Compression (electric guitar)
Encyclopedia
Compressionis a subtle effect primarily for electric guitar
where the highest and lowest points of the sound wave are "limited". This boosts the volume of softer picked note
s, while capping the louder ones, giving a more even level of volume. This is frequently used in country music
, where fast clean passages can sound uneven unless artificially "squashed".
. The compressor tries to keep the output level approximately the same, even if the input level is decreasing. As a result, the sustain will seem to hold at its original level longer.
Compression has a side effect of raising the background noise of a signal. This can sometimes be circumvented with a properly-configured noise gate
patched in before the compressor.
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
where the highest and lowest points of the sound wave are "limited". This boosts the volume of softer picked note
Note
In music, the term note has two primary meanings:#A sign used in musical notation to represent the relative duration and pitch of a sound;#A pitched sound itself....
s, while capping the louder ones, giving a more even level of volume. This is frequently used in country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, where fast clean passages can sound uneven unless artificially "squashed".
Explanation
Compression reduces the height of the signal to a preset level. This level can change over time. Known as 'attack', a greater attack level will give a more aggressive sound.Audible effects
Another effect of compression is that it expands the length of a held note, or its sustainSustain
In music, sustain is a parameter of musical sound over time. As its name implies, it denotes the period of time during which the sound remains before it becomes inaudible, or silent.Additionally, sustain is the third of the four segments in an ADSR envelope...
. The compressor tries to keep the output level approximately the same, even if the input level is decreasing. As a result, the sustain will seem to hold at its original level longer.
Compression has a side effect of raising the background noise of a signal. This can sometimes be circumvented with a properly-configured noise gate
Noise gate
A Noise Gate or gate is an electronic device or software that is used to control the volume of an audio signal. In its most simple form, a noise gate allows a signal to pass through only when it is above a set threshold: the gate is 'open'. If the signal falls below the threshold no signal is...
patched in before the compressor.