It is quite simple actually. I'll try to explain it with a compressor, kick drum and bass sound (because this is most likely why you want to know
). But you'll soon understand it works the same with gates and filters.
When you are compressing a bass sound, you set a treshold which in fact sets the maximum amplitude the sound may reach (without being reduced in volume). Every time your bass goes above this treshold the compressor will reduce the amplitude of your sound (according to the ratio you've set. for example ratio 2:1 means that the sound that goes above the treshold will be reduced to the half).
Now when you sidechain everything works the same. The only difference is that the compressor isn't triggered every time your bass goes above the treshold you've set. You now route the kick to the compressor (this is quite easy in Cubase since version 4, Live since version 6, I think, and Reason. Not sure about FL Studio. I think they integrated in version 9?) and it now is the kick that triggers the compressor to reduce the amplitude of your bass sound. So every time your kick hits, the bass sound will be reduced in volume. Handy for sounds hitting in the same frequency range like kick drums and low bass sounds.
So in fact you just use another signal to trigger your compressor/gate/filter/..
You can also use a filtered version of the original sound to reduce the volume of a specific frequency range like it's done by de-essing.
hell yeah! that is awesome!
so like, when a kik hits and is kinda mudded out by the bass you can avoid this by triggering a compression on that bass by the kik hitting?
swwwwwweeeeeeeeeetttttttt!!!
yeah with sidechaining u can try a multitude of different things, not even necesarily just the kick and bass, try hats with the kick, pads with ur snares - anything really. sure it can help ur kick stand out more in the mix by having other elements "duck" when it hits but thats still something that you can get around with careful enough EQ
thx for all the help. sidechaining is the biznissss!
i totally did it in reason and was able to make compression on the bassline every time the kik triggers. i see the possiblilites with this and will continue to experiment.
just be careful you don't duck the bass on an attack with the kick, or obviously enough you could loose the attack of the bass note and get that awful alt. rock effect of not hearing an attack on a note change and the notes somehow instantly changing, annoying as hell if you ask me
). But you'll soon understand it works the same with gates and filters.
