Old 09-01-2018, 12:29 PM   #1
JMTee
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Default Mixing: Master Track Compression

Hi guys,
I'm a newbie at mixing I'm mixing a song, following Kenny's "Mixing in Reaper" video tutorial. To add compression to the Master track, Kenny uses the Massey CT5 and the Cytomic Glue, wondering can I achieve the same result using ReaComp? I would like to have the same settings Kenny uses, but try and get those in ReaComp just not sure which settings in Massey CT 5, and Cytomic Glue equate to which settings in ReaComp.
Also on the Master track Kenny has the DB set at 0, but as seen in the screen shot below, when I have my Master DB set at 0 the track clips
Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated
NOTE: I originally added this post to a previous Massey CT 5 thread, but no response, so trying in the general forum to see if anyone has any suggestions.

Last edited by JMTee; 02-15-2024 at 05:43 AM.
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Old 09-01-2018, 02:10 PM   #2
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I remember trying to do exactly the same thing.

I don't know that I ever got there, but, for what it's worth, I've attached a couple presets that I use to approximate what I think he's doing. The SSL bus preset came from someone else and I can't recall who it was. I adjusted the attack and release times on that preset to approximate the pumping Massey.

Play with the release time on the pump comp to suit your track.

EDIT: I just noticed that Kenny's glue comp has a faster attack time, so.... adjust to taste.

I hope this is helpful.
Attached Files
File Type: fxp REACOMP Master Bus GLUE.FXP (132 Bytes, 197 views)
File Type: fxp REACOMP Master Bus Pump.FXP (132 Bytes, 163 views)
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Old 09-01-2018, 03:14 PM   #3
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In the Reacomp screenshot you have the attack set to more than 3 times the amount as even the highest setting on the SSL clone. That quite possibly makes it sound a lot less like it than it could.

Sorry I have no further Reacomp advice for you but as a heads up - the Waves SSL Compressor (same unit that "the glue" models and, IMO, the best compressor for master track) is on sale at $29 at the moment.

If you can afford it I would recommend it highly, it'll literally likely enhance just about every mix you do from now on. Once it's in auto mode it's so easy to use.
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Old 09-01-2018, 03:17 PM   #4
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The first thing I notice is that you have the threshold on Reacomp at a PLUS number which will cause the clipping indicator to show red. Try pulling it down to the same value, only negative.
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Old 09-01-2018, 04:50 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffsounds View Post
The first thing I notice is that you have the threshold on Reacomp at a PLUS number which will cause the clipping indicator to show red. Try pulling it down to the same value, only negative.
Do you mean the Wet control?

The threshold control won't cause clipping on a plus number, it just means that compression won't kick in unless the track was already triggering the clip indicator before the Reacomp plugin was activated.
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Old 09-01-2018, 05:55 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dug dog View Post
I remember trying to do exactly the same thing.

I don't know that I ever got there, but, for what it's worth, I've attached a couple presets that I use to approximate what I think he's doing. The SSL bus preset came from someone else and I can't recall who it was. I adjusted the attack and release times on that preset to approximate the pumping Massey.

Play with the release time on the pump comp to suit your track.

EDIT: I just noticed that Kenny's glue comp has a faster attack time, so.... adjust to taste.

I hope this is helpful.
May I please ask where I would put those files so they show up in the presets for ReaComp ? I looked and could not find where. Win 10 C:\ drive is where Reaper is installed.
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Old 09-01-2018, 06:05 PM   #7
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Open Reacomp and click the "+" button. Then "Import VST Patch/Bank file". The preset will then show in the ReaComp drop down menu. (I'm not sure where Reaper actually stores those presets.)
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Old 09-01-2018, 09:17 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stews View Post
Do you mean the Wet control?

The threshold control won't cause clipping on a plus number, it just means that compression won't kick in unless the track was already triggering the clip indicator before the Reacomp plugin was activated.
No. The threshold is at +3 in the Reacomp pic in his post. I tried it here and when I pushed the threshold up to +3 it started showing red in the output just like his Reacomp.jpg.
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Old 09-01-2018, 11:19 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dug dog View Post
Open Reacomp and click the "+" button. Then "Import VST Patch/Bank file". The preset will then show in the ReaComp drop down menu. (I'm not sure where Reaper actually stores those presets.)
Thank you, I knew it was something I was missing. As soon as I read it I was like DOH!
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Old 09-02-2018, 03:02 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffsounds View Post
No. The threshold is at +3 in the Reacomp pic in his post. I tried it here and when I pushed the threshold up to +3 it started showing red in the output just like his Reacomp.jpg.
Do you have auto make up gain on maybe?

There's no reason setting a high threshold would cause clipping, it's just setting it not to compress until the level is really high.
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Old 09-02-2018, 06:17 AM   #11
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Quote:
The threshold is at +3 in the Reacomp pic in his post.
Nothing to do with the threshold, set the wet mix back to zero FYI.
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Old 09-02-2018, 06:20 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stews View Post
the Waves SSL Compressor (same unit that "the glue" models and, IMO, the best compressor for master track) is on sale at $29 at the moment.

If you can afford it I would recommend it highly, it'll literally likely enhance just about every mix you do from now on. Once it's in auto mode it's so easy to use.
I agree. It will work in place of The Glue since they are both IMHO pretty much doing the same thing. Both are very pillowy/grabby FWIW - not saying that's bad just that they are and a little goes along way with those two.
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Old 09-02-2018, 12:21 PM   #13
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Look at the ReaComp.jpg in the OP. The threshold is at +3 and the output is showing red. I pulled up my Reacomp and set the threshold to +3 and the output showed red. When I pulled the threshold down, the red in the output went away. I thought maybe that is what he was seeing as clipping so I mentioned it. I duplicated what he did and got the same result.
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Old 09-02-2018, 12:27 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffsounds View Post
Look at the ReaComp.jpg in the OP.
See wet mix in pic. The only way I could repro here was to set wet > 0 and with auto-makeup on. There is no reason increasing the "ceiling" should change the output otherwise.
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Old 09-03-2018, 11:51 AM   #15
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Thanks so much for all the help! I will try out these suggestions, thanks again!
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Old 09-03-2018, 12:18 PM   #16
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Sorry, another mixing question, in following Kenny's mixing in reaper, there's a step to mix the drums, in which he adjusts the phase for live drums.
My drums are MIDI - Kontakt Abbey Road 60s drummer, so is it correct that I don't need to adjust the phase on the midi drums?
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Old 09-03-2018, 02:34 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JMTee View Post
Sorry, another mixing question, in following Kenny's mixing in reaper, there's a step to mix the drums, in which he adjusts the phase for live drums.
My drums are MIDI - Kontakt Abbey Road 60s drummer, so is it correct that I don't need to adjust the phase on the midi drums?
That's correct - any phase adjustments would have already been done when they recorded the samples. Same with any EQ recommendations etc. - none of that applies to a drum library, it'll already be taken care of.
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Old 09-03-2018, 04:10 PM   #18
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Quote:
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any phase adjustments would have already been done when they recorded the samples
That was my assumption, too, when I first bought Superior Drummer 2. However, it turned out that some of the kick and snare samples were out of phase with the overheads. I guess they were going for realism.
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