Pulsating Sounds: Sidechain Compression Tools That Are Changing the Game forever [014]

Make Your Drums Knock Harder Than Ever: This Sidechain Hack Will Leave Your Bass Rumbling

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Struggling to make your kick drum and bassline work together?  Feeling frustrated with muddy mixes that lack punch and definition? You're not alone.

We all know that a killer groove is the heart of a banger Track. But what if your current tools are holding you back? Imagine a mix where your kick cuts through with authority, your bassline rumbles with power, and the whole track pulsates with energy.

That's the magic of sidechain compression.

Sidechain compression is one of my favorite tools for getting a groove into your hip-hop or electronic music songs.

Whether it's triggered from the kick to the bass, from the kick to synth groups, or to get some groove on the hi-hat track, sidechain compression is a must for making space, cleaning up the mix, and shaping the sound design.

Now, I'm a huge supporter for experimentation, but sometimes you need the right tools to get the job done fast. That's why I'm hyped to share my two favorite sidechain compressors that have become permanent residents in my mixing arsenal

Smart:Comp from Sonible.

The smart:comp is a highly flexible tool, whether used as a regular compressor or with its great sidechain features. Smart:Comp 1 or 2 is a spectro-dynamic compressor that can affect different frequencies to different degrees. The AI-powered system is based on deep learning technology, immense data, psychoacoustic principles, and extensive mixing experience.

Choose a profile and let smart:comp 2 learn your track. The plug-in only needs a few seconds to deliver highly accurate compression results or carve out your track with it’s Sidechain features

Three different functions make this plugin stand out, especially if you use Smart Comp's sidechain function.

Spectral processing for tonal and dynamic balance between different tracks:

Remember when we spent hours dialing in the perfect Sidechain compressor settings? Smart:Comp eliminates that frustration.

Imagine you send your kick as a sidechain signal to your bass track using the multiband sidechain feature of Smart:Comp. The intelligent processing recognizes the characteristics of your material and can thus optimize transparency and preserve crucial details without compressing the signal's integrity.

In this case, space is created, and the sidechain compression is applied more strongly to the low frequencies so that both tracks do not interfere with each other. The result is very transparent without creating a typical pumping effect.

Apply Ducking and Pumping Effects to a specific frequency range.

The other two great features are the regular sidechain compressor and a filter function for strong ducking effects applied to the signal to make the sound pump and move.

Although Smart:comp can automatically select the attack and release values for you, it is not recommended that you rely solely on its suggestions. Because you want to find your own style when designing the sound to optimize the sidechain effect.

You can begin by pulling down the Threshold control, making the pumping effect more noticeable. Experiment with the attack and release values, particularly the short-release value that makes the sound pump more. Once you're happy with the result, you can raise the threshold or use the dry/wet function to ensure the effect is not too audible.

However, Smart:Comp also has a filter function. This allows you to set the sidechain function to be applied only to a specific frequency range. What I particularly love

Assuming you have a synth track and only want to apply the sidechain function to a specific frequency region, for example, between 2000hz and 20,000hz, this is easily possible with smart:comp, and the whole thing is relatively uncomplicated and delivers awesome results.

Kickstart2

The second extraordinary tool I would like to introduce to you is Kickstart 2, which is specially designed to make your kick groove with the bass but can, of course, also be used for other tracks.

Place Kickstart on any track to instantly attenuate the volume of any kick drum and make room for your bass.

You can then select 16 different curves to fine-tune the sidechain. Now kick and bass come through your speakers with professional punch, definition and groove. Use it for EDM, trap, house, hip-hop, techno, DnB - anything.

Kickstarter 2 also has a multiband feature that lets you apply the ducking effect only to the low frequencies of your bassline, for example.

They are absolute game-changers.

Both tools can bring your song to life and create your desired groove. They'll help you craft mixes that breathe, pulsate, and leave listeners wanting more.

These are just two of the sidechain compression weapons in my arsenal, and they've taken my mixes to a whole new level. Now, it's your turn to unleash the groove monster within your tracks!

Cheers Marcus