Hey guys...

Well I'll get straight to the point. I usually compress my kick after FX EQ etc, do the same to my bass channel, then if it needs it I compress them together routed to a sub group. I don't use side-chain compression a whole lot but it has become useful in a track I am currently working on. I am using the Sidechain Compressor in one of my Wave Bundles and the bass seems to bouncing along nicely. But the problem is because I have already routed my bass and (duplicate) kick in to the sidechain compression subgroup I can't compress them together in another group.

I have 2 questions.

Is compressing the bass and kick together necessary?

If so how can I compress them together if the output of the bass channel has already been routed to the sidechain Compression subgroup?

The kick has not been routed to the sidechain compression group as I am using the duplicate "invisible" kick channel to act as the signal for the sidechaining...

___________________
We are the music makers. We are the dreamers of dreams....

Anything you have routed to the sidechain that you want to hear, you just simply make duplicates and make a sub group for the duplicates.

eg- usually I will have a main channel for the kick, then I create extra audio channels that have the kick routed to them and I use those extra audio channels to trigger the channels I want sidechained.

Then you simply route the main kick and the bass to a group, then do whatever necessary processing.

You've spent all that money on MULTIPLE Waves bundles and you're asking whether compressing the bass and kick together is necessary? My goodness.

Anyway - the answer to this question totally depends on the DAW you're using. Cubase lets you route one group into another group, which makes me think you're not using Cubase.

You can't set the sidechain up on the individual bass channel? I'm currently using the sidekick plugin available at:

http://www.twistedlemon.nl/

You set up two instances of that, one to send the sidechain input, the other on the channel which is to be "pumped". Tweak the settings and you're done!

Compressing the bass and kick together is quite common. Whether or not it's "necessary" is for you to decide in the context of your mix. Always act in the best interests of the song, not what you think you "should" do. Listen to the kick and bass with various compression settings and determine whether or not they need compression.

quote:

Originally posted by derail Cubase lets you route one group into another group, which makes me think you're not using Cubase.

Problem solved. I guess I was thinking that since you can't route one audio channel in to multiple sub groups (I am using Cubase) it wouldn't have worked for me. Of course you can route one sub group in to another sub group. What a knob I am...

quote:

Originally posted by derail You've spent all that money on MULTIPLE Waves bundles

Typo. I have many plugin bundles but only ONE Waves bundle. Native Power Pack...

quote:

Originally posted by derail you're asking whether compressing the bass and kick together is necessary?

When I compress the kick and bass together after I have already compressed them individually, sometimes the dynamics is ruined so instead of having subtle changes on a grouped compressor I leave it out completely.

Anyway cheers for the reply.

___________________
We are the music makers. We are the dreamers of dreams....

quote:

Originally posted by Blahzaay Is compressing the bass and kick together necessary?

no it is absolutely not

___________________
BA-DUM-TSS

quote:

ALFI - BOHICA - DJ MIX (Stream+Dropbox)

quote:

Originally posted by dj_alfi no it is absolutely not

+1

however if i dont compress kick + bass together i find myself always using a compressor on the master to 'glue' stuff together.

also i think to me and the way i like to produce, its more important to compress the kick + bass together than to compress those elements individually. although bass i almost always end up compressing

___________________