Vocal compressor
A vocal compressor you can see
Compression keeps a vocal steady and upfront, but it's hard to hear what it's doing. Squeeze draws the sound going in, coming out and how much it squeezes off, so you can see what your ears are hearing.
How to compress vocals
- Start from a vocal preset (Smooth Vocal in Squeeze) instead of from zero.
- Lower the threshold until the loudest words get 3 to 6 dB of reduction. The graph shows exactly how much.
- Ratio 3:1 to 4:1 for most vocals. Go higher for rap and upfront pop, lower for soft singing.
- Attack 5 to 15 ms keeps the start of words crisp; release 50 to 100 ms lets the voice breathe between them.
- Match the volume and compare with bypass. If it sounds flat and lifeless, use less, or blend in the dry vocal with Mix.
Watch it explained: Vocal buried in the beat? Boost 2 to 5 kHz
Hear Squeeze
What you get with Squeeze
- 12 ready-to-go presets, from Smooth Vocal and Punchy Drums to Parallel Smash and Master Bus
- Live graph of the sound going in, coming out and how much is squeezed off
- Drag the threshold line right in the graph
- Threshold, ratio, knee, attack and release, like a classic compressor
- Auto makeup keeps the volume steady as you squeeze harder
- Mix knob for parallel (New York) compression
- Ignore Lows, so a big kick doesn't pull the whole sound down
- Hover over any knob to see what it does
Questions
How much should I compress vocals?
3 to 6 dB of gain reduction on the loudest words is a good start. Many producers use two compressors in a row, each doing a little, which sounds more natural than one doing a lot.
What attack and release for vocals?
Attack 5 to 15 ms, release 50 to 100 ms. A faster attack tames sharp peaks but can dull consonants; a slower one keeps them punchy.
Compressor before or after EQ?
Cut problems (rumble, boxiness) before the compressor so it doesn't react to them; add brightness and air after it.
What is parallel compression on vocals?
Blending a heavily compressed copy with the dry vocal. It thickens the voice and brings up detail without squashing the peaks. Squeeze's Mix knob does it in one plugin.
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