Compressor settings for fingerpicking electric?
 

I am fingerpicking my Tele (G & L Tribute ASAT Classic Bluesboy) through a Yamaha THR10 amp, on the "Clean" setting, and I am trying to figure out if and how to use the amp's compressor.

There are two compressors available in the THR10 settings editor, named "Stomp" and "Rack", and so far I have only tried "Stomp", because it only has "Sustain" and "Output" parameters, whereas "Rack" looks a lot more complicated, so I figured I'd just focus on "Stomp" for now.

I understand that "Sustain" in general means how long a note rings out, and I'm guessing "Output" in this case presumably means loudness (Volume).

So with that limited knowledge, what should I be looking (listening) for in setting the levels on this compressor?

Not familiar with the amp . But yes you basically have it correct.
That said here is a quick very brief compression 101

Compression basically does exactly as the name implies it compresses (reduces) the overall dynamic range (lowest to highest level) by reducing the loudest part of the range of the signal.

It does this by reducing the signal by a certain number of decibels (ratio) when it goes above a certain level (threshold)

Virtually all compressors also have the ability to raise the overall level of signal
either by increasing the input gain (before compression) or the output gain , also called "Makeup Gain "(after compression) some have both.

In the studio "rack" (or plugin) compressors often have the ability to also set how quickly the compression happens ( attack) after the signal goes above the threshold and how quickly the compressor stops compressing (release)

So I am guessing the "stomp" allows you control the makeup gain (Output) and the Sustain control is probably shortening the release time as you turn it up (which would get the signal back up to the uncompressed level faster and thus be louder longer)

In general what you should be listening for with compression is the sound seeming to move a bit more "Forward" (closer to your listening position) in the sound stage. ( it can also actually be used as a type of tone shaping tool, particularly when combined with EQ ) but that is a more advanced technique and probably better left for another discussion.

Like reverb it is a useful tool but can easily be overdone, especially when first using it .

Excellent explanation from KevWind there.

I have the THR10 and the 'Rack' compressor is my favorite because it's more configurable and I like to think I sort of know how to use compressors. I'm an aspiring producer and mix engineer so I've studied and used compressors for a while. :)

Generally speaking, with fingerpicking you want to even out the dynamics a little and maybe increase the sustain a little.

I would have suggested a ratio of 1:2 but it looks like it doesn't go lower than 1:4. So for example, with a ratio of 1:4, the compressor decreases everything beyond the set threshold by that ratio. So for example, if you go 4dB over the threshold, it's only 1dB above the threshold when it comes out of the compressor.

I would start with a relatively slow attack (30-50ms) to keep the transients sounding natural. A faster attack would cause the compressor to squeeze during the attack of the note which could sound unnatural.

I would then start with a fast release (<100ms) so the compressor lets go of the signal quickly after the input signal goes below the threshold again.

Sorry can't help you....but you helped me....i have had the THR for years...used the computer connection when i bought the unit and not since. But with your question i thought i would connect to the computer to save in the memories a few good tones which I have been wanting.

For those that don't know the Yamaha lunch box battery operated amp ...it is very good for home use and can do more by using the computer cable to get more sounds. Since i am not into trying a thousand options there are sound patches pre loaded and easy to save to the 5 memory banks on the unit.

Thanks for the replies.

I had quite a lot of failed attempts at saving my settings using the THR10 editor. After getting a good sound, I would do a "Save to Library", then when I tried to quit, it gave me a "Data has been edited, are you sure you want to quit?" message, which I thought was silly, since I had just then saved the settings to a library, so I clicked "Yes" to the "are you sure you want to quit" message, and when I restarted the editor, sure enough, all my changes were gone!

I did that about four times before realising that the editor was not going to change its ways, LOL.

So then I broke down and googled it, and found that you have to do File > Save (or Save As), which saves an image of the amp (for want of a better way to say it), which has the library "inside" it. So saving to the library does not save the amp image.

Not intuitive at all, if you ask me.

Any way, after all that messing around (I hate software, and I'm a software engineer!), I managed to create a decent sounding patch with the "Rack" compressor, with these settings:

Of course, I will probably come back tomorrow and hate this setting, LOL.

I will probably mess around with reverb now, which seems to be obligatory.

Thanks again.

I've got the THR-10C. It's a necessity for apartment living. Thanks for the tip on how to save, as I've lost stuff in the past.

As for the compressor settings, I'm still figuring it out. But based on the other patches in the library that come with the software, I see that rack compression isn't used very much. Isn't it more of a recording tool?

Svea

I think I saved it into one of the five available presets, so whenever I pressed the preset button I got a clean amp with a rack compressor. But I agree, the editor isn't that user-friendly.

I don't have the THR editor ready, but from the settings listed I can't tell right away how the numbers work on attack and release. You can try different knee settings. Knee is how hard the compression kicks in. Hard means it compresses directly past the threshold. Soft means there's a slope of a few dB past the threshold making the transition from uncompressed to compressed a little more subtle.

Compressors are difficult to include in presets because the makers don't know what guitar you're playing and how much output it has. That's the problem I had with storing it in a preset because I have multiple guitars with different pickups and output levels.