Mix Notes / Compression

Mix Note 063 / Compression New

Expand gently before you gate hard

A hard gate makes quiet details vanish abruptly.

The move

Try downward expansion with a limited attenuation range before increasing the ratio.

Do this
  1. Start with gentle downward expansion.
  2. Limit how far the quiet audio drops.
  3. Check breaths, ghost notes, and endings.

Listen for this.

Check breath, ghost notes, and phrase endings.

Know when to back off.

An expander still raises the contrast between loud and quiet passages.

Match loudness when you compare. If the original serves the song better, undo the change.

Get mix notes in your inbox.

New notes, workflows and plugin tips, plus a free mixing cheat sheet right now.