when using a drum program...

[Peeker]

what do you do in terms of compression?
I'm using Acoustica Beatcraft (which I love).
I have one comp setting for the snare, one for the kick, and another for the toms.
off the top of my head I couldn't say what they're set at.:o

but I'm curious to know how others have their settings for this.


and oddly, it seems my drum sounds change sometimes, though I keep all the settings the same.
with the exception of tunes that require something different.
but the metal and punk stuff's all done under one banner, so to speak.
weird...

[Kerouac]

I but it out from Battery into Logic for individual tracks and compress as needed.

[Peeker]

but is there sort of a common formula whenit comes to compressing drums?

I really have no idea what I'm talking about.
I just fiddle with stuff till I get what I want.
or a close approximation, anyways.

[Kerouac]

but is there sort of a common formula whenit comes to compressing drums?

I really have no idea what I'm talking about.
I just fiddle with stuff till I get what I want.
or a close approximation, anyways.

Fiddle until you get what you want is the best thing to do. It's about the sound, not the numbers.

Personally I prefer less compression on drums.

[Peeker]

yeah, I don't think I'm using much as it is rightnow...

[DNW]

It really just depends on what sound you want and what you're working with. For some things I like rather heavily compressed drums, for some things I like a much more raw and roomy drum sound.

For heavier music, you might want to use a fair bit of EQ and compression to help make the attack of the hits more hefty and defined.

The track I'm currently working on with Superior Drummer, the snare is now that I think about it rather absurd. Four out of the five mics (don't use the "trash" mic... just don't get where it fits in) are EQ'd and compressed, then sent off to a group track for further EQ and comp. In parallel to that, the two top snare mics go off to another group (pre-FX) for different processing, and the bottom snare mics go off to another channel. There's also another one coming off the first group track post-FX, that adds further EQ and compression (limiting actually). Every one of the groups adds its own bit to the sound, and in the end I get a snare that has a nice bit of beef in it, but also some nice higher end crack (don't like those dull thud type "metal" snare sounds).

If I was doing a nice folky song or something though, obviously I would have to seriously change those settings and wouldn't use anywhere near that amount of EQ and compression (and most likely wouldn't have to load up the 8pc kit with 13 cymbals :lol: :o).

Have never used Beatcraft, so I've got no idea what it can do and what the samples sound like. Essentially the best way is to just experiment. Listen for things you like in "pro" recordings and try recreate the things you like. There are also plenty of guides around on the internet for compression, so maybe hunt about for some of those and try out what they suggest. Everything I've learned over the years has just been from reading on the internet, or just experimenting and finding my own ways of doing things.

[Prages]

When I used a drum machine, I didn't use any compression on the drums. Now that I'm using a mic'd kit, I use tons of compression.

[DNW]

When I used a drum machine, I didn't use any compression on the drums. Now that I'm using a mic'd kit, I use tons of compression.

Yeah, a lot of it will depend on the sounds you're working with.

With S2.0, how I process things depends on what I'm doing and which drums I've picked. And then between the different libraries it differs more. The Avatar library for example is already tweaked, whereas something like Metal Foundry is completely raw, so Avatar needs a lot less work on it to get it sounding good.