Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Follow me @streaky_com for daily mixing and mastering tips 🎛️
How to hear what your compressor is actually doing.
Every compressor brings the level down. That's the whole point. But quieter always sounds worse to your ears, so if you leave the output alone, you're judging the volume drop, not the compression.
That's what makeup gain is for. Match it to the amount of gain reduction. If you're bringing the level down by 1dB, add 1dB to the output or makeup gain. Now the input and the output sit at the same level, and every A/B tells you exactly what the compressor is doing to the tone, the punch, and the shape of the sound.
Level match first, then judge.
#mixing #compression #compressor #gainstaging #mixingtips
Follow me @streaky_com for daily mixing and mastering tips 🎛️
How to hear what your compressor is actually doing.
Every compressor brings the level down. That's the whole point. But quieter always sounds worse to your ears, so if you leave the output alone, you're judging the volume drop, not the compression.
That's what makeup gain is for. Match it to the amount of gain reduction. If you're bringing the level down by 1dB, add 1dB to the output or makeup gain. Now the input and the output sit at the same level, and every A/B tells you exactly what the compressor is doing to the tone, the punch, and the shape of the sound.
Level match first, then judge.
#mixing #compression #compressor #gainstaging #mixingtips
