Hello everyone!
I am fairly new to music production (I've been doing it for 2 to 3 years), so I thought asking this question here would be the best idea.
Lately, I've been trying to catch up with some new trends in several underground music circles, and I stumbled upon this hip-hop project, which is maybe not necessarily very pleasant to listen to for everyone, but its producer uses multiband compression in a really distinctive way, and it is something I'd like to emulate, mostly for educational purposes.
So my question is, what is really happening in those instrumental tracks? How do they sound so glued, almost flat, but without losing too much (saying it very loosely) dynamic range (at least in terms how they're being perceived, when being listened to)? I've tried to get the same results, but I'd always end up with some nasty clicks, overpowering sub or overly flattened mix. I feel like I'm doing some very naive mistakes here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtf8k1uoWfc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5V7_KVTq3g
How to utilize multiband compression to "glue" the mix so well?
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Hermetech Mastering Hermetech Mastering https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=7418 - KVRAF
- 1619 posts since 30 May, 2003 from Milan, Italy
For so called glue, I'd be far more inclined to use a wide band limiter. Multi band anything should only be used for problem correction, IMO.
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- KVRian
- 880 posts since 26 Oct, 2011
You can use multiband compression for the "glue". But that being said, I'm afraid it's more experimental area and one cannot really give any go-to tips on how one should go about. I would never do that myself, but saying that you shouldn't use it like that is like saying that you shouldn't use a piano that is completely out of tune. Sure, it may sound strange, but if the person uses it for his / her expression, why not?Hermetech Mastering wrote:For so called glue, I'd be far more inclined to use a wide band limiter. Multi band anything should only be used for problem correction, IMO.
I mean, take for example witch house. They deliberately have often clipping in their channels, even master channel sometimes, so their mixes will sound amateurish. I'm sure that it's something you should never do, yet they do it, and not because they don't know how, but because they want to do it.
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- KVRAF
- 3186 posts since 18 Mar, 2008
Like many of us, you are using tool you don't have firm grasp of to do things you don't have right motive for, just because somebody said you should, deadly combination.kkanibal wrote:I feel like I'm doing some very naive mistakes here.
You can't fix bad mix like that either, all goes into final outcome, not just one tool on stereo bus, address individual tracks, than bus-es, than stereo bus, in that order, your stereo bus one shouldn't do much heavy lifting, use it to fine tune everything, right now, you are obviously overdoing everything.
Which multi-band compressor are you using anyways?
This entire forum is wading through predictions, opinions, barely formed thoughts, drama, and whining. If you don't enjoy that, why are you here? 
ShawnG
ShawnG-
- KVRist
- 45 posts since 13 Jan, 2016
Yes, this is a common trap. I´m also often into it but at least i try to resist.Zexila wrote:Like many of us, you are using tool you don't have firm grasp of to do things you don't have right motive for, just because somebody said you should, deadly combination.kkanibal wrote:I feel like I'm doing some very naive mistakes here.
The next trap is: If the tool do not give you pleasure results, then going into more and more extreme settings.
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- KVRAF
- 4590 posts since 7 Jun, 2012 from Warsaw
How? Understand what you are doing.
Recently I played my old DJ set recorded in 2006 which used signifiant level of multiband compression. It is objectively ovecrompressed, but still sounds very good and coherent.
Now, when I started to "master" my own tracks two years ago or more, I tried multiband compression or very bad mixes and it didn't work at all. I gave up and went back to earlier stages.
Now I realized that lack of multiband compression is what sets my mix apart from commercial releases - this subtle, but omnipresent distortion glued to the mix. Now multiband compression has a good chance to work on wideband signals that already have perfect mixdown, if applied subtly. It breaks my suqaring-the-circle train of thought that didn't allow to have everything loud and clear as well as hot and clean at the same time. But it took many months to come to that conclusion.
To sum things up - if multiband compression doesn't work for you, you are not ready. Take your time and try something different.
Recently I played my old DJ set recorded in 2006 which used signifiant level of multiband compression. It is objectively ovecrompressed, but still sounds very good and coherent.
Now, when I started to "master" my own tracks two years ago or more, I tried multiband compression or very bad mixes and it didn't work at all. I gave up and went back to earlier stages.
Now I realized that lack of multiband compression is what sets my mix apart from commercial releases - this subtle, but omnipresent distortion glued to the mix. Now multiband compression has a good chance to work on wideband signals that already have perfect mixdown, if applied subtly. It breaks my suqaring-the-circle train of thought that didn't allow to have everything loud and clear as well as hot and clean at the same time. But it took many months to come to that conclusion.
To sum things up - if multiband compression doesn't work for you, you are not ready. Take your time and try something different.
Blog ------------- YouTube channel
Tricky-Loops wrote: (...)someone like Armin van Buuren who claims to make a track in half an hour and all his songs sound somewhat boring(...)
Tricky-Loops wrote: (...)someone like Armin van Buuren who claims to make a track in half an hour and all his songs sound somewhat boring(...)
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- KVRAF
- 5664 posts since 7 Feb, 2013
For my own "self-matering" I use a single band compressor with internal hi-pass chain to glue things. I set the hi-pass so that the compressor doesn't react to bass frequencies and then adjust the threshold so that to give about -3 dB GR max, long attack, release to taste (if your GR meter is undulating to the beat of the song you are on the right track, if it shows a static value, you may want to do further tweaks to the threshold, attack and release).
Then I use a multiband compressor to add slight punch to the low end, adjust the tonal balance and somehow manage the loudness peaks before the audio hits the limiter.
This is the way I'm doing it, I'm an amateur so I may be doing it completely wrong. But my understanding is basically that the glue comes from how you gain reduction is interacting with the groove of the track. You can do this with a MB compressor, but basically a single-band one should do the job and is easier to set up. In my workflow a MB compressor is for loudness rather than for gluing (having thus said, both the loudness and the glue should primarily come from how you mix your stems).
Then I use a multiband compressor to add slight punch to the low end, adjust the tonal balance and somehow manage the loudness peaks before the audio hits the limiter.
This is the way I'm doing it, I'm an amateur so I may be doing it completely wrong. But my understanding is basically that the glue comes from how you gain reduction is interacting with the groove of the track. You can do this with a MB compressor, but basically a single-band one should do the job and is easier to set up. In my workflow a MB compressor is for loudness rather than for gluing (having thus said, both the loudness and the glue should primarily come from how you mix your stems).
You may think you can fly ... but you better not try
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- KVRer
- 4 posts since 29 Jun, 2016
"Glue" comes from first and foremost - a proper mixdown.
Some subtle buss compression helps with this. Waves and Slate make some great buss compressors...also cytomix "The Glue".
Whatever you're trying to achieve, is probably best done with EQ and a compressor and maybe some limiting. Unless you have an advanced understanding of compression and EQ, stay away from the multiband compressors. You can destroy a mix in about .0002 seconds if you're not careful. (Especially if the ADSR envelopes are not right) MB's splits the audio into frequency bands which allows you to process each one differently. This is more of an advanced mastering application or for fixing more dynamic sound material like acoustic instrument recordings. You should also have good monitors so you can hear what's actually happening with each band.
If you're just doing electronic music, save yourself the headache and use standard EQ's, Compressors and a spectrum analyzer to "glue" your mixes.
Some subtle buss compression helps with this. Waves and Slate make some great buss compressors...also cytomix "The Glue".
Whatever you're trying to achieve, is probably best done with EQ and a compressor and maybe some limiting. Unless you have an advanced understanding of compression and EQ, stay away from the multiband compressors. You can destroy a mix in about .0002 seconds if you're not careful. (Especially if the ADSR envelopes are not right) MB's splits the audio into frequency bands which allows you to process each one differently. This is more of an advanced mastering application or for fixing more dynamic sound material like acoustic instrument recordings. You should also have good monitors so you can hear what's actually happening with each band.
If you're just doing electronic music, save yourself the headache and use standard EQ's, Compressors and a spectrum analyzer to "glue" your mixes.
