I've been using Fabfilter Pro-MB for some time now to reverse some of the effects of music track dynamic compression during mastering...but not mixing, of course. I've found some interesting tidbits of information while using it:
1) Dynamic expansion with a good multiband upwards expander (like Pro-MB) is possible if the dynamics of the music track haven't been completely crushed into oblivion. In DR Database terms, this means that if the music track has at least a 6-8 dB rating using the "TT Dynamic Range Meter" (the standalone version or as a plugin for foobar2000), you have a reasonable chance of a good listenable outcome using multiband expansion. The maximum DR ratings that can benefit from expansion seem to be around 13-14 (dB-crest factor) on the DR Database scale. Any tracks compressed to lower dynamic range values seem to be "lost causes". It's much more productive to go on a hunt for a higher dynamic range version of the recording rather than trying to use a multiband expander.
2) The plugin settings used to expand tracks are usually most successful in increasing dynamic range in the higher frequencies of a track than the lower frequencies below ~100-200 Hz. This means that the crest factor ratings of the tracks from the TT DR Meter may not change very much (due to the fact that crest factor is really measuring bass dynamic range, but not really higher frequency DR), but the tracks themselves will present a much more crisp and forward sound quality for dynamic transients--like ride cymbals, crash cymbals, bells/cowbells, glockenspiel, all handheld percussion instruments (particularly latin instruments), string attack transients, marimba/vibe strikes, drums, and human voice transients.
3) The "steeliness" of string orchestras used in lush pop string arrangements and mass string orchestral scores (classical) will largely be suppressed if using the multiband expander carefully. This was a big surprise.
4) Any human voices, particularly female voices, will begin to sound much more realistic and without typical harshness that comes with listening to recordings having compression applied during mastering. This was the biggest surprise of all in my explorations using the expander.
5) The albums that respond most strongly and easily to multiband expansion seem to include those that had analog compressors applied during mastering (e.g., early-late 1970s albums), which apparently used continuously varying nonlinear compression curves without a sharp knee breakpoint/thresholding applied during mastering.
6) The music genres that seem to respond most strongly are funk, rock, folk, jazz (including smooth jazz), progressive rock with lots of drums/percussion, dance, and related genres. Those genres that seem to respond with more difficulty include smoother music genres having lots of midrange energy (i.e., ambient, new age, classical string orchestras, classical guitar, etc.).
7) All tracks that have used multiband expansion need to be adjusted before and after expansion using parametric EQ demastering.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
It's clear to me that the use of a multiband dynamic range expander is now standard equipment for my typical demastering tasks that I perform on most of my incoming discs.
I don't recommend trying to do expansion "on the fly" (without review and adjustment of expander settings track by track) unless extremely mild expander settings are used, which leads to barely audible subjective differences in the compressed tracks. Using an expander offline and taking a little time to get the setting right to get the best and most audible results is my strong suggestion in using these type of plugins. However, the task only has to be done once for the music tracks--then saved for future listening, instead of having to set up a custom string of plugins and parametric EQ settings each time a music track is played.
(My original text above was originally posted to another audio forum, albeit an unstable one, and has been moved to this forum to ensure its longevity.)
Chris
1) Dynamic expansion with a good multiband upwards expander (like Pro-MB) is possible if the dynamics of the music track haven't been completely crushed into oblivion. In DR Database terms, this means that if the music track has at least a 6-8 dB rating using the "TT Dynamic Range Meter" (the standalone version or as a plugin for foobar2000), you have a reasonable chance of a good listenable outcome using multiband expansion. The maximum DR ratings that can benefit from expansion seem to be around 13-14 (dB-crest factor) on the DR Database scale. Any tracks compressed to lower dynamic range values seem to be "lost causes". It's much more productive to go on a hunt for a higher dynamic range version of the recording rather than trying to use a multiband expander.
2) The plugin settings used to expand tracks are usually most successful in increasing dynamic range in the higher frequencies of a track than the lower frequencies below ~100-200 Hz. This means that the crest factor ratings of the tracks from the TT DR Meter may not change very much (due to the fact that crest factor is really measuring bass dynamic range, but not really higher frequency DR), but the tracks themselves will present a much more crisp and forward sound quality for dynamic transients--like ride cymbals, crash cymbals, bells/cowbells, glockenspiel, all handheld percussion instruments (particularly latin instruments), string attack transients, marimba/vibe strikes, drums, and human voice transients.
3) The "steeliness" of string orchestras used in lush pop string arrangements and mass string orchestral scores (classical) will largely be suppressed if using the multiband expander carefully. This was a big surprise.
4) Any human voices, particularly female voices, will begin to sound much more realistic and without typical harshness that comes with listening to recordings having compression applied during mastering. This was the biggest surprise of all in my explorations using the expander.
5) The albums that respond most strongly and easily to multiband expansion seem to include those that had analog compressors applied during mastering (e.g., early-late 1970s albums), which apparently used continuously varying nonlinear compression curves without a sharp knee breakpoint/thresholding applied during mastering.
6) The music genres that seem to respond most strongly are funk, rock, folk, jazz (including smooth jazz), progressive rock with lots of drums/percussion, dance, and related genres. Those genres that seem to respond with more difficulty include smoother music genres having lots of midrange energy (i.e., ambient, new age, classical string orchestras, classical guitar, etc.).
7) All tracks that have used multiband expansion need to be adjusted before and after expansion using parametric EQ demastering.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
It's clear to me that the use of a multiband dynamic range expander is now standard equipment for my typical demastering tasks that I perform on most of my incoming discs.
I don't recommend trying to do expansion "on the fly" (without review and adjustment of expander settings track by track) unless extremely mild expander settings are used, which leads to barely audible subjective differences in the compressed tracks. Using an expander offline and taking a little time to get the setting right to get the best and most audible results is my strong suggestion in using these type of plugins. However, the task only has to be done once for the music tracks--then saved for future listening, instead of having to set up a custom string of plugins and parametric EQ settings each time a music track is played.
(My original text above was originally posted to another audio forum, albeit an unstable one, and has been moved to this forum to ensure its longevity.)
Chris
Here's a Fabfilter Pro-MB preset file to get you started (enclosed blow). I use Audacity to run this plugin (freeware) since I'm most familiar with it. However, since this is a VST plugin, you can use any audio processing tool that handles VST plugins.
https://www.fabfilter.com/download#download-pro-mb-multiband-compressor-plug-in
The first month of use is free, so you can download it and play with it without cost. I chose to buy the plugin after 30 days since I found the plugin to be quite useful. YMMV. Try it.
I first recommend something like Audacity's Clip Fix... and then Normalize... to correct any track clipping first, then re-EQing the source music file to correct any bass attenuation or perhaps high midrange (1-5 kHz) overemphasis, since expanders/compressors are sensitive to signal level and any clipping still present in the track.
Chris
https://www.fabfilter.com/download#download-pro-mb-multiband-compressor-plug-in
The first month of use is free, so you can download it and play with it without cost. I chose to buy the plugin after 30 days since I found the plugin to be quite useful. YMMV. Try it.
I first recommend something like Audacity's Clip Fix... and then Normalize... to correct any track clipping first, then re-EQing the source music file to correct any bass attenuation or perhaps high midrange (1-5 kHz) overemphasis, since expanders/compressors are sensitive to signal level and any clipping still present in the track.
Chris
I've been using the Pro-MB plugin since mid-June, and have a few albums that I've applied it to, such as:
If you own any of the above albums (physical disc or download...but not streaming services) and wish to hear what the plugin can do, send me a private message/conversation here and I can provide examples. Note that the above albums were chosen mainly for lower album dynamic range values and do not necessarily represent my typical listening preferences.
In addition, I own many more albums on physical disc, and can provide examples from that list by request. Some examples are attached below (not an exhaustive list).
Chris
| ‘Four’ & More: Recorded Live in Concert - Pro-MB [Miles Davis] |
| A Day Without Rain - Pro-MB [Enya] |
| Ambient Collection - Pro-MB [The Art Of Noise] |
| An Ancient Muse - Pro-MB [Loreena McKennitt] |
| A Valid Path - [Alan Parsons] |
| Bad Co - Pro-MB [Bad Company] |
| Beat Street - Pro-MB [Rick Braun] |
| Bellavia - Pro-MB [Chuck Mangione] |
| Birds of Fire - Pro-MB [Mahavishnu Orchestra] |
| Birth of the Cool - Pro-MB [Miles Davis] |
| Bitches Brew - Pro-MB [Miles Davis] |
| Blow by Blow - Pro-MB [Jeff Beck] |
| Boston - Pro-MB [Boston] |
| Breakfast On The Morning Tram - Pro-MB [Stacey Kent] |
| Can't Buy A Thrill - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| Chaka - Pro-MB [Chaka Khan] |
| Confessions On A Dance Floor - Pro-MB [Madonna] |
| Countdown To Ecstasy - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| Crosswinds - Pro-MB [Billy Cobham] |
| Deodato 2 - Pro-MB [Deodato] |
| Dreamflight - Pro-MB [Herb Ernst] |
| Elements - Pro-MB [Ira Stein / Russel Walder] |
| Everything Must Go - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| Fresh Aire - Pro-MB [Mannheim Steamroller] |
| Fresh Aire 8 - Pro-MB [Mannheim Steamroller] |
| Fresh Aire II - Pro-MB [Mannheim Steamroller] |
| Getz / Gilberto - Pro-MB [Stan Getz And João Gilberto Featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim] |
| Global Drum Project - Pro-MB [Mickey Hart Band] |
| Gold & Platinum (disc 1) - Pro-MB [Lynyrd Skynyrd] |
| Good To Go-Go - Pro-MB [Spyro Gyra] |
| Greatest Hits! - Pro-MB [The Association] |
| Harold F - Pro-MB [Harold Faltermeyer] |
| Hot Rocks 1964-1971 (disc 2) - Pro-MB [Rolling Stones] |
| I Remember When - Pro-MB [Kellylee Evans] |
| It's That Girl Again - Pro-MB [Basia] |
| Katy Lied - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| Kisses In The Rain - Pro-MB [Rick Braun] |
| Leftism - Pro-MB [Leftfield] |
| Live Evil - Pro-MB [Miles Davis] |
| Music Of The Spheres - Pro-MB [Mike Oldfield] |
| Mysterium Tremendum - Pro-MB [Mickey Hart Band] |
| On Air (DTS) - Pro-MB [Alan Parsons] |
| Paper Airplane - Pro-MB [Alison Krauss & Union Station] |
| Pretzel Logic - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| Quadrophenia - Pro-MB [The Who] |
| Shakin' the Ground - [Ole Børud] |
| Silver Rain - Pro-MB [Marcus Miller] |
| Sonic Seasonings - Pro-MB [Wendy Carlos] |
| Spectrum - Pro-MB [Billy Cobham] |
| Tales Of Mystery And Imagination - [The Alan Parsons Project] |
| Tears Of Stone - Pro-MB [The Chieftains] |
| The Absolute Sound - Pro-MB [Hearts Of Space] |
| The Best Of - Pro-MB [Kathryn Tickell] |
| The Best Of Sade - Pro-MB [Sade] |
| The Essential John Denver - Pro-MB [John Denver] |
| The Fabulous Baker Boys [Dave Grusin] |
| The Lost Christmas Eve - Pro-MB [Trans‐Siberian Orchestra] |
| The Royal Scam-1985 - Pro-MB [Steely Dan] |
| The Very Best of the Tower of Power: The Warner Years - Pro-MB [Tower Of Power] |
| The Wind That Shakes The Barley - Pro-MB [Loreena McKennitt] |
| Tommy [Multi-Channel 96_24] - Pro-MB [The Who] |
| Try Anything Once - Pro-MB [Alan Parsons] |
| Valley In The Clouds - Pro-MB [David Arkenstone] |
If you own any of the above albums (physical disc or download...but not streaming services) and wish to hear what the plugin can do, send me a private message/conversation here and I can provide examples. Note that the above albums were chosen mainly for lower album dynamic range values and do not necessarily represent my typical listening preferences.
In addition, I own many more albums on physical disc, and can provide examples from that list by request. Some examples are attached below (not an exhaustive list).
Chris
Thank you Chris, very interesting topic.
It is a shame that otherwise superb music is sometimes compressed to death (Adele comes to my mind).
I had a similar thought if it is possible to "expand" the dynamics of the recoding again to make it more enjoyable.
To play with it once I bought for cheap an analog Behringer composer(?) on ebay but unfortunately it never arrived.
Do you have experience with simple analog (or digital nowadays) dynmics effect devices from Behringer, Alesis and the likes?
e.g:
https://www.behringer.com/product.html?modelCode=0817-ABD
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/behringer-mdx2200-composer-pro
It is a shame that otherwise superb music is sometimes compressed to death (Adele comes to my mind).
I had a similar thought if it is possible to "expand" the dynamics of the recoding again to make it more enjoyable.
To play with it once I bought for cheap an analog Behringer composer(?) on ebay but unfortunately it never arrived.
Do you have experience with simple analog (or digital nowadays) dynmics effect devices from Behringer, Alesis and the likes?
e.g:
https://www.behringer.com/product.html?modelCode=0817-ABD
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/behringer-mdx2200-composer-pro
Hi Joe.
The only experience I have with analog hardware expanders is the old dbx expanders of the 1970s. Just like all analog EQ devices, each of these type of units are susceptible to noise and other sound quality issues that digital-only plugins seem to be able to avoid.
Additionally, I've found that re-EQ of the resulting higher dynamic range music tracks is usually required in order to mitigate the effects of dynamic expansion. The de-esser function of these type of units is but one way to deal with the potentially resulting side effects of sibilance creation, something that is usually hidden by the use of compressors in the first place during mastering (and revealed once again in the recording by using upwards expansion). The original source of this sibilance seems to be from mistakes made during recording by vocalists that are singing too closely into a microphone, and/or failure to use effective vocal sibilance/blast shields during recording.
It's actually very straightforward to re-EQ the resulting sibilance occurrences using the DAW EQ software itself (such as Audacity freeware in my case), thus lending an added degree of control over each instance of sibilance "blast" to minimize the audible effects of sibilance removal. YMMV.
Additionally, there are other "low-Q" effects of dynamics enhancement that require careful listening and re-EQing to correct, I've found. All of these effects seem to be best handled by careful post-expansion processing EQ to bring the percussion instrumentation back into overall music track balance.
Trying do do all this with a single pass-through hardware based device (like you highlighted, above) I would find to be more like using a hammer than using a surgical instrument to correct. That's why I advocate upwards expansion via digital plugin, such as Pro-MB.
Having said that, there may be instances where something like a hardware-based expander may be used to subtly and partially reverse the effects of compressors used during any of the stage of the music production process--something that is quite mild and non-obvious.
Chris
The only experience I have with analog hardware expanders is the old dbx expanders of the 1970s. Just like all analog EQ devices, each of these type of units are susceptible to noise and other sound quality issues that digital-only plugins seem to be able to avoid.
Additionally, I've found that re-EQ of the resulting higher dynamic range music tracks is usually required in order to mitigate the effects of dynamic expansion. The de-esser function of these type of units is but one way to deal with the potentially resulting side effects of sibilance creation, something that is usually hidden by the use of compressors in the first place during mastering (and revealed once again in the recording by using upwards expansion). The original source of this sibilance seems to be from mistakes made during recording by vocalists that are singing too closely into a microphone, and/or failure to use effective vocal sibilance/blast shields during recording.
It's actually very straightforward to re-EQ the resulting sibilance occurrences using the DAW EQ software itself (such as Audacity freeware in my case), thus lending an added degree of control over each instance of sibilance "blast" to minimize the audible effects of sibilance removal. YMMV.
Additionally, there are other "low-Q" effects of dynamics enhancement that require careful listening and re-EQing to correct, I've found. All of these effects seem to be best handled by careful post-expansion processing EQ to bring the percussion instrumentation back into overall music track balance.
Trying do do all this with a single pass-through hardware based device (like you highlighted, above) I would find to be more like using a hammer than using a surgical instrument to correct. That's why I advocate upwards expansion via digital plugin, such as Pro-MB.
Having said that, there may be instances where something like a hardware-based expander may be used to subtly and partially reverse the effects of compressors used during any of the stage of the music production process--something that is quite mild and non-obvious.
Chris
Excellent topic, Chris. I’m surprised to hear you say that the list above was chosen for its low album dynamic range. I don’t own the majority of those, but I own some which were on my lists years ago for demo material. One immediately jumps out as highly dynamic. The Mannheim Steamroller fresh aire. With its prelude and Chocolate Fudge. The vinyl version of that was played many times at natural sound in Framingham, Mass, and by me at home to show off my early systems in the 70s and 80s.
I’ll send you privately a list of which albums I have so I can get a taste of what you’re talking about with this combination of de-mastering and dynamic range expansion, in software.
I’ll send you privately a list of which albums I have so I can get a taste of what you’re talking about with this combination of de-mastering and dynamic range expansion, in software.
Thanks for the comments. The first Fresh Aire album (recorded ~1975) as well as FA 8 have always sounded a bit muddled to my ears relative to the other Fresh Aire albums (2 through 7). I've always relegated the first album to a lower status among the first three albums. Using Pro-MB on that album's tracks did spruce them up to a level commensurate with FA 2, so I'm now listening to it much more.
Yesterday, I completed my initial demaster/upward expansion of an album from the Tedeschi Trucks Band (Revelator), which turned out nicely. This album was listed by a Jubilee dealer as an example of a hi-fi album to audition the differences between the 1st-Gen and 2nd-Gen Jubilee. I think that in this case, his self-described tinnitus is probably at work, since the album itself has low dynamic range relative to other hi-fi albums used to show off Jubilee performance. After expansion using Pro-MB, the album takes on a completely different character, much more "live" sounding instead of "canned".
Chris
Yesterday, I completed my initial demaster/upward expansion of an album from the Tedeschi Trucks Band (Revelator), which turned out nicely. This album was listed by a Jubilee dealer as an example of a hi-fi album to audition the differences between the 1st-Gen and 2nd-Gen Jubilee. I think that in this case, his self-described tinnitus is probably at work, since the album itself has low dynamic range relative to other hi-fi albums used to show off Jubilee performance. After expansion using Pro-MB, the album takes on a completely different character, much more "live" sounding instead of "canned".
Chris
Of the 75 or so discs that I've demastered and used dynamic expansion on, the following albums seem respond the strongest (in a positive way):
Of course, this list grows daily but just as a snapshot in time--the above albums represent a fairly wide spectrum of genres that seem to respond well to the techniques mentioned here. I've really only begun my journey using the Pro-MB plugin to repair tracks subjected to compression.
So my learning curve is still relatively steep using this plugin, even though I've been demastering music tracks for ~10 years now (and well over 25,000 tracks to date). My more general-purpose demastering learning curve using parametric EQ, modulation distortion reduction via infrasonic noise attenuation, and declipping techniques is now well within the "state of the art" of techniques that I use.
Note that recordings ripped from phonograph records suffer from the effects of ticks and pops, due to the impulsive-like characteristic of noise sources. I don't recommend trying dynamic range expansion techniques on ripped tracks from vinyl, etc.
Chris
| Alan Parsons | A Valid Path |
| Try Anything Once | |
| Alison Krauss & Union Station | Paper Airplane |
| Bad Company | Bad Co |
| Billy Cobham | Crosswinds |
| Spectrum | |
| David Arkenstone | Valley In The Clouds |
| Deodato | Deodato 2 |
| Harold Faltermeyer | Harold F |
| Hearts Of Space | The Absolute Sound |
| Jeff Beck | Blow by Blow |
| Loreena McKennitt | An Ancient Muse |
| The Wind That Shakes The Barley | |
| Mannheim Steamroller | Fresh Aire |
| Mickey Hart Band | Global Drum Project |
| Mike Oldfield | Music Of The Spheres |
| Miles Davis | ‘Four’ & More: Recorded Live in Concert |
| Ole Børud | Shakin' the Ground |
| Rick Braun | Beat Street |
| Kisses In The Rain | |
| Spyro Gyra | Good To Go-Go |
| Stacey Kent | Breakfast On The Morning Tram |
| Steely Dan | Can't Buy A Thrill |
| Countdown To Ecstasy | |
| Everything Must Go | |
| Katy Lied | |
| Pretzel Logic | |
| The Royal Scam | |
| Tedeschi Trucks Band | Revelator |
| The Alan Parsons Project | Tales Of Mystery And Imagination |
| The Art Of Noise | Ambient Collection |
| The Chieftains | Tears Of Stone |
| The Eagles | The Long Run |
| The Who | Quadrophenia |
| Tommy [Multi-Channel 96_24] | |
| Tool | Fear Inoculum |
| Tower Of Power | The Very Best of the Tower of Power: The Warner Years |
| Trans‐Siberian Orchestra | The Lost Christmas Eve |
| Wendy Carlos | Sonic Seasonings |
Of course, this list grows daily but just as a snapshot in time--the above albums represent a fairly wide spectrum of genres that seem to respond well to the techniques mentioned here. I've really only begun my journey using the Pro-MB plugin to repair tracks subjected to compression.
So my learning curve is still relatively steep using this plugin, even though I've been demastering music tracks for ~10 years now (and well over 25,000 tracks to date). My more general-purpose demastering learning curve using parametric EQ, modulation distortion reduction via infrasonic noise attenuation, and declipping techniques is now well within the "state of the art" of techniques that I use.
Note that recordings ripped from phonograph records suffer from the effects of ticks and pops, due to the impulsive-like characteristic of noise sources. I don't recommend trying dynamic range expansion techniques on ripped tracks from vinyl, etc.
Chris