[Andy Howell]

I think compression is a major tool in terms of consistency - along with mic positioning and good eq.

Compression needs to be used cautiously. A lot depends on your playing a vocal style - I have a powerful voice and find I get consistent results with two compressors on the vocal channel - the first is a very quick attack and quick release to tame the attack a little.

On fingerstyle guitar sometimes I don’t use compression at all - depends on the track.

One great go to for me is to set up a bus channel that uses a .25 delay - this offers a full and rich sound which often minimises the need for track compression. Try it on both vocals and guitar.

Finally, with compression ignore presets and use your ears !!!!