Mix Notes / 47Compression
Attack and release starting points, by source.
Starting pointsKick 10 to 20 ms attack, vocal 3 to 10 ms, drum bus glue 20 to 30 ms. Then tune by ear.
Every compressor manual tells you what the knobs do. Nobody tells you where to put them first. Here's where to start before tuning by ear.
Where to start
| Source | Attack | Release |
|---|---|---|
| Kick | 10 to 20 ms | 80 to 150 ms |
| Snare | 5 to 15 ms | 100 to 200 ms |
| Bass | 15 to 30 ms | 60 to 120 ms |
| Vocal | 3 to 10 ms | 60 to 150 ms |
| Drum bus (glue) | 20 to 30 ms | 100 to 200 ms |
Widely used starting ranges, not our measurements. Our measured settings are in Mix Notes 02, 03 and 07.
Then tune by ear
- Slow the attack until the transient just starts to poke through. That's your punch.
- Speed the release until you hear it pump, then back off until it's smooth.
- Bus glue runs slower on purpose: it moves the whole mix together, not one hit.
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