entire mixer chain,
then I just need to load it. Eventually you get to the point where you get tired of plugin testing.

And if possible set everything so that you want to work stress-free with the absolute possible workflow.
I rather deactivate some plugins and when I need them, I don't have to search and set new ones, I just activate them.

Here are the plugins I always use:

01 Nomad Factory - Program EQP-4 (EQ - coloring - ecreation of the classic Fairchild 660)
02 FabFilter - Pro Q3 (EQ)
03 Maag - EQ4 (6 Band Equalizer with Air Band)
04 Brainworx - Millennia NSEQ-2 (EQ with 300 V Vacuum Tube and Discrete JFET)
05 Sonalskis - Stereo Tools (Stereo Editing- Stereo Image)
06 FabFilter - Timeless 3 (Delay)
07 FabFilter - Pro-R (Reverb)
08 Brainworx - VSC-2 8 (Compressor)
09 Brainworx - Masterdesk (Mastering)
10 SSL - Stereo Bus Compressor (Compressor)
11 Brainworx - BX Limiter (Limter)

 

For buss glue I usually use my DIY opto MS compressor. Kudos to the plugins but on the blind test I choose the hardware every time and it sounds significantly better.

 

you are righ and tottaly wrong at times

is mostly true for plugins, and not all of them i might ad

that's just nonsense
on hardware you are limited by the knee the unit comes with
like dbx160, valley people, mpressor are hardknee

stc8 could be used for tracking and Limiting which one wouldn't want to do with a hardknee
and its a totally different beast to an ssl as in the sounds you can get out of it.

there are a few hardware comps that are akin to some plugings
as the stc8 dave hill´s Titan. there you can self define knee settings and comp characteristics .
kush Tweaker and the crazy Gyraf G21 to name a few more

the other things you said about fet, vari-mu & vca
is just an overall guideline
it all depends on the maker of the hardware
Like Thermionic´s Phoenix is/can be quite clean for a tube comp

Lastly it all depends on the Program Material
i´m not too sure you would want a Stc8 on some super dynamic Classic or Jazz
but maybe it would sound interesting

just my 2cents

 

Yes, sure there are more.

Ja, you can also build relative clean tubes today as well. Even though I don't know why someone would do this.

For me it doesn't matter at all nowadays anymore. Earlier I also were very cautios about the details "ooohhh I hear some dingelingeling I can not explain here ".
Today I have an absolute pragmatic aproaching to sound processing, so I really do not care anymore how different those things are. I can use everything on every material as long as it has attack and release. Every video I've seen since 2020 about those sound processors is for me like "Yes, it really is a compressor" or a filter or whatever.
I also >95% of the time use FIR filters today which most of people won't because of the so "aweful" preringing (they never hear btw).

I just believe there really is to much beating around the bush with all those super duper fine units while it's overall a very simple thing.

I rather bet 5 zloty because they probably more worthy in the future.

 

Last edited: May 28, 2022