135 lines
5.9 KiB
Markdown
135 lines
5.9 KiB
Markdown
+++
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title = "Dynamics"
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chapter = false
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weight = 6
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#pre = "<b>1. </b>"
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+++
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One of the problems you may encounter in a Mix is that the loud parts
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are too loud, and/or the quiet parts are too quiet.
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This kind of problem cannot be easily solved using Faders to adjust the Levels alone. You may
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set the Levels so high that they clip, or you may add unwanted
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background noise by simply turning Levels up. These are all problems
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with what is called the **Dynamic Range**, i.e., the difference between
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the loudest and quietest parts of your Session. There are several types
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of tools for adjusting the Dynamic Range available as **Plugins**
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within Ardour, including **Limiting**, **Compression** and **Gating**.
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## Limiting
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A **Limiter** is a tool that prevents the volume of a Track from going
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over a certain Level, usually the Peak Level (0dB) or something close to
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it. Many Limiters have the option to boost the Levels of the incoming
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signal before they are Limited, and in this way you can "close the gap"
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between the loudest and quietest parts of your Mix. A Limiter can be
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used on the Master Bus to prevent the overall Mix from Clipping.
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Limiters are almost always used Post-Fader.
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In the example below, a Plugin named "*Fast Lookahead Limiter*" is used (if you don't find that specific one among your installed plugins, look for any other called "Limiter"). To
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set how much it limits, simply adjust the
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"*Limit (dB)*" slider. The Fast Lookahead Limiter literally "looks
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ahead" in the signal by a few milliseconds, and when it sees that the
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signal is about to go over the limit you have set, it automatically
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turns the Levels down.
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The "*Input Gain (dB)*" slider determines how much the Levels are
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increased before they reach the Limiter, and the "*Attenuation (dB)*"
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meter on the right-hand side shows how much the Levels are being reduced
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at any given moment. While the reduction in volume is
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nearly-instantaneous, the "*Release time (s)*" slider determines how
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long it takes the Limiter to return to 0 Decibels of **Attenuation**.
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Note that the "harder" one drives the Limiter (by increasing the Input
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Gain and/or decreasing the maximum Peak Limit allowed), the more
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reduction the Limiter is forced to make, and the more likely it is that
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Artifacts of the processing will occur (such as Distortions or erratic
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changes in volume). On the Master Bus, it is generally best to avoid
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excessive Limiting.
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## Compression
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A **Compressor** boosts the overall volume of a sound, but then
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"squeezes" it depending on how loud it is. This can make vocals sound
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more even or drums sound fuller and louder. The end effect is similar to
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how a Limiter can reduce the range between the quietest and the loudest
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sound, however the effect is more selective when using a Compressor.
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The simplest Compressor has relatively few controls, such as the
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"*Simple Compressor*" Plugin shown below. Here, the "*Threshold*"
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sets the Level at which the Compressor will start to act, and the
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"*Compression Ratio*" controls how much the Compressor will "squeeze"
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the sound. The "*Attack*" and "*Decay*" parameters control how quickly
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the Compressor affects the sound.
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A more complex Compressor, the "*SC1 Compressor*" Plugin, is show below.
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It has three main buttons:
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- "*Threshold level* (dB)" sets the level at which the Compressor will compress or squeeze the sound.
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- "*Ratio* (1:n)" controls how much it will squeeze when it reaches the threshold.
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- "*Makeup gain (dB)*" boosts the whole signal after the Compression occurs.
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To soften out a vocal, for example, you could set a "Threshold level" of −10dB or so
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and a "Ratio" of 2.5, and then bring the volume back up with the "Makeup
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gain".
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The other three controls — "*Attack time (ms)*", "*Release time (ms)*" and
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"*Knee radius (dB)*" — allow you to control the shape of the Compression.
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For soft vocal Compression, you would want a semi-fast "Attack time" so
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that the Compressor catches the beginning of each word, a slower
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"Release time" to let the voice ring out, and a soft "Knee radius" to
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create a gentle form of compression that isn't too noticeable.
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If you want to make drums sound big, you might try a slow "Attack time" so that
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you don't Compress the pop of the drum, a fast "Release time" so that
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the Compressor can catch the next hit of the drum, and a large "Ratio"
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to make the Dynamics between the beginning and end of the drum hit
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similar.
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Below is a screenshot of a similar Compressor from the
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[Calf Plugins Package](http://calf.sourceforge.net/plugins.html):
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## Gating
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The simplest kind of **Gate** allows a signal to pass through when it is
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over a certain Level, and blocks the signal when it is lower than that.
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Gates are often used as a kind of noise reduction. For example, the Gate
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on a microphone channel might only open while the singer is singing,
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preventing other background noises from coming through as well when she
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is not singing. Gated drums are also a very well-known studio production
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trick to make them sound "sharper".
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Here, the "*Hard Gate*" Plugin displays a single control
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parameter, the "*Threshold*" at which the Gate will open and let the
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signal through.
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Other kinds of Gates, such as the Calf Gate Plugin, are
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more complex. They have independent control over how quickly the Gate
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opens (the "*Attack*") and closes (the "*Release*"), as well as other
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parameters quite similar to those described for the SC Compressor above.
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## Continuing
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Now that we've explored some tools for getting the Dynamic Range exactly
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where you want it, it's time to look at adjusting the balance of
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Frequencies present in each individual Track and in your overall Mix. In
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the next chapter, we'll learn how to use the **Equalizer** to do just
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that.
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Next: [EQUALIZING](../equalizing)
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