Problems achieving maximum headroom

[Owen252]

ok think i've got this, stuck the compressor on the master, followed by utility.

Should i set the gain on utility so that its hitting just below 0db?

Sounding good at the moment. not sure what to set my ratios etc to.

Heres how i've currently got it set up.

[Tone Deft]

no need for the utility plug-in.

read up on compressors.

the way you have it setup the output from the compressor cannot go higher than -6dB. rather than use the Utility plug-in, raise the output of the compressor, make sense?

[Owen252]

no need for the utility plug-in.

read up on compressors.

the way you have it setup the output from the compressor cannot go higher than -6dB. rather than use the Utility plug-in, raise the output of the compressor, make sense?

how would you suggest i get the compressor up to just below 0db? i've read up on compressors and how they work but still dont really understand them. been reading ableton live 8 power, a book i got off amazon which has been pretty helpful.

i'll try both ur methods tomorrow, see which works best for me..dont think my house mate would appreciate the noise at this time really appreciate all the help

[Tone Deft]

look at the compressor's curve, what does it mean?

the x-axis is the input
the y-axis is the output

see how your line only goes up to -6dB? move it to where you want the maximum output to be.

read the 'basics' section here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_range_compression

and of course
http://www.tarekith.com/assets/dynamics.html

[Owen252]

look at the compressor's curve, what does it mean?

the x-axis is the input
the y-axis is the output

see how your line only goes up to -6dB? move it to where you want the maximum output to be.

read the 'basics' section here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_range_compression

and of course
http://www.tarekith.com/assets/dynamics.html

right mate heres how i've got my compressor set up



would you say that looks about right? while playing this mix through, the points at which im mixing the 2 tracks together with EQ are causing the limiter to engage but when its not during a mix its about -2 -3 db, this normal ?

[Tone Deft]

no idea. music is sensed through the ears, not the eyes.

I keep asking you these questions and you're not answering them. go read up on compressors, learn how they work, learn why they suck the life out of music, learn why you use them.

play your set and see if you can do it without pushing the Master into the red. if you do hit red, turn the Master down a bit and try again. until you learn what a compressor does it's pointless to look at a picture to judge whether or not it's being used correctly.

really, that's the main thing. PRACTICE. stop dicking around with effects, practice your craft and you won't need them. forget all this crap, you're going to stress yourself out. just relax and practice your set.



edit - maybe a more experienced forumite can give you some numbers to put into a compressor (I know some of them can, there are some incredibly talented people on here.) I can't. I prefer to not look at the screen when I make an adjustment.

keep at it, you'll get there, for now focus on performance, luckily the radio station has compressors and limiters built into their system. if you were playing right into a PA, it would be different.

[rbmonosylabik]

For my DJ Setup I set all clips to -9 dB using clip view, then in the master I only have Live's Limiter set to Ceiling: -0.30 dB and Gain: 6 dB. That way you give yourself a safety net for EQing or adding effects to the tracks, while the Limiter keeps the sum during transitions in check while not touching the track's dynamics when they're playing on their own.