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Compressor settings for kick and bass guitar

Medford Bassman

Medford Bassman

Aug 8, 2007
2,153
1,066
Medford, Wisconsin
#1
I run sound for my band. Recently, I picked up a new dbx 166 compressor.

I used some guideline settings that came in the manual. They were ok but not great.

I understand I need a type of "hard knee" compression for the kick.

I am looking for help with good setting. This is definitely a new device for me but i need a quick learning curve.


Thanks.
 
#4
I prefer nothing but a gate on kick drum...unless you're drummer is completely out of control with his kick attacks. I honestly try to use the least of amount of compression possible across-the-board. I don't want my live sound to be squished like the crappy CD's being put out thesed days. It's live music...let breathe... That being said, I do like a small amound of compression on my bass (I'm not the most even player in the world). Something like 3:1 and I let the auto function on or Presonus Studiolive to control attack and release times. This has always worked well for me. I spend much more time with compression on vocalists than anything else.
 
#6
Barisaxman said:
I prefer nothing but a gate on kick drum...
Click to expand...
me, too.

if you don't have any other gates, use the gate in the 166 on the kick, so it just closes when he's not hitting the kick.

that'll tighten up the kick sound, and let you push it a little without other stuff feeding back into the kick mic.

i'd put the other side of the comp on something way more important than the kick drum or the bass (sorry), namely the vocals.

if your board has subgroup inserts or left-right main inserts and a mono out, pan all the vocals into that group (or that side, panning everything else out), then insert the compressor. set it to 4:1 maybe, then adjust the threshold until a few lights come on with louder singing.

that'll smooth out the vocals, letting you push them up over the mix without peaking out, and keep quiet vocal parts from disappearing in the mix.

i suggested subgroups or main inserts because inserting a comp on a vocal channel will compress the vocal monitor too, and you do not want that.
 
#7
Please forgive my ignorance. What settings do you recommend on the gate for the kick drum?

The manual is confusing to me. The lights above each channel reads "Gain reduction" not sure how I'm supposed to read those lights.

I'm also looking for settings for the following for compression of the kick

Threshhold:
Ratio:
Attack:
Release:
Output Gain:
Peakstop Limiter:

Again, sorry fo the ignorance, I just want to get as good sound from the kick as I can for the band. Thank you .
 
#8
Threshold will depend completely on the signal level of the kick going into the compressor.

Ratio is going to determine how much is reduced when the threshold is hit. I think I set mine to 2.5:1

I use an attack of 30ms or less regardless of what I'm using the compressor on. I think I have it set to 15ms on the kick.

Release is going to determine how long the signal is compressed for. Gotta listen and see how much you need. I set mine between 200ms and 500ms, generally. For the kick I just have it on long enough to hold for duration of the hit.

Everything I've read/heard about compression recommends setting the output gain to match the amount of gain being reduced, to make up for it. This way you're evening out the volume level.
 
#11
I'd suggest looking up the manual for the unit. It will probably have the specs for how many milliseconds "fast" and "slow" actually are.

As mentioned threshold will depend on input level, I like 2:1 ratio for kick drum (leave room for dynamics), attack as fast as possible (2ms on the units I use). Release should also be quite fast for a drum, but in general the kick sound naturally decays so quickly anyway that it won't matter much what setting you use for release.

In the case of most drummers you don't need to add any output gain. You'll be using the compressor more in the role of a 'soft' limiter (as opposed to a hard limiter). In other words controlling spikes.

The best way to set a compressor is to use your ears. Do what sounds good. Learn to listen for and identify qualities you like, and how to get them with the parameters the unit has. You can cheat a little by watching the lights and the gain reduction meter.
 
#12
one other thing... some gates and compressors have a 'key' knob. This lets you control exactly what frequencies trigger the unit. With out this feature, any frequency over the threshold will trigger it.

Why is this a problem? Microphones are not isolated from other sources. Say arbitrarily you've got a gate on the kick drum mic set at -10db. While the drummer isn't hitting the kick he is hitting his obnoxiously loud snare, at +15db. Although several feet away, the snare is still at +2db at the kick mic. Now your gate/comp is being trigger unintentionally. But if you had a key (which your unit doesn't), you could set it for 45hz. Then the unit will trigger only when the 45hz goes over -10db. Now matter how hard he hits that snare, it will never have any content at 45hz.

Now that I've confused you with my long winded rambling, here's my point: you've probably got a bass rig on a tiny stage right next to the drummer. That kick mic will easily pick up your bass, and is probably being compressed every time you play your E string. So be aware of what is actually coming through each mic.


This is also a problem when folks over compress vocals when there is a crash symbol 8 inches behind there head. Hello feedback.

whew, I need to shut up now.
 

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