Side-Chain Question?

Post by **Zamise** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 2:55 am

Do you have to have a mixer or compressor with this option on it to do it? Can you do it via AuxFX on a mixer to a compressor/noisegate/limiter then back into the mixer some how? I'm not looking for a software option and I don't have mixers with it or a hardware compressor with that option built in to it, but I do have AuxFX in my mixer and some effects which includes compression and noisegate with thersholds and gate times, but I'm not sure if its possible. I've been thinking how to do it for last couple of days and I'm not getting it. Seems like it has to be a built in feature to be able to send one channel to affect another, might be able to do it with a synth that can vocode or modulate from an input carrier, but I'd like to not have to break that out quite yet.

Thanks anyone!

Post by **Stab Frenzy** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 3:51 am

If your gate or compressor has a sidechain input then just plug whatever you want to be doing the pumping into that. If it doesn't you could maybe rig something up by using a stereo linked compressor and running your pumper signal in one side and your pumpee signal in the other. Wouldn't work exactly as well, but could be usable.

Post by **Zamise** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:05 am

Ah thanks Stab, I've nothing that says side-chain on it to use it I know, but you gave me an idea with your second suggestion. Howeve its going to involve panning to the pumpee, spliting the pumper back into another channel on the mixer. Damn that sounds like a plan and half, got to try it now, see what kind of results I get. Wish I just had something with side chain on it tho. Thanks again.

Post by **Zamise** » Tue Apr 22, 2008 12:00 am

Spent hours trying, nothing I do seems to give me a good side-chain effect. Guess I'll have to fall back on to some software, or get something with it built in

Post by **Zamise** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:44 am

Update if anyone is intrest... I broke down and bought a DBX 266xl compressor/gate. This c**p aint easy nor what or how I expected it to work or do it, but I finally got some pumping action going on.

Video demo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyYGRuvZPH0

Shanesaw · Post by **Shanesaw** » Sat May 10, 2008 4:19 pm

I picked up a Alesis 3630 compressor/limiter/gate for ducking mainly. Since I don't have a mixer... well, I do, but it's not being used, I run the "mix out" of the xbase into the "audio in" of the Electribe. The 'tribe acts as the splitter for the xbase because of its two outputs. So one output goes to the soundcard, the other goes to the "sidechain" input of the compressor. The signal being affected or "ducked" is the Little Phatty so I connected it to the input of the comp. and the output goes to the sound card.

It took me a while to get the pumping affect but once you get it dialed in it sounds pretty sweet. I usually make a lot of Boom-tss-boom-tss-boom-tss c**p and ducking really helps as far as keeping the bass from walking all over the kick drum.

9mm · Post by **9mm** » Mon May 12, 2008 6:36 am

recently got most my rack set up and patched together. been running some synths through my alesis 3630, sidechained to my electribe (and then through the ensoniq dp2). very interesting warbling/pumping effect (specially on strings, brass or pads)

all this talk gave me the push to get back into experimenting with my compressor, and yeah, a little fuzzy to get your head around, def didn't expect some of the sounds i got out of it.

th0mas · Post by **th0mas** » Mon May 12, 2008 3:05 pm

I bought a 3630 awhile ago specifically for ducking ala most of today's electro. The only thing we're doing differently with my band is the carrier that we are ducking is my guitarist playing guitar live.. hopefully it'll make a pretty awesome effect (it looks like it'll sound pretty cool from our jamming with it) plus all the pretty lights...

ballophun · Post by **ballophun** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 5:02 pm

Would it be possible for one of you guys to post some demos of the 3630 doing its thang?
Everyone says its "the sound" of electro. I wanna know what they mean.
I know what ducking is, but I just want to hear the quality of the 3630.