Now, let’s go over some of the most common uses for sidechaining that you can incorporate into your own mixes. It’s a totally different way of approaching the hierarchy of songwriting. Some artists even sidechain lead vocal lines to their drums-so when the kick or snare hits, the lead vocal ducks. But if all of a sudden you sidechain those strings to a four-on-the-floor kick pattern, they start to sound like a synth on a dance track. For example, string sections are almost always left untouched other than some subtle EQ and reverb. Sidechaining is a good way to reinterpret the role of certain instruments in a song, too. This effect can also be achieved with things like vinyl crackle or ambient noises. But if you slam the threshold on your compressor, you can make it into a rhythm, almost like a cymbal. Well, other than the fact that it’s an effective tool for mixing, sidechain compression is a way to innovate because it allows you to turn non-instrument sounds into music.įor instance, it may seem strange to incorporate white noise into your mix. You can make that happen with your mix in real time by using sidechain compression. As soon as the characters start to talk, the music quiets down. Imagine you’re watching a movie and there’s a scene without dialogue, and the music is playing loudly.

In simple terms, it’s a way to set up your mix so that when one sound comes in, another one quiets down. For those who are unfamiliar, sidechaining means using the output of one track, such as a kick drum, to alter the compression on another track, such as a bassline. If you’re a producer, chances are you either use sidechain compression or have heard of it.

Fl studio side chain