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I mean when you use a single sound, for example a sample kick. Why should i use a compressor when i could use an eq easily? So i would just easily decrease or increase the frequency i want. Do they do the same thing?

user64789
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They do not do the same thing.

Compressor: when the sound gets above a threshold, its volume is reduced in a set ratio (3:1 means for every 3 dB increase in the input signal you get 1 dB increase in the output). This is helpful for reducing the dynamic range of an instrument.

Equalizer: reduces/amplifies all sounds (regardless of their level) by a set amount (e.g. -3 dB) instead of a ratio. This is helpful for changing the frequency characteristics of an instrument, but does nothing to reduce the dynamic range.

A kickdrum does not produce "a single sound", it produces a broad frequency spectrum, so you'd have to set up a very broad filter on your EQ. You might as well reduce the input gain instead.

Hobbes
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Bro , compressor and eq are two different things Eq affects the tone of a sound ( how dull it is or how bright it is ) etc . Compressor controls the volume difference between the loudest and the quitest part of your sample by reducing the volume of sample once it crosses a certain volume level compressor on a kick drum can be used to increase kick’s transient ( that means that the initial part of your kick drum is low in volume and the part which comes later is louder in volume ) by using slow attack time and suitable release time or you can even tame down that transient ( if it is too much in volumes and hurting your ears ) by using fast attack time and suitable release time You can use eq to balance kick drum’s tonal aspects Summary is - that compressor reduces the difference between quitest and loudest parts of you sample Eq changes tone of sound

the almighter
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A compressor’s typical use case is to narrow the spread between the loudest parts of the sound across all frequencies while an eq is designed to enhance/reduce the levels of certain frequency ranges.

If you have a fairly narrow band of frequencies to work with, you’d achieve the same effect from adjusting the right eq band as a compressor. The difference between the two becomes more apparent when you working with a wider band of frequencies (e.g. a piano playing at different octaves).

Goose
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  • Thank u very much. But i wonder why people mostly use compressor on a narrow frqs like sample kick or snare. Its easier to use eq. Isnt it? – user64789 Nov 30 '19 at 23:35
  • @user64789 It boils down to what I’m trying to accomplish. I use eq for certain things and compressors for other things. Sometimes even both at the same time. – Goose Dec 01 '19 at 06:19
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I would typically utilize EQ to affect the tonal aspect of a given track or instrument, whereas I use compressors to affect the dynamics and sometimes to increase the sustain of a track or instrument. These are two different characteristics of sound by themselves and I often use them together to achieve results I cannot achieve without combining them together. When I first learned to use these toys, I studied everything I could get my hands on to understand what they did and how they functioned, but until I spent many hours playing with them and listening to the results, my initial understanding of their capabilities was incomplete. Book learning is only the beginning, be prepared to spend time getting to know the "feel" of what these devices can do. Welcome to this site.

skinny peacock
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