Increase Dynamic Range

1) Making / Mixing Music at Low Volumes can Help Better to Make  Sure Everything is at Suitable Level and Might Help to Increase Dynamic Range

2) Musical Background Helps to Judge What Sounds Should Where be Louder and What Sounds can be Quieter

– i.e. Knowing What Elements Need to be Loud and Which Ones can Still be Heard at a Low Volume

3) Avoid Direct Compression and Aim More for Parallel Compression and / or Group / Bus Compression

4) Use Multiband Transient Shaping

5) Balance / Limit Each Sound on Its Own so it is Optimally Loud, then you Do Not Need to Squash Things in the Master Process 

– i.e. Use a Brickwall Limiter or Clipper at the Last Stage of Either Each Channel or the Subgroup to Control Transients (the Very Short and Loud Peaks), without Losing Punch of Course

– Notice that this Works Better More for Minimal Kind of Styles and Less for Huge Pop Arrangements etc. where you Better Go with Parallel Compression and / or Group / Bus Compression

6) When Possible Line Up All Midi Notes so Velocity is Right there, e.g. Synth Bass, Leads, Sequences can Access Stronger Attack with Higher Velocities (i.e. Less Velocity = Less Dynamics)

7) Compensate Sustained Elements that Suffer from Dynamics with High Dynamics Material (e.g. a Pad vs Percussive Attack)

– i.e. Having Sounds that Complement Each Other

8) EQ Settings with a Rather Broad Frequency Selection (Dip or Boost) at the Right Place can also Change Dynamics

– e.g. EQ Out Unwanted Frequencies (and those you can Not Hear) 

9) Louder in the Real World have a Louder Echo/Reverb which Makes the Sound to Appear Louder than it Originally is (Psychoacoustic Effect)

• a Bit as you would Add a Lens Flare to a Photo to Make a Existing Light Sources Shine Brighter

• Now Use this Trick and Add a Dedicated Reverb Send Bus (that Allows to Send Parallel Amounts) Only to the Loudest Signals that have Strong Attack / Transients, so their Dynamics Seem to be Even Higher (Although it is a Psychoacoustic Effect)

• but Before the Reverb Add a Compressor and Expander (i.e. Compressor —> Expander —> Reverb)

• this Way the Compressor Increases RMS but Reduces Dynamic Range while the Expander Sends Out Only the Loudest Stuff to the Reverb

– Use per Track “Send” to Mix it to Taste

• as a Alternative you can also Try the Compressor After the Reverb

10) Lower the Noisefloor Where Possible which can also Add a Couple of dBs

11) Also Distortion can Add Perceived Loudness without Lowering Existing Dynamics

12) You can use Compression while Thinking the Other Way Around and Compress Things to Make Other Sounds Pop Out More

– i.e. Compress for Tone and Not Loudness

13) Although Natural Dynamics are Important in a Mix Before Mastering, a Balanced Mix is Still More Ideal for the Mastering Process than a Mix Where Certain Things Pop Out Too Uncontrolled

14) If at Master Stage, you Could in Theory Add Dynamic Range with a Rather Re-Balance of the Sounds with a Multiband Compressor or Multiband Limiter

– i.e. Divide Signal into 4 or 5 Major Ranges Such as 20-200, 200-4, 4-9 and 9-20 and then Play with Gain Range Volume / Compression / Limiting (Along with Main Limiting Controls)

15) If Kick vs Bass is Nice and Balanced with Nothing Else Interfering Everything will be Much Clearer

– i.e. Less Definition in the Low End Always Ripples Up into the Higher Ranges and Less Definition = Muddy Mix = Lower Dynamic Range

16) Use Clinically Precise Upward Expansion

• Expansion Increases the Volume of the Louder Elements (and Works the Opposite of Compression which Decreases the Volume or Louder Elements)

• Use it to Increase Punch of a Kick without Affecting the Sub or Click

• Increase Clarity of the Hi Hat and Cymbal Transients on the Master Bus

• Add Dynamic Lift to the Lower Mids of a Synth (Avoid Mud Though)

• Subtle Transient Enhancement to an Entire Mix, Mostly in the Upper Mids and High Frequencies 

a) Target Specific Frequencies, e.g. Target Snare Frequencies with a  Band Pass Filter to Around 650Hz to 5kHz

b) Set Mode of Dynamic Tool to Expand (and Not Compression)

c) Set Mode of Dynamic Tool to Only Affect the Mid

d) Play with Threshold so that the Signal Exceeds the Threshold

e) Reduce the Output so the Audio is the Same Loudness as Before the Effect was Introduced 

d) Start Tweaking the Knee, Ratio and Attack/Release Settings so it Works Musically with the Rest of the Mix, e.g. Very Quick Attack to Push Transients Up and Moderate Release to Return Naturally to Original Level (Approx so it Comes Back to Original Level Before the Next Hit)