How to NAIL Vocal Compression Every Time

[@Capt-Cran]

Wanted you to know ... that the graphics and information on this video has helped me more understand compression in a major way ... I have always struggled, but this helped me understand ... AND I could hear the difference finally ... the A/B demonstrations were super .... I really appreciate the video!! SUBSCRIBED!!

[@waves]

Glad we could help 🙌 🙌 🙌

[@AlekVila]

This is one of the better demonstrations do to your use of the visual aid. Nice!

[@YashhMusix]

The graphical representation are just insane man. Loved this one❤

[@digitalmarketinghumans]

The visual graphs here really help. Thank you Waves team for getting this on. Great explanation video. Really love your plugins. I haven't updated Waves in a while since I used Slate and other plugin companies but now, I am loving waves again especially after V12. I can definitely hear the difference. Thank you guys for updating your plugins! Not just the GUI, but the sound as well!

[@TheRandomINFJ]

I'm a visual *and* hands-on learner and your diagrams nailed it. I really appreciate the effort you put into this. Thank you 🙏 ❤🤜🤛🎤

[@zachary963]

For those asking: this is not the same as an expander. An expander raises the volume of a signal above a threshold. R Comp has this feature, and it’s expressed as “negative” compression ratios. MV2 is a low-level compressor, where a signal below a threshold is raised. Automation or possibly parallel compression is more similar than an expander.

[@Aqua_1014]

Doesn't Trash 2's compressor & gate combo work this way too? The gate has negative values, raising the signal below the threshold, turning the gate into a low compressor right?

[@BLT-Tech]

It sounds good. Is it unlike pre-gain on a compressor? thanks! 🙏

[@stevenspencer9104]

Thank you so very much brother. I’m using it a lot on vocals at church now.

[@bquillsstudio6393]

MV2 is Amazing, I use it in every vocal track, And in the mastering process as well.

[@michaelalvarez8046]

I want to thank you… this plug in did exactly what you said it would. It will be my go to compression in shaping vocals. From there I can add the “ frosting “. Thanks again

[@paulaudialterampartem6906]

For me, its simplicity is its beauty. It has saved the day as i have been struggling with some very old (but in demand) cassette recordings.What a job ! This has been a God send really :)

[@Professor_Pat]

All your plugins in these series are right on the money. They haven’t lied 🤥 yet. Thanks for sharing!

[@elliotsimon9918]

The MV2 literally just saved my last mix. I like to use it on buses to get a fantastic sense of control between elements. It works!

[@tonicfoxgaming]

i must say i watched this and was really not sure how well it would work with my mix. it BLEW MY MIND! I added it to my bus and started singing things and holy moly did it not only save my mix but brought it life. This WILL be a go-to for me now.

[@Phober]

Please continue explain like that in the video, its really helpful for beginner like me to understand what is actually happening in this tutorial, keep it up🙏

[@DylanRotich]

I recently picked up MV2, RVox, SSL EV2 , and SSL G Master Buss compressor from waves. After playing around with them MV2 was my clear favorite and most useful plugin. That upwards compression is just so easy and essential to use.

[@BillGraper]

I just bought the MV2 plugin last night for $29.99. I plan on using it just for upwards compression, followed by my Fabfilter Pro-C2 at a lower ratio. I want them to dance together & make the song smile. 😁

[@VenVile]

This is dope. This plugin would be perfect with some attack and release settings for each though.

[@MastroTunes]

Agreed, I’m wondering why waves would limit something that seems so necessary.

[@lilwombat]

Yeah that's the only reason I don't use it I never like how the attack and release sounded

[@21xero70]

​@@MastroTunes Not that it matters, but what i think waves did this on purpose because the plugin screams simplicity, maybe their target market for this plugin is for those who are more amateur beginners and are teaching themselves mixing as opposed to some more experience people like ourselves that look for more optical solutions and delivery styles.

[@CreativeMindsAudio]

I have a love hate relationship with this plugin, mostly because of the attack/release settings being meh and that i feel everything i put in has a colored sound in a way that doesn’t work for most material. It feels too simple at times, but can be good on some poorly recorded tracks.

[@paulaudialterampartem6906]

For me, its simplicity is its beauty. It has saved the day as i have been struggling with some very old (but in demand) cassette recordings.What a job ! This has been a God send really :)

[@Iamdanybazz]

Crazy how I guessed the plugin before it was revealed Crazy

[@ethai1]

lol tbh I was sure it was Vocal Rider.

[@MisterWessells]

teach me guru

[@sinhalatechbytes2045]

me too :D

[@sinhalatechbytes2045]

also the Oxford inflator is great for this job

[@WilliamGarrisonArts]

Yeah My first thought was RVox, then Vocal Rider...I actually didnt know about this one.

[@Chunographx]

I’m glad i chosed waves, these tutorials and edutaiment videos are just what we need , thank you from a home studio producer

[@strawberrycrxme]

I've always used this plugin to amplify sound, I never knew it could be used like this. Now my vocals sound more professional and mixed!!

[@beandog100]

Thank you brother. That was a really professional, to-the-point tutorial. Going to the MV2 right now 😎 x

[@edmlv]

Love this video series! Would be awesome to see a comparison of use of MV2 vs Vocal rider and also vocal chain with all waves plugins!

[@ladyjulia4038]

Hey friend I am extremely hard of hearing. How you showed the vocal track was very helpful for me. Thankyou and keep killing it!

[@stikkkymohbeatz1814]

I just found a new plugin for compression. Very easy to use and vey Effective. thanks

[@anthonypicone3463]

Don't underestimate automation before compression.

[@mindblower113]

Just apply the limiter and buum

[@igorzavalnyi5341]

can automation be that fast to deal with peaks and lows in a single word?

[@anthonypicone3463]

@@igorzavalnyi5341 real automation is done manually with the editing tool. I've heard Mutt Lang say he would sometimes spend 8 hours automating a vocal track

[@anthonypicone3463]

@@igorzavalnyi5341 it's not about shortcuts and speed. It's about getting the right mix no matter what it takes. I've found I get much better results when I spend time manually automating the vocals. There are sometimes issues related to vowels which occupy certain frequencies. In that case, a multi band compressor would do the trick by only grabbing those certain midrange frequencies

[@millies1264]

@@anthonypicone3463 Dang really!? I'm on song 18 of my first album (or what's turning into two albums...) and like, dang! Are you talking about automating the volume? If so, what about Waves Vocal Rider???

[@शिव_सागर]

Thank You Very Much Sir! 🙂🙏

[@jeffroberts_tunes]

I've been using it as a bus compressor on the master fader for a while with the Good Leakage setting. Maybe tweaking the settings some after the preset and often not. I like the warm gluing together it does.

[@azstratus1]

Tremendous tip and demonstration! I never knew that plugin could do that for vocal applications (and more).

[@DoitYHWH]

Serious tutorials with serious plugins! Thanks Dan!

[@OverdriveMusic]

Jaycen Joshua often uses the MV2 as his parallel compressor on vocals. Man is a legend.

[@cgsmithinnola]

MPA told me how to utilize the MV2 on my Kick and Snares and I can't believe I got some things done without it before!!

[@albertwangny]

Thank you so much! Almost all Waves plugins are dug by you! Great job!

[@yongewok]

Sean Paine demonstrated the MV2 a few years ago at my school, I've been a proponent ever since

[@jabulanimahlangu6863]

this is the best tutorial I have ever seen

[@eu.moraez]

Thank You Waves! I Love my Waves Plugins!

[@signaltheplug]

MV2 is the sauce the difference is instantly noticed! Even on Drums! Hits different!!

[@dancooperwaves3685]

Good call on drums!!

[@tonycalderamx]

You apply it to the whole drums?

[@LuffyAkAMaDGuY]

beast comp. I usually set this plugin third to last

[@SmallAxeMP]

I was about to say the MV2 way before he revealed it. I did videos using this and made presets with it. It is a killer on BKV.

[@mashzmash]

For my taste, I thought the "not enough compression" example at 1:17 was actually quite nice for this style.

[@PK-uj8mp]

That's why mixing is an art, and not simply something you automate

[@romull]

Yeah! One of my favorite plugin!

[@englishiowa]

The phrase “double bagging compression” hit me differently than it prob should 🤣

[@BartekEVH]

Yes, this is fast and great solution.

[@AndyKingCo]

Just got it and love it on vocals! Secret weapon plugin

[@gerisyandrayusman241]

Good job, Mr Graphic ilustrator👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼. Make videos like this again please , Waves.

[@dancooperwaves3685]

Will do!

[@didierramirez3842]

Nice. Creo es mejor conservar el dinamismo de la voz y este mv2 lo hace super bien además de conseguir uniformidad en el. Volumen genial. Gracias bro gracias to the team waves

[@ryanybos]

Thank You Dan, I just added the MV2 to my go to Vocal Bus. I've had the plugin for quite a while now but didn't take (or have) the time to try it out until watching today. At first was a bit skeptical with no control over attack n release but the end result after comparison was spot on. p.s. who is Jim? Lol

[@biged3175]

I have always been using the MV2 in series with other compressors. No wonder it sucked. The MV2 can do it all on its own! Can't wait to try this out. I'd still add the RVox after it however. Thanks for sharing!

[@cult2]

@Wayne Brown thanks for this vid

[@thegroove2000]

WOW I have also been getting into this plug in of late and I can confirm it works wonders and really easily.

[@thegroove2000]

Its works on all kinds of dtynamic material.

[@oceanbeats4460]

I've been using on mostly low level comp but I will also try both high and low

[@Niccks]

Chain for vocals: gate, deesser, gain automation , limiter, subtractive eq , compression, additive eq, saturation, reverb, delay

[@panayiotisstauridis6708]

Dude this is a life saver thanks soooo much

[@JackhammerSiesta]

Downwards and upwards compression then.

[@romanokoenmusic]

Great vid. Cool songs you worked on.

[@ericktellez7632]

this might be weird, but what i tend to do is riding the vocals first, using either a volume plug in or a trim control on the audio file, automate the volume on the loudest parts, and the quietests parts raise them a little bit as well, when it is more balanced then i used a compressor either for the short peaks in peak mode or if is just for the tone and coloration in the RMS mode.

[@ProjectHMF]

Based

[@Mongoosh]

Nice going to try it, i have it in my bundle to

[@LeDungProducer]

wow wow thank you so much

[@CyrilleBoucanogh]

great tips! A lot of famous producers' favourite trick. Although, I wouldn't recommend compressing vocal so aggressively in the example on 5:45. It sounds too flat for this genre and naturality of the vocal. Also in the second example on 5:26 the vocal started sounding smaller after compression, especially when monitoring on a quiet volume.

[@kensmechanicalaffair]

That's what parallel is for.

[@CyrilleBoucanogh]

@@kensmechanicalaffair Parallel is the King, but in this case Upward compression would bring back all the highest picks and make them stand out. Just moderate serial compression would do the job perfectly.

[@kensmechanicalaffair]

@@CyrilleBoucanogh Or in my case pick up a moderate ground noise, lol.

[@horia43]

That seems like one very good product ! Can someone please tell the name of the other two songs in this video ? I couldn't find them at all and been searching for a while. The first one is Now You're Blood · The Boot Inn Band I would really appreciate, thank you !

[@hollawait]

I am learning more daily from yt than I did in music school. 😐

[@AjmalOmid]

Thanks a lot good job

[@cedricmi]

What missing, as in many Waves plugins, is an autogain. This would make for a great update.

[@natebrown4939]

I use MV2 all the time. The secrets out now.

[@maruserumangaka]

I already do multiple (soft) compression. Cause I saw it years ago. And... I already use the MV2 In a bus (vocal) since several months. With soft compressions. For more... Body and presence But Thank you, it was really interesting

[@rhythm449]

GREAT PLUG

[@precisionsoundworksstudio]

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Well done, Dan... Great video!

[@czdot]

Thank you for a great reminder about this. However, I've just got Neutron Standard, so no Waves for me (not mentioning iLok) :-) Great video!

[@blockbusterlatefees7713]

Black Friday sale baby, $25 bucks!!! Thanks!!

[@Prod_JcBeatz]

very good this mv2 from waves, I have it and I didn't even know it was that good hehehehe, thank you very much

[@BenBilliato]

My new mentor❤🙏🙌🏾

[@burmesefist]

Excellent presentation....😊Subscribed!😊

[@kaivrock]

What I’ll do a lot of times is section off the peaks and just drag the volume on tha section down and then grab the whole section and raise the overall volume. Then I’ll compress. It sounds like a lot but you can get it done as quick or quicker and messing with the compressor

[@ThingsandStuffchannel]

couldn't you theoretically achieve this same effect as having an expander stacked with a compressor? Seems like the "secret sauce" is just an expander, correct me if I'm wrong. The plugin certainly simplifies things though. seems nice!

[@zachary963]

No. An expander raises the volume of a signal above a threshold. R Comp has this feature, and it’s expressed as “negative” compression ratios. MV2 is a low-level compressor, where a signal below a threshold is raised. Automation or possibly parallel compression is more similar than an expander.

[@aftertheshowmoviepodcast]

Thanks Waves. Now your blood!!!!

[@detroitzonelogic4724]

I think this is in my bundle have to check

[@_JohnnySav]

Good thing I already own this 😜!!! Now to test it out!!!

[@danalitheone]

I personally double stack the CLA - 2A and the RVOX, and get a great upfront raw vocal sound!

[@TheTonyTitan]

For hip hop?

[@danalitheone]

@@TheTonyTitan yeah tbh I use it for Hip-Hop and R&B, I’ve been mixing and mastering less than a year so if you know about ways to stack compression to get a good sound let me know!

[@AK-Official]

Great video, thank you 😊

[@txddyfarquh69]

I needed this!!!!! Omfg thank you

[@AzazelsGamingRealm]

This my favorite compressor 🔥🙏

[@hywearsprada]

UPDATED VOCAL CHAIN: 500 Series analog: Neve 1073lb > dbx 520 De-Esser > Maag EQ4 (Airband at 10k +6db) Crane Song Falcon (for peaks) > DAW: Autotune > Subtractive Eq (ProQ3) > 1176 > LA2A > Additive Eq (Pultec or SSL) > Rvox > Vocal Doubler > Slate Digital Fresh Air = Billion Dollar Sound

[@baronvonbeandip]

I still think the FET-Optical is better. The middle still gets blown out with MV2

[@ricardodantasmixer6988]

Nice! Thank you.

[@mictianrv]

Thanx for this one, so useful

[@pharaohonthetrack9544]

Works great on 808’s also

[@theoneandonly6533]

mv2 is great but there is no attack and release control.. but its decent :) good for slow type of music but not for fast dynamic vocals or instruments

[@RufusJacson]

Personally prefer the sound of the 2 compressor method - seems smoother and more balanced to my ears.

[@BananasananaB]

Creative advertisement for MV2. It does sound nice though.

[@thegroove2000]

High level downwards and low level upwards. So compressing and expanding YES?.

[@augustauseil]

Hey! Upward compression is still compression and not expansion because it makes the quiet parts louder, vs making the loud parts louder (expansion)

[@thegroove2000]

@@augustauseil Ok thanks.

[@JamEZmusic86]

Self-Law, I could be wrong. But I always thought the low level compression on this plugin was adding in some parallel compression to bring the low information up.

[@thegroove2000]

@@JamEZmusic86 mmmmm im sure the low is like an expander as that brings up the low level information. What ever it works.

[@ERICDIZZYASMR]

Wonder how this will sound using it in this chain: Mv2, Pro Q, C6, 76, 2A, Pro Q, Soothe 2.

[@purplezillia]

saturation?

[@GermanFragEditing]

I guess squashed

[@dansteinbok7955]

Turns into an infomercial at 4:00

[@darknightfawkes1028]

Just use volume automation so you can fix the majority of the problem before compressing

[@getulioprates]

Just use an analog compressor in tracking, so you don't waste too much time with volume automation.

[@darknightfawkes1028]

@@getulioprates yeah but I don’t want the loud notes to sound squashed, but thanks for the tip

[@chimapenticost8323]

You made it easy

[@mizzel3910]

The visuals tho.... Dope

[@yuckykent1355]

i finally understand

[@cuyabanodouradense5694]

Muito bom mesmo um tesouro escondido.

[@scrubsto]

this helped alot thx

[@seanizzlerecords]

YUPPP Most definitely

[@cjsterifix]

"take a bullet for you" My god this guy can sing, where can I find this song?

[@horia43]

Now You're Blood · The Boot Inn Band

[@awedee.0]

damn he gave away my sauce plugin

[@jezilmehta]

I really liked the song, composition and the way singer has sung.. What's the name of the song . Amazing Waves compression plugin 😊

[@horia43]

Now You're Blood · The Boot Inn Band